Competitive swimmers and triathletes are an unique bunch. Their ambition, confidence and loyalty push them to set ambitious goals, then overcome them over and over again. And when it comes to overachieving, nobody does it like the Cadets of the West Point Triathlon Team. In 2007, they placed fifth overall in Collegiate Nationals, earned an individual gold medal in Age Group Nationals and earned a bronze medal in the Worlds in Hamburg.

Their path to victory is a captivating tale, and one that is chronicled in Overachiever's Diary: How the Army Triathlon Team Became World Contenders, written by Louis Clay Tharp.

Tharp, a World Masters medalist and competitive swimmer, is the swim coach of the West Point Triathlon Team. During his own personal journey toward a more healthy lifestyle, he discovered Total Immersion, a special training approach created to give quicker, more fluent results than customary methods. He used these methods to help the team maximize workouts, maintain efficient strokes and increase speed through not only physical means, but also mental.

Louis Clay Tharp wrote daily emails to the Cadets including what to expect at practice‚its benefits, why it's useful and how it will be carried out. This one-of-a-kind coaching instrument resulted in a collection of inspiring, descriptive and often funny emails that ultimately turned into Overachiever's Diary.

The book is broken into 3 sections:

• Mechanics: Techniques, drills and tips

• Math: Measuring efficiency and speed, plus establishing empirical goals

• Motivation: Inspiring emails sent to the Cadets before major events

Tharp's mentor, and Total Immersion founder, Terry Laughlin, provided the introduction. The book also includes multiple essays by Laurie Ferguson PhD, psychologist and motivational speaker, on the importance of confidence, attitude and motivation.

Overachiever's Diary simplifies mechanics and motivation into terms every athlete can understand. It inspires, enlightens and pushes the physical and psychological limits of overachievers worldwide.