Fitness For Dummies

The latest and greatest in getting fit and staying that way!

Fitness For Dummies, 4th Edition, provides the latest
information and advice for properly shaping, conditioning, and
strengthening your body to enhance overall fitness and health. With
the help of fitness professionals Suzanne Schlosberg and Liz
Neporent, you'll learn to set and achieve realistic fitness goals
without expensive fitness club fees!

• Achieve motivation and social support from social networking
  sites such as Twitter and Facebook

• Take advantage of digital resources such as e-exercising
  programs, video instructors, digital training systems, apps, and
  more

• Gives you the latest tips and methods to test your own fitness
  level, set realistic goals, stick with your program, and get great
  results

• Shows you how to spot where fat is sneaking into your diet

• Get the most out of high-tech exercise machines and equipment,
  plus tips for using dumbbells or a simple jump rope to achieve
  results

• Offers step-by-step instructions on creating a home gym on a
  budget

Featuring all-new informative fitness photos and illustrations,
this revised edition of Fitness For Dummies is all you need
to get on track to a healthy new body!

Autorentext

Suzanne Schlosberg is a fitness writer whose work has
appeared in Shape, Health, Fit Pregnancy,
Ladies' Home Journal, and other magazines.

Liz Neporent is a health and fitness expert and
correspondent for ABC National News. She is a frequent contributor
to Shape, Self, and Fitness magazines.

Zusammenfassung
The latest and greatest in getting fit and staying that way! Fitness For Dummies, 4th Edition, provides the latest information and advice for properly shaping, conditioning, and strengthening your body to enhance overall fitness and health. With the help of fitness professionals Suzanne Schlosberg and Liz Neporent, you'll learn to set and achieve realistic fitness goals without expensive fitness club fees!

• Achieve motivation and social support from social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook
• Take advantage of digital resources such as e-exercising programs, video instructors, digital training systems, apps, and more
• Gives you the latest tips and methods to test your own fitness level, set realistic goals, stick with your program, and get great results
• Shows you how to spot where fat is sneaking into your diet
• Get the most out of high-tech exercise machines and equipment, plus tips for using dumbbells or a simple jump rope to achieve results
• Offers step-by-step instructions on creating a home gym on a budget
  Featuring all-new informative fitness photos and illustrations, this revised edition of Fitness For Dummies is all you need to get on track to a healthy new body!

Inhalt

Introduction 1

About This Book 1

Conventions Used in This Book 2

What You're Not to Read 3

Foolish Assumptions 3

How This Book is Organized 3

Part I: Getting Your Butt off the Couch 4

Part II: Going Cardio 4

Part III: Building Muscle and Strengthening Bone 4

Part IV: Limbering Up with Flexibility, Balance, and Mind-Body Exercise 5

Part V: Getting Fit in Health Clubs and Home Gyms 5

Part VI: Exercising for All Ages and Stages 5

Part VII: The Part of Tens 6

Icons Used in This Book 6

Where to Go from Here 7

Part I: Getting Your Butt off the Couch 9

Chapter 1: Establishing Your Plan of Attack 11

Understanding What Fitness Means 11

Setting Goals and Tracking Your Progress 13

Assessing your current fitness level (yes, this class has tests) 13

Setting multiple goals and rewards 13

Putting it in writing 15

Selecting Exercises That Are Right for You 17

Staying Motivated to Make Exercise a Habit 17

Getting inspiration from others 18

Training for an event 19

Keeping it interesting 19

Dressing the part 19

Staying realistic 20

Chapter 2: Testing Your Fitness 21

Reviewing Your Health History 21

Talking to a tester at the gym 22

Assessing your health history yourself 22

Vital Signs: Following Your Heart 23

Determining your resting heart rate 23

Knowing your blood pressure 24

Discovering how fit your heart is 25

Estimating Your Body-Fat Percentage 26

Getting the lowdown on fat measurements 26

Measuring body fat 27

Measuring Your Strength 31

Measuring your upper-body strength 32

Testing your core strength 33

Measuring your lower-body strength 34

Stretchy Stuff: Checking Your Flexibility 35

Checks and Balances: Standing on One Foot 38

Recording Your Fitness Test Results 38

Making Sense of Your Test Results 40

Chapter 3: Watching What You Eat: Nutrition Basics 41

Keeping an Eye on How Much You Eat 42

Deciding What's for Dinner: Food, Real Food 44

Figuring Out Fat, Carbs, and Protein 45

Getting the real deal on fat 45

Choosing your carbs carefully 46

Avoiding high-protein propaganda 48

Getting the Scoop on Supplements 48

Fueling Up 49

Timing your meals 49

Eating before you work out 50

Snacking during your workout 50

Refueling after your workout 50

Drinking Plenty of Fluids 51

Chapter 4: Educating Yourself 53

Judging Fitness Media Reports 54

Starting with reliable publications 54

Watching out for sensational headlines 55

Considering credentials and biases 56

Making sure there's a source 56

Remembering that advertisers can influence content 57

Being wary of celebrity endorsements 58

Putting limited stock in personal stories 58

Asking whether a study is newsworthy 58

Watching for outdated information 59

Evaluating Scientific Research 59

Paying attention to the experiment 59

Noting that results can be manipulated 60

Checking the math 61

Not assuming cause and effect 61

Putting a study in context 61

Trusting Credible Coverage 62

Chapter 5: This Doesn't Have to Happen to You: Avoiding Common Injuries 63

Reducing Your Risk of Injury 64

Recognizing When You're Injured 65

Identifying Common Exercise Injuries and Ways to Avoid Them 65

Inside information: Surveying injuries to muscles, bone, and more 66

Looking at injuries by body part 69 Treating Sports Injuries with RICE, RICE, Baby 75</p...