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The Science of Running: How to find your limit and train to maximize your performance Paperback – 17 Feb. 2014

by Steve Magness (Author)

657 ratings

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Reviews of The Science of Running:"The Science of Running sets the new standard for training theory and physiological data. Every veteran and beginner distance coach needs to have this on their book shelf."-Alan WebbAmerican Record Holder-Mile 3:46.91 "For anyone serious about running, The Science of Running offers the latest information and research for optimizing not only your understanding of training but also your performance. If you want to delve deeper into the world of running and training, this book is for you. You will never look at running the same."-Jackie Areson, 15th at the 2013 World Championships in the 5k. 15:12 5,000m best If you are looking for how to finish your first 5k, this book isn’t for you. The Science of Running is written for those of us looking to maximize our performance, get as close to our limits as possible, and more than anything find out how good we can be, or how good our athletes can be. In The Science of Running, elite coach and exercise physiologist Steve Magness integrates the latest research with the training processes of the world’s best runners, to deliver an in depth look at how to maximize your performance. It is a unique book that conquers both the scientific and practical points of running in two different sections. The first is aimed at identifying what limits running performance from a scientific standpoint. You will take a tour through the inside of the body, learning what causes fatigue, how we produce energy to run, and how the brain functions to hold you back from super-human performance. In section two, we turn to the practical application of this information and focus on the process of training to achieve your goals. You will learn how to develop training plans and to look at training in a completely different way. The Science of Running does not hold back information and is sure to challenge you to become a better athlete, coach, or exercise scientist in covering such topics as:· What is fatigue? The latest research on looking at fatigue from a brain centered view.· Why VO2max is the most overrated and misunderstood concept in both the lab and on the track· Why “zone” training leads to suboptimal performance.· How to properly individualize training for your own unique physiology.· How to look at the training process in a unique way in terms of stimulus and adaptation.· Full sample training programs from 800m to the marathon.

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About the Author

Steve Magness is a runner, coach, exercise physiologist, and a writer. He holds a M.S. from George Mason University in Exercise Science. Magness is the current cross country coach at the University of Houston and coaches professional runners including Jackie Areson (15th at 2013 world championships in the 5k), and multiple time world indoor competitor Sara Hall. In addition, he has worked for Nike, and served as a consultant to numerous Olympic runners and triathletes. He has been a serious runner since the age of 14 and has had numerous running accomplishments ranging from holding the Texas High School mile record (4:01.02), to qualifying for NCAA nationals. His writing include work for Running Times, Competitor magazine, and Runner’s World, IAAF’s New Studies in Athletics, and numerous other publications. Additionally, he maintains the popular running website www.ScienceofRunning.com

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Origin Press; 1st edition (17 Feb. 2014)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 344 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0615942946
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0615942940
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 21.59 x 1.98 x 27.94 cm

Best Sellers Rank: 77,826 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- 88 in Athletics
- 146 in Running & Jogging (Books)
- 2,021 in General Sports, Hobbies & Games

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657 ratings

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Steve Magness

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Steve Magness is a world-renowned expert on performance. He is author of the international best seller Do Hard Things. As well as the co-author of Peak Performance and The Passion Paradox. His forthcoming book is called Win The Inside Game. In his coaching practice, Steve works with executives, entrepreneurs, and athletes on their performance and mental skills.

His writing has appeared in Outside, Runner’s World, Forbes, Sports Illustrated, Men's Health, and a variety of other outlets. In addition, Steve's expertise on elite sport and performance has been featured in The New Yorker, Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Guardian, Business Insider, and ESPN The Magazine.

Steve received his undergraduate degree from the University of Houston and a graduate degree from George Mason University. He currently lives in Houston, Tx with his wife Hillary. Once upon a time, he ran a mile in 4:01 in high school, at the time the 6th fastest high school mile in US history.

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657 global ratings

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Customers find the book well-written and informative, particularly appreciating its guidance for training athletes. The physiology content receives positive feedback, with one customer noting its cutting-edge sections.

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Advice Readability Physiology

17 customers mention ‘Advice’15 positive2 negative

Customers find the book informative and useful, particularly appreciating the training section and guidance for athletes. One customer notes it serves as an excellent bridge between science and practice, while another mentions it's great for endurance coaches.

"...In all, very informative and well worth a read for those interested in competitive running." Read more

"This is a great book for endurance coaches who what to get up to date with current research in sports science and put it In to practice...." Read more

"...All-inall a very good buy indeed for any serious runner and very up-to-date - infinatelt bettyer than the hyped up but simply often incorrcet..." Read more

"...A refreshing and thorough insight, that leaves Pose, Chi and other guru style running theory on the starting line. Janos" Read more

15 customers mention ‘Readability’11 positive4 negative

Customers find the book well written and easy to read.

"...In all, very informative and well worth a read for those interested in competitive running." Read more

"...It is easy to read, but would benefit from a few more diagrams and tables...." Read more

"...A refreshing and thorough insight, that leaves Pose, Chi and other guru style running theory on the starting line. Janos" Read more

"...It's also hard to read at times and suffers from far too few diagrams [which are always helpful] and too much jargon - which is fine for a science..." Read more

5 customers mention ‘Physiology’5 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the book's physiology content, with one review highlighting its cutting-edge sections and another noting its excellent background in endurance running.

"...The sections on the physiology of running are cutting edge. The author then uses the science to create a systematic approach to training...." Read more

"At last, a book that gives you the theory and means to make serious gains in your running...." Read more

"...A good section on running form as well. The down side is the number of spelling mistakes and grammatical errors...." Read more

"Steve has an excellent background in endurance running...." Read more

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Nick Allamby
An excellent read for competitive runners.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 15 April 2014
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A book that is aimed at performance runners. The sections on the physiology of running are cutting edge. The author then uses the science to create a systematic approach to training. In all, very informative and well worth a read for those interested in competitive running.

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6 people found this helpful

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Julie
Perfect for endurance coaches
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 24 June 2014
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This is a great book for endurance coaches who what to get up to date with current research in sports science and put it In to practice. It is easy to read, but would benefit from a few more diagrams and tables. It explains why the same trainng program won't suit every athlete and how to adjust training to get the maximum improvement for all.

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4 people found this helpful

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December Hare
A game of two halves
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 1 April 2016
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I already have a burgeoning shelf on running books and bought this not because I was expecting it to say something radically different about the basics about running and coaching but because I like to read about running as I am interested in it academically; so my review is possibly skewed as a result.
Steve Magness is a coach with noteworthy credentials and his book is split into two sections. The first is basically about the physiology of running [what VO2 max and lactate thresholds are and why they do/don't matter] whilst the second part is on the 'coaching' side of things. As such the book's two halves read somewhat differently. [but more than they ought to.]
The first half as many others have noted is full of typo's and to me reads like a poorly drafted Master's dissertation, which is possibly what it started life out as. It's also hard to read at times and suffers from far too few diagrams [which are always helpful] and too much jargon - which is fine for a science textbook but not for something which I assume is aimed at the interested reader.
But all is not lost! The second half has many redeeming features and I enjoyed reading each and every chapter and am happy to say that the material felt fresh and enthusiastically presented. It was even quite different to what I have read in many other books given its coaching slant [as opposed to scientific slant] and I think would made a fine purchase for a coach or an athlete in interested in tailoring his/her work-outs.

I think what makes this better than most is the way the author tries to steer away from the cookie-cutter approach to coaching and work-outs and move more towards tailoring work-outs based on an individuals physiology. He suggest how work-outs can be tweaked not only by changing speed, length, intensity, frequency but also by adding other more subtler tweaks several of which I have already incorporated into my own running.
So overall 'a game of two halves'. If ever updated, I think the first section needs to be pruned and redrafted considerably and then this book would have a considerable competitive edge over the competition.

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34 people found this helpful

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Phill
Excellent for anyone wanting technical information
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 19 March 2014
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This is a first class book - some reviewers have criticised it for not providing pracrtical advice - anyone considering buying this book must realise that it does eaxactly what it says on the cover - it explains the science and as such it is very good indeed. However it is not difficult to glean many important practical principles from it if you simply read it carefully and think about it. All-inall a very good buy indeed for any serious runner and very up-to-date - infinatelt bettyer than the hyped up but simply often incorrcet articles found in many runners mags - this book is the real dael.

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7 people found this helpful

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Janos
Excellent!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 24 February 2014
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At last, a book that gives you the theory and means to make serious gains in your running. A refreshing and thorough insight, that leaves Pose, Chi and other guru style running theory on the starting line.

Janos

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9 people found this helpful

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Amazon Customer
the training section provided useful ideas to incorporate into my training
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 18 November 2015
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The editing errors that have been mentioned must relate to previous versions, as I found this book to be well written.
Whilst nothing included is particularly novel, the training section provided useful ideas to incorporate into my training, and I feel like I now have a better understanding of how the different training aspects fit together.

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2 people found this helpful

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S. C. Collins
Mixes science with the practical. Sort out the mistakes.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 23 March 2014
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This book is split into two halves, the science and theory side of running and then the practical part.

If you were only interested in the training program part you could skip the first half but then you would miss out on some interesting information. The training advice goes all the way from 800m to marathon. In reality most runners reading this book are probably not competing in 800m or 1500m and are more likely to focus on the 5k, 10k and marathon, so not all information will be relevant to your own training.

As with all things, and especially with the way Magness presents the information, you take the things that are going to work in your training for you. I especially liked Magness's take on strength training for runners, emphasising heavy weights and low reps, unlike most of the advice for runners these days which focuses on 'core' and high reps low weight. A good section on running form as well.

The down side is the number of spelling mistakes and grammatical errors. Did anyone proof read this? I thought this may just be an issue with the kindle edition, but a friend of mine has the hard copy and said the same thing, there is a spelling mistake on nearly every page. The kindle formatting is also not very good. Still if you can overlook this, there is some good info you can apply to your own training immediately.

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6 people found this helpful

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Kindle Customer
This book is people interested in High performance sports and Sciences.
Reviewed in India on 14 August 2022
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This book is very good. As anyone would suggest it is for High performance and Science freak. Not for normal "to-do" guidelines. It is having extremely intense content. And yes very outstanding practically helpful book vast out look to training.

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Philip
Great
Reviewed in Sweden on 10 March 2024
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Love this informative book

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Bertrand Chardon
Excellent livre
Reviewed in France on 18 June 2016
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Excellent livre sur le sujet de la préparation athlétique qui couvre tous les aspects importants d'une bonne préparation à l'exercice physique en général même si un emphase particulière est mise dans le livre sur la course à pied.

Notes importantes :
- Il s'agit d'un ouvrage EXTRÊMEMENT technique qui nécessite des connaissances relativement avancées en biologie et physiologie pour pouvoir en tirer le meilleur. L'approche est extrêmement scientifique et appuyée par une masse de diagrammes, tableaux, courbes et chiffres.
- Le livre est à ma connaissance uniquement disponible en anglais.
- L'auteur (Steve Magness) est connu pour son approche multi-dimensionnelles de la recherche de la performance et le soin qu'il met dans la préparation psychologique de ses athlètes (dont certains multi-médaillés).

Ce livre n'en reste pas moins une bible pour les amateurs de course à pied et de sport en général, que je recommande chaudement.

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Amazon Kunde
Gute Anregungen für die Trainingsgestaltung
Reviewed in Germany on 25 July 2017
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Das Buch ist in zwei Teile aufgeteilt. Die erste Hälfte ist ein Literaturüberblick über die aktuelle Forschung zum Thema Ausdauertraining. Im Nachhinein hätte ich diesen Teil auch überspringen können. Er mag zwar für Leute interessant sein, die bis ins kleinste Detail wissen wollen, warum und wie genau eine Trainingseinheit wirkt.

Für die meisten Leute dürfte der zweite Teil deutlich interessanter sein. Hier beschreibt er die Erstellung eines individuellen Trainingsplans. Anders als zum beispiel bei Daniels in der "Running Formula" gibt er aber keinen konkreten Plan vor, sondern will den Leser in die Lage verstetzen, einen eigenen Plan zu schreiben, der komplett auf den Läufer abgestimmt ist. Dazu gibt er einem allerhand Werkzeuge an die Hand, beispielsweise erklärt er verschiedene Arten der Progression von Intervallen und geht auf die Periodisierung (angefangen auf dem Level "Läuferleben") ein.

Mir hat das Buch sehr geholfen, einen eigenen Trainingsplan zu erstellen. Aber auch wenn man lieber einen vorgefertigten Plan nimmt, kann dieses Buch helfen, diesen noch etwas auf sich selbst anzupassen.

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Marjaana Rakai
Amazing book - opens up your eyes on how to do things
Reviewed in the United Arab Emirates on 14 February 2020
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I absolutely love this book!
It has really opened my eyes on how to look at exercise physiology for running. Highly recommend this book. One of the best out there.

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The Science of Running: How to find your limit and train to maximize your performance Paperback – 17 Feb. 2014

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5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent read for competitive runners.

5.0 out of 5 stars Perfect for endurance coaches

4.0 out of 5 stars A game of two halves

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent for anyone wanting technical information

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent!

5.0 out of 5 stars the training section provided useful ideas to incorporate into my training

4.0 out of 5 stars Mixes science with the practical. Sort out the mistakes.

Top reviews from other countries

5.0 out of 5 stars This book is people interested in High performance sports and Sciences.

5.0 out of 5 stars Great

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent livre

5.0 out of 5 stars Gute Anregungen für die Trainingsgestaltung

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing book - opens up your eyes on how to do things

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An excellent read for competitive runners.

Perfect for endurance coaches

A game of two halves

Excellent for anyone wanting technical information

Excellent!

the training section provided useful ideas to incorporate into my training

Mixes science with the practical. Sort out the mistakes.

This book is people interested in High performance sports and Sciences.

Great

Excellent livre

Gute Anregungen für die Trainingsgestaltung

Amazing book - opens up your eyes on how to do things