Fireside Reads

By Laura Clark

What better way to relax after a cold winter’s day of outdoor sports than snuggling near a warm fire, book in one hand and a hot beverage in the other?  Or, better still, take a day off to simply recharge your mental batteries.

TOP PICS

Granted, my top picks would not necessarily be yours.  As I become older and realize that training tips are most likely not going to make me any faster, I tend to gravitate towards works designed to stretch mental limits and that are relevant to family and work situations as well as to sports.

Do Hard Things: Why We Get Resilience Wrong and the Surprising Science of REAL TOUGHNESS by Steve Magness (HarperCollins, 2022). According to performance and executive coach Steve Magness, author of Peak Performance, the key to a satisfying life is not posturing or powering through tough times, but possessing the confidence to attempt the difficult and learn from inevitable failures. He has developed four pillars to help us cultivate this mindset. My favorite is “Respond instead of React.” A person who simply reacts lets circumstances dictate his or her actions; someone who responds navigates through possible options, transforming difficult situations into learning experiences. For more insight, listen to Travis Macy’s interview with the author: podcasts.apple.com.

A Mile at a Time: A Father and Son’s Inspiring Alzheimer’s Journey of Love, Adventure, and Hope by Travis and Mark “Mace” Macy (Charlesbridge, 2023). When Mace Macy, a consistent Eco-Challenge finisher learned he had Alzheimer’s disease, he and his son Travis, author of The Ultra Mindset, altered their plans to compete on the same adventure team, tackling the 400-mile, 11-day trek through the jungles of Fiji. Throughout this journey, family, teammates and friends learned to focus on strengths, not losses, and use a positive mindset to redirect options. This powerful tale is available to preorder now with a March release date. Meanwhile, whet your appetite by viewing Eco-Challenge Fiji on Amazon Prime.

YUM!

Some folks eat so they can fuel their running; others run so they can eat without guilt.  Most of us tend to balance midstance between the two.

Eating to Extinction: The World’s Rarest Foods and WHY WE NEED TO SAVE THEM by Dan Saladino (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2021). We have all heard of endangered animals, but what about plants? Sadly, it is a real thing and food journalist Dan Saladino’s tome is a wake-up call. According to Dan Saladino, “Of the 6,000 plant species humans have eaten over time, the world now mostly eats just nine, of which just three – rice, wheat and maize – provide 50% of all calories.” On a worldwide scale, the effects of this lack of diversity spiral when we consider the cultures, food, family traditions and skills that are being wiped out. A sobering look at our lifestyles and a plea for seed banks.

Rise & Run: Recipes, Rituals, and Runs to Fuel Your Day by Shalane Flanagan and Elyse Kopecky (Rodale Books, 2021). Adding to their successful Run Fast. Eat Slow. series comes this latest offering, emphasizing yummy breakfast treats to get us off on the right foot for our morning run. If you like muffins, you will savor this book, with almost every offering given its own full-page picture. Best of all, there is no guessing involved for those on specific diets with every recipe labeled appropriately – gluten free, vegan, etc.

ADVENTURE

Below are some huge adventures, but remember, with the proper mindset, every outing can be a journey of discovery.

Naked at the Knife-Edge: What Everest Taught Me about Leadership and the Power of Vulnerability by Vivian James Rigney (Forefront Books, 2022). Many of us strive to include one “reach” event in our yearly calendar – a race that lies within the realm of possibility but still teeters on the edge. For Vivian Rigney, that event was a summit of Mount Everest. After endless acclimation forays, he realized that while it would be great to summit, true success should be redefined as avoiding death and coming back alive. There is also a sobering assessment of those whose only qualification is enough money to afford the entry fee and assault the majestic mountain in a traffic-jammed line. Join Vivian as he rediscovers the truth to Sir Edmund Hilary’s observation, “It’s not the mountain we conquer, but ourselves.”

SOLO: What Running Across Mountains Taught Me About Life by Jenny Tough (Aster, 2022). Jenny Tough (incredibly, her real name) set herself the goal to run solo and unsupported across mountain ranges on six continents. A recurrent theme in Solo, whether Jenny is trekking on cliffs in the Andes or tackling fairly “comfortable” spots like her hometown Canadian Rockies, is the fact that the world is not seen as a safe place for women – causing her to hide her true agenda from the locals. A skilled writer, honed in the art of selective word choice, she has the guts to reveal her innermost self to her readers and invites you to recognize yourself in her achievements.

WOMEN’S ISSUES

Guys can skip these, but great discussion points for mixed-gender Sunday runs.

Next Level: Your Guide to Kicking Ass, Feeling Great, and Crushing Goals Through Menopause and Beyond by Stacy Sims, PhD (Rodale, 2022). This is the book I wish I had had 20 years ago when the change of life was pretty much relegated to the status of an old wives’ tale. At that juncture, I just wanted to be validated. But now, armed with this book, women can take charge of a life that seems to be spiraling out of control. Learn how to assume responsibility both physically and mentally and optimize your performance.

Unleash the Girls: The Untold Story of the Invention of the Sports Bra and How It Changed the World (and Me) by Lisa Lindahl (EZL Enterprises, 2019). Weirdly, although published in 2019, this book was awarded a starred review in the December 2022 issue of the preeminent review magazine, Kirkus. If you are a woman of a certain age, you will recall struggling to exercise in a sexy, frilly bra. It did not work. Enter Lisa Lindahl, one of the designers of the JockBra (soon rebranded as the JogBra), the woman’s jockstrap, which scarily looked like an elastic version of the same. Follow her memoir as she prototypes her design, learns entrepreneurship skills, and creates one of the most significant pieces of sports equipment, making Title IX a possibility at last.

BACK TO THE FUTURE

Learn from the past and expand upon it.

Daniels’ Running Formula by Jack Daniels, PhD (Human Kinetics, 2022). Far from an oldie but goodie, this fourth edition still teaches you how to train at the appropriate intensity, but has expanded to include the world of triathlons and marathons. Jack Daniels remains the “coach’s coach.”

Oregon Running Legend Steve Prefontaine by Paul Clerici (The History Press, 2022). We still mourn Steve Prefontaine’s death and are haunted by what might have been. Join Paul Clerici as he unearths the rest of the story. While most are aware of Pre’s struggles with the Amateur Athletic Union’s rigid amateur status requirements, he also chafed against the AAU’s ban on women’s competition. Even less well-known is his prison work, where he formed a running program for inmates at Oregon State Penitentiary and his Oregon Ducks logo which featured a Disney-style Duck and an Afro Duck running side-by-side. Who knows where his passion for inclusion would have led him?

Laura Clark (snowshoegal133@gmail.com) of Saratoga Springs is an avid trail runner, ultramarathoner, snowshoer and cross-country skier. She is a children’s librarian at the Saratoga Springs Public Library.