The Extra Mile

After a decade-long addiction to crack cocaine and alcohol, Charlie Engle hit bottom with a near-fatal six-day binge that ended in a hail of bullets. As Engle got sober, he turned to running, which became his lifeline, his pastime, and his salvation. He began with marathons, and when marathons weren't far enough he began to take on ultramarathons, races that went for 35, 50, and sometimes hundreds of miles, traveling to some of the most unforgiving places on earth to race.

A dominant force in the sport of ultrarunning, Scott Jurek is a seven-time winner of the 100-mile Western States Endurance Run and a two-time winner of the 135-mile Badwater Ultramarathon through Death Valley. Eat & Run offers an inspirational account of Jurek’s life as a runner and vegan. Regaling listeners with jaw-dropping tales of endurance, Jurek also delivers sound science and practical advice—as well as his favorite plant-based recipes.

In the Fall of 2006, Dean Karnazes, known as "the Lance Armstrong of the running world", took on the ultimate challenge: running 50 marathons in 50 states in 50 consecutive days. Dean set off in a caravan packed with fellow runners, with nothing more than a roadmap and a determination that defied all physical limitations.

Being mentored by Chrissie Wellington would be a dream for any triathlete. In To the Finish Line, Chrissie presents her distilled wisdom, hard-won over the course of her extraordinary career, to give all triathletes the chance to learn from the very best. Chrissie writes with emotional honesty, and her warmth and sense of humour also shine through. She speaks frankly about her own experiences - both good and bad - from her career. Such stories will be a source of great inspiration to listeners.

Vassos Alexander shares his insight from interviews with legends of the sport and his own gruelling but rewarding experiences of extraordinary endurance racing - including the legendary 152 mile Spartathlon, widely regarded as the world's most relentless race. Vassos dissects and explores the tenacity that propels many to keep on running and running and running....

The amazing life story of Britain's world conquering triathlete, Chrissie Wellington. Chrissie Wellington is the world's No 1 female Ironman triathlete, the current quadruple World Champion and World Record holder. In 2009 she was voted 'Sunday Times Sportswoman of the Year' and in 2010 was awarded the MBE. She is the undefeated champion of Triathlon, having won nine Ironman titles from nine races.

Travis Macy has summited glacial peaks in the French Alps, rappelled into limestone caves in China, and raced through parched deserts in Utah. In 2013 he famously won the Leadman Series, a combination of nearly 300 miles of high-altitude trail running and mountain biking over the course of five epic endurance races. Macy achieved all of these victories without elite professional training or even exceptional strength, speed, or flexibility.

Marathons have become too easy for some runners. What was once the pinnacle of achievement in a runner's life is now a stepping stone for extraordinary adventure in ultramarathoning. The number of ultrarunners - those running distances of 50k (31 miles), 50 miles, 100k (62 miles), or 100 miles - is growing astronomically each year. To date, there has been no practical guide to ultramarathoning. Now, Bryon Powell has written Relentless Forward Progress, the first how-to manual for aspiring ultrarunners.

Despite believing he was bionic as a child, Ira Rainey was far from an elite athlete with superhuman running abilities like the ones he read about in books. He was in fact an overweight and unfit slacker who felt a bit sorry for himself because he had sore feet. Sure he ran a bit, but he also sat around a lot and ate and drank too much. Why? Because he could, and because he was a delusional optimist who thought everything would always be just fine.

An incredible but true account of achieving one of the most awe-inspiring midlife physical transformations ever

In October 2006, the night before he was to turn forty, Rich experienced a chilling glimpse of his future. Nearly fifty pounds overweight and unable to climb the stairs without stopping, he saw where his sedentary lifestyle was taking him. Most of us look the other way when granted such a moment of clarity, but not Rich.

After years of watching Kenyan athletes win the world's biggest races, Adharanand Finn set out to discover just what it was that made them so fast - and to see if he could keep up. Packing up his life he moved from Devon to Iten, in Kenya, to eat with, interview, sleep beside and - most importantly – run with, some of the greatest runners in the world. In the distance rests his dream, to join the best of the Kenyan athletes in an epic first marathon across the Kenyan plains.

The amazing story of TV presenter Louise Minchin's journey from the BBC Breakfast sofa to representing Great Britain at the World Triathlon Championships. This is a warmly written and wonderfully honest adventure through sport that will both entertain and inspire. It started out as a fun BBC Breakfast cycling stunt in 2012 and culminated in Louise Minchin wearing the colours of Team GB at the World Triathlon Championship in 2015.

Deena Kastor was a star youth runner with tremendous promise, yet her career almost ended after college, when her competitive method - run as hard as possible, for fear of losing - fostered a frustration and negativity and brought her to the brink of burnout. On the verge of quitting, she took a chance and moved to the high altitudes of Alamosa, Colorado, where legendary coach Joe Vigil had started the first professional distance-running team. There she encountered the idea that would transform her running career: the notion that changing her thinking - shaping her mind to be more encouraging, kind, and resilient - could make her faster than she’d ever imagined possible.

When Chris McDougall stumbled across the story of Churchill's 'dirty tricksters', a motley crew of English poets and academics who helped resist the Nazi invasion of Crete, he knew he was on the track of something special. To beat the odds, the tricksters - starving, aging, outnumbered - tapped in to an ancient style of fitness: the lost art of heroism.

Dom Harvey is a hugely popular radio DJ. He's known for his funny gags and has been described as a shock-jock. So it might come as a surprise to find out that Dom is also seriously into running - marathon running. In fact, he loves it. This audiobook is a love story about running and about marathons especially. What got Dom into marathons? How did running save his life? And why, despite being an old fart, is he now trying to run even faster than ever before?