Physiology

A fascinating dive into the limits of human endurance and the factors that shape them. Hutchinson blends cutting-edge science with stories from elite athletes to show how much of our performance ceiling is set by the mind rather than the body. Listen to episodes 54 and 55 of our podcast for interviews with the author.

A systems-based approach to high performance that applies equally well to sport, military, and business. Connolly breaks down the interconnected elements of preparation (technical, tactical, physical, and psychological) and shows how they fit together to create adaptable, resilient teams and individuals. Recommended to us by Brad Scott, an excellent coach currently at the Atlanta Braves.

A sweeping, multidisciplinary look at why humans act the way we do, from split-second neural reactions to the influence of culture and evolution. Sapolsky moves between neuroscience, psychology, biology, and anthropology to unpack the layers behind behavior. Dense but rewarding, it’s one of the most comprehensive books ever written on human nature.

A classic, foundational reference on how stress affects our bodies and minds. Sapolsky shows why the stress response, which is life-saving in short bursts, can cause serious health problems when chronically activated.

A comprehensive overview of how our personalities develop, and the importance of maintaining embodied self-awareness - the process of sensing our emotions, stress responses, and other physiological and psychological needs.  

An in-depth and practical overview of how our nervous system regulates and manages our stress responses and how to improve your ability to handle stress more effectively.

This book provides a comprehensive overview of energy systems development in an easy-to-understand format. It’s written for MMA, but applies broadly. The content immediately applies in any situation, giving you the practical understanding to develop your conditioning intelligently. Read this book before the one below (NNOXX) to gain a thorough understanding of energy systems development.

This free book provides a modern overview of how energy systems work. It will change how you think about conditioning. Get it by signing up with your email at the page linked above (you can find it toward the bottom). 

A modern overview of how to think about movement patterns in strength and conditioning, as well as how to organize training to create capable humans.

The most comprehensive and thought-provoking book on applied biomechanics and motor learning. This book will help you understand how great athletes are created through strength, conditioning, and sport-specific work. It profoundly impacted our overall coaching philosophy and how we balance moving well and efficiently with improving physical performance.

A fascinating and essential book for any performance coach. It explores the structure and function of fascia and its relationship to movement and human performance. Like our book, it borrows many concepts from complex adaptive systems research and applies them in the context of human movement.

Physiology books are boring. However, this is the best one we’ve found and provides immediately applicable and essential background information that any high-level coach should know.

The training bible for mountain athletes. Written by two coaches and athletes who have worked with many of the best alpinists, ski-mountaineers, and ultra runners in the past 20 years, it is the foundation text on the topic. While its programming is biased toward smaller people and doesn’t work as well for larger athletes (in our experience), the overarching principles and process are excellent and will help you understand how to program for mountain athletes.

Most straightforward to read, the most in-depth, and the most applicable book on running we’ve read. This book will provide a framework for developing your running, regardless of who you are or the type of clients you work with.

Reframes pain as an output of the nervous system rather than a direct measure of injury. Combine neuroscience and practical strategies to help readers understand and manage persistent pain. Covers important, foundational concepts around how pain works and how to think about it.

This classic work, authored by the scientists who developed the groundbreaking gate control theory of pain, reshaped how we understand the phenomenon of chronic and complex pain. Melzack and Wall argue that pain is not a simple signal traveling from injury to brain, but a dynamic process involving nerves, spinal cord pathways, and brain interpretation. They weave together biology, psychology, and clinical observation to show how pain is influenced by context, emotion, and expectation. While more technical than accessible titles like Explain Pain, this book is foundational for anyone wanting to understand the science of why pain persists and why it often doesn’t correlate neatly with tissue damage. It remains a cornerstone in pain research, and set the stage for modern biopsychosocial models. It's a rigorous counterpoint to oversimplified views that reduce pain to mere nociception.

Covers the nuances of motor control, attentional focus, cueing, motivation, and many other topics as they relate to sports performance.

The foundational text on biomechanics and sports performance. It will teach you everything you could ever want to know about the nuances of how people perform complex tasks.

A comprehensive overview of how trauma impacts our health and quality of life, as well as an in-depth exploration of many interventions and modalities to treat or overcome these experiences. A good introductory text into the topic of trauma and its treatment.  

The foundational text on how the autonomic nervous system works and how it regulates nearly every aspect of our lives.

Beautiful illustrations of how breathing impacts nearly every aspect of human movement.

Combines the topics of embodied self-awareness, how our brains parse sensory information, and how we combine these to take skilled action. Reading should be required for any coach.

The bible of human performance training. Despite being originally published decades ago, most of the information and principles still hold up today. Required reading for any human performance coach.