Books for the buff 
Tom Venuto: Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle
Detailed info on healthy nutrition, goal-setting and motivation, the basics of weight-training,
and cardio for fat loss. If you could
have just one volume on getting lean, this is it.
Ian
King, Lou Schuler: Men's Health The Book of Muscle
Terrific guide to weight training for
both sexes. High-quality photos, innovative exercises as well as standard
fare, good background in laymen's language.
Lou Schuler: The New Rules of Lifting for Women: Lift Like a Man, Look Like a Goddess
Tells women what they need to know about lifting weights: their workouts should be heavy and intense, just like a guy’s.
Barbara
J. Rolls: The Volumetrics Weight-Control Plan : Feel Full on Fewer Calories
The science of satiety. This book teaches real-world portion control and how
to make healthful, filling choices.
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 A story published today on MSNBC.com explores whether it’s better to train with free weights (barbells and dumbbells), to use machines (e.g., Nautilus), or to combine free-weight exercises with BOSU balance trainers or stability balls.
For most people, this is a non-issue. Experienced lifters and other elite athletes usually employ a combination of methods, depending on their goals. People who are brand-new to training can use any of those approaches: the point is, just do something. Continue reading Does it matter which way you train?
I’m trying to remember when fat-free cheese was introduced. Surely it was during the fat-phobic 1980s.
It was horrible stuff.
A few weeks ago while grocery shopping, I saw Kraft shredded fat-free cheddar cheese. I thought I’d give it a try as a way to add a little protein and not many calories to my typical breakfast. Most mornings I scramble one whole egg and several ounces of Egg Beaters, spiced up with chopped onions and green peppers, garnished with a tablespoon of salsa before serving. One ounce of fat-free cheddar adds 45 calories and 9 grams of protein–not a bad way to increase the protein content of breakfast.
Unlike the dreadful stuff I remember from years ago, this cheese actually melts, and the taste is fine. Continue reading Fat-free cheese–better than I remember
Try saying that headline really fast about 10 times.
Seriously, Sally writes a regular column, "The Lean Plate Club," for The Washington Post, and in the most recent edition she compares various sugar substitutes. She looks at safety, calorie content, whether the substance in question can be used for baking, and, ahem, other factors (example: erythritol, a sugar alcohol "can can cause gas and loose bowels").
Her conclusion: "If you’re looking for sweetness with fewer calories, try sucralose or Whey Low, which seem to have flavor with few risks." Continue reading Sally Squires examines sweeteners
Yesterday I mentioned Maxine Johnson, now 56 years old and fabulous, as well as Anja Langer, who is 43, I believe.
In contrast, how many women over 40 do you know who have given up the attempt to be physically fit and get their weight under control? I understand the temptation to take the easy way out and tell yourself, "I’m too old to get in shape now. Wearing a size 14 [or 16 . . . or 18 . . . or 24] isn’t so bad." But I think you’re lying to yourself. Continue reading What are you doing about getting older?
Today I read an e-book (The Secrets Of Fighting Female Flab Over 40 With Master’s Fitness Champ Maxine Johnson, available free on Tom Venuto’s Inner Circle) in which Anja Langer and Gladys Portuguese were mentioned. I hadn’t thought about them in forever, but after seeing their names, I spent some time googling for images. Quite a few are available on Anja Langer’s website. Her story is intriguing because although she had a bodybuilding career in the 1980s, she is still stunningly fit. Check out the shots from 2001.
I couldn’t find a single image of Gladys. She was a beautiful competitor as well.
Here’s a site with photos of a number of female competitors from the ’80s and ’90s. See what you think.
Images can be highly motivating.
MSNBC.com’s fitness section recently ran an article that caught my eye by referring to the Presidential Physical Fitness Award of bygone days. I well remember my disappointment at not earning a badge. The problem? My softball throw. It was terrible. I scored very well on the strength measures–things like sit-ups, push-ups, and being able to hang from a bar. Alas, I threw “like a girl.” What can I say? I wasn’t working on arm strength at age 14, nor have I ever had anything like hand-to-eye coordination.
But if I felt the need to redeem myself I could take the government’s new Adult Fitness Test. The promotional site, unveiled May 14, offers instructions on measuring aerobic fitness (with a 1-mile walk or 1.5-mile run), muscular strength and endurance (with “half sit-ups” and push-ups), flexibility (with a sit-and-reach test), and body composition.
This last is problematic, as it infers body composition from body-mass index (BMI), a measure that in fact relies only on weight and height. In other words, it says zip about body composition–how much of that weight is fat and how much is lean tissue. If you’re muscular, your BMI may falsely indicate that you’re “overweight.” Continue reading How fit are you?
The January 2008 issue of the research journal Obesity included a fascinating article that documented the activity patterns of obese and lean women. I won’t summarize all the details because you can read the entire article online.
In short, obese women sat for two and half hours more than lean women and stood for two hours less than lean women each day. Obese women also spent about half as much time each day in activity of all sorts (walking, climbing stairs, etc.).
The upshot was that obese women burned about 300 calories fewer each day than lean women. Continue reading Stand more, sit less
If you eat tuna fairly often, you’ll be interested in the results of this review by Cook’s Illustrated magazine. (Cook’s, if you’re not familiar with it, is the best cooking magazine around. Foodies will love it. Just be aware that you’ll be trying these recipes on maintenance day.)
Cook’s asked its panel of tasters to sample various kinds of tuna from cans and pouches. Fortunately for your pocketbook, two inexpensive canned tunas stole the show. I don’t buy tuna in a pouch very often because of its significantly higher cost, and now I see there’s no reason to switch from cans.
The top two tunas, in order of preference were Continue reading Better-tasting tuna
Raise your hand if you’ve ever read an article in a women’s fitness magazine that recommended a daily weight-loss diet that provides around 1,300 calories. Yeah, I thought you had.
This afternoon I paged through the latest Oxygen magazine—or maybe it was Oxygen’s annual glutes special—and found sample menus for such a diet. Keep in mind that Oxygen promotes intense physical activity—both weights and cardio. Keep in mind that these far-too restrictive diets are often said to be the food plans followed by female fitness athletes.
That is simply impossible unless the women in question are anorexic. Continue reading Crazy women’s-magazine food plans
One of the things I forget about starting over in the gym: how fatigued I feel. I don’t mean fatigued while in the weight room. There I tend to feel energized. It’s how tired I feel a couple of hours later. Of course, that passes as one’s fitness level increases, and it doesn’t take long to start adapting to the increased demand.
Musing on this has made me think of Get Buffed, the first in a series of self-published volumes by Australian strength coach Ian King. These books aren’t cheap. Current price on King’s website is $49.95, although I don’t think I paid that much for it in 2004. King says a lot of intelligent things about lifting, one of which is that older people benefit from brief, intense workouts but need more time to recover than younger people
I loved hearing the part about shorter workouts and fewer sets because I’ve always hated long, drawn-out sessions in the gym. I’m glad to be there, I work hard while I’m there, and then I want to get on with my life.
In any case, I’m wasted today after popping in to the gym for 25 minutes on the elliptical trainer. No weights today, just stretching afterward. I’ve lifted twice this week and will probably lift again on Monday.
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