One thing fitness experts agree on is the need to change up your routine from time to time. That’s because doing different exercises and eating different foods not only keeps things fresh and exciting, but also challenges your body, boosts your motivation, and helps you power through periodic plateaus.
Sounds reasonable; but where can you find great new workouts, delicious meal ideas, and general health and wellness tips when it’s time for a change? From top fitness books and blogs, of course! In addition to our very own blog here at Push Pedal Pull, we recommend checking out the following resources whenever your enthusiasm or progress begins to wane.
Top Fitness Books
- Starting Strength by Mark Rippetoe: Weightlifting is a necessary part of any well-rounded fitness program, and Rippetoe’s book has become the bible for newcomers to barbell training. Full of illustrations, diagrams, and instructions, Starting Strength guides readers through standard moves like the bench press, deadlift, squat, and overhead press.
- Flexible Dieting 101 by Scott James: Diets often fail because they require participants to subsist on extremely low calorie counts or to eliminate too many of the foods they love. Flexible dieting takes a more realistic and sustainable approach to sensible eating, and has yielded amazing long-term results for a lot of people.
- Which Comes First, Cardio or Weights? by Alex Hutchinson: The author subjects some of the most pervasive fitness myths and conventional wisdom to scientific scrutiny to determine which ones pass muster. After reading this book, you might find yourself reexamining your own long-held beliefs regarding diet and exercise.
Top Fitness Blogs
- Daily Burn Fitness: The Daily Burn blog is run by a large team of experts who talk about everything from cardio and yoga to strength training and mental health. The site, which is updated frequently, also features workout videos, gear reviews, and healthy recipes to try.
- ACE blogs: The American Council on Exercise is a nonprofit organization that offers fitness certification for personal trainers. While many of their blog posts are targeted to professionals in the fitness industry, they also provide general health, exercise, and nutrition advice that is informative and useful to nonprofessionals.
- Nerd Fitness: On the other side of the coin is Nerd Fitness, a blog by non-experts aimed at helping average individuals get moving and start living a healthier life. Typical articles might feature workout routines for beginners, diet and fitness tips, recipes, or motivational musings. There is also an active message forum on the site where users can interact with and support each other.
The above books and blogs are obviously just a small sampling of what’s currently available, so if you find that these recommendations are not quite to your tastes, you have plenty of other options to choose from. Now get out there and start reading!