We've ranked the best exercise books using expert recommendations, sales data, and millions of reader ratings. At Shortform, we know books. Our book guides are the best in the world. Learn why.
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I’ve given this book to people. [source]
I probably have recommended The Art of Learning and The 4-Hour Body, I'm not kidding, more than any other books. [source]
I get most of my information about nutrition from medical studies. I haven’t read any books about nutrition that I agree with 100%. These are a few nutrition related books that I’ve read recently that I thought were interesting: Eat to Live (Joel Fuhrman), Why We Get Fat (Gary Taubes), and The 4-Hour Body (Tim Ferriss). [source]
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Recommended by Ed Stafford and Turia Pitt.An honour to be asked to do an impromptu little talk tonight after #christophermcdougall. Great to see the big man in the flesh in the UK. #BornToRun was a book that definitely changed the path of my life. #legend @vivobarefoot #barefootrunning https://t.co/3QgVKZ0OQ4 [source]
If people are interested in running, I give them this book. [source]
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CEO/Microsoft
This memoir, by the co-founder of Nike, is a refreshingly honest reminder of what the path to business success really looks like: messy, precarious, and riddled with mistakes. I’ve met Knight a few times over the years. He’s super nice, but he’s also quiet and difficult to get to know. Here Knight opens up in a way few CEOs are willing to do. I don’t think Knight sets out to teach the reader anything. Instead, he accomplishes something better. He tells his story as honestly as he can. It’s an amazing tale. [source]
CEO/Berkshire Hathaway
The best book I read last year. Phil is... a gifted storyteller. [source]
Founder/ College Preparatory Academy
I've known Phil Knight since I was a kid, but I didn't really know him until I opened this beautiful, startling, intimate book. And the same goes for Nike. I've worn the gear with pride, but I didn't realize the remarkable saga of innovation and survival and triumph that stood behind every swoosh. Candid, funny, suspenseful, literary - this is a memoir for people who love sport, but above all it's a memoir for people who love memoirs. [source]
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Founder/Apple
One book in particular stayed with Jobs his entire life, and Isaacson noted that it was the only book Jobs had downloaded on his iPad 2: “Autobiography of a Yogi,” “the guide to meditation and spirituality that he had first read as a teenager,” Isaacson writes, “then re-read in India and had read once a year ever since.” [source]
CEO/Salesforce
If you haven't read it, and if you want to understand Steve Jobs, it's a goood idea to dip into this book. [source]
One of the more impactful books for me when I was living down in the jungle and experiencing more of the deeper reflections through the medicine space. [source]
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10On the non-business side of things, “What I Talk about When I Talk About Running” by Haruki Murakami is my recent favorite. I’m a long distance runner and I was extremely delighted to find out that one of the top fiction writers in the world draws a huge chunk of his inspiration from long distance running. In this book, Murakami beautifully connects running to writing, which are two skills close to me that I want to get better at. [source]
The single best distillation of the kind of focus, commitment, and sense of mission it takes to become a great artist. [source]
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Recommended by Ryan Switzer.Never forget my FR year at Carolina, @CoachFedora handed me the book “Relentless” by Tim Grover. Inside look on the mindset that drove Dwade, MJ, KOBE. Gave me an idea of what it was going to take to live my dream. Relentless became my favorite word. My passion. My everything. [source]
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14I probably have recommended The Art of Learning and The 4-Hour Body, I'm not kidding, more than any other books. [source]
The Art of Learning as well is phenomenal. You're always learning new things in programming and startups so being good at learning is a crucial skill to have. [source]
I tell everyone I teach to get this book. [source]
Recommended by Naval Ravikant.
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Recommended by David Allen.Author
I had no idea how critical it is to do nasal breathing instead of mouth breathing. It is amazing stuff. [source]
Recommended by Dr. Martin Gibala.Provided a really good example or set a bar for us in terms of trying to structure 'The One Minute Workout.' [source]
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Author
I feel guilty for not having posted a review earlier: I owe a lot to this book. I figured out the value of intensity training and maximizing recovery. I use the ideas but with minor modifications (my own personal workout is entirely based on free weights and barbells, but I incur --and accept --a risk of injury). I have been applying the ideas for more than three years. Just get over the inhibitions (and illusions of control) and accept the idea of training less. Gratitude. [source]
@MikeIsaac Get this book. 12 mins a week... love it; it’s not the end-all but I’ve found these approaches better than regular gym https://t.co/s8KRF8luKs [source]
Recommended by Mark Bell.Did a great job of presenting a condensed, simplified, but effective method for getting stronger. [source]
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Writer & Journalist
This book is AMAZING! [source]
Adventurer, author, survival instructor
If you want to gain insight into the mind of great athletes, adventurers, and peak performers then prepare to be enthralled by Alex Hutchinson’s Endure. [source]
Reveals how we can all surpass our perceived physical limits. [source]
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Recommended by Gary Taubes.Author
Mark Sisson has got 10 basic ideas, including everything from avoiding the poisons in your diet to getting enough sunlight and play. [source]
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Author
Widely held as a classic, this book is much more than a manifesto and manual on swordsmanship and martial arts. It’s about the mindset, the discipline, and the perception necessary to win in life or death situations. As a swordsman, Musashi fought mostly by himself, for himself. His wisdom, therefore, is mostly internal. He tells you how to out-think and out-move your enemies. He tells you how to fend for yourself and live by a code. And isn’t that precisely what so many of us need help with every day? [source]
The human world occurs in language so best get good at it! [source]
I do not believe there are business and non-business books. Business is life, you do business like the man or woman you excavate from the person you are told you are. Hence, the most potent business books are not about business, in my opinion. What makes a great business book is that it is a book that helps you find a better version of yourself. Therefore, I would say that my favorite business book is Miyamoto Musashi’s Book of Five Rings. It is an amazing inwards look at how to win battles. [source]
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Recommended by Bill Cole and Katrín Davíðsdóttir.He talks about greatness, and how to learn it from other people: to look around your sport world, the coaches and athletes at every level, Olympic, pro, national, local, and notice what you like or admire in those people. He says, if you can notice some of these elements, that must mean you have some of those elements in yourself, that you could develop. That’s a big message he sends. [source]
It got me focusing on giving my absolute best in any given situation without the pressure of constantly stacking myself up to others. [source]
38 Recommended by Dr. Martin Gibala.I think there’s a gift there in terms of boiling this complex science down into compelling narratives that people can read and understand. [source]
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Co-Founder/Andreessen Horowitz
What's it like to train with a Navy SEAL in winter in New York for a whole month? Featuring the truly remarkable American hero David Goggins. [source]
If you are a workout guy, it reminds you of things you already know. That you can push your body and yourself far further than you think. [source]
In the non-business category recently, I found Living with a SEAL by Jesse Itzler to be both entertaining and inspiring. It summarizes a month he spent with the former Navy Seal, David Goggins, living in his home. [source]
46This is Kettlebell Simple & Sinister: Revised & Updated Edition or simply S&S 2.0.
Learn how to use the extreme hand-held gym from the man who started the kettlebell revolution.
Simple & Sinister will physically prepare you for almost anything life could throw at you, from carrying a piano upstairs or holding your own in a street fight.
Simple & Sinister will forge a fighter's physique because the form must follow the function.
- Simple & Sinister will give you the strength, the stamina, and the suppleness to play any sport recreationally and play it well.
- If you are a serious athlete, Simple & Sinister will serve as a perfect foundation for your sport-specific training.
- If you are a serious lifter, Simple & Sinister will build your strength, rather than interfere with it.
Simple & Sinister will achieve all of the above while leaving you plenty of time and energy to do your duty, your job, practice your sport, and have a life.
Russian kettlebell power to you!
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Recommended by Rick Rubin.I continue to give it to friends because it really helped me know what was healthy to eat and how our bodies process different foods. [source]
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50In ChiRunning, Danny and Katherine Dreyer, well-known walking and running coaches, provide powerful insight that transforms running from a high-injury sport to a body-friendly, injury-free fitness phenomenon. ChiRunning employs the deep power reserves in the core muscles, an approach found in disciplines such as yoga, Pilates, and T'ai Chi.
ChiRunning enables you to develop a personalized exercise program by blending running with the powerful mind-body principles of T’ai Chi:
1. Get aligned. Develop great posture and reduce your potential for injury while running, and make knee pain and shin splints a thing of the past.
2. Engage your core. Shift the workload from your leg muscles to your core muscles, for efficiency and speed.
3. Add relaxation to your running. Learn to focus your mind and relax your body to increase speed and distance.
4. Make it a Mindful Practice. Maintain high performance and make running a mindful, enjoyable life-long practice.
5. It's easy to learn. Transform your running with the 10-step ChiRunning training program.
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65Drawing on his work with some of the top teams in professional sports, noted sport psychology consultant Gary Mack shares with you the same techniques and exercises he uses to help elite athletes build mental "muscle." These 40 accessible lessons and inspirational anecdotes will help you gain the "head edge" over the competition.
Recommended by Michael Gervais.One of the books I often give away is Mind Gym by Gary Mack. It’s a very mechanical, easy, lots-of-white-space-on-the-page book. And it’s one of my favourites, a very applied synopsis of mental skills from a sport and performance psychology standpoint. [source]
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68 Recommended by Dr. Monali Y. Desai.I get most of my information about nutrition from medical studies. I haven’t read any books about nutrition that I agree with 100%. These are a few nutrition related books that I’ve read recently that I thought were interesting: Eat to Live (Joel Fuhrman), Why We Get Fat (Gary Taubes), and The 4-Hour Body (Tim Ferris). [source]
70Running Like a Girl tells the story of how Alexandra gets beyond the brutal part, makes running a part of her life, and reaps the rewards: not just the obvious things, like weight loss, health, and glowing skin, but self-confidence and immeasurable daily pleasure, along with a new closeness to her father—a marathon runner—and her brother, with whom she ultimately runs her first marathon.
But before that, she has to figure out the logistics of running: the intimidating questions from a young and arrogant sales assistant when she goes to buy her first running shoes, where to get decent bras for the larger bust, how not to freeze or get sunstroke, and what (and when) to eat before a run. She’s figured out what’s important (pockets) and what isn’t (appearance), and more.
For any woman who has ever run, wanted to run, tried to run, or failed to run (even if just around the block), Heminsley’s funny, warm, and motivational personal journey from nonathlete extraordinaire to someone who has completed five marathons is inspiring, entertaining, practical, and fun.
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85National Bestseller. Revised & Expanded 2026 Edition. Heal painful joints, prevent injuries, and rebuild your body from the ground up. (If mainstream fitness advice has left you broken down and beat up, it’s time for a new strategy.)Most middle-aged fitness enthusiasts and athletes have been dragged down by joint pain, injuries, and other ailments commonly accepted as “part of getting older.” But it doesn’t have to be this way. In fact, anyone can conquer joint pain and rebuild their body. It simply requires understanding the hidden causes and a road map (this book) that leads to the solution. Built from Broken presents a paradigm shift in how to think about corrective exercise, sports nutrition, and joint health. Once you see how the system works, you’ll never look at exercise or joint health the same way again. Part 1 lays the foundation for understanding why your joints are breaking down. You’ll learn: The 5 primary causes of joint pain.How to prevent the “Big 3” injuries that trap you in the Pain/Injury Cycle.Why conventional pain management merely masks symptoms.How to identify and fix muscle imbalances that lead to tension, pain, and injuries.Natural injury recovery strategies that improve healing time and tissue repair quality. Part 2 gives you a step-by-step corrective exercise guide and list of action steps to rebuild your body from the ground up. Including: The ideal training schedule to maximize muscle recovery.Illustrated corrective exercise instructions.How to strengthen joints with cutting-edge connective tissue training techniques.A step-by-step training program complete with workout routines. In this Second Edition, you’ll notice these improvements: Updates to the program implementation section for ease of real-world application.An Exercise Appendix with page numbers for each exercise in the bookA brand-new Foundations Program for those not experienced in fitness training.Clarification on key details such as pain rating scales, exercise tempos, naming consistency, and guidance on uncommon joint pains.Refined language throughout to improve clarity and readability. Beyond these expanded sections, we’ve included free supplemental tools at bfb-book.com, including: Built From Broken Exercises Video Library with demonstrations and audio instructions for virtually every exercise.The Built From Broken Guide to Regenerative Therapies—a short, actionable guide covering accessible, proven treatments for pain and injury. Whether you’ve been training for years, decades, or never stepped foot in a weight room, it’s not too late to overhaul your body. If the conventional path of lifting and stretching has left you broken down, why not try a new strategy? This book is your way out of the pain/injury cycle. All you have to do is follow three simple steps: Read the book.Follow the action steps inside to resolve your pain.Implement the 4-week corrective training program outlined in the book. Just imagine—4 to 8 weeks from now, you could be living in a pain-free, mobile, strong, and functional body. One that allows you to do the activities you love, push your limits, and achieve your full physical potential. This process can start for you right now.
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Recommended by Norbert Mao.@rkabushenga @cobbo3 @AgaSekalala @dfkm1970 @Kalinaki @TioKauma A fascinating book. Next you should read this one by Michael Pillsbury. Reminds me of the race between the hare and the tortoise! One is faster but distracted while the other is slow but steady. https://t.co/231fMeO0TP [source]
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