More on Simple Fitness: The Healthy & Fit Algorithm

Great Saturday afternoon tidbits and advice that I thought was worth sharing since I find so much of it has worked for me. Enjoy!

The Healthy and Fit Algorithm. [Adam Gilbert of MyBodyTutor.com via Zen Habits]

Popularity: 13% [?]

Billy Mays, Michael Jackson, and Your Health

At age 50, both Billy Mays and Michael Jackson died of cardiac arrest, which is usually a terrible consequence of heart disease. Trent Hamm from the personal finance blog The Simple Dollar took a profound and personal look at what the deaths of these two icons meant for him:

Fifty years old? I’m thirty – twenty years away from that magic number. Both of my kids would merely be college age when I’m fifty. I have many things that I want to do in life, and the thought that my life could easily end – or my quality of life could rapidly fall – at such an early age made me think quite a bit about the future – and other things I can do now to protect it.

I’ve invested quite a bit of time and energy in my own life – and I’m sure you have in your own – building the foundation for a great later life. My retirement accounts are solid. I have a book in print that pays me royalties and another one on the way. I want to be able to enjoy the benefits of these things in my golden years as I play with my grandchildren. I want to protect my investment.

Trent rounds up some simple tips his doctor recommends to reduce your chances of heart disease as you get older, such as cutting back smoking, exercising, eating healthy, and other behavioral changes such as using relaxation techniques or decreasing your sodium and caffeine intake.

Billy Mays, Michael Jackson, Your Heart, and Your Bottom Dollar [via The Simple Dollar].

Popularity: 13% [?]

Upcoming Tim Ferriss Fitness Book Wants to Turn You into Superman

Tim Ferriss announced today on his blog that he is seeking research assistants to help him put together his new book, tentatively titled From Rapid Fat Loss to Strongmen: A Guide to Becoming Superhuman. Don’t jump to take his working title as a sham; I was just as skeptical about his #1 NY Times bestseller The 4 Hour Work Week, which also has a somewhat misleading title but is actually packed with very useful tips for improving your live and cutting away from 9 to 5 madness, even if you don’t actually achieve the “four hour work week.” Check out his previous work here.

Ferriss says, on his new book:

I can show you how I safely do things outdated physiology textbooks tell you is impossible. This isn’t because I have some unique intelligence. It’s because I’ve tested the most basic assumptions of nutrition and exercise… and I experiment with outrageous alternatives that end up working.

Cut 2% bodyfat in two weeks? No problem. Drop 50-100 pounds in weight or increase muscular strength 30% in 48-72 hours? Not an issue. I’ve done the guinea pig shotgun approach so you don’t have to. I’ll spare you the 10,000 pages of literature on a given topic and give you the one unusual 1-2-3 method that produced unbelievable results.

Having put into practice a lot of Tim’s advice in his last book, I’m gonna trust him on this one. I am so stoked to see what the end product will look like and I will definitely get myself a copy when its released. Check out his blog for more information. Ferriss is a really interesting character and I’d encourage you to pick up The 4 Hour Work Week.

THE NEXT BOOK: From Rapid Fat Loss to Strongmen: A Guide to Becoming Superhuman [The Blog of Tim Ferriss]

Popularity: 44% [?]

Staying Fit: A Surprisingly Simple Lifestyle Choice

Over the course of the last two years, I’ve found healthy eating habits and a regular exercise routine to be one of the single most effective life choices I’ve ever made. After packing on quite a bit of weight during my senior year of high school and even more during my freshman year of college, I made a simple choice during the summer of 2006: I would eat less, and exercise more. I started to care about nutrition again and got back into doing cardio. Without taking up too much psychological attention and stress, my new simple goal took me from 195 lbs to 150, shedding about 5 lbs a week on average and felt really great.

It wasn’t until the following summer that I began lifting, toning up, and getting into a far-more habitual and structured fitness routine that I enjoyed even more. But sometimes it’s easy to forget how easy it is to maintain or switch-up a routine by keeping it simple. Leo Babauta from Zen Habits rounds up a great set of rules to follow if you’re looking to get into fitness – especially to clear your head and set some smart goals in the midst of all the competing advice out there that can confuse and sometimes even prevent you from starting.

The Simple Fitness Rules [Zen Habits]

Popularity: 20% [?]