Book Review--Fitness Series: No Sweat

 No Sweat: How the Simple Science of Motivation Can Bring You a Lifetime of Fitness

by Michelle Segar

Read by: Lyndsay Vitale

What motivates you to exercise?

Wait...

What de-motivates you and keeps you from exercising?

This is a great book for those who have tried and failed to "get fit" or "get healthy" or "look better".

If you've tried everything and just cannot stick to a diet and/or exercise plan, Ms. Segar has a few questions for you and will help you explore why it continually fails.

Her stratagem is MAPS

MEANING

AWARENESS

PERMISSION

STRATEGY

First, take a look at what the words exercise, fitness, and health, mean to you. If they all bring to mind misery, starvation, and any other negative connotations, she wants you examine that.  Once you delve into the what those concepts mean to you, that's the first step in defining what doesn't work which will lead you to what DOES work.

This is a very logical and practical look at how society and our own experiences can work together to create, essentially, an unhealthy view of activity and diet.  Learn to find what works for YOU to enjoy an active lifestyle in whatever way works for you.

On a personal note, I have always been an active person (not sporty, mind you, but definitely on the move all the time).  But I have have known so many people who struggle with the mindset that "If I can't run, I won't get fit". Or "I'm not in shape because I hate to lift weights".  I feel that these principles can really reach someone who is in despair about ever being fit because it points out that fitness and the path to it are very personal and it's ok if your path is a different route than anyone else's.  This has been especially apparent since I've started working with athletes as a CrossFit Trainer and I found a lot to relate to my class members from this book.  There are many paths to health and fitness, let Ms. Segar help you find yours.

Book Review: Fitness Series--Good to Go

Book Review--Fitness Series 

Good to Go

What the Athlete in All of Us Can Learn from the Strange Science of Recovery

Author: Christie Aschwanden

Audio version read by: Allyson Ryan

As an avid CrossFitter of two years now, I have learned new meanings of the words:

strength

flexibility (or lack thereof)

endurance

fatigue

soreness

Did I mention soreness?  Ohmygoodness!  I may be pushing back the boundaries of my weakness but it can come at a price.  Usually a lot of groans, extra stretching, foam rolling, and audible monologue about "why do I do this to myself?"  But I'm back at it the next day, working harder than ever!

But there are limits. 

Even the most conditioned athletes in the world have to take the time to let their body rest.  Christie Ashwanden takes both a personal and analytical look at the concept of recovery and how it benefits all of us.

How many of these recovery options have you tried? Ice, RICE, heat, Epsom salts, warm bath, naps, stretching, yoga, crying...  I have tried them all, even cryotherapy!

Cryotherapy was definitely invigorating!

Ms. Ashwanden delves into cryotherapy and icing along with a whole host of other common recovery techniques. From massage and meditation to ice baths and compression pants.  Foam rolling and percussion massagers to active recovery runs and beer, the range of options is as wide as the individuality in athletes.  What I appreciated most was that the author delved into the scientific authenticity of each recovery method while calling attention to the difficulty of quantifying what is essentially an individual response to stimuli.  I was intrigued enough to take the plunge in the cold tank so I could make my own decision about how it impacted my own recovery and it opened up questions and possibilities for me to try.

This is worth a read to offer you insights into pop culture cures, general physiological explanations, the dangers of trusting studies without looking into the statistical validity of them, and the overall importance recovery has, no matter how it looks for you.