5 comments about Precision Heart Rate Training.

1. I had bought the book to help me with Mtn. bike training and my son with running. The book didn't provide information for mtn. biking though it did have a section on road biking. The running chapter seemed incomplete. The major table that was supposed to explain the heart rate targets was not explained fully. Also, oddly, there is a quote in there that is identical in two chapters but attritubted to two different people!

   In summary, I was disappointed with the book but it may be helpful to someone else.




2. I do inline skating, skiing, and weight training, but every time I tried to take up running, I would hit a wall. I just couldn't run for long sessions, and after a few I would hurt something and give up. Then I read about Ed Burke in Outside. This book, along with Burke's "Optimal Muscle Recovery" (I tore an Achilles tendon and developed plantar fascitis from skating and skiing) and "Stretching" finally got me to understand that I wasn't building the base I needed in order to run better. By following the training programs in this book, I've greatly increased my capacity without injury, and am slowly seeing my speed increase. Also liked this book because it took a different approach for each covered sport, and it treated inline skating with the respect it deserves as an endurance activity.



3. I have been interested in improving my performance for years, and finally decided to take the plunge and look into heart-rate monitoring. This book does not really support a specific philosophy and who knows if the so called "science" is supportable. I also read "Heart Monitor Training for the Compleat Idiot" by John L. Parker and recommend it. It appears much more scientific and emphasizes recovery over training in a zone. Don't buy this book. Rory Donaldson roryd@brainsarefun.com



4. The book is as much a collection of articles as it is a book, and there were a couple of inconsistencies that would have been caught by one more editorial pass. That said...the book very much informed/improved my running training, and for that reason alone, it's worth the purchase price.



5. 
   Mediocre book. There are better and more modern (newer thoughts and science) texts out there.

5 comments about The Maffetone Method: The Holistic, Low-Stress, No-Pain Way to Exceptional Fitness.

1. An excellent, educational read for anyone who wants to maximise performance, or just get healthy.



2. I have done a lot of research on exercise and the concepts presented here are boiled down from extensive research. This works! It is really not much different than Friel, just explained in a different way.



3. I don't agree with him at all about the diet that he is recommending. If you ever have read "The China Study", then you know what impact this kind of diet has on your health.
   But what he writes about training is really really good. Combine this two books and your life will improve.



4. I love this guide! I think that Maffetone has a great way to train & have been doing heart rate training recently. The book has so much useful information about being a healthy, fit person completely--not just focusing on 'times' for races, etc. I used to train & my heart rate was so high all the time that I feel so much more fit training by my heart rate. Great information!



5. If you are a beginner to exercise, this is a great book. If you have been training for marathons or Ironmans for years, you can still get a couple of nuggets. If you think it is going to make you faster you are wrong.
   
   I like this book. I have read it many times. But, the method worked for athletes like Mark Allen and Mike Pigg. These guys were already freaky fast. They used this method to change the percentage of fuel to fat compared to carbs.
   
   This method will get you to running the same pace at a lower heart rate. Eventually though, if you want to be faster, you have to go faster.

No comments about Fitness Through Aerobics, Step Training, Walking (Wadsworth Activities).

5 comments about The Nia Technique: The High-Powered Energizing Workout that Gives You a New Body and a New Life.

1. Find a Nia class ([...]), take a Nia class, buy the book to deepen your practice. You'll never experience life the same again. I use this book in conjunction with regular weekly Nia classes to explore pleasure in my Body. How much pleasure can you stand?



2. I've had the pleasure of attending Nia classes at my health club, and at a local spa, but have had difficulty following the routines. This book breaks down the individual movements, making it easy for me to understand and remember them. I'm eager to take this new knowledge into the Nia classroom, and relax in the knowing. If you haven't tried Nia, and have the opportunity to attend a class, by all means -- don't hesitate!



3. Through The Nia Technique, I learn to life joyfully. Stories of personal healing from Nia fill my heart with love. Through movement I find health, joy and so much more. This is the book to begin a journey and connect you to Nia classes in your area. [...] to find your path.



4. Start with this book if you are thinking of taking a Nia class. The history and theory behind the technique are clearly and compellingly explained. Photos of the basic movements let you practice at home to get an idea of the Nia benefits possible.



5. This a great resource book for Nia plus great for
   feeling good. I love my choice and recommend
   this to everyone wanting a new way of excercising
   and feeling wonderful.

No comments about Keep Moving: Fitness Through Aerobics and Step.

5 comments about Fitness: Theory & Practice : The Comprehensive Resource for Fitness Instruction.

1. What can I say, its a book. It came as described and I am using it to study for the AFAA exam.



2. Quick shipping! Quick to respond to my questions and very helpful. I will use again in the future.I recommend to others.Book was in great condition. I saved 50% compared to others who bought this book from the AFAA website.Also, saved money on shipping & recieved it in less time.



3. Received my order in a timely manner. Product in excellent condition. I would buy from this seller again.



4. I was happy to learn which exercises affect which muscles during aerobics, jazzercise and walking. This book explains it all.



5. This is a book for a fitness class. It is a great book and a lot cheaper online than in my school's bookstore.

5 comments about The Ultimate Fit or Fat.

1. It's nothing but an exercise book. I don't need a book to know that exercise is good for me. I'm not sure what I expected but this book wasn't it.



2. Covert Bailey is the smartest man in America. How easy it all is when someone finally tells the truth. Through out the diet books and make room on the shelf for The Ultimate Fit or Fat! There are no quick fixes or majic pill, there is only commom sense. Follow what he says, it will change your live in ways you never imagined.
   Thank you Covert Bailey.



3. I'm a "normal" 68 year old woman, and I've been doing various kinds of exercise in fits and starts for years.
   
   The thing that has got me exercising regularly now, for past few months, is the new knowledge about how exercise prevents Alzheimer's (my mother had it) and Parkinson's -- How serious exercise actually takes advantage of the brain's plasticity (and I have been feeling smarter -- memory much better).
   
   I bought this Ultimate Fit or Fat because I heard somewhere that it was a superior and really informative and user friendly book about exercise. All true. I've been reading this stuff for ages and I've never seen it explained so carefully and clearly and in such a FRIENDLY tone. This guy is a genius explainer, a genius motivator. I now can understand pulse rates, body fat percentages, etc. etc. Okay, sorry, I've gotta go get on my elliptical trainer, now.



4. Sensible, logical, motivational. Packs a good punch and gets one going. Should be prescribed reading for anyone over 10.



5. Amazing that this 10 year old book purports to "put an end to the diet mania." At least the author concludes the introductory interview with this statement. He is right, it should have. But still there are bestsellers year after year that tell people what to eat. Clearly, by now, everyone in the US knows what to eat.
   
   This book explains how to exercise so that eating is just one part of your overall fitness plan.
   
   The sad thing is that there is still no penalty for being fat in the US. As the book suggests, health care insurance MIGHT become more expensive in the US if you are fat, but 10 years out that appears even less likely to ever happen. A classic group (all Americans) versus the individual (next time you see a grossly obese person, remember we are all paying for their medical care) problem.
   
   In any case, this is an excellent book that gives you a metric, body fat, and along with eating healthy, if you exercise as per Bailey's plan, leaves you zero excuses for being unhealthy. This book plus a single diet book should allow anyone to become healthy. But still there is a steady stream of books on diet and fitness which do NOT have new information. Irrational? Yes (welcome to the US circa 2009)
   
   Don't look beyond this book, its information is not going to become dated. Maybe the explanations of why this program works will be expanded but it has the correct tools to help you.

2 comments about Fitness through Aerobics (8th Edition).

1. I'm only reviewing the 4th Edition here -- and only a very small part, which is all I was able to glance at at the time...some photos of common exercises which the book advised against! Not just stuff like the sit-up which we now know to be bad for the back, but also side stretches, leg lifts, tilting/rolling the head backwards! Duck walks, the bridge...so many things which had been used during the tae kwon do training of my youth are listed as being dangerous here! You really must see the photos to know what I'm talking about...hopefully this Sixth Edition also has them -- it'll surprise even gym rats!



2. If you had to own just one book on fitness, this would be an excellent choice. It covers the waterfront -- basic fitness concepts; clothing and equipment selection; flexibility exercises for warm-up and cool-down; resistance exercises for improved muscle tone; step aerobics and aerobic dance; exercise variants using weights, bands, stability balls; nutrition and weight control; injury prevention; even how to select an exercise facility and instructor. The content is based on the latest research in the field, and supplemented by helpful worksheets for key elements of a fitness program, such as determining your target heart rate and monitoring your fitness and cardiorespiratory performance status. There are excellent photos illustrating the exercises to do and, perhaps more important, the exercises to avoid. Before I got this book I was trying to cobble together my own fitness program from various web sites, and wondering why I was hurting most of the time. This book helped me enormously in putting together a more sensible fitness and weight-loss program that I have been able to sustain without injury.

5 comments about Guitar Aerobics: A 52-Week, One-lick-per-day Workout Program for Developing, Improving and Maintaining Guitar Technique.

1. This book is helping me do new things with the guitar and helping with my playing over all



2. I've had the book for about 3 weeks,I haven't quite followed the one lick per day as the book suggests, but I am having a lot of fun, learning the licks in order.
   
   I would not suggest this format alone for learning any instrument, or learning music in general, but the way it starts simple, and progressively increases my skills, my understanding of music theory, and stays fun, means that I highly recommend this music lesson book. Also the book was priced just right.



3. been playing guitar consistanly for about 3 months. this book has helped with finger coordination, speed, and timing. some of the exercises are a little hard, but overall pretty decent book. You definitely need to be able to read either music or tabliture and understand guitar notation.



4. I think this is a really good book. I wish the audio content that accompanies this book had been organized a little differently, though.
   
   This book comes with 2 CDs. The first CD has an audio track for each week. Each weekly track plays thru all the licks for that week so you can hear what they're supposed to sound like once you get really good at them. However, for example, you can't just select Thursday's lesson of week 1 - it's just one audio track for the entire week, so you have to listen thru the previous lessons for that week to get to the one you want (they are very short - just plays the lick for each day, but it is still frustrating to not be able to go directly to the exact lesson you are interested in).
   
   Disk 2 is a bunch of metronomes/rhythms at different speeds for each lesson that you can use to help get your timing down.
   
   So, for example, this is how you might use them: let's say you're on Friday's lesson of week 2. You put CD1 in and select the track for week 2 to listen to ALL of week 2's licks. Then, you take CD1 out and put CD2 in to play the rhythms/metronomes that go with that lesson (as indicated in the book for each lesson). But, if you want to hear the lick again you have to take out CD2 and put CD1 back in and then play thru the entire week's licks to get to the one you are practicing.
   
   What would have been really nice is if there was a separate audio track for each daily lesson that combines the example lick for that lesson along with the accompanying metronomes/rhythms. It's still a good book and the audio content is very helpful, just realize that it's a little cumbersome and frustrating to use the CDs that come with the book.
   
   As far as the book itself, there are a couple of things that I really like. First, each day's lesson shows the music with notes, the tab, the chords and the strum/picking pattern. So, if you're familiar with any one of those you can see how it relates to the others. Second are the repeating techniques each week. Every Monday is 'alternate picking', Tuesday is 'string skipping', Wednesday is 'string bending', Thursday is 'arpeggios', Friday is 'sweep picking', Saturday is 'legato' and Sunday is 'Rhythm'. Where appropriate they are related to each other and build upon each other as you progress from week to week.
   
   All in all this is a very good book and you will learn a lot of useful techniques. If a little more thought had been given to the organization of the audio content this would have been a top-notch package.



5. Successful guitar skills depend on developing dexterity, strength, and agility. The exercises in this book are aimed improving those capabilities. A brief new exercise is provided for each day of the week. For the seven days of each week, the focus is on a different skill. A good thing is that some of the exercises are very challenging. But some are easier to master. This helps to keep from getting frustrated.
   The exercises aren't necessarily exciting, but if a guitar student uses this book faithfully, he or she can't help but grow more proficient in the skills necessary to play guitar.

5 comments about Zumba®: Ditch the Workout, Join the Party! The Zumba Weight Loss Program.

1. I bought this to give me an idea of Zumba before I take the classes July 14th. Can't wait - it is toooo fun!



2. I bought Zumba on line, though the book was informative I was disappointed with the CD, no where in the description did it say the CD was a short demo, this disappointed me, so I returned it.



3. Very disappointed. DVD - 60 minutes... HARDLY It only shows a few demos of the moves that one can watch on youtube for free. 10 minutes max. The rest of the DVD is music with a timer that appears on the screen for the routines. You have to look up the routines in the book! The moves in the routine are on separate pages so you are flipping back and forth through the book to figure out the routine. Most moves are not as demos on the DVD. Book had illustrated moves. That's fine if you want to read and figure things out. WOULD NOT RECOMMEND if you are experienced in aerobics or dancing. I am going to see if I can get my money back on this one.



4. This is really only a book with many good points for weight control. However, the dvd is really lacking. It is very amateurish, very short in length and does not furnish the viewer with any idea what the workouts in the book are about. The exercises in the book and the diet are found in most weight loss books. I was very disappointed with this purchase.



5. I really like this DVD and was just disappointed that it was only a demo (very short). I tried to order another one and order was cancelled, so I may try ordering again, not sure.