The 4-Hour Body: An Uncommon Guide to Rapid Fat-Loss, Incredible Sex, and Becoming Superhuman [Hardcover]
This review is from: The 4-Hour Body: An Uncommon Guide to Rapid Fat-Loss, Incredible Sex, and Becoming Superhuman (Hardcover)
I enjoyed the book. I'm not going to claim that the book is perfect or earth-shattering or anything like that. I did find it entertaining to read all the stuff Tim Ferriss put himself through. I've also benefited from some of his recommendations (though not all). Here's what's in the book so you can make your own decision. I've read all 571 pages and tried most of the strategies (I had my copy for a while because I got my hands on an advanced copy).
Ferriss spent more than a decade researching, monitoring, and noting the progress of his own mind and body. He served as his own laboratory genea pig and also played the role of a doctor, physical therapist, and coach to prepare for this book. Like a school boy, Ferris teaches you how to get your classwork done fast so you can go out and play. He asks you to be skeptical of the book and try only that which you think will help you.
Here's what's in it:
Chapter 1: Fundamentals--First And Foremost
* Ferriss describes the "Mininum Effective Dose" (doing the bare minimum to gain the most desired outcome).
Chapter 2: Ground Zero--Getting Started and Swaraj
* Uses Mahatma Gandhi reference to make the case that only we can govern our body and destiny by what we purposely choose to do.
Chapter 3: Subtracting Fat
Five rules for cutting body fat:
1. Avoid "white" carbohydrates
2. Eat the same few meals over and over again
3. Don't drink calories
4. Don't eat fruit
5. Take one day off per week
* The Lost Art of Bingeing: Specific steps to minimize fat gain while splurging
Chapter 4: Adding Muscle
* Building the Perfect Posterior
* Ferriss turns the table for readers who wish to gain weight by offering strategies on how to gain 34 pounds in 28 days with exercises like the Occam's Protocoli, the Bike-Shed Effect, and GOMAD (Gallon of Milk a Day).
Chapter 5: Improving Sex
* Ferriss tells a story about a promise he made to a female yoga instructor who have never experienced an orgasm in her life that he "would fix her inability to orgasm"
* the women has to bring herself "there."
* men need to change the angle and pressure during penetration.
* The 15-min Female Orgasm
1. Explain to partner that you will touch her
2. Get into position
3. Find the Upper-Quadrant Point of the Clitoris, and Stroke Lightly--for 15 minutes.
Chapter 6: Perfecting Sleep
How to Fall Asleep Faster:
* Focus on getting to sleep
* 67ºF to 70ºF is the best room temperature to fall asleep
* Eat a large fat-and protein-dominated meal 3 hours before bedtime
* Use low light in the bedroom
* Take a cold bath an hour before bed
* Use a humidifier to generate cool mist
* Try to sleep in the half-military crawl position
How to Sleep Less and Feel Great
* Learn how to manipulate the sleep cycle to stay in REM sleep longer
* Take frequent 20-min naps throughout the day
Chapter 7: Reversing Injuries
* The $10,000 Fix: Ferriss cured his "permanent" injuries by receiving a concoction of chemicals (i.e. Platelet-rich plasma, Stem cell factor, Bone morphogenic proteint-7, Insulin-like growth factor 1) via injection.
The Cheaper Fix in Stages:
* Stage 1: Movement
* Stage 2: Manipulaiton
* Stage 3: Medication
* Stage 4: Surgery
Chapter 8: Running Faster and Farther
* Jumping Higher: Joe DeFranco, a renowned trainer of the NFL Scouting Combine, worked with Ferriss on his shoulder drive, arm position before the jump, squat stance and hip flexors that allowed Ferriss to jump vertically three inches higher in 48 hours.
* Running Faster: Joe DeFranco also coached Ferriss on how to run the 40-yard dash faster by correcting Ferriss's line-and-arm position at the start line. Ferriss was advised to keep his head down, his knee head of his toes, chin tucked and upper body head of lower body, and to take few steps. Ferriss improved his 40-yard dash by .33 seconds in 48 hours.
* Running Further: Ferriss trains by running 400-meter repeatedly (over and over again) while monitoring quantity of repeats, maximum effort percentage, and rest time. Ken Mierke, a world-champion triathlete helped Ferriss with his stride rate, lean position, and arm movement. With preparation, biomechanics, and training, Ferriss was able to increase his running distance of 5K to 50K in 12 weeks.
Chapter 9: Getting Stronger
The gems in this chapter to become stronger as experimented by Ferriss include:
* Dynamic stretching
* Bench press, push-ups, deadlift to knees
* Static Stretching
* Keep "time under tension" while lifting under 10 seconds to avoid muscle burn.
* "Lift heavy but not hard"
* Keep training times (day or night) consistent.
Chapter 10: From Swimming to Swinging
* Ferriss learned how to swim effortlessly within 10 days
* How to swing a bat like Babe Ruth
* How to hold breath longer Houdini, and David Blaine
Chapter 11: On Longer and Better Life
* Take 5-10 grams of Creatine Monohydrate per day
* Fasting and Protein Cycling
* Donate blood
