Everything Total Fitness

The Everything Total Fitness Book is for people who want to begin a fitness program and don't know where to start. The book is basic, sensible and easy to understand. It's focus is on fitness as a lifestyle, rather than dieting or weight loss. While the book does provide a good introduction to fitness, you may want to supplement it with one or two other beginning fitness books to get all the information you need (I recommend "Barnes & Noble Basics: Getting in Shape" as a 2nd read). TETFB breaks down and explains all the components of a good fitness program. It focuses on cardio, strength training, flexibility, sleep, and even stress reduction. I found Chapter 4: The Principles of Exercise to be especially helpful. It focused on using the "FITT" principle and finding your aerobic target zones in order to set goals and make the most out of exercise. Chapter 7: Strength Training explains how to determine the amount of weight, frequency, and duration that is best for each individual. This was also very helpful. If you need help in choosing the right fitness activities, Author Ellen Karper provides detailed descriptions of the most popular exercise activities, along with the equipment you'll need, and safety tips. The nutrition section is a primer in how to eat healthy. I didn't find it as helpful as the fitness section. That's not to say it didn't provide important information. It does. I just found it to be a little confusing and technical at times. There's got to be an easier way to find out your nutritional needs without all that math work and measuring! There is also a chapter that many people will find helpful. It's for people with special needs such as pregnant women, diabetics, and older people. Although I didn't need this section, I appreciate that they didn't leave anyone out. Thumbs up for that. Finally there is a short chapter on injury prevention and care. Overall I would recommend this book to beginners. It covers the basics well, is easy to read, and was helpful in beginning my own fitness program.

America's obsession with beauty did a number on my perspective about fitness. The ads and fad diets and health publications that insinuate you're somehow less of a human being if you don't have a six-pack of abs, that you're lazy if you're overweight. The constant allusions to the idea that being overweight makes you a loser (you'll never get a date, people won't respect you, etc, ad nauseam).All that made me embittered to the whole subject of fitness, and it essentially became my second "F" word. This negative perspective had years to grow into resentment. "Does nothing matter about me except the way I look?" I'd think in frustration. At that point I could have won the Pulitzer and Nobel prizes consecutively and I still would have been depressed because I didn't have washboard abs.It was a double-edged sword, for while I resented myself for being out of shape on one hand, on the other I resented the "health nuts" even more and would sooner have my arm torn off by rabid dogs than do a push-up. Because then I'd be conforming to "their" demands and "they" would win.All that changed when I read this book. I was feeling increasingly lethargic in my daily life and decided to borrow this book from the library. I was skeptical from page one, and as I started reading I began to think, "ok. Tell my why fitness is so important."And it did exactly that.While other resources I've read recited a litany of incredibly shallow reasons to set fitness goals ("you'll look better," "You'll have better performance in bed," etc), this book did none of that. It listed clearly and concisely, in plain English, exactly why fitness is so important in daily life. Never once did I feel condescended and I never got the impression that my intelligence was being insulted. One line from the book that really won me over is as follows:"You will improve your appearance through regular exercise, but more importantly, you will improve your body's ability to do more with less effort, and that feels great!"Those three words, "but more importantly," single-handedly separated this book from all the other ego-driven, self-indulgent, fad-inducing, shallow fitness media out there. The author made me realize that there is so much more to fitness than a washboard stomach or counting calories like an obsessive-compulsive madman. It is conductive to improving all areas of one's life.The illustrations in this book also stuck out in my mind. Where every other book, magazine, and video I've seen showcased perfect models (the "this could be you if you buy into our product/fad" thing), this book's little cartoons feature average Joes exercising, seemingly for the sheer enjoyment of the activity. I found that highly motivating. That, combined with this book's down-to-Earth presentation dispelled the notion that one should strive to become some kind of Fitness God, but rather to feel better and be happy."The Everything Total Fitness Book" is a real eye-opener, and it showed me just how important a hea

I was delighted to find the "Everything Total Fitness Book" because I could not get excited about any of the other fitness resources I had found. It seems that every fitness book I looked at fell into one of two categories: (1) some fad diet/exercise program with a stern looking, very buff person on the cover or (2) some hippy-dippy nonsense about "refocusing energy" or "fitness chakras" etc. Besides, if you're like me, you're not interested in losing weight OR in putting on 50 lbs of straight bicep muscle, you just want to keep in shape and improve your diet... Well, that's this book. The great thing about "Everything..." is that it approaches the subject assuming nothing about you or your fitness agenda -- therefore, the book begins with the very basics of nutrition and exercise and goes from there. The author's unassuming, straightforward approach is very refreshing in that it presents the information matter-of-factly and in a manner that is easily accessible to those who know little about the subject. Also, in addition to being comprehensive with respect to what you put into and what you do with your body, it tries to take into account situations that might fall outside the norm assumed by most of the book (e.g., pregnancy, diabetes, osteoperosis, etc.)So, if you're like me and are interested in fitness (as opposed to "dieting" or "weight training") then this is an excellent book to get you started off with improving your lifestyle.

I was looking for a guide that would not only inspire me to return to working out, but would give me all of the information about how often to work out, what to do when, how to know when I'm training hard enough, etc. The Everything Total Workout Book was better than any of the other books on this subject I could find. The writer seemed very knowledgeable, and while some of the sidebar anecdotes are corny, the information presented was all useful. I am now energized to work out, and feel confident that I can develop a plan for continued fitness. Highly recommended.

This book contains all of the information you need to know to become and stay fit, especially if you are like me and only just starting to become fit. I especially like the detailed information on heart rate zones and designing a fitness program for yourself.