12 Minutes a Week (book)

Invest little, achieve a lot. The training programme for anyone who wants to enjoy life whilst staying fit  How often have you embarked on a new fitness programme or started a diet with the best of intentions, only to fall short of your own expectations all too soon? In this unusual and compelling guide, Christian Zippel proves that above-average fitness does NOT require above-average effort. Just 20 per cent effort yields 80 per cent success – if you go about it the right way. This way, you can enjoy your life AND stay fit. All it comes down to is keeping the balance of your own ‘fitness account’ in the black. All it takes is two 20-minute training sessions a week and a few tweaks to your daily routine. Whether at home, in the park or even on the playground – you can do the bodyweight exercises presented in this book anywhere. Additional exercises using gymnastic rings allow you to train at the highest level, and combining these with numerous interval training options makes 80/20 fitness perfect. If you then stick to a few simple basic rules regarding your diet, you can confidently stop counting calories and even treat yourself to a proper feast every now and then. After all, nothing works without energy.

How CrossFit revolutionised training and gave me a completely new bodyIt all began in fitness guru Greg Classman’s garage – today there are more than 4,000 facilities worldwide where CrossFit ® is practised. These CrossFit ® ‘boxes’ are former warehouses, gyms or garages equipped with mats, kettlebells, weights, ropes, medicine balls, lorry tyres, skipping ropes and chalk bags. CrossFitters aim to perform push-ups, box jumps, pull-ups or weightlifting exercises with dumbbells as many times as possible within a set time limit.The training is extremely strenuous; afterwards, the athletes are drenched in sweat and, thanks to a massive endorphin rush, happier than ever. Unlike in normal gyms, the sense of camaraderie in the ‘Boxes’ is very strong and constantly spurs CrossFitters on to new personal bests. The high-intensity training leads to rapid weight loss and a well-toned body. Endurance athlete T. J. Murphy started doing CrossFit ® to find out why this training programme, which is all the rage in the US, is as effective as it feels, and whether it could heal his sports-injured body. In his book, he introduces readers to this fascinating fitness phenomenon and sheds light on the unusual CrossFit ® community as well as the science behind it. And last but not least, he explains why CrossFit ® will soon be found in many garages in our neighbourhood.About the authorT.J. Murphy is a former endurance athlete and former editor-in-chief of the magazines Triathlet, Inside Triathlon and Competitor.