The Realage Workout: Maximum Health, Minimum Work [Paperback]

First some context: My wife and I have been reading, applying, and reviewing physical fitness books for about nine months now ("see All My Reviews"). We didn't plan to carry on so long but with appreciative feedback from friends and acquaintances we haven't been able to stop! As always, keep this in mind ... we aren't gunning for the Olympics or super-model status. We're just average, middle age people interested in life-long fitness for health and weight control reasons. Your goals may differ from ours.

The RealAge Workout is a new release and we rate it somewhat higher than another book we like, Harley Pasternak's Five Factor Fitness. In fact it's the first book to come along that we can rank as high as our long running favorite, Joe X by Avery Hunicutt. There's a lot of philosophical similarity to RealAge and Joe X, but the presentations are vastly different. RealAge is excellent for fitness beginners and those that are very "numbers-driven," while Joe X will be appreciated more by those with some fitness experience and may now struggle with boredom or burnout.

If by chance you are familiar with the popular health guru and author Andrew Weil, both RealAge and Joe X provide workouts that are consistent with Weil's Healthy Aging message.

If you click on "search inside" you'll see the RealAge workout is made up of four phases, each 30 days long.

Phase 1: Walk 30 minutes/day

Phase 2: Add 7-10 minutes of core strength training, every other day

Phase 3: Add 8-10 minutes of non-core strength training, every other day

Phase 4: Add 21 minutes of aerobic exercise 3 times/week

The book details modifications to the phases for people that are not beginners but is adamant that everyone start at phase 1 and progress in sequence.

The author prefers dumbbells over barbells or weight machines. Both free-weights and weight machines are presented in the exercise descriptions. The descriptions are good and a nice reference for whatever program you subscribe to.

The book details a comprehensive pre-test that is recommended before beginning phase 1.

In addition to detailed descriptions of strength exercises, warm-up/stretch exercises are also provided.

A significant difference between RealAge and Joe X is Joe X puts more focus on breathing technique to the point of synchronizing it to your exercise form. (It probably doesn't make a physiolgical difference but it does seem to help with the mental challenge of staying fit.)

A RealAge workout, if followed to the letter, will on average be somewhat longer than a Five Factor or Joe X workout. All are typically 5-day/week regimens.

Almost no question will be left unanswered. Instructions are detailed and complete. Though RealAge is actually a collaboration of authors, the presentation is consistent, clear, and concise. We liked the professional writing style but at times found the fixation on linking the workout to Dr. Roizen's numbers driven "real age" concept irritating. It smacks of being a marketing gimmick, though we have to admit it's a pretty effective one! Who doesn't want to be told their real age is actually younger than their chronological age?

We don't plan on changing our own routine as we are quite satisfied with results but The RealAge Workout is a great and safe way to get started on your physical fitness program.

Beg, buy, or borrow this book & get started on the 4 phases over 120 days to take control of your destiny of aging: walking, strengthening foundation & non foundation muscles,then stamina. Dr. Roizen's books have been best sellers & this latest release should join the list. He explains it in a way that makes it very simple for everyone to incorporate the steps into their daily lives. It is based on walking, as he says, not everyone rows, swims, or bikes their way to work or up steps, etc., but everyone walks. Lots of charts, pictures, questions & answers pertaining to aging, etc. Even if you don't exercise, or like to exercise, read this book, begin the program, and see if you don't see results over time. Time can be rolled back, & you will have more energy. And who doesn't wish that?

I really like this book. Michael Roizen knows his stuff. The book is so informative and you know it's information that you can trust because of his reputation.

This is broken up into 6 chapters. The first chapter is The Real Age Promise and then chapters 2-5 are phases 1-4 (talks about strengthening and stamina etc) and chapter 6 is dedicated to Fitness FAQ's - Myth or Fact.

Throughout the book is the usually info about why we should all exercise, and then when it comes to the actuall exercises, there are plenty of pictures to demonstrate each routine and tips on how to perform them acurately.

This book is geared toward anyone interested in keeping themselves in tip top form and good health and anyone wanting to boost their fitness. You will be surprised at how soon your body responds to regular workouts and you also do surprisingly feel a little younger.

› Go to Amazon.com to see all 19 reviews  4.3 out of 5 stars