|
Fat chance: help for healthy living
Changing to a lean-fit lifestyle is a "weighty" decision but one that offers long-term rewards. Simply put, lean-fit living cultivates a daily zest for life that some of us haven't experienced since we were kids. Lifestyle changes take time and commitment, but three new fitness books can help you chart a path to success. |
REVIEWS BY PAT REGEL
The Wilberts believe that all too often, those who want to lose weight are their own worst enemy: "Recognize that the universal obstacle to healthy weight management is self-defeating behavior." Their remedy is to learn to recognize and change your fattitude, which they define as a "thought or pattern of thinking that leads to self-defeating behavior in weight management efforts." You may not even be aware that you have a fattitude. According to the Wilberts, an adjustment is probably in order if you're unable to stay on a healthy eating track, if you sabotage your own weight loss success, or if your exercise habits last only a few weeks. In Fattitudes, the Wilberts tackle the complexities of emotional eating, warn you about how certain relationships can set you up for failure, and show you how to establish emotional freedom from the fattitudes that have been at work in your life for a long time. This book will help you find out a lot about yourself and your love/hate relationship with food.
By Jeffery and Norean Wilbert St. Martin's Press, $22.95 ISBN 0312251912
Each series of yoga movements (poses) is demonstrated in large, color photos and accompanied by easy-to-follow instructions. Because many of the movements in her book are preliminary poses, Austin believes that "regular practice of these poses will prepare our bodies for doing the traditional, more difficult poses" later on. Yoga is an excellent body conditioner, and its affects can be seen and felt in gradual weight loss, improved strength and breathing, sounder sleep, and flexible limbs. Yoga For Wimps is especially recommended for those who haven't exercised in years.
By Miriam Austin Sterling, $17.95 ISBN 0806943394
In Slow Burn, Mittleman shows how to achieve your goals by breaking them down into smaller ones. He offers strategies for daily aerobic movement that tap into fat stores and allow weight loss. His nutrition strategies power you up to eat for long-term endurance and life-time vitality. Mittleman's three-part program (Think, Train, Eat) is a formula for success that anyone can use.
The Power of Excessive Moderation By Stu Mittleman HarperCollins, $24 ISBN 0062716123
Pat Regel race-walks in Nashville.
|
"Focus on permanent, not temporary changes" is the recommendation of Jeffery and Norean Wilbert. "Remember the rule of thumb: Don't do anything on a diet you're not willing to do the rest of your life." This common sense advice appears in their new book, Fattitudes: Beat Self-Defeat and Win Your War with Weight.
Support your 
Miriam Austin's excellent step-by-step book, Yoga For Wimps: Poses For The Flexibly Impaired eases you into healthy living by introducing a yoga program that you can do for life. If you want to learn yoga, but think the movements are too difficult to execute, Austin's book solves the problem. By using such props as a chair, rolled face cloths, books, and an old belt, bending and stretching is much easier -- even for the flexibly impaired.
If you're struggling to keep up in our fast-paced world, author Stu Mittleman offers this sage advice: "Life is a marathon, not a sprint, and you must prepare accordingly." In Slow Burn: The Power of Excessive Moderation, Mittleman shares the secrets of endurance that enabled him to set eight long-distance records, including a world record for a 1,000-mile run. A member of Anthony Robbins's elite coaching team since 1992, Mittleman energetically motivates and teaches the principles of endurance and energy. His positive can-do enthusiasm is infectious and his exercise tips, valuable. "Suppose you could sleep less yet feel even more rested and alive -- what would you do with the extra hours that suddenly appear in your day?" Anyone who has incorporated a regular fitness program into a busy lifestyle can attest to sustained energy levels. According to Mittleman, movement is the key: "What your body wants and craves is movement. Movement unleashes your body's energy potential."