PRAISE for Play On:
When it comes to aging, athletes are like canaries in the coal mine – they feel its effects decades before the rest of us. In Play On, Jeff Bercovici gives us a fascinating look at how older elite athletes use science, strategy, and wisdom to keep up with (and often beat) the youngsters. Playing keeps us young, and this is the must read for anyone who believes age is no reason to quit.
– Bill Gifford, New York Times bestselling author of Spring Chicken and Ledyard
As an athlete who is competing past my so-called “prime,” Play On goes to the heart of some of the biggest questions around longevity and performance that I’ve been pondering these past few years. It’s an utterly fascinating and entertaining blend of science and storytelling that anyone interested in staying fit as they age, should read. (And, if you’re like me, underline obsessively).
– Shalane Flanagan, four-time Olympian, winner of the 2017 New York City Marathon, and New York Times bestselling author of Run Fast. Eat Slow.
From the surprising science of why Olympic cyclists try to think like kids in competition to the strategy behind Carli Lloyd’s rise from benchwarmer to soccer phenom, Play On illuminates a dimension of high-performance sports seldom seen on primetime. Told through an engaging cast of characters, Bercovici’s book is a must-read not only for the athlete trying to gain an edge, but for the rest of us interested in living longer, healthier lives.”
– Mary Pilon, best-selling author of The Monopolists and The Kevin Show
“An eye-opening new book.” – The New York Times
“Energetic romp through sports gerontology…Bercovici smartly separates science from quackery, while offering colorful reportage…Bercovici offers stimulating information and practical insights to health-minded readers.” – Publisher’s Weekly
“In Plimpton-esque moments, Bercovici tackles various aspects of the fitness-for-elders movement…A solid work of sports journalism and encouraging reading for jocks who are late to the game but committed to the win all the same.” – Kirkus
The Secret to Athletic Longevity is Surprisingly Simple – Outside
Interview / How Today’s Athletes Are Playing Harder, Faster, and Longer – KQED Forum
Interview / The Link Between Power and Aging, and How to Play On – The Model Health Show
Interview/ How Pro Athletes Maintain High Performance into Old Age – KCRW Press Play
Why We’re Going to See More and More Older Athletes – The Verge
Don’t Lose Your Edge as You Age – Outside
Tom Brady. Serena Williams. Michael Phelps. Shalane Flanagan. LeBron James. Carli Lloyd. Roger Federer. Everywhere you look, athletes well past so-called peak age are not just staying competitive but dominating. It’s a new era for older athletes.
How is it that today’s superstars seem to defy the limits of physical aging that inevitably sideline their competitors. How much of a difference is genetic destiny and how much can be attributed to better training, medicine, and technology? Is athletic longevity a skill that can be taught or a mental discipline that can be mastered? Can career-ending injuries be predicted and avoided? Are the health fads athletes swear by, such as alkaline diets and cryotherapy, based on real science? Above all, what can the rest of us — the everyday athletes and weekend warriors who don’t have access to the world’s best coaches, surgeons and nutritionists — learn that can enable us to get the most from our bodies in our 30s, 40s and beyond?
Journalist Jeff Bercovici spent extensive time with professional and Olympic athletes, coaches, and doctors to find the answers to these questions. His quest led him to training camps, tournaments, hospitals, anti-aging clinics, and Silicon Valley startups, where he tried cutting-edge treatments and technologies first-hand and investigated the efficacy of health fads like alkaline diets, high-intensity interval training, and cryotherapy. Through fascinating profiles and first-person anecdotes, Bercovici illuminates the science and strategies extending the careers of elite athletes, uncovers the latest advances in fields from nutrition to brain science to stem cell therapy, and offers empowering insights about how the rest of us can find peak performance at any age.