HEAVYHANDS: The Ultimate Exercise System

A near-textbook on exercise physiology combined with a complex, strenuous fitness program--only for those willing to really apply themselves. Psychiatrist Schwartz makes a good basic point: ""today's various popular methods of achieving fitness are overspecialized."" Recently the emphasis has been on cardiovascular work, to the exclusion of strength or flexibility training; usually only one part of the body (often the legs) gets all the muscular exercise. So Schwartz has set up a program of total body exercising, accomplished by doing more or less familiar routines (walking/running, jumping rope) while holding and lifting weights in the hands. This use of the upper torso not only strengthens the muscles of that area, but also tremendously increases the workload (thus, caloric use and cardiovascular exertion) of the body. Schwartz recommends three or four 30-minute exercise sessions a week, and he gives detailed instructions for working out an individual program that can be increased in difficulty, and varied for amusement, as needed. He also gives tips on the proper way to approach exercise, along with advice on nutrition (on losing weight, he sides with Katahn and Kuntzleman, above). The uninitiated and inexperienced will need assistance, however, in untangling the details and figuring out programs. Jane Fonda's Workout Book, and even Dominguez & Gajda's Total Body Training, are better for beginners.