There are so many good books for athletes on the market, which makes picking the right one more difficult than it has to be.
As an athlete, you are constantly working to improve your athleticism and skillsets. The mental part of the game often gets overlooked.
When studying the most successful athletes you’ll find that they train the mind as much as they train the body. Why shouldn’t you do the same?
To help you get the right mindset for athletic success we have created this book review. We truly believe these are the best books for athletes!
7 Good Books For All Athletes to READ
These are some good books for athletes to read this year that can help you or your loved one take their game to the next level. No matter your age, gender, or sport every one of these books has the potential to be life-changing.
If you have not yet read one of these books – now is a good time to change that.
1. Relentless: From Good To Great To Unstoppable
Relentless reveals what it takes to achieve total mental and physical dominance, showing you how to be relentless and achieve whatever you desire.
This is by far our favorite book here at College Athlete Insight because it covers both the mental and physical side of being an athlete. Tim Grover details the essential traits shared by the most intense competitors in sports, business, and all walks of life. He was Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant’s full-time trainer.
This book is packed with stories and unparalleled insight into the mindset of the most successful and accomplished athletes of our time, Relentless shows you how even the best get better… and how you can too. (Get Relentless Here on sale)
“This book is the blueprint for discovering what you are capable of achieving, getting results you never imagined, reaching the highest level of success–and then going even higher.” — Kobe Bryant
Our Rating: 10/10
2. Mind Gym: An Athlete’s Guide to Inner Excellence
Mind Gym is that book all athletes should have on them to get their headspace right and let their talent take over. Perfect for athletes of all-ages.
This is a great book because it has very little fluff on any of the pages. From start to finish, you are engaged and learning exactly what it takes to build up your mental strength as an athlete.
Through 40 accessible lessons and inspirational anecdotes from prominent athletes you will learn the same techniques and exercises used to help these elite athletes build their mental “muscle.” (Get your copy of Mind Gym here)
“I read Mind Gym on my way to the Sydney Olympics and really got a lot out of it. Gary has important lessons to teach, and you’ll find the exercises fun and beneficial.”
—Jason Kidd, Former NBA All-Star, Coach, and Olympic gold-medal winner
Our Rating: 9.8/10
3. Endure: Mind, Body, and the Curiously Elastic Limits of Human Performance
Endure gives you a whole new perspective on what the mind and body can accomplish, especially as an athlete.
What a great book because it not only explains the science behind pain, but also how you can push through that next workout or whatever task you need to rise above. The body can handle a lot more than you were led to believe, you just have to train your mind first.
This book is very thoughtful, complete, and engaging on the subject of endurance and the mind. If you apply the concepts you’ll take a huge step forward in your athletic career. I would say this book is a must-read for all endurance athletes, especially runners. (Get Endure discounted Here)
“If you want to gain insight into the mind of great athletes, adventurers, and peak performers then prepare to be enthralled by Endure.” — Bear Grylls, Mt. Everest summiteer and host of NBC’s Running Wild
Our Rating: 9.7/10
4. The Champion’s Mind: How Great Athletes Think, Train, and Thrive
The Champion’s Mind will teach you what separates elite athletes from everyone else and how you can start to develop the same characteristics.
This book is awesome because it gives you a look in to the psychological aspect of how olympians, hall of famers, and professional athletes think. They are apart of the 1% because of how they think, train, and approach every day life.
If you are looking to improve your athletic performance without working out more, then this book is for you. It has a lot of solid and practical advise for improving the mental side of athletic performance. (Get The Champion’s Mind here)
“The Champion’s Mind is a mental training book that will help you reach your full potential in sports. I highly recommend this book to all athletes and coaches.” — Jackie Slater, NFL Hall of Famer
Our Rating: 9.7/10
Bonus: The College Recruiting Guidebook
The college recruiting guidebook is the ultimate manual to earning an athletic scholarship for student-athletes and parents.
How would a $50,000/year athletic scholarship change your families life?
Inside the guidebook you’ll have access to:
- step-by-step instructions freshman through senior year
- every single college coaches email in the country (broken up by division and school)
- sample email/dm/text templates you can use
- a manual for parents on how to negotiate scholarships/financial aid with college coaches
- access to an array of bonuses you won’t find anywhere else
Parents will pay $20 just for admission in to their kids game. You can get this guidebook for the same price.
The college recruiting guidebook could literally change your families future!
5. The Mindful Athlete: Secrets To Pure Performance
The Mindful Athlete aims to teach you the secrets of top performers in an array of different sports.
We loved this book because George Mumford fills the pages with fascinating stories, while still providing techniques for how you can improve your mindfulness. The personal recollections Mumford gives about working with individuals such as Kobe Bryant and teams like the Golden State Warriors are very insightful.
Anyone who has wondered about why Mindfulness matters and wanted to figure out how to take their game or those of their friends, family, clients, business associates, etc to the next level will find this book filled with gold. (Check out the Mindful Athlete here)
“George has ‘Mumfied’ the teams I’ve coached over the past 20 years. He has a style of mindfulness that goes beyond ‘just sitting/breathing’ to focusing while in action. For anyone needing to perform at the highest level, this book is for you.” —Phil Jackson, 13-time NBA champion
Our Rating: 9.5/10
6. The Pyramid of Success Playbook: By John Wooden
Coach Wooden’s Pyramid of Success Playbook is a set of daily readings intended to teach you the building blocks of success.
John Wooden is quite possibly the greatest coach of all-time and he has the credentials to back it. He spent many of his retired years blessing us with gems (such as this book) to help teach us how to become a better version of ourselves and achieve success.
This book will stick in your mind for years to come as the key components of the “success triangle” are life-changing.
Every new employee we have at College Athlete Insight receives a copy of this book. It is short, sweet, and POWERFUL! (Get the book here).
Our Rating: 9.4/10
7. Think Like A Warrior: The Five Inner Beliefs That Make You UNSTOPPABLE
If you want to take control of your life and achieve your biggest dreams, you must develop a “warrior mindset.” Think Like A Warrior will show you how to stop thinking like a victim and start thinking like a warrior.
This book doesn’t have an eye-catching cover, but the pages within are filled with a ton of actionable steps that will help you improve as an athlete. It covers positive self-talk, attacking the day with joy, mental toughness, and a whole lot more.
The reviews on this book are fantastic and many athletes seem to be benefitting from it greatly. (Get “Think Like a Warrior” here)
Although this book revolves around a football story, the lessons it teaches can be translated to any sport.
Our Rating: 9.3/10
Bonus. The Mamba Mentality: How I Play by Kobe Bryant
The Mamba Mentality is Kobe Bryant’s life autobiography that gives a glimpse in to how he developed his killer mindset.
If you’re looking to tap in to your full potential it all starts with your mindset. We loved this book because Kobe gave practical tips on how he set himself up for success, while still providing many entertaining stories. This book is a must-read for all basketball fans!
The Mamba Mentality has a 5 star rating on Amazon and is currently one of the best-selling athlete books on the market.
“If you want to be great in a particular area, you have to obsess over it. A lot of people say they want to be great, but they’re not willing to make the sacrifices necessary to achieve greatness.” — Kobe in The Mamba Mentality
Develop a killer mindset, grind daily, and love what you’re doing..success will follow (Get “The Mamba Mentality” Discounted Here).
Our Rating: 9.5/10
Conclusion: Good Books For Athletes to Read
It is strongly recommended that you pick at least one book from this list and read it yourself or buy it as a gift for someone special in your life.
These are all very good books for athletes! None of them will disappoint and many of the concepts will change your life for the better.
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We hope you enjoyed this review and can now make a well informed decision. Please feel free to message us any questions you might have.
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