Faster, Higher, Stronger
How Sports Science Is Creating a New Generation of Superathletes--and What We Can Learn from Them
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4.5 • 13 Ratings
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- $4.99
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- $4.99
Publisher Description
A New York Times bestseller
“A smart and important book.”—Gretchen Reynolds, author of The First 20 Minutes
Publications as varied as Wired, Men’s Fitness, and The New Yorker are abuzz over the New York Times bestseller Faster, Higher, Stronger. In it, veteran journalist Mark McClusky explains how today’s top athletes are turning to advanced technology and savvy science to improve their performance. Sports buffs and readers of David Epstein and Gretchen Reynolds will want to join McClusky as he goes behind the scenes everywhere from the Olympics to the NBA Finals, from the World Series to the Tour de France, and from high-tech labs to neighborhood gyms to show how athletes at every level can incorporate cutting-edge science into their own workouts.
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Whenever American media mentions the triumph of super athletes, it usually involves cheaters using performance enhancing drugs. However, McClusky, the editor of Wired.com, tells the other side of the story. An increasingly commercial blend of science and sports training gives the elite athlete a winning margin over other competitors. Old training regimens such as weight lifting and resistance workouts are pass and have been replaced by biomechanists, physiologists, nutritionists, strength coaches, recovery experts, and statistical analysts, leading to the creation of such superstars as LeBron James, Lindsey Vonn, Mike Trout, and Serena Williams. McClusky addresses the notion of superior genetics, pills and substances that supposedly enhance performance, the identification of potential elite athletes, and ways to tailor tools and techniques that enhance specific skills for athletic superiority. With clear-cut analysis and detail, he tackles the new innovations in sports gear such as lighter track shoes and drag-cutting swimsuits; he also discusses the scientific discoveries concerning fatigue and endurance. McCluskey's eye-opening account of sports science shatters outmoded training myths and heralds a revolutionary new terrain, in which the combination of high-tech methods and scientific breakthroughs designed will give the sports fan something wondrous to watch.
Customer Reviews
Interesting, well-written, and based in science
I really enjoyed this book. Stylistically, it follows the modern pattern of using narratives to illustrate scientific evidence. It's also exceptionally well-executed in that it is easy to read and logically organized. The editing is really superb, and it's hard to find a sentence that isn't clear on first read.
In terms of the material covered, it aims for interest over exhaustiveness. If you read a fair amount in this area, you're probably aware of many of the topics and anecdotes. Even so, it's well worth reading.