Patrick Wilson - The Athletes Gut

Table of Contents

PRAISE FOR DR. PATRICK WILSON AND THE ATHLETES GUT

Ultrarunners drop out of 100-mile races due to gut distress more than any other reason. The Athletes Gut is a godsend. It presents practical, efficacious, and immediately applicable advice that any ultrarunner can benefit from. Its a resource I will use with every single one of my athletes as well as with our entire coaching staff. Its that valuable.

Jason Koop, Head Coach of Ultrarunning at CTS and author of Training Essentials for Ultrarunning

The Athletes Gut is a great resource for any endurance athlete who has ever felt limited by some gut-related issue... and, really, who hasnt?

Matt Fitzgerald, author of The Endurance Diet and Racing Weight

The path to a happy gut is nuanced and context specific. Dr. Wilson lays out the causes and possible solutions for a long list of symptoms.

Alex Hutchinson, The Globe and Mail

Races arent won at the dinner table, but they can be lost there, and nutrition science is becoming increasingly important to athletes. Were unique beings, however, and the science is not always one-size-fits-all. With The Athletes Gut, Wilson addresses the workings (and malfunctions) of our guts to better understand how to make nutrition science work for us, as individuals with peculiar innards.

Chad Haga, WorldTour cyclist, stage winner in the 2019 Giro dItalia

I found The Athletes Gut extremely useful on three fronts. One, it deals with a topic thats immensely important to endurance athletes, but not covered or discussed enough. Two, its deeply evidence-based; Wilson is a true expert in the field, and he backs up all his major points with the best and newest research. Three, and most surprisingly, he writes with a sense of humor. The topic seems like one that wouldnt be much fun to read about, but Wilson keeps it entertaining.

Amby Burfoot, 1968 Boston Marathon winner

The Athletes Gut combines the latest research on gut health with relatable stories from athletes.

Runners World UK

Dr. Wilson uses anecdotes and humor to explain and simplify complex anatomy and physiology in a way that any athlete will be able to relate to. Causes of, and prevention strategies for, gut issues are at your fingertips, as well as a plethora of fun facts and well researched scientific insight.

Dr. Martyn Beaven, The University of Waikato Adams Centre for High Performance

For athletes, coaches, and practitioners interested in learning more about the athletes gut, Dr. Wilson has created a go-to, science-based resource. It is comprehensive, funny, and packed with useful information glued together with easy-to-understand stories and analogies!

Jeff Rothschild, MS, RD, sports dietitian

Dr. Wilson marries his brains about the gut with his witty humor to produce The Athletes Gut. You will eat this book up fast! It is an easily digestible, science-backed read that will educate and entertain at the same time. If you are a weekend warrior or a professional athlete that has some crappy issues to deal with, this is a must-read. Be ready to laugh out loud a few times while learning something new along the way.

Tommy Jensen, MS, RD, Director of Sports Nutrition at University of Minnesota

Dr. Wilson takes a well-thought-out approach to explaining the intricacies of the athletes gutspecifically, expanding on topics such as how stress and anxiety influence gut symptoms in relation to performance. His use of wit and humor, blended through relevant anecdotes and peer-reviewed research, make the concepts interesting and enjoyable. The summaries at the end of each chapter were a great way to wrap up essential material in an easy-to-understand format that may be useful to students, athletes, and practitioners.

Dr. Leilani Madrigal, PhD, CMPC, Assistant Professor at California State University, Long Beach

Patrick Wilson is one of a handful of people in the world qualified to write this book. Writing in an accessible but still highly informative style, he takes us from the biological desert that is the stomach to the jungle of the colon and everything in between. Referencing everything from Waynes World to the classical 19th century research of William Beaumont, this book is a mustread for any athlete, coach, or medical professional who wants to optimize performance without compromising wellness.

Dr. Robert Fearn, Medical Director and gastroenterologist

The Athletes Gut has the information that coaches and athletes have been waiting for about performance fueling, GI distress, and its impact on sports performance. Dr. Wilson has meticulously researched the topics that plague all athletes at some point in their careers. This book provides the latest researchno fadsin an informative and entertaining read.

Jason Kask, Head Coach and President, Superior Performance Endurance Coaching

The Athletes Gut takes us along a fascinating journey from the moment we put something in our mouth to the moment it exits stage right and everything in between. In the first chapter alone I learned things that, as an athlete, Ive been doing wrong for years, and as I coach, I can use to improve my clients performance. We often overlook the importance of understanding the digestive system in our performance and life, but The Athletes Gut helps us realize just how vital it is!

J.P. Caudill, running coach and ultrarunner

The Athletes Gut is a comprehensive yet easy-to-read guide to the endurance athletes engine. Coaches and athletes: Here are the fundamentals for developing the nutrition plan that will fuel your best performance ever.

Dan Netzer, National Champion Masters cyclist

Disclaimer: The information in this book is intended for educational and instructional purposes, and is not meant to substitute for the advice provided by your own physician or dietitian.

Copyright 2020 by Patrick Wilson

All rights reserved. Published in the United States of America by VeloPress, a division of Pocket Outdoor Media.

4745 Walnut Street, Unit A

Boulder, CO 80301-2587 USA

VeloPress is the leading publisher of books on endurance sports and is a division of Pocket Outdoor Media. Focused on cycling, triathlon, running, swimming, and nutrition/diet, VeloPress books help athletes achieve their goals of going faster and farther. Preview books and contact us at velopress.com.

Distributed in the United States and Canada by Ingram Publisher Services

The Library of Congress has cataloged the printed edition as follows:

Names: Wilson, Patrick B. (Professor of exercise science), author.

Title: The athletes gut: the inside science of digestion, nutrition, and stomach distress / Patrick B. Wilson.

Description: Boulder, Colorado: VeloPress, 2020. | Includes bibliographical references and index.

Identifiers: LCCN 2019053526 (print) | LCCN 2019053527 (ebook) | ISBN 9781948007108 (paperback) | ISBN 9781948006217 (ebook)

Subjects: LCSH: Digestion. | Gastrointestinal systemDiseases. |AthletesNutrition. | Physical fitnessNutritional aspects.

Classification: LCC QP145 .W55 2020 (print) | LCC QP145 (ebook) | DDC 612.3dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019053526

LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019053527

Art direction by Vicki Hopewell

Cover and interior illustrations by Andrew J. Nilsen