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Ultimate Fitness: The Quest for Truth About Exercise and Health
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ISBN13：9780312423223
出版社：Picador USA
作者：Gina Kolata
出版日：2004/04/01
裝訂：平裝
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From the highly acclaimed New York Times science writer Gina Kolata, the book for people who love exercise as much as they value the truth.
In Ultimate Fitness, Gina Kolata, science reporter for The New York Times, takes a fascinating journey into the fads, fictions, and genuine innovations that have defined the world of physical fitness. From weight lifting for men and women in the early days, to jogging in the 1970s, cycling in the 1980s, aerobics in the 1990s, and now Spinning, Kolata explains the science of conditioning and the objective evidence behind commonly accepted prescriptions.
Ultimate Fitness is also a book about the individuals who have challenged and influenced or failed to influence the industry, and the many of us who have participated in
this multimillion-dollar corner of American culture.
Gina Kolata is a science reporter for The New York Times and the author of four previous books, including Flu: The Story of the Great Influenza Pandemic of 1918 and the Search for the Virus That Caused It. She lives in Princeton, New Jersey.
A New York Times Notable Book
Kolata, a reporter for The New York Times, takes readers on a far-reaching and fascinating journey into the fads, fictions, and genuine innovations that have defined the world of physical fitness. From weight lifting for men and women in earlier times, to jogging in the 1970s, cycling in the 1980s, aerobics in the 1990s, and now the form of exercise known as "spinning," Kolata explains both the science of conditioning and the objective evidence behind commonly accepted prescriptions. Among the questions she addresses herein:
* What is the best way to exercise for maximum effect?
* What is the most effective way to train for endurance versus strength?
* Why is "maximum heart rate" calculated at 220 minus our age, and how did the formula come into being?
* Does "spot reducing" work?
* We feel great after physical exertion—and we think our endorphins are surging, right? Kolata shows us how and why we're wrong.
* Why is it that some people won't become fit in spite of exercise?
* Can exercise alone help reduce cholesterol?
* Are there special foods or drinks that can help you exercise longer or harder? Do nutritional supplements build muscles?
* Who's your trainer and how much training did he/she really receive?
Moreover, Kolata profiles those in the fitness industry who have successfully challenged conventional wisdom and marketed their inventions, and some who have resisted initial criticism only to back down from their claims. With lively sketches of many of the mavericks who have influenced the industry over the years—from Bernarr Macfadden and his controversial contests "for the best and most perfectly formed woman" in the early twentieth century, to Jack LaLanne, who, at the age of eighty-seven, still lifts weights for an hour every morning, to Johnny G, the champion of Spinning—Kolata reveals the inside workings of a multimillion-dollar business.
Lively, thorough, informed, and engaging, Ultimate Fitness spotlights all of the machines and machinations of our health-conscious age. In doing so, the book cuts through the marketing and hype not only to assess what is and is not healthy, but also to show how and why our obsession with fitness mirrors contemporary American culture.
"[Kolata examines] the history and claims of the physical fitness industry [in this] appealing hybrid: authoritative reporting enhanced with snatches of autobiography, both related in a clear, easy-going style."—The Washington Post
"Fascinating . . . Challenges many prevailing fitness assumptions."—Eric Schlosser, The New York Times Book Review
"This energetic book will propel many a couch potato into the gym."—Time
"Ultimate Fitness is a welcome antidote to most fitness books."—The Baltimore Sun
"In Ultimate Fitness [Kolata] pulls out all the stops . . . Kolata has discovered the real truth about exercise."—Newsday
"[Kolata] uses her own obsession with 'spinning'—the riding of a special stationary bike in which pedal resistance can be regulated for a harder or easier workout—to examine the history and claims of the physical fitness industry. The result is an appealing hybrid: authoritative reporting enhanced with snatches of autobiography, both related in a clear, easy-going style."—The Washington Post
"When you sic Gina Kolata, a New York Times science and medical reporter, on the fitness industry, the results are a captivating and razor-sharp deconstruction that if we are lucky will put a few charlatans out of business."—Chicago Sun-Times
"For anyone toying with the idea of starting to exercise, or even a seasoned gym rat looking at a different workout, reading . . . Ultimate Fitness would be a wise start."—The Plain Dealer (Cleveland)
"A clear account of the science, or lack thereof, in some of the most cherished exercise myths . . . this is welcome news indeed."—The Economist
"[Kolata] can make science seem as scintillating as sports and food, and sometimes, as absorbing as a well-paced novel . . . [Ultimate Fitness] is a fascinating, sweaty look at fitness."—Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
"New York Times science reporter Kolata takes a revealing look at the myths and misunderstandings about what exercise can do for you. A clear-eyed skeptic who is also an unabashed exercise enthusiast, the author knows how to dig for truth behind the puffery of a press release. Researching one especially misleading handout led her to ask questions about the science behind the exercise industry's fitness and health claims. For background, Kolata provides a brief survey of attitudes toward exercise from the ancient Greeks through the aerobics movement of the 1970s to the computer-monitored health clubs of today. She questions many generally accepted training claims—that low-intensity exercise burns the most fat, that weight training prevents osteoporosis, that stretching should precede a workout—and tries to determine how and why these and other ideas about fitness and health came to be accepted as fact. When her daughter decides to become certified by the American Council of Exercise as a personal trainer, Kolata gets an inside view of the exercise industry and concludes that for the most part certification is a business involving little training but lots of fee payments. She also scrutinizes the promotion of food and food supplements promising weight loss and muscle definition. As the author tracks down answers, she not only gives the reader a look into the worlds of exercise physiologists and trainers but also a glimpse of how an experienced journalist researches a story. Her personality shines through to brighten the reporting, as she shares the story of her own love affair with physical exercise, using adjectives like 'exhilarated,' 'strong,' and 'focused' to describe her state of mind and body after a rigorous workout. For Kolata, it seems, the greatest benefit of exercise is not weight loss, improved health, physical fitness, or longer life, but sheer pleasure. [This book is] packed with information."—Kirkus Reviews
In Ultimate Fitness, Gina Kolata, science reporter for The New York Times, takes a fascinating journey into the fads, fictions, and genuine innovations that have defined the world of physical fitness. From weight lifting for men and women in the early days, to jogging in the 1970s, cycling in the 1980s, aerobics in the 1990s, and now Spinning, Kolata explains the science of conditioning and the objective evidence behind commonly accepted prescriptions.
Ultimate Fitness is also a book about the individuals who have challenged and influenced or failed to influence the industry, and the many of us who have participated in
this multimillion-dollar corner of American culture.
Gina Kolata is a science reporter for The New York Times and the author of four previous books, including Flu: The Story of the Great Influenza Pandemic of 1918 and the Search for the Virus That Caused It. She lives in Princeton, New Jersey.
A New York Times Notable Book
Kolata, a reporter for The New York Times, takes readers on a far-reaching and fascinating journey into the fads, fictions, and genuine innovations that have defined the world of physical fitness. From weight lifting for men and women in earlier times, to jogging in the 1970s, cycling in the 1980s, aerobics in the 1990s, and now the form of exercise known as "spinning," Kolata explains both the science of conditioning and the objective evidence behind commonly accepted prescriptions. Among the questions she addresses herein:
* What is the best way to exercise for maximum effect?
* What is the most effective way to train for endurance versus strength?
* Why is "maximum heart rate" calculated at 220 minus our age, and how did the formula come into being?
* Does "spot reducing" work?
* We feel great after physical exertion—and we think our endorphins are surging, right? Kolata shows us how and why we're wrong.
* Why is it that some people won't become fit in spite of exercise?
* Can exercise alone help reduce cholesterol?
* Are there special foods or drinks that can help you exercise longer or harder? Do nutritional supplements build muscles?
* Who's your trainer and how much training did he/she really receive?
Moreover, Kolata profiles those in the fitness industry who have successfully challenged conventional wisdom and marketed their inventions, and some who have resisted initial criticism only to back down from their claims. With lively sketches of many of the mavericks who have influenced the industry over the years—from Bernarr Macfadden and his controversial contests "for the best and most perfectly formed woman" in the early twentieth century, to Jack LaLanne, who, at the age of eighty-seven, still lifts weights for an hour every morning, to Johnny G, the champion of Spinning—Kolata reveals the inside workings of a multimillion-dollar business.
Lively, thorough, informed, and engaging, Ultimate Fitness spotlights all of the machines and machinations of our health-conscious age. In doing so, the book cuts through the marketing and hype not only to assess what is and is not healthy, but also to show how and why our obsession with fitness mirrors contemporary American culture.
"[Kolata examines] the history and claims of the physical fitness industry [in this] appealing hybrid: authoritative reporting enhanced with snatches of autobiography, both related in a clear, easy-going style."—The Washington Post
"Fascinating . . . Challenges many prevailing fitness assumptions."—Eric Schlosser, The New York Times Book Review
"This energetic book will propel many a couch potato into the gym."—Time
"Ultimate Fitness is a welcome antidote to most fitness books."—The Baltimore Sun
"In Ultimate Fitness [Kolata] pulls out all the stops . . . Kolata has discovered the real truth about exercise."—Newsday
"[Kolata] uses her own obsession with 'spinning'—the riding of a special stationary bike in which pedal resistance can be regulated for a harder or easier workout—to examine the history and claims of the physical fitness industry. The result is an appealing hybrid: authoritative reporting enhanced with snatches of autobiography, both related in a clear, easy-going style."—The Washington Post
"When you sic Gina Kolata, a New York Times science and medical reporter, on the fitness industry, the results are a captivating and razor-sharp deconstruction that if we are lucky will put a few charlatans out of business."—Chicago Sun-Times
"For anyone toying with the idea of starting to exercise, or even a seasoned gym rat looking at a different workout, reading . . . Ultimate Fitness would be a wise start."—The Plain Dealer (Cleveland)
"A clear account of the science, or lack thereof, in some of the most cherished exercise myths . . . this is welcome news indeed."—The Economist
"[Kolata] can make science seem as scintillating as sports and food, and sometimes, as absorbing as a well-paced novel . . . [Ultimate Fitness] is a fascinating, sweaty look at fitness."—Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
"New York Times science reporter Kolata takes a revealing look at the myths and misunderstandings about what exercise can do for you. A clear-eyed skeptic who is also an unabashed exercise enthusiast, the author knows how to dig for truth behind the puffery of a press release. Researching one especially misleading handout led her to ask questions about the science behind the exercise industry's fitness and health claims. For background, Kolata provides a brief survey of attitudes toward exercise from the ancient Greeks through the aerobics movement of the 1970s to the computer-monitored health clubs of today. She questions many generally accepted training claims—that low-intensity exercise burns the most fat, that weight training prevents osteoporosis, that stretching should precede a workout—and tries to determine how and why these and other ideas about fitness and health came to be accepted as fact. When her daughter decides to become certified by the American Council of Exercise as a personal trainer, Kolata gets an inside view of the exercise industry and concludes that for the most part certification is a business involving little training but lots of fee payments. She also scrutinizes the promotion of food and food supplements promising weight loss and muscle definition. As the author tracks down answers, she not only gives the reader a look into the worlds of exercise physiologists and trainers but also a glimpse of how an experienced journalist researches a story. Her personality shines through to brighten the reporting, as she shares the story of her own love affair with physical exercise, using adjectives like 'exhilarated,' 'strong,' and 'focused' to describe her state of mind and body after a rigorous workout. For Kolata, it seems, the greatest benefit of exercise is not weight loss, improved health, physical fitness, or longer life, but sheer pleasure. [This book is] packed with information."—Kirkus Reviews
作者簡介
Gina Kolata is a science writer for The New York Times and the author of four previous books, most recently Flu: The Story of the Great Influenza Pandemic of 1918 and the Search for the Virus That Caused It. She lives in Princeton, New Jersey.
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