Cross Training for Fitness

Rating:
Summary: the perfect fitness primer
Review: This book is a gold mine for anyone serious about starting an exercise program. Brzycki, a former Navy Seal and body builder and now fitness director at Princeton University, is amply qualified to write such a book and has in fact authored several other related books and academic articles on the subject of exercise and fitness. (His *A Practical Approach to Strength Training* is commonly considered the standard reference in that area.)

This book may seem slanted more toward athletes than toward ordinary people looking to get in shape. For example, it includes a section on anaerobic fitness (e.g., sprints), and it doesn't contain special sections geared specifically towards the elderly or disabled, as can be found in some introductory exercise books. Still, it is more than adequate as a starter's guide to exercise for just about anyone, with sections on nutrition and proper technique, and even going so far as to detail sample exercise programs and the rationale behind each choice in the program.

The unwary fitness neophyte can drown in the sea of published exercise myths and marketing propaganda, which is exactly why this book is such an excellent introduction to the area. It's a credit to Brzycki's professional academic style that he always justifies his approach and his recommendations, never with personal anecdotes but always with clinical research and scientific principles. At times, the explanation is a bit excessive - witness for example an unnecessarily long section on the biochemistry of muscular contraction - but it's incredibly helpful for orienting the novice who's ready to believe whatever is in print.

Brzycki is sometimes outspoken in his recommendations, but, again, he always backs them up with data. For example, he gives compelling support for his theory that a multiple set weight lifting regimen is no better than a single set regimen, even for conditioned athletes. Brzycki also spurns the concept of a "fat burning zone" (of a heart rate slightly lower than that needed to achieve cardiovascular fitness) as both a ploy to increase compliance with difficult exercise regimens and also a misunderstanding of metabolic physiology. This is a far cry from some of Bryzicki's competitors in this field, who often support their advice with the "it worked for me" argument.

This book is the perfect training guide for both fitness novices and veterans alike. In the former case, it will teach proper exercise habits, and in the latter it will correct bad ones.