Ultimate Fitness
The Quest for Truth about Exercise and Health
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Narrated by:
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Gina Kolata
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By:
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Gina Kolata
About this listen
Gina Kolata, science reporter to The New York Times, takes a fascinating journey into the fads, fictions and genuine innovations that have defined the world of physical fitness.
By examining fads through the decades, from weight lifting for men and women in the early days, to jogging, cycling, aerobics, and now spinning, Kolata explains the science of conditioning and the objective evidence behind commonly accepted prescriptions.
Among the questions she addresses are:
- What is the best way to exercise for maximum effect?
- Is there really a "fat-burning zone"?
- Why is that some people won't become fit in spite of exercise?
- Are there foods, drinks or supplements that can help you exercise longer or harder?
Kolata profiles researchers who successfully challenged conventional wisdom and marketed their inventions, and some who resisted initial criticism only to back down from their claims. With lively sketches of many of the mavericks who have influenced the industry, Kolata presents an eye-opening view of the inside workings of a multimillion-dollar business.
Lively and engaging, Ultimate Fitness spotlights the machines and machinations and cuts through the marketing hype, not only to assess what is healthy, but also to understand what our obsession with staying healthy says about American culture today.
©2003 Gina Kolata (P)2003 Audio Renaissance, a division of Holtzbrick Publishers, LLC.Listeners also enjoyed...
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"Kolata brings both personal enthusiasm and journalistic skepticism to her subject." (Publishers Weekly)
"Kolata challenges many prevailing fitness assumptions." (The New York Times Book Review)
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- By: Amby Burfoot
- Narrated by: Daniel Thomas May
- Length: 13 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
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The sport of running is ever changing, be it the shoes we wear or the goals we set, the training methods we use or the role models we emulate. But there is one constant: For 40 years, Runner’s World magazine has been recognized worldwide as the leading authority on running. Now the collective wisdom of the most savvy running writers, coaches, and editors can be found in Runner’s World Complete Book of Running.
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There's no reason to fear starting lines.
- By Cynthia on 07-03-16
By: Amby Burfoot
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Faster, Higher, Stronger
- How Sports Science Is Creating a New Generation of Superathletes - and What We Can Learn from Them
- By: Mark McClusky
- Narrated by: Mark McClusky
- Length: 8 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
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In Faster, Higher, Stronger, veteran journalist Mark McClusky brings listeners behind the scenes with a new generation of athletes, coaches, and scientists whose accomplishments are changing our understanding of human physical achievement and completely redefining the limits of the human body.
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Excellent Book
- By Dr. Ron on 02-25-15
By: Mark McClusky
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Down Size
- 12 Truths for Turning Pants-Splitting Frustration into Pants-Fitting Success
- By: Ted Spiker
- Narrated by: Eric Michael Summerer
- Length: 8 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
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In Down Size, Ted reveals 12 truths about successful weight loss in areas such as temptation, frustration, nutrition, and inspiration. Combining science, personal stories, expert interviews, and advice, Down Size is an entertaining, field-tested, and research-based look at how men and women can finally find the body they want.
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Great book...great writing!!
- By Jason Fenstermaker on 08-04-15
By: Ted Spiker
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Which Comes First, Cardio or Weights?
- Fitness Myths, Training Truths, and Other Surprising Discoveries from the Science of Exercise
- By: Alex Hutchinson
- Narrated by: Roger Wayne
- Length: 8 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
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In Which Comes First, Cardio or Weights?, physicist and award-winning journalist Alex Hutchinson tackles dozens of commonly held beliefs and looks at just what research science has - and has not - proven to be true. This myth-busting book covers the full spectrum of exercise science and offers the latest in research from around the globe, as well as plenty of practical tips on using proven science to improve fitness, reach weight loss goals, and achieve better competition results.
By: Alex Hutchinson
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Spartan Up!
- A Take-No-Prisoners Guide to Overcoming Obstacles and Achieving Peak Performance in Life
- By: Jeff O'Connell, Joe De Sena
- Narrated by: Christian Rummel
- Length: 6 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
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Twenty-six point two miles isn’t enough anymore. Obstacle course racing, which combines the endurance challenges of a marathon with the mind-bending rigors of overcoming obstacles along the way, is taking the world by storm. At the center of this phenomenon is Joe De Sena, the driving force behind the enormously popular Spartan Race. De Sena offers a simple philosophy: commit to a goal, put in the work, and get it done.
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A different type of mindset
- By Barbara on 02-02-15
By: Jeff O'Connell, and others
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Training for the New Alpinism
- A Manual for the Climber as Athlete
- By: Steve House, Scott Johnston, Mark Twight - foreword
- Narrated by: Roger Wayne
- Length: 13 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
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Steve House, world-class climber and Patagonia ambassador, and Scott Johnston, coach of US national champions and World Cup Nordic skiers, translate training theory into practice to allow you to coach yourself to any mountaineering goal. Applying training practices from other endurance sports, House and Johnston demonstrate that following a carefully designed regimen is as effective for alpinism as it is for any other endurance sport and leads to better performance. They deliver detailed instruction on how to plan and execute training tailored to your individual circumstances.
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Superb
- By Harri on 04-18-19
By: Steve House, and others
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Two Hours
- The Quest to Run the Impossible Marathon
- By: Ed Caesar
- Narrated by: Fajer Al-Kaisi
- Length: 7 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
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Two hours to cover 26 miles and 385 yards. Its running's Everest, a feat once seen as impossible for the human body. Now we can glimpse the mountaintop. The sub-two-hour marathon requires an exceptional feat of speed, mental strength, and endurance. The pioneer will have to endure more, live braver, plan better, and be luckier than any who has run before. Ed Caesar takes us into the world of elite runners: the greatest marathoners on Earth.
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I liked it!
- By Amazon Customer on 05-07-16
By: Ed Caesar
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Triathlon: Winning at 70.3
- How to Dominate the Middle Distance
- By: Dan Golding
- Narrated by: John Gagnepain
- Length: 5 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
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Triathlon: Winning at 70.3 is dedicated to all triathletes who are thinking about stepping up to the middle distance. 70.3 Half Ironman training requires quite a different approach to the shorter distances, and to be successful, a more professional approach to training is required. Do not set yourself up for failure on race day! Simply doubling your Olympic distance training will not work. Those who do this will struggle. Do not be one of these! 70.3 triathlon is a serious step up and preparation is key.
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Not for Audible
- By jim stratford on 03-17-19
By: Dan Golding
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Triathlon for Beginners
- Everything You Need to Know About Training, Nutrition, Kit, Motivation, Racing, and Much More
- By: Dan Golding
- Narrated by: John Gagnepain
- Length: 5 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
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Triathlon for Beginners is a complete start-to-finish guide that covers all areas of training and racing, including what you need to know and how to begin; how to understand the jargon of the sport; training rules and techniques; swimming, cycling, and running techniques; race etiquette; and how to get faster and better performances.
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Great first book
- By Soren on 07-11-16
By: Dan Golding
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Smarter
- The New Science of Building Brain Power
- By: Dan Hurley
- Narrated by: Erik Synnestvedt
- Length: 8 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
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Expanding upon one of the most-read New York Times Magazine features of 2012, Smarter penetrates the hot new field of intelligence research to reveal what researchers call a revolution in human intellectual abilities. Shattering decades of dogma, scientists began publishing studies in 2008 showing that "fluid intelligence" - the ability to learn, solve novel problems, and get to the heart of things - can be increased through training. But is it all just hype?
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People Who Like This Sort of Thing....
- By W Perry Hall on 10-10-15
By: Dan Hurley
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OUTPERFORM THE NORM for Triathlon
- The 50 Best Tips EVER for Swimming, Biking and Running
- By: Scott Welle
- Narrated by: Scott Welle
- Length: 3 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
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Triathlon has changed my life and I've been privileged to coach 50+ athletes to a 98% PR rate in races ranging from 5Ks to ultra marathons to Ironmans. I've done it through my own trial and error and experiences in what works...and what doesn't. Rest assured - there are a handful of simple, yet essential, tips in triathlon that will make or break your success in the sport.
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what's so funny?
- By skydivingrhino on 05-15-15
By: Scott Welle
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Runner’s World Race Everything
- How to Conquer Any Race at Any Distance in Any Environment and Have Fun Doing It
- By: Bart Yasso, Erin Strout, David Willey - foreword
- Narrated by: Patrick Lawlor
- Length: 5 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
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Millions of runners around the country are interested in special experiences, whether it means running a bucket-list event like the world's largest marathon (New York City), or competing in beautiful and challenging locales such as Rome or Death Valley. There is no one better to guide these runners than Bart Yasso. As Chief Running Officer at Runner's World, he's run more than 7,000 races, on all seven continents, at every conceivable distance. Whether it's a 5K or half-marathon, he's done it all, and here he presents 50 of his favorite races.
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Outstanding listen for all runners from the perspective of one of our greats!
- By Vidal on 11-17-17
By: Bart Yasso, and others
What listeners say about Ultimate Fitness
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Dain Cason
- 11-09-16
this is okay if you have no prior physical exercis
the reading of this book was quite poor, I found myself getting bored with how she was speaking.
This Book might have been beneficial between high-school and College comma however quite a poor read after having any college education. I do not recommend this book to the majority of the individuals that I know. it might be ok for a high schooler to read. I would have read this book if you have any experience with exercise comma education in exercise physiology comma or really if you played any sports in high school.
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- E. Randy
- 07-25-03
Could have been good
The book is 1/4 to 1/3 about deconstructing commonly held beliefs about fitness and exercise (the valuable part) and the balance is devoted to weaving an autobiographical narrative about her love of intense exercise. Although the narrative makes it more readable, I didn't buy it to learn all about her individual exercise passions and habits--I wanted to know about what's true and false about fitness. Too bad she didn't stay on point.
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4 people found this helpful
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Overall
- L. Mc
- 04-18-03
What a waste
Little more than a few, very thin NY Times articles linked together by tedious descriptions of the author's spinning classes. Frankly, it's hard for me to believe that any publisher would have gone through the trouble to publish this book. If you have almost no knowledge of even the basics of exercise, then you might find this book useful. Otherwise, it's not worth the time or money.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Shari
- 07-20-10
Pretty casual, but informative
This is more like listening to an exercise fanatic discuss her regime than a scientific expose. As a fellow fanatic, her questions made sense as did her search for perfect workouts. I really enjoyed the listen, but can understand where some might be disappointed.
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- Hilary
- 04-22-03
Really Bad
I thought I would get something more than the narcissistic ramblings of the author. I kept hoping it would get better, but with a good hour spent on her and her husband's spinning class, it was truly a waste of time. Trust me, the time listening to this book would be better spent working out.
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36 people found this helpful
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- marquez moreno
- 09-11-21
I feel cheated
I was under the impression that there was going to be more about fitness. the set up with all of the science was great than it just ended... I feel as if it was rushed to be done
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- LimyCrescent61
- 08-15-07
great!
Fitness buffs will appreciate this book. Kolata uncovers the scientific research (or lack thereof) behind such fitness standards as interval training, max heart rate = your age - 220, and certified physical trainers. I enjoyed it so much that I ordered a hard copy so I can find out what I missed from this abridged audio version. The reader for this book is excellent too.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall
- Kelly
- 05-27-03
waste of time
I too was hoping for some substance. I couldn't believe how boring and trivial most of this book was - a love letter to the author's current obsession (spinning), with very little of the serious analysis and insight I was hoping for. There are a few gems - a few cites studies - buried in this book, but they are not discussed with the scientific rigor I would expect from a science writer.
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14 people found this helpful