Total Fitness for Men - UK Edition

By Vincent Antonetti PhD

This eBook is a sensible guide to exercise, nutrition, weight loss and weight maintenance. Topics are treated in depth and with equal emphasis. PhD author, Imperial & metric units.

• Language: English
• Publisher: NoPaperPress LLC
• Release date: Jul 17, 2014

Book preview

TOTAL FITNESS

FOR MEN

U.K. Edition

Vincent Antonetti, Ph.D.

NoPaperPress™

Copyright © 2013 by NoPaperPress All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted, reproduced, transmitted, stored in a retrieval system, or otherwise utilized in any form or by any means, electrical or mechanical, without the prior written permission of NoPaperPress.com™.

CONTENTS

LIST OF TABLES

What’s In This eBook

Health Risks & Counter Measures

Medical Assessment

Cardio Self Assessment

Strength Assessment

Flexibility Assessment

Body-Weight Assessment

BMI-Based Weight vs. Height

Are You Eating Sensibly?

Time to Set Goals

EXERCISE FUNDAMENTALS

Be More Active Every Day

Calories Burned

Types of Exercise

Select the Right Exercise

Aerobic Exercise: How Hard?

Aerobic Target-Training Zone

Aerobic Exercise: Intensity-Level

Aerobic Exercise: How Often?

Aerobic Exercise: Typical Workout

Pulse Measurement

Monitors For Aerobic Exercise

Walking Program

Get a Pedometer and Step Out

Jogging Program

Your Body’s Muscles

Strength-Building Programs

Additional Strengthening Exercises

Other Exercises

Missed Workouts

Exercising in Hot Weather

Exercising in Cold Weather

Exercise Risks and Problems

Avoiding Injury

Keep an Exercise Log

My Personal Exercise Routine

Workout to Stay Healthy

NUTRITION BASICS

Our Disastrous Eating Habits

Nutrients, Micronutrients etc

Proteins are Building Blocks

You Need Carbs

Glycemic Index

Glycemic Load

Cholesterol and Triglyceride Levels

Fats in Foods

Vitamins and Minerals

Phytonutrients

Vitamin/Mineral Supplements

Guidelines for Healthy Eating

Basic Food Groups

Calories, Calories

Estimating Calories in a Meal

You Need Fiber

Drink Lots of Water

Use Salt Sparingly

Not Too Much Sugar

Common-Sense Nutrition

Eat Slowly

SLIMMING GUIDE

Energy Conservation

Total Energy Requirements

Activity Energy & Activity Levels

You Generate Heat When You Eat

The Slimming Program

When Does Weight Change Occur?

What About Counting Carbs?

Slimming Diets

The Best Slimming Diets

Slimming Math

Weight Loss Prediction Tables

Selecting the Correct Table

Weight Loss Rate Will Decrease

Weight Variations Due to Water

Dreaded Weight Loss Plateau

Slimming Maxims

Weight Loss Eating

Set Meals for Calorie Control

Pre-Planned Diets

Notes for Pre-Planned Diets

Helpful Diet Strategies

Exchanging Foods

Simple is Better

Get a Good Cookbook &Cal Ref

Estimating Portion Sizes

How to Handle Overeating

Keep a Log of What You Eat

Handling Special Situations

Plot Your Weight Loss

Can You Target Weight Loss?

Losing Belly Fat

Last On First Off

Words of Caution

Don’t Give Up!

WEIGHT MAINTENANCE

The Weight Maintenance Program

Why Do People Regain Weight?

Weight – a Life-Long Struggle

Planning Maintenance Eating

Mini Diets Maintain Weight Loss

Keys to Life-Long Weight Control

LIFE-LONG FITNESS

The Keys to Total Fitness

Make It Happen

Disclaimer Statement

LIST OF TABLES

Table 1 VO2max versus Fitness Level

Table 2 Push-up Performance

Table 3 Squat-Test Performance

Table 4 Sit & Reach Test

Table 5 Body Mass Index (BMI)

Table 6 Weight Profile vs. BMI

Table 7 BMI-Based Weight vs. Height

Table 8: Calories Burned vs. Activity

Table 9: TTZ: 20 to 40 years

Table 10: TTZ: 45 to 65 years

Table 11: Walking Program for Beginners

Table 12: Jogging Program

Table 13: Health Risks in Hot Weather

Table 14: Heat Index

Table 15: Wind-Chill Temperature

Table 16: Frostbite Risk vs. Wind-Chill

Table 17: Sample Exercise Log

Table 18: Glycemic Rank of Common Foods

Table 19: Fats in Foods

Table 20: (RDA) for Selected Vitamins

Table 21: RDA for Selected Minerals

Table 22: Calorie Rank of Basic Foods

Table 23: Calorie Rank of Common Foods

Table 24: Weight Loss Prediction Tables

Table 25: Portion of Table 26

Table 26: Weight Loss - Inactive - 18 to 35

Table 27: Weight Loss - Active - 18 to 35

Table 28: Weight Loss - Inactive - 36 to 55

Table 29: Weight Loss - Active - 36 to 55

Table 30: Weight Loss - Inactive - 56 to 75

Table 31: Weight Loss - Active - 56 to 75

Table 32: Sample Weight Loss Eating Plan

Table 33: Menus for 1200-Calorie Diet

Table 34: Menus for 1500-Calorie Diet

Table 35: Menus for 1800-Calorie Diet

Table 36 Daily Food Log

Table 37: Weight Maintenance Calories

Table 38: Sample Maintenance Eating Plan

Calculating VO2max: The following is undoubtedly the most difficult computation in this book, because VO2max is a function of so many variables: gender, weight, age, heart rate and time to complete the one-mile test walk. Although the formulae are relatively complex, we have tried to simplify the calculation as much as possible. The formula for men is:

VO2max = 139 – W – H – A – T, where

W = 0.17 × Weight (kg)

A = 0.39 × Age

H = 0.157 × Heart rate

T = 3.26 × Time to walk 1609 meters

Example: Determine VO2max and the fitness level of a 29 year-old man who weighs 70 kg. He finished the 1609 meter walking test in 14 minutes and 30 seconds (which is 14.5 minutes) with a heart rate of 145 beats per minute. The first step is to determine values for W, H, A and T.

W = 0.17 × Weight = 0.17 × 70 kg = 11.9

H = 0.157 × Heart rate = 0.157 × 145 = 22.8

A = 0.39 × Age = 0.39 × 29 years = 11.3

T = 3.26 × Time = 3.26 × 14.5 minutes = 50.5

Then calculate VO2max = 139 – W – H – A – T

VO2max = 139 – 11.9 – 22.8 – 11.3 – 50.5 = 43.1

Finally, enter Table1 and find that, for a 29 year-old man with VO2max = 42.5, his fitness level just makes the good category.

Strength Assessment

Rather than a strength-assessment that consists of one repetition with a maximum load, I prefer the much safer anaerobic muscular strength measuring technique, where you assess your strength by the number of repetitions you can perform with a sub-maximal load. Moreover, in the tests that follow you will use your own body weight to determine how strong you are. The standard tests are: the push-up test, the sit-up test, and the squat test. Because the sit-up test can aggravate existing lower back problems, I only recommend the push-up and squat tests. The objective in both tests is to see how many push-up and squat repetitions you can perform without stopping.

Push-up Test: Remember to keep your back straight. Use Table 2 to assess your performance.

Squat Test: Stand about 30 cm (12 inches) in front of a chair. Place your feet about shoulder width apart and extend your arms parallel to the floor to your front. Bend your knees and slowly lower your body until your butt just touches the seat of the chair. (But don’t sit on the chair.) Then slowly return to the standing position. Repeat as often as you can without stopping. Use Table 3 to assess your performance.

Flexibility Assessment

Sit & Reach Test: This is a standard test to determine hip and trunk flexibility and is often used as a measure of overall flexibility. Remember to warm up with a few gentle stretches before you start the test. To conduct the test, tape a meter stick to the floor at the 23-cm mark. (If you have a yard stick, tape it to the floor at the 9 inch mark.) Remove your shoes and sit on the floor, with your legs forward and fully extended, so that the meter stick is between and almost parallel to your extended legs. (The meter stick’s zero mark should be closest to you). Locate your heels at the 23-cm mark and move your feet about 25 cm apart. Place one hand over the other and slowly stretch forward (without jerking or bouncing), and extend the tips of your fingers as far as possible along the meter stick. Repeat three times. Your score is the furthest or highest number you are able to reach. Use Table 4 to assess your flexibility. Values in table are centimeters.

Body-Weight Assessment

In recent years, many health-care practitioners rely on Body Mass Index, or BMI, to determine if a person is overweight. The BMI takes into account both a person’s weight and height and is calculated by dividing a person’s weight in kilograms by the square of their height (in meters). Table 5 provides a convenient determination of BMI for U.K. readers. This table would not be applicable to competitive athletes, body builders and the chronically ill.