We've ranked the best fitness 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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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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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 Naval Ravikant.
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Recommended by Barry Estabrook, Gabriel Coarna, Paul Rozin, and 1 others.Michael Pollan looks at food production through four meals. One is a fast-food meal, the other is an industrial-scale organic meal, then there is a small-scale organic meal and finally he actually goes out and either grows or kills, in the case of the meat, the entire meal himself. That is the narrative. [source]
Michael Pollan's "The Omnivore's Dilemma" --more precisely, the first 3rd of it-- was what first made me realize how badly the Earth, as an ecosystem, is out of balance. [source]
Michael Pollan is an excellent journalist who specializes in the food domain.He proposes relying more on whole foods and less on processed foods, like Oreo Cookies. He argues that unprocessed foods are more nutritious, more wholistic and better for the environment. [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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15On 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 Dan Pink, Gabriel Coarna, and Paul Kedrosky.David Epstein's "The Sports Gene" made me decide to never tell a child that "if you really really want something, and you work really really hard, then you can achieve your dream" -- not when it comes to sports, at least. [source]
@fromedome @nkl Start with @DavidEpstein’s terrific book The Sports Gene. Great independently, but many academic references as well. [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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This is the way I start my 2020, excited, motivated and thankful with Dr. Michael Greger for this book, a must for all my collegues around the world. Follow now 👉 @nutrition_facts 🙌 #NutricionActiva https://t.co/btEa9t0lWX [source]
Sneak preview of some of the tips in my upcoming new book How Not to Diet: https://t.co/SRqYv20tqR [source]
@MiggyMoglet I've just finished reading Dr Gregers book 'How Not To Die' @nutrition_facts ..what an fantastic read about #vegan nutrition [source]
Founder/Virgin Group
Today is World Book Day, a wonderful opportunity to address this #ChallengeRichard sent in by Mike Gonzalez of New Jersey: Make a list of your top 65 books to read in a lifetime. [source]
Pollan takes the science of food and shows where it’s been misapplied. [source]
23CEO/Microsoft
Explains how neglecting sleep undercuts your creativity, problem solving, decision-making, learning, memory, heart health, brain health, mental health, emotional well-being, immune system, and even your life span. [source]
Co-Founder/Foundry Group
Several friends, who know I both love to sleep and am intrigued with how sleep works, recommended that I read Why We Sleep: Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams. It was excellent. While my self-assessment of my sleep habits are very positive, I learned a few things. More importantly, I now have a much better understanding of the “Why” surrounding sleep, especially around sleep’s importance to a healthy and long life. [source]
Agree! Best book I've read this year. Wasted so many hours just proving to myself I'd be the last one up working at @reddit and for what??? Stupid. Diminishing marginal returns after enough hours without sleep. https://t.co/cT7fDNBF3A [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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Podcaster/Host
David Goggins is a being of pure will and inspiration. Just listening to this guy talk makes you want to run up a mountain. I firmly believe people like him can change the course of the world just by inspiring us to push harder and dig deeper in everything we do. His goal to be 'uncommon amongst uncommon people' is something we can all use to propel ourselves to fulfill our true potential. I'm a better man having met him. [source]
This week’s astonishing book is Can't Hurt Me: Master Your Mind and Defy the Odds, by David Goggins. David grew up in an unbelievably tough environment with a deeply abusive father. He experienced prejudice and poverty, and suffered learning difficulties that left him graduating from high school barely able to read or do math. He became a depressed, overweight young man with an attitude. But shockingly, he turned himself into one of the world’s greatest endurance athletes, and became the only man in history to complete training as a Navy SEAL, Army Ranger, and Air Force Tactical Air Controller. To find a self-published book as #2 on Amazon, with a five star rating and over 400 reviews, speaks volumes about how good it is. If you’re trying to do more in your life, or change your life, you’ll find Goggin’s book to be a terrific inspiration. [source]
@davidgoggins , excited to hear you will be at @LTRaceSeries alongside the CAF team. Myself, @patrickcleary01 and @RyanPKirlin look forward to the challenge and we'll see you there. We all love your book and thanks for signing our copies! [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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Author
Gary Taubes is a true empiricist. I can't believe people hold on to the Platonicity of the thermodynamic theory of diet (calorie in = calorie out). Read it twice, once for the diet, once a a rich document in the history of science. [source]
When it came out ten years ago, it was the definitive study of the history and science of human nutrition in the 20th century. [source]
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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]
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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]
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]
36This 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!
38 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]
39In 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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Recommended by Ev Williams and Aimée Lyn Inhc.Best book I’ve ever read. https://t.co/pc68Yvw7U8 [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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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]
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Recommended by Jon Najarian and Pierre Haski.
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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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61 Recommended by Chelsea Frank, Jessica Lauria, and Stacey Minton.I read everything with an open mind, often challenging myself by choosing books with an odd perspective or religious/spiritual views. These books do not reflect my personal feelings but are books that helped shape my perspective on life, love, and happiness. [source]
I bought this book because I was curious about the title. I loved it and bought it for my entire team. The universe matches the energy you put out. It’s so true. If you put out positivity, you get it back. It’s a great reminder that you are in charge of your destiny. Another point in this book that I love - if someone has a problem with you, it’s their issue. Not yours. We put some much weight on what people think about us, when it really shouldn’t matter. [source]
That book helped me realize I wasn’t alone in not necessarily having direction or all of the answers, but as long as I put one foot in front of the other, I would get to where I wanted to be. [source]
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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]
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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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81Inspired by the author’s experience as a collegiate champion, the story focuses on Quenton Cassidy, a competitive runner at fictional Southeastern University whose lifelong dream is to run a four-minute mile. He is less than a second away when the turmoil of the Vietnam War era intrudes into the staid recesses of his school’s athletic department. After he becomes involved in an athletes’ protest, Cassidy is suspended from his track team. Under the tutelage of his friend and mentor, Bruce Denton, a graduate student and former Olympic gold medalist, Cassidy gives up his scholarship, his girlfriend, and possibly his future to withdraw to a monastic retreat in the countryside and begin training for the race of his life against the greatest miler in history. .
A rare insider’s account of the incredibly intense lives of elite distance runners, Once a Runner is an inspiring, funny, and spot-on tale of one man’s quest to become a champion..
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Recommended by Ed Latimore.I recommend this book for your body. [source]
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Recommended by Terry Crews.I read this book. And I was like this is crazy. It was unthinkable that you only eat eight hours in a day and a sixteen hour fast. And I do it every day. [source]
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