World Book Day 2022 is here to share the love of books with children and adults worldwide. Being in print for over 20 years, Singletrack World sees every day as a celebration of reading, but we’re keen to spread the joy with some suggestions of cycling books, training aids, and wonderful stories.
Amanda has found ‘off-season’ (meaning: too wet to ride every day as her shoes need to dry out) to be the perfect opportunity for some light reading. Rhys opted for heavy reading, but between the two of them, you may find some inspiration.
For The Serious Cyclist
Endure
Mind, Body and the Curiously Elastic Limits of Human Performance
- Author: Alex Hutchinson
- Reviewed by: Rhys Wainwright
It’s difficult to know how to introduce this book because my perception of its worth and what I might learn from it ramped up so dramatically once I got stuck into it. If you’ve ever tried physically hard to complete something, whether that’s riding a bike, running, or moving a difficult object you will be able to relate to the stories, studies, and subsequent analogies in this book.
You may have raced bikes or tested your fitness on a climb against your friends; in which case you’ll know about lots of the thoughts, feelings and consequent physical symptoms Alex Hutchinson talks about.
What will really enlighten you is the part where Alex frequently declares many of these ‘limits’ self-imposed in various ways, be that by the conscious mind or the subconscious brain making decisions in the background. If you want to learn how to be better, push harder for longer and get as close to your mental and physical limits as your brain will allow then you need to read this book.
Strength and Conditioning For Cyclists
- Authors: Phil Burt and Martin Evans
- Reviewed by: Rhys Wainwright
If you’re looking for a manual on how to assess, diagnose and treat gripes and ailments that you might have developed whilst cycling or life in general then this book is a great place to start. The early parts of the book focus primarily on the definition of key pre-requisites such as degrees of freedom and range of motion, mainly when focussed on exercises that mimic cycling-related movements.
A key assessment that is easy to understand and perform with limited equipment will quickly tell you where your physical strengths, weaknesses, and imbalances lie. From your baseline score, you can move into corrective and strengthening movements that will improve muscle activation, joint stability, and injury resistance whatever your level of cycling.
The Cycling Mind
The Psychological Skills for Peak Performance on the Bike – and in Life
- Author: Dr Ruth Anderson
- Reviewed by: Amanda
Some books are easy-readers, and some need to catch you in the right mood. This one, for me at least, required concentration and a serious commitment to learning. Entirely focused on the head game, The Cycling Mind is for keen competitors that know how to physically train themselves up for events, but need to master the mental process. A race mentality is something I have previously believed you either have, or you don’t. I fall into the group of riders that are probably physically strong enough to do well in a competition, but my brain holds me back. This book breaks down the process of learning how to create a strong mindset, and takes you right through to recovery.
ROAR
How to match your food and fitness to your female physiology for optimum performance, great health, and a strong, lean body for life
- Author: Stacy T.Sims, PhD
- Reviewed by: Amanda
This book is female specific, in that it’s entirely focused on a better understanding of how the female body performs, and the differences in fuelling, training, recovery and so on to those required for men. That said, my boyfriend found this a really interesting read. If you are a man that rides or trains regularly with women, you will find a ton of useful information in here that could be as much of a benefit to you as it will be to your ride buddies.
Covering important stuff like hormones and the effect they have on performance, mood, diet requirements, right through to training through menopause. Information and understanding on weight, food, what our bodies need and when they need it, and really justifying the strapline of ‘You are not a small man, stop eating and training like one’.
For The Coffee Table
Waymaking
An Anthology of Women’s Adventure Writing, Poetry and Art
- Authors: Various
- Reviewed by: Amanda
This isn’t actually a cycling-specific book, but if you have a love of the outdoors, an adventurous lifestyle, or you just love reading about others’ conquering fears, achieving goals, and living life to the full, it’s a great book.
The thing I like the most about this anthology is that the stories and poems vary in length, so if you want to reset your mood but you don’t have much time, a short one with a brew can do the trick. Or if you want to get lost in a book, there are longer stories to fill that need too. I have had this book for a while, and it was reading this that got me into wild swimming. It made me consider there are more to the outdoors than just bikes, and the world should be explored and enjoyed at different paces depending on where you are in your life, or your mood that day. This book was a true insight into The Bigger Picture for me. There is so much to do and see out there, and it can’t all be done by bike.
Tough Women Adventure Stories
Stories of grit, courage and determination
- Authors: Various
- Reviewed by: Amanda
Something I really love about this book is the author profiles before each story, which set you up for diving into their adventure. The stories are inspiring and leave you feeling empowered and more capable than you could believe. It would be a great gift for the younger generation, to set them on a confident path. It’s grounding, motivating and awe-inspiring.
For The Kitchen
The Cycling Chef
Recipes for Getting Lean and Fuelling the Machine
- Author: Alan Murchison
- Reviewed by: Amanda
The cover doesn’t really do this book justice, as it’s so much more than just recipes. It covers the theory behind Off-season, Pre-season, Soft-pedalling days, Pre-race, Medium and Hard days. Knowing how much food you need, and what balance of carbs, fats and proteins is the difference between successful training.
These recipes are a great guide and I have adapted many of them to suit my personal dietary requirements (replaced the meat/dairy with a close equivalent). If you’re extremely disciplined and taking your training seriously, this book is a great aid. If you really couldn’t care less how many calories you eat, or if your meal balances are correct, you could see this as a really great variety of recipes. Everything I have made from this book has been delicious, easy to follow, and not full of hard-to-find ingredients. And even if you’re not keen on focused training and diet plans, throughout the book there are useful insights into the hows and whys. For example, I’ve started eating enough carbs before and during exercise, so that I don’t ever finish a ride hungry and craving sugar.
World Book Day 2022
To celebrate World Book Day, we’d like to share a limited time subscription offer so you can have a year’s worth of great quality adventures for only £19.50!
Follow the link below and enter code Booksarerad for 50% off:
Expires midnight Wednesday 9th March. Half price first year, Print & Digital Singletrack World subscription. UK Free postage, outside of the UK £10.00 postage.
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