Mark Allen's Total Triathlete

After providing a brief autobiography Mark Allen, who does not seem the slightest bit arrogant, recounts the few days of and before Ironman Hawaii '87. The book clearly shows that Allen spends a lot of time sports-psychoanalyzing himself and his competitors (contrasting Dave Scott's seemingly machine like approach to racing.) The intimate description of IH '87 is interesting. The end of the book provides brief, but useful training advice incorporating heart rate monitoring.

Mark Allen, the greatest triathlete this world has ever seen, puts pen to paper and muses about the myriad aspects of his personal philosophies and motivating factors. This book lets the reader enter the mind of a great warrior, while learning to appreciate just how mentally strong one must be to conquer an Ironman race. Excellent book!

Since the date this book was written Mark Allen has progessed as an athlete to reach even greater glory and to conquer the Hawaiin Ironman, winning the race more than any other man in the 90's. In a sport where any of the top ten competitors are physically capable of winning on the day, I have no doubt that the mental strategies contained in this book have been the distinguishing characteristics between Mark and other athletes. The book deals with a brief description of Marks history in the sport, mainly with his 1987 season and the successes and dissapointments of that year culminating in the Hawaiin Ironman. Unlike the plethora of training material available today, this book deals with how the author motivates himself, focuses, faces his fears, and controls his mental energy in all aspects of his life particularly in triathlon. If you are serious about getting 100% out of your body and enjoying training and racing in any endurance sport, read this book.