exercise and fitness

Michael Gerrish shares his rare combination of deep technical knowledge, compassionate caring, goofy humor, and more than anything, his personal experiences with the challenge of wrestling his own body into shape. "When Working Out Isn't Working Out" includes a wealth of resources and motivating tips to guide the way towards fitness for any of us mere mortals.

Sure, I can read a book about the weight training method du jour, or about someone's latest research on no protein, no carb, no fat (!) nutrition, but where else will I find information that connects sleep apnea, or Attention Deficit Disorder, with my lack of so called will power? This book helps me to be gentler to myself. In the dead of winter I now see that maybe those grey skies and short days are what's got me sleeping through my morning jog, rather than that I am a worthless slug who can't stick to my workout schedule. I have new knowledge, and can make a point to get out in the sun more often.

Read this one, and find out your own personal UFO's. Your body and mind will thank you!

I've already read an advanced copy (twice) and can't wait to read it again! Kudos to Michael Gerrish for writing a truly original book, the first that I've read in a long, long time that really does break new ground. With insightful, compassionate guidance, Gerrish suggests that "it's not our fault" - that when we work out (and fail to succeed) it's not for the reasons we think. He reveals what he calls "UFOs" (Unidentified Fitness Obstacles) and clearly shows how, unknowingly, they prevent us from reaching our goals. The best thing about this book, though, is the spirit in which it is written - sensitive, smart, and informative with uncommon respect for the reader. Not only that, but it made me laugh (some parts are done tongue-in-cheek). I found myself nodding and smiling a lot from the intro right through to the end.

Thanks to this book, I've radically changed my perspective about working out. I now have a sense of what's "really" been making me struggle to get in good shape. With simple, self-diagnostic tests, I discovered my top UFOs (chemical allergies, SAD, and weight-training at the wrong speed) and now I'm prepared to address each one in the way that the author suggests.

Enlightening, clear, and well-conceived, this book is a wonderful read. The stories are great, the tone is sincere, and the self-tests are easy to take. In fact, I'll be shocked if this hot new book doesn't prove to be widely embraced. If you're anything like I am (you've read every fitness book there is), you're going to appreciate reading this one - it has all the answers you need!

This book has solved years of frustration becuase I have been working out for years and years and for that amount of time have done nothing. Were still fat and unfit. The people who trained me were worried for the nutrition and the trainings. Have tried dozens of diets and routines for years, and nothing happened. Those were not the problems, but no one could see which one were; even by myself. This book is not about training secrets, or nutrition tips. Is about knowing yourself and identify those little things that can ruin all you are working for. I you are going nowhere, not because you cannot add more muscle, but because you cannot begin to add muscle, or when you begin to progress suddenly something happens that makes you lose it all; then, this reading is a must. There are a lot of other books out there to help you build excellent routines and nutrition programs, but this is the only one to help you with problems you cannot imagine existed. If you pay fot the gym, supplements, trainers, food and muscle mags. Why not spend some bucks to make sure everything is perfect in your trainings, nutrition and yourself? The worse thing can happen is to realize that nothing on the book were intended for you, and that are going to be good news. After a year, I am thin and muscular for the first time of my life. And all I needed were in one page of the book. Are you willing to take the risk of not reading it?