Finding gifts for the exercise-minded people on your list can be tricky. A new workout outfit? Too tough to guess the size. A home gym? Too lavish. A better idea is to choose from this list of fitness books, sure to jump-start or energize anyone’s workout plan.
“Harvey Walden’s No Excuses! Fitness Workout,” by Harvey Walden IV, ($26.95): Fans of VH-1’s “Celebrity Fit Club” are familiar with resident trainer Harvey Walden IV, the ex-Marine with a tough-guy exterior wrapped around a soft, gooey center. Able to motivate the laziest celebs to work out, and to hand a smackdown to anyone who dares comes up with lame excuses, he is now available to the masses via this new book.
Most of Walden’s exercises use body weight for resistance, making them doable by almost anyone.
“7 Minutes of Magic,” by Lee Holden ($24.95): In “7 Minutes of Magic,” author Lee Holden, founder of Pacific Healing Arts, a wellness center in Los Gatos, Calif., devises a series of non-impact exercises that borrow from his years-long practice of yoga, tai chi, qi gong and meditation. The prescribed seven minutes of stretches and exercises can be easily worked into the day.
“The About.com Guide to Getting In Shape,” by Paige Waehner ($17.95): Need a guide to the often-confusing fitness realm? This is it. Author Paige Waehner, a personal trainer and writer, provides copious information for the novice and beyond.
“Run Your First Marathon,” by Grete Waitz and Gloria Averbuch ($17.95): Who better than Grete Waitz, renowned marathoner and nine-time winner of the New York City marathon, to take a runner through that first 26.2-mile race? Waitz’s conversational style makes this book less like a dry manual and more like having a friend tell you what to expect. She provides a few charts, such as a beginning training program that starts with a 22-minute combination of walking and jogging and progresses to 50 minutes of jogging by Week 12.
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