Customer Reviews

The Spark: The Revolutionary New Plan to Get Fit and Lose Weight-10 Minutes at a Time

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This book is 237 pages too long. It is an infomercial. A reader has to wade through empty paragraph after empty paragraph trying to get the essence of the book. I'll save you the money: eat a high fiber, low fat, carbohydrate diet and exercise for 10 minutes three times a day, 5 days a week. One workout should be aerobic, one should be strength-training and one should be stretching. You get your metabolism going stretching the exercise you do over the course of the day. The End!

Let's see??? What is the percentage of our nation's population that is actively involved in the American College of Sports Medicine guidelines for exercise/activity??? Is it 1%? How about the percentage of the population that knows they should and sometimes do exercise, or are active but not on a regular basis?? Is it 1%? I'm not certain myself any more. The fitness industry is my profession and has been, in one way or another, for my entire adult career. I know without doubt, as a nation, we are less heathly and more unfit than ever in our history. Dr. Gaesser has done it again. As in his work of Big Fat Lies, He has challenged us with our traditional thinking, plus given us the opportunity to open doors for the millions of unfit individuals in our Country. This book is a must for the individual who wants to be more active, but doesn't think they can. And, from my perspective, even more importantly it is for those of us in the fitness profession who need to see beyond the limited horizons we have created for ourselves in the industry. It is our opportunity to provide a viable opportunity for those who have been turned off by the illusive ideal fitness model, who feel they can't keep up, can't find the time, can't do the work, just can't. Is the "Spark" concept only for the unfit? I don't think so. My husband and I, both fitness professionals, and former competitive athletes have found ourselves liberated from our own fitness constraints! How many times have we skipped a workout because our busy lives interfere with our ideal 60 minute fitness plan. Do nothing, or "SPARK" our morning with a 10 - 15 minute focused bout on the rowing machine, or other activity??? We're sparking! And, we're benefiting!!!

Step outside your fitness/or lack of fitness box and open your mind to Dr. Gaesser and Karla Dohertys' unique and liberating focus on fitness!!! It will guide you, challenge you and open new doors!

As an overweight, stressed-out, 40-something professional, I am thrilled to find this book! The SPARK is exactly what I needed to get my body moving again. I am one of those who had fallen for the 1-hour a day exercise trap, and if I didn't have an hour, which I usually don't, I just didn't exercise. I love doing my three to four SPARKS a day, knowing I am doing my body far more good than waiting for that elusive day when I can fit in 45 minutes or more for my workout. This is a wonderful concept, and so doable! It's working!! Thank you!

I recommend this book to anyone who has such a busy life that exercise just never seems to make it off the back burner. The 10 minute exercises fit into my daily routine. The book explains all the routines very clearly and the fitness tests in the book are a good place to start. To make the strength exercises work best you will need to get a set of hand weights. I was a bit skeptical at first, but after starting the program I realized just how much you can get into 10 minutes. The intensity scale for gauging effort is so much easier than always trying to figure if you're heart rate is okay. I look forward to my daily sparks. The mix of aerobic, strength and stretching, and the fact that they are only 10 minutes, gives me options and variety that I've never seen before in a fitness program. The way the book is written makes it interesting to read. The personal stories of one of the authors, and the comments of the people who have gone on this program, are interwoven nicely around the basic plan. Also, if you are a carbohydrate lover this book will appeal to you.

I read about this book in a review and related exercise plan in Fitness magazine, so I bought the book. Turns out all I needed to know was in that magazine article. The ideas in this book are great - it's a very easy to follow program for someone who is sedentary or hasn't worked out in ages. However, for someone who is used to working out for 20-60 minutes per session, it's hard for me to believe that only 10 minutes two to three times per day will do the trick. And I found it more difficult to find three ten-minute chunks of time than a single 60 minute time block during the day (you're supposed to space of the 10-minute sparks by a few hours), so this book wasn't good for my schedule. I like the diet advice - the changes the author suggests are to made VERY gradually w/o altering your present diet too much.

This book really works for me. As far as fitness programs go, this is by far the most unique I have come across. Unlike other books, which focus on either aerobic exercise, or strength training, or stretching, this program has a "total" fitness approach, but without having to exercise more than 10 minutes at a time. Bingo! If you're like me and just don't have the time to exercise for 30-40 minutes at a time, then this program should appeal to you. The book clearly lays out the ground work for the short, 10-minute exercise sessions, and takes you through a day-by-day three week progression that's virtually impossible not to be able to fit in. Some experienced exercisers may find the progression rather slow--in that case just skip to the third week chapter and go from there. Another refreshing feature of the book is that it is based on research that one of the authors (Gaesser) conducted at the University of Virginia on mostly middle-aged women, who all completed the 3-week spark program. The results mentioned in the book convinced me. I just started the program and already notice a difference in the way I feel. The 10-minute sessions are easy to fit into my day and that is something no other exercise prgoram ever offered. The nutrition plan is easy to follow...no calorie restriction. I've already tried a couple of the recipes and they are great.

This is the exercise miracle I have been waiting for. I have started too many exercise programs in the past and always end up quitting. The primary reasons being boredom and lack of results. This "SPARK" is totally doable and motivational. I am a working mom with four kids and ten minute chunks of time are realistic. Bravo to Dr. Gaesser for his awesome plan and book.

While I am no coach potato, I tend to start exercise programs and not stick with them. I am hopeless at following diets that require me to structure my day around eating or not eating certain types of food. Plus, as a working mother of two, I just can't adhere to a plan that requires a lot of time and effort. At 45, I had almost given up on the idea that I could lose weight without applying some super-human effort. I wasn't overweight according to the charts but I wasn't terribly thrilled about how I looked in my clothes. Since reading this book three months ago, I have since lost 15 pounds without feeling particularly deprived or overburdened with exercise. Most importantly, I feel and look great. While it's true that this book could be summed up in a lot fewer pages, I found the examples and case studies to be motivational. I was initially skeptical that exercising in 10-minute intervals could be effective - but all I can say is that it's worked for me. I've been very happy to recommend this book to everyone who's asked me what my "secret" to success is.

A very doable diet and exercise program based on accepted research results. Everyone can find ten minutes three times a day to exercise and the authors' show how this system is more beneficial than a single 30 minute exercise session.

Some information is missing (perhaps saved for a second book?). How alcoholic beverages fit into the program is not addressed. Neither is the possibility of taking a fiber supplement if your diet can't reach the recommended 25 grams of fiber a day.

Do not let these omissions keep you from getting this book and following it. I think I've finally found the system I've been looking for.

Dr. Gaesser's schedule of several 10-minute "Sparks" each day has helped me and several co-workers get the beneficial exercise we need.

As firefighters in Southern California, we are routinely called out to emergencies while in the middle of drills, meals, showers and, of course, workouts.

Our daily schedule allows for 90 minutes of workout time in the morning. After 5 p.m., we can workout as long as we like. However, these long workouts are quite often interrupted by 911 responses. Most times, we are out of the station for over an hour.

Most of us are pretty fit people because the nature of this business calls for it. The flip side is that fire house cooking isn't always the healthiest food around (But man is it good!). Several of us have increased cholesterol levels, while others have that plus mildly elevated blood pressures.

These 10-minute "sparks" have helped us get some beneficial exercise throughout the day. Most of the time we get a "base" of 20-30 minutes in the morning before the first call comes in; then "Sparks" after lunch, before dinner and a couple hours after dinner. Personally, I have had only one "Spark" workout interrupted by an emergency call.

Some of us have lost weight, which is the most recognizable result of any workout program. Others have realized a decrease in their blood pressures. Cholesterol? Remains to be seen. I haven't been tested since January (it was 260).

One thing is for sure: There are fewer workouts interrupted by emegencies now. Thanks, Dr. Gaesser, for coming up with a program that fits around the busy schedule, thus helping us stay fit.