To the Limit

SHORTLISTED FOR THE SUNDAY TIMES SPORTS BOOK AWARDS 2025 SPORTS PERFORMANCE BOOK OF THE YEAR

'A fascinating and multilayered exploration of what it means to endure'

Alex Hutchinson, author of Endure

'Engaging... [endurance sport] comes to lyrical life'

The TLS

The author of Out of Thin Air, winner of the Margaret Mead Award 2022, journeys through different cultures to find out the meaning of endurance.

So many of us are embracing endurance sports – whether it is running an ultra-marathon, taking on long-distance cycling events or even climbing Mount Everest. But what is it that makes us voluntarily do exhausting things? When we lace up our running shoes or jump on our bike, are we embracing freedom, or are we simply reproducing ideas about productivity and competition from the world of work? And what kinds of broader social and spiritual significance does endurance have indifferent parts of the world?

To the Limit sets out to rediscover the joy of moving together as a group – whether it’s running the length of the Lake District in a day, or navigating the descents of the Sindhupalchok International Trail Race in Nepal. It shows us how endurance activities can help bring people together, and even change the way we think about the natural world and our place in it.