Christopher McDougall

After I finished this book, someone asked me whether it’s a good book for non-runners. Honestly, I have no idea.

Running has been a big part of my life for some time now. For the last ten years I’ve run. So it’s hard to say. When you put enough time into something, it’s pretty hard to separate yourself from it.

I can’t write a review from a non-runner’s perspective because that would be total speculation on my part.

What I can do is tell you that this is a fantastic book. If you show more are a runner, this is a must-read, easily the best book about running out there, and I’ve read a ton. You won’t find anything this in-depth, in touch, and you’ll never read anything else that gives you the vicarious thrills of superathletes and scientists alike.

The story is about the greatest endurance race of all time, but really that’s only a small part. It’s about a man who is feeling his body age and trying to figure what he can do about it. It’s about Caballo Blanco, a living legend whose story, a tall tale, is only more incredible because it is 100% true. The story of the Leadville 100 and the Tarahumara racing against Ann Trason is one of the best sports stories on the planet, expertly told by McDougall, and as any great sports story, it brings about greater truths about who we are and why we run.

More than anything, this books sets out to prove its title. Through science, through example, and through story after story of one incredible athlete after another, this book will leave no doubt in your mind that the greatest athletes in the world still like to get their drink on, that a group of humans can run down a deer, and that you and I were born to do it too.

It’s motivated me to try some new things. I don’t know if chia seeds are making me faster or stronger. And I can’t say for sure that barefoot running has unchained my feet and transformed them into running machines. But I can say that the spirit of the runners, Barefoot Ted, Scott Jurek, Billy “Bonehead” and Jen, the Lunas, and the dozens of characters in this book, each one more incredible than the last, the spirit of these runners is infectious and fuck this review I’m hitting the road. show less

Тази много широко рекламирана и много популярна книга за бягането се оказа поредния ню-ейдж боклук, гарниран с хипстър био натурален боклук и за капак псевдо-спортен боклук.

Да, в Андите 100% има митично загубено племе вегетарианци, които с една шепа чия на ден бягат по 300 км show more боси по планинските камънаци. Да, никой никога не ги е чувал и виждал, защото са древна забравена легенда но авторът успява да ги намери след дълго и мъчително търсене, изразяващо се в това да пита пиколото в хотела. Да, чия (тва са едни семенца) накисната във вода е тайната рецепта на племето, вълшебната енергийна напитка, която е супер био-еко-натурална и съдържа "енергийна и витаминна бомба" колкото десет други био-еко-натуралнаи ястия на едно.

Да, бягането е супер вредно, защото има мерзък корпоративен заговор на големите корпоративни корпорации за корпоративното производство на обувки за бягане с корпоративната фарма-мафия да ни държат в неведение, че всъщност ако бягаме боси всичко ще ни е наред (а не, както е всъщност, че меките обувки ти позволяват да бягаш на пети, което вредно за ставите, и че ако бягаш на пръсти всичко е ок).

Всичко в "Родени да тичат през каньоните на Мексико" е толкова предвидимо и по сценарий, че няма на къде повече - даже може да се каже, че авторът е събрал всички сценарии, които продават псевдо-научна и псевдо-медицинска литература, предавания, добавки и еко-био-картофи по 9 лв килото нарочно и е нацелил рецептата която да продаде книгата му. show less

It's about the author's experience adopting a neglected donkey, rehabbing him, and training him to run in a donkey race. The parts about the donkey, and also about the goats that McDougall had, were really fun. Unfortunately, there were also a number of digressions about McDougall's life and beliefs; thoughts about mental health, and those parts did not always seem needed. The book is set in Pennsylvania, near Amish country, where the author and his family live, so the setting is unique. show more Overall recommended, but maybe you could skip the chapters that didn't interest you. show less

Christopher McDougall, a US men's magazine writer, was fed up repeatedly injuring himself on insignificant short runs, prompting a trail of discovery into what makes ultrarunners such as the infamous Tarahumara tick and why the rates of runner injury have been significantly climbing ever since the invention of clever cushioned running shoes.

Even if you last ran in 1972 when you were 12 years old, I think this is a fantastic read for anyone. Part science, part travelogue, part social history, show more part anthropology, part extreme sport, it's peppered with a cast of fabulous characters such as the shy and reclusive Tarahumara people who run hundreds of miles up mountains for fun in sandals made out of old tyres, Caballo Blanco, the mysterious loner who turned his back on a life in the US to become an ultrarunning nomad in the Copper Canyon wilderness, and Barefoot Ted, the annoying US ultrarunner with insatiable verbal diarrhoea who became a respected pioneer for barefoot running.

It's utterly fascinating, and extremely well written. McDougall manages to really nicely knit investigation into the science and history of our bodies and distance running with a gripping travelogue which culminates in the first ever underground ultra race between the Tarahumara and a handful of selected US ultrarunners in the deadly terrain of their Copper Canyon homeland. As I read I was able to Google this infamous cast of characters and images of the Copper Canyon which really nicely complemented the book.

And in case you were wondering, it's the marketing devilment of Nike and the like that is behind our increased running injuries. Build up the natural muscles in your feet and ankles that the modern day running shoe prevents you using and your injury woes will behind you. Apparently.

5 stars - the Asics are in the bin and the barefoot trails are beckoning. show less