Cardio Free Diet
I was looking through the local bookstore last night with the kids and saw this book with an interesting if completely wrong title. What the hell does cardio have with a diet. In my mind there are two parts of a healthy lifestyle and those are diet and exercise. Of course the book intrigued me so I had to pick it up.
Well it seems my first instincy was a little unfair. It seems that the book has good intentions. As far as diet is concerned Jim Karas is more interested in portion control then fighting the whole high protein or low fat or nay other high or low type eating style. Portion control is of course for the most important part of a north american diet and once you have that in check then you can worry about everything else.
The cardio free portion of the Cardio Free Diet is the exercise that Jim Karas prescribes. Instead of doing hours of cardio he tells us that hte most important thing is to do weights. Weight training alone are not the answer but I always like the idea of people going overboard in one direction because it helps to emphasize something that is probably missing or not given enough attention. Every pound of muscle that you gain from doing weights will force your body to burn more calories everyday and of course doing weights will increase your metabolism but we all know that cardio really is important too.
A lot of people are looking for an easy way out whether it is avoiding cardio or avoiding weights or avoiding good eating but the Cardio Free Diet is all about getting rid of cardio and getting all of your exercise from doing wieghts, I have a hard time agreeing with that. This being said the book is quite good and I am sure that you will be able to pick up some great tips from this book. I like reading and re-reading any diet and exercise books because good books always give you an angle that you never thought of or tips that really help you everyday.
This may not be the best book out there but I still think it is a good one to look at and read. If you get a chance to see it in the bookstore flip through it and if you like it click this link and buy the book as I always find that Amazon saves me money when I am buying books.
1 comments:
Thank for talking about my book. I appreciate anyone who helps me spread the "Cardio-Free" word.
For just a moment, let me clarify a few points:
1. When you are performing the interval strength training outlined in the book, your heart rate is up, as it is when you are performing classic cardio. But, your heart is challenged in intervals, which means that your heart rate goes up through the strength training, then is followed by a period of rest as you go onto the next exercise.
Research indicates that intervals improve upon what is called heart rate variability, and an improvement in that variable is found to be MORE beneficial to your heart than steady state aerobics.
Plus, when you are performing my exercise program, you burn between 150-300 for 30 minutes, but, as you stated so clearly in your bog, you get much more additional calories burn 24 hours a day, 7 days a week as you are adding lean muscle tissue to your body. One pound of muscle burns between 20-36 calories per pound, per day.
2. You are so right about eating. It is all about portion control. And in a perfect world, I would love for everyone to be eating whole grains, non-processed foods, etc., but I try to be as realistic as possible in the book.
Thanks again for talking about my theory and I will be happy to answer any further questions in the future.
Jim Karas
Author of "The Cardio-Free Diet"
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