Definitely A Library Book

5 Essentials For A Winning Life - The Nutrition, Fitness, And Life Plan For Discovering The Champion Within

Chris Camichael & Jim Rutberg

I read this book two weeks ago and it's definitely one you want to pick up at the library and save yourself $25. Out of roughly 300 pages, the real meat is in the first 100 pages. The rest of the book is recipes, descriptions of exercises, weekly meal plans, and weekly exercise plans. Also, this book is not targeted to athlete's, it's targeted at former athletes (How much weight has Eddy Merckx gained?) and the general population.

What are the "5 Essentials"?

1. Boost Your Fitness
2. Master Your Nutrition
3. Jump Start Your Career
4. Fortify Your Relationships
5. Supercharge Your Health

Boost Your Fitness
Since the book is aimed at Couch Potatoes everywhere, the main premise is that a little bit of fitness can go a long way. Athletes won't find anything new here.

Master Your Nutrition
There is a lot of No: No Soda, No Corn Syrup, No Trans Fats, No Alcohol, No Tobacco, No Fancy Coffee drinks. For the past couple of years, I've worked on improving my diet, more as a consequence of the people at Hammer Nutrition than anything else. I knew I had to look for 100% whole wheat when choosing bread, but did you know that almost all the bread at your local store contain High Fructose Corn Syrup? I finally found Pepperidge Farm's 100% Whole Grain, it's 100% whole wheat and no High Fructose Con Syrup. Then there are the yeses: Yes to Whole Foods, Yes To Fiber, and (suprisingly) yes to more water. Drink More Water surprised me, I always drink as much as necessary during training days, but on non-days, I revert back to the "8x8", eight eight ounces glasses of water a day and yet, my nephrologist was constantly sending me back for retests saying I was dehydrated. Carmichael recommends nearly a gallon a day, so I doubt my nephrologist will be calling me dehydrated now.

Jump Start Your Career
There's no secret here, Carmichael says that fit individuals perform better at work as long as they get the proper nutrition and sleep.

Fortify Your Relationships
There were some interesting tips here: Fire under performing friends, create training Triads, but the chapter is 9 pages long and nearly 5 pages explain how better fitness and nutrition improve your sex life. With the best advice "Touch Her For No Reason".

Supercharge Your Health
Where he covers all the medical tests you need and when you should get them done. He also covers the supplements you should be taking. He also points out that (surprise) exercise lowers the need for medicine.

The rest of the book as I've said is recipes and weekly meal plans, exercises and weekly exercise plans.

  ¶ 3:32 PM