Fit As Fido: Follow Your Dog to Better Health [Paperback]

Dawn Marcus (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 1, 2008

Let your dog teach you to live a happier, healthier, and more fulfilling life! Companionship with your pet can be used as a means and a motivator to increase your own physical and mental fitness. This fun and easy-to-read book provides practical tips for learning healthy lifestyle habits from a four-legged friend. Pooch-proven advice for better living includes methods to adopt successful exercise and dieting strategies, re-focus how you approach food shopping, make sleep a top priority, and reduce harmful stress effects by improving social interactions. Easy-to-learn relaxation techniques, food portion sizes, and sleep needs for every age are included in this book. There are also "dog-approved" recipes that detail why including specific foods in your diet will improve different aspects of your health. Why not follow the lead of your canine personal trainer, and start to enjoy a happier, healthier life, today!

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Dawn A. Marcus, MD is a neurologist and professor at the University of Pittsburgh and consultant for Del Monte's "Power of Paws" program, encouraging human health through dog companionship. An internationally-recognized speaker and educator, Dr. Marcus has written six medical books and received the National Headache Foundation Media Excellence Award.

Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: iUniverse (December 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0595531016
• ISBN-13: 978-0595531011
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,906,021 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Dawn Marcus graduated from the State University of New York at Syracuse medical school in 1986. She completed a neurology residency at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center and is a professor at the University of Pittsburgh medical center. Dr. Marcus is a recognized international expert in chronic pain and headache, researching pain epidemiology, pathology, treatment, and women's issues. She has also authored numerous books on chronic pain and migraine, including 10 Simple Solutions to Migraine, for which she won the 2007 Excellence in Media Award from the National Headache Foundation. She is also a consultant for Del Monte's "Power of Paws" program, which encourages better human health through dog companionship and the author of Fit As Fido: Follow Your Dog to Better Health, which teaches you to use your relationship with your dog to improve your general health. She has authored several books on chronic pain management for healthcare professionals, including the recently published Headache Simplified, Chronic Pain: A Primary Care Guide to Practical Management, second edition, Effective Migraine Treatment in Pregnant and Lactating Women, and Chronic Pain Atlas.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Essential reading for the dog-owning couch potato, January 12, 2009

By 

Dr. Jonathan Gregory (Ludlow, UK) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Fit As Fido: Follow Your Dog to Better Health (Paperback)

In this delightful new book Dr Marcus draws upon her experience as both a physician and dog-lover, to provide her readers with an entertaining, warm, and informative guide to living a healthier life, by following the example of our canine companions.

Virtually all dog-owners recognise the importance of looking after their pets, and ensuring that they enjoy a healthy diet, adequate exercise (as well as rest), and a stimulating environment that allows for plenty of play and companionship, whether that be in the company of other dogs or of humans.

And yet so often, most of us (I speak as a dog-owner myself) rarely apply the same dedication to looking after ourselves. We eat too much or too little, usually of all the wrong things; we don't take enough exercise, or get enough sleep, and frequently our busy modern lifestyles squeeze out that all-important `me' time, leaving us feeling stressed, unhappy or just plain bored.

Fortunately, Dr Marcus has the answer - which is to treat ourselves as we would treat our pets. In this very readable book, she looks at each of these topics in turn and explains how a healthy diet, sensible exercise regime and sleeping patterns can have a beneficial effect on our health and well-being. More importantly, she shows how the quality of our own lives can be enhanced if we simply imitate our pets' outlook on the world, a place full of interesting new people and experiences, a place to be explored, and enjoyed.

This book is ideal for all those pet-owners who hate self-help books (me included). And to those who don't yet own a dog, I say this; buy this book then go out and get one without delay. It will be the healthiest thing you ever do!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fit as Fido: Follow Your Dog to Bette Health, January 12, 2009

By 

Richard L. Lansing - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Fit As Fido: Follow Your Dog to Better Health (Paperback)

What an interesting and clever book. We just brought a puppy into the family, for our kids primarily, but also as a way to increase the amount of walking and overall exercise my wife and I get. I then became fascinated by how dogs make an impact on human behavior and social life in general. That led me to this book. It has been perfect for instrucing us on how to incorporate our dog into our household lifestyle in ways that benefit our family's overall health. It elaborates and instructs on the idea of living a healthy lifestyle -- eating, exercising, and sleeping properly, and so forth. Dr. Marcus's knowledge as a physician and her experiences with her new dog Wheatie have enabled her to write a very helpful book on improving one's health. I recommend it to all new and veteran dog owners.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book!, January 10, 2009

By 

Marion Francis - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fit As Fido: Follow Your Dog to Better Health (Paperback)

This is a great book with simple, easy to use tips. The chapters are diverse and it is chocked full of great suggestions. It's a fast read and you'll come away with some getting-in-shape tips that are not only easy, but fun. Best of all, it means you get to spend more time with your dog. If you love your dog (and I love mine), you'll run to the bookstore to buy this book.