Reading - Coach Paul's top favorite running books 2021

Good morning!

In the last few weeks I have been asked a couple times, “what books would you recommend for runners/athletes/motivation”?.

I figured this would be a good quick topic to cover since I recently have discovered a new love for reading and listening to audiobooks.

I went from reading basically ZERO two years ago, to last year I averaged over 2 books a month when you combine audiobooks and regular paperbacks.

I have a ton that I still want to read, but im going to share my top few.

1) CANT HURT ME - Goggins
Ive read this one, AND listened to the audiobook. I think its safe to say this is one of my favorites.

2) 80/20 Running - Matt Fitzgerald
This book offers a great perspective on why its beneficial to not run “hard” all the time. Slow/easy runs are crucial to becoming a better runner, this is something I try to teach daily. Great book.

3) Big Book of Endurance Training and Racing - Phil Maffetone

I had the opportunity to meet and learn from this man a few times, and while he is a super quirky dude, he has a brain that is super interesting to pick. This is literally the first book I have ever read about endurance training, and I still believe its probably the most VALUABLE. It completely covers the “Maff” heart rate method, and I think its CRUCIAL for ANY new endurance athlete to understand this concept. While I dont fully support this type of training 100% for more advanced athletes, there is a ton of learning to be had in this book.

Those are my top three for today.

Other books that I have NOT read yet, but WANT to read, include…
- Ten Marathons: Searching for the Soft Ground in a Hard World

-26 Marathons: What I Learned About Faith, Identity, Running, and Life from My Marathon Career

I hope this list inspired you to do some reading, taking up reading, has really helped put me on a new path in life. What books would you add to this list? Let me know in the comments. If you enjoyed this article, please help me grow my blog and share with your friends.

Paul Duncan is a full time military recruiter, USAT Certified Coach, QT2 Systems Level 1 Coach, and OutRival Racing Level 3 coach. For coaching inquires, click HERE.