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mary412's review against another edition
3.0
I got this from Audible.com and it sat in my library for months before I started listening. Some parts are interesting to me, a non-athlete, but I probably would have been better off with an abridged version. Also the narrator, who happens to be the author, does accents when he is quoting people from Germany, Australia, etc. and it drives me crazy.
cricklewood's review against another edition
informative
medium-paced
4.0
Accessibility: 6/10
Coherence of arguments: 7/10
Informativeness: 10/10
Value to me: 9/10
Overall enjoyment: 7/10
Total: 40/50 (4)
Reading the "Sports Gene" as an exercise enthusiast has been both tremendously inspiring and incredibly depressing at the same time. But what is undisputable about it is that I learnt a LOT. There is so much diversity in the human body that many of us just aren't aware of, and I would heartily recommend this to people who are interested in the human body and human performance in general.
Coherence of arguments: 7/10
Informativeness: 10/10
Value to me: 9/10
Overall enjoyment: 7/10
Total: 40/50 (4)
Reading the "Sports Gene" as an exercise enthusiast has been both tremendously inspiring and incredibly depressing at the same time. But what is undisputable about it is that I learnt a LOT. There is so much diversity in the human body that many of us just aren't aware of, and I would heartily recommend this to people who are interested in the human body and human performance in general.
sonia_reppe's review against another edition
5.0
Pretty fascinating. It's about genetics, and there is so much in here. Nature vs. nuture? It's 100% of both. But it's a lot of nature. I recommend highly. I went through this almost as fast as a Kenyan running a marathon.
coreyinscoe's review against another edition
4.0
A good read for any sports fan. This book takes a scientific look at what makes an athlete successful. Nature? Nurture? Some combination of both? Genes? Heritage? The book doesn't try to give all the answers, but offers up tons of research and anecdotal evidence.
burnedoutbookdragon's review against another edition
3.0
I'm sure there is lots to learn from it but I personally couldn't get into it. I don't think I'm the demographic this book was for.
bethgiven's review against another edition
4.0
We know that to be successful in athletics, you have to train and train and train some more. But some will train from childhood and never make it to the big leagues and others will - and still others will pick up a sport relatively late and still be Olympic-bound. What role does genetics play in athletics?
Fascinating, even if a lot of the biology went over my head. I liked how Epstein approached the nature/nurture debate; lots of food-for-thought here.
I especially enjoyed learning about runner-turned-cardiologist Anthony Sandoval, because he is from my hometown of Los Alamos, NM (I didn't know him or his amazing story until reading this book! Though I really should have known his oldest daughter; she was two grades younger than me in HS).
My clean-reading friends: less than a half dozen profanities (no f-bombs). I feel good recommending this one.
Fascinating, even if a lot of the biology went over my head. I liked how Epstein approached the nature/nurture debate; lots of food-for-thought here.
I especially enjoyed learning about runner-turned-cardiologist Anthony Sandoval, because he is from my hometown of Los Alamos, NM (I didn't know him or his amazing story until reading this book! Though I really should have known his oldest daughter; she was two grades younger than me in HS).
My clean-reading friends: less than a half dozen profanities (no f-bombs). I feel good recommending this one.
k8iedid's review against another edition
5.0
The book for you if you've ever watched an incredible athlete and wondered "how did they do that?" This book is related to Gladwell's Outliers, but is packed with much more research and different sport examples. Is it nature or is it nurture? I love love love learning about different body types and the progression of athletic performance over the years. But I wish he'd included ultramarathon racers - the one sport where women have closed the performance gap with men! BRB, want to get my DNA sequenced.