I often ask myself the question…what the hell did we do before iPhones? My whole life (sadly) revolves around this little palm-sized gadget. I check my emails, Strava, the weather, Google every random question that pops into my head, take photos, snoop on friends in all corners of the globe on social media…oh, and OCCASIONALLY I make the odd phone call. Now my iPhone has taken on yet another role. I’m currently obsessed with podcasts and audio books! I have almost stopped running to music completely (except for tempo runs when I need to get amped up) because they keep me so engaged and time flies by. I also love that I am technically multi-tasking by learning something new while I work out. Bonus.

Kelly spends a fair amount of time in her car commuting so she listens to a lot of audio books and podcasts as well. So we are constantly giving each other recommendations on which books to listen to, and which ones to skip due to their annoying reading voices 😉  (the only downside to audiobooks). I love getting recommendations from other like–minded people because there is just too much choice out there. It’s overwhelming…

With that said, I thought I’d share my recent list and hopefully help spare a few of you from the paradox of choice.

“Yay” Audiobooks:

• Kitchen Confidential | by Anthony Bourdain – Awesome book about his years working as a chef and all the people he met along the way. It is narrated by Anthony Bourdain himself which makes the audio version that much better.
• Gang Leader for a Day | by Sudhir Venkatesh – An amazing true story about a collage grad student that befriends a drug dealer and begins studying his street gang for his sociology thesis.
• Lean in | by Sheryl Sandberg – This is a must listen for any women that wants to have a family and a career. But, it also made me feel like a total slacker haha.
• Born to Run | by Christopher McDougall – Obviously! Who doesn’t like listening to a story about running while running.
• Shoe Dog | by Phil Knight – One of my absolute favorite audio books about how Phil Knight created Nike from nothing.
• Age is Just a Number | by Dara Torres – This is about olympic swimmer Dara Torres and how she competed in her 4th olympic games at age 41. Great book for anyone that has just had a birthday, and needs proof that you can achieve athletic greatness at any age. This book actually motivated me to swim by myself on a weekday morning…so that in itself is impressive 😉

“Nay” Audiobooks:

• Love Warrior | by Glennon Doyle Melton – a bit whiny and annoying…skip it!
• The First 90 Days | by Michael D. Watkins – supposedly a good book but too blah of a voice to listen to for 8 hours.

Podcasts I LOVE:

• This American Life – There is a different theme every week, but its always engaging and mostly about human nature. Love this podcast!
• Endurance Planet – This is a triathlon podcast with an “Ask the Coaches” segment and a lot of great health and training content. I went to college with the host.
• The Running for Real Podcast – Running tips and mental training advice from Tina Muir.
• The Joe Rogan Experience – He has long rambling conversations with some really interesting and funny people. Look for the comedians and the one were he interviews Leah Remini about Scientology. That shit is crazy!

What are you listening to?? I just finished “Age is just a Number” and I’m in need of a new listen.