Customer Reviews

Workouts for Working People: How You Can Get in Great Shape While Staying Employed

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Mark Allen and Julie Moss hit a key market with their book, Workouts for Working People. Finding the right mix of fitness in ones life is tricky when trying to juggle the responsibilities of jobs and family, but Mark and Julie show us how it can be done. While working out is second nature to these two world class triathletes, the addition of a son (Mats, who also contributes to the book) and the reality of having to adapt to "real" life after their competitive careers ended, Mark and Julie show us ordinary folks how to handle it all. The book covers training, nutrition, weights, stretching and even kids fitness. Included are workout schedules for weightlifting and training programs for completing a 10k to an Ironman. In addition, Mark and Julie offer their own favorite and simple to make recipes in the nutrition chapter. An interesting part of the book is that they offer their own 'life' experiences throughout the book and this offers a nice "one-on-one" feeling for the reader. You feel like they are your friends and your coaches and you get encouraged to workout reading this book. It makes you think twice about just sitting on the couch and watching t.v. In my opinion, everyone, from the "newbie" beginner to the competitive athlete can learn something from this well-rounded book written by two of the most famous triathletes in the world.

It's for real. You have two world-class athletes - not bodybuilders or celebrities or fitness models, but two of the fittest people in the world here.

What makes this book different? (1) The Allens recognize that most people have other priorities in life, such as jobs and kids, and therefore can't live in the gym for 2 or 3 hours a day. (2) They also recognize - unlike many athletes - that not everyone shares their passion for their sport. They don't expect you to open this book wanting to do an Ironman of your own as they've done, but they won't discourage you from training for one either!

The book is loaded with sound, honest advice, tips, encouragement and motivation. If you want to get fit, well, you have to work at it. They're not trying to sell you seminars or supplements or some 'magic bullet' that only slims your wallet. They're not trying to relive past glory days either - the anecdotes are purposeful: meant to instruct and/or motivate.

There's several different 18-week workouts here, depending on your goals. All of them offer a balance between cardio (ANY cardio - not just running/swimming/cycling) and weight training. During the week, most workouts are about 30 minutes to an hour, with a longer one on the weekends, and an optional one for the true weekend warrior. Plus, the Allens offer plenty of suggestions for squeezing fitness into a busy schedule for full-time employees and full-time moms.

This isn't another feel-good-because-you-showed-up 'exercise' book. This book is for people who are serious about trying to raise their level of fitness, no matter what shape they're currently in.

I also strongly recommend reading it thoroughly for some of the nuggets hidden inside. For example, 5-6 small meals, each about the size of your two palms held together. An easy visual guide to portion sizes that you always have with you! How can you lose? Or better still, how can you not?

This book is an absolute must for anyone serious about doing their best. Allen and Moss use a very down to earth approach that applies not only to world class athletes, but also for former couch potatoes who want to get in shape.

Highly recommended. The Keithster

This is an excellent book. The information in it can actually be put to use! -- and excellent use. I was skeptical after I browsed through it, but after reading it completely, their fitness plans make sense and can be put to use by the average working person. Fitness must be part of your lifestyle, and they cover this completely. There is good information presented -- fitness, lifestyle, health, training plans, nutritiion. I especially found Mark's heart rate monitoring helpful (adapted from Phil Maffetone). Before this I never realized I had been working-out too hard. Both Mark and Julie have the experience to back up their concepts, and along the way they share their experiences with you. The training plans are numerous (basic fitness, 5k, 10k, marathon, triathalons), complete, and easy to follow. I recommend the book -- it is not too technical, which makes it easy to read and understand.

This is an excellent book for beginners and hard-core fitness gurus alike. The book covers all the basics of health, fitness, and well-being. I can never get enough of Mark and Julie. The stories about their careers and the people they have worked with is fantastic. Their conversion to the power of strength training and the "how to" portions of the book can't be beat. This book is filled with great photos and the wealth of knowledge the authors have gained through out their lives. No where can you find the cardio-vascular part of fitness explained so well and made so simple. This book is a must have.

This book is exactly what I expected. It is totally 80's, but solid on information. It is written for normal people, not medical personnel, physical trainers, pro-athletes.... I am sure science has come along way in this area since this book was published, but for basic training plans for a regular Joe, this is great.

I met Julie and Mark back when I televised them when they were both competing in national and international triathlons. They were both wonderful personalities and great athletes who seemed in great balance with careers, sponsorships, a relationhip and then a family. How did they keep it all together when so many other folks with the same kinds of demands often had train wreck lives. Well, their book, "Workouts for Working People" tells how they keep the important things important and set high goals that, with love, planning and selflessness, are very attainable. A damn good read!

Other books may give better advice on specific sports, but for overall training, eating and living, this is my favorite. A related book, by Maffetone, talks more about aerobic training tips, but this book gives more details