This book gave clear instructions on how to become fit. They target every single body part and provide the reader with different exercises to accommodate their fitness level. I didn't try any of the exercises but I bet that anyone can do them!

This book suggests ways to vary the difficulty of exercises, which makes it useful to a wider audience, or for people as they gradually grow more fit. I saw exercises that I will suggest to my parents, who cannot do as much as they used to.

My review:
This book is a motivation to MOVE. To keep getting stronger because the alternative is to lose what you have and just get weaker and weaker. I really love how user-friendly it is with the setup. You have targetted areas to go to and it details every exercise for you and the correct position to hold. You then have programs and routines that are already lined up for you in the back of the book and this takes the thinking out and puts the motivation in for me.
I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

While I'm not old age wise, I certainly feel like it most days. This book is what I need to get my rear in gear and hopefully help out my aches and pains. Will be buying when it comes out. Pictures are nice, I like the colors for plans. Simple, easy to use.

Thank you to Dorling Kinsley and Netgally for providing me with an advanced copy of this book, in exchange for my honest review.

Stay For life by Joshua Kozak, is a how to guide book that focusses on Functional Fitness. Functional training is a total body approach that mimics our daily activities that enable us to live a healthier and more dynamic lifestyles as we age. This book is using the premise, “if you do not use you lose it”. The exercises therefore are meant to keep our body fit and able to do our daily activites even as we age.
The book starts out with the basics of Functional training, which includes the benefits, the foundational movements: locomotion, pushing, pulling, rotation and raising and lowering, how our body moves, the benefits of exercise for our body and how to train effectively.

The book includes a 5 test self-assessment to determine your fitness level, which help you figure out which exercise program to follow; beginner, intermediate and advanced. But before you get to the exercise programs, the author provides 62 exercises with step by step instructions with annotated photographs and tips to make each exercise easier or more challenges. The exercises are simple and do not require for you to buy a lot equipment.
In the next part, the exercises are categorized into workout routines for such as warm up, 5 min kick start, cardiovascular endurance, beginners total body, low-intensity strength, speed and agility, balance and stability, total body mobility, cross training, pre-habilitation, posture improvement, core strength and others. What makes the book so functional, no pun intended, is that the page numbers are referenced for each exercise which aids the reader a great deal and you do not have to consult the index. The work out routines are given for all three levels.

The last part, Fitness Programs, contains a 4- week exercise program for each level of fitness.
The daily schedule contains 4 workout routines which vary for each day of the week.


This book is very comprehensive and an is easy to follow. I highly recommend this book for those who want to start a home practice at their own pace. A lot of the exercises are known or familiar if you have worked out before, if not the explanations and photographs are very clear. Last but not least, this book is a beautiful book with quality photographs and great page layouts which makes it a great pleasure to read this book and greatly enhances the reader to follow the exercises. I happen to find out that Mr. Kozak and his wife have produced exercise videos, I will definitely look out for them.

The author sets this book apart from others that I have seen by walking you through several steps before you get started. There is information on how to access where you are; you definitely don’t want to jump into a higher level of fitness than you can handle.

While gym memberships can cost anywhere from $500. to over a thousand each year, you need only a few fitness items to get started with this book: a chair, an aerobic step, dumbbells and a mat. The instructions are clear and easy to follow with photographs of people actually doing each exercise. The author grouped together exercise plans starting at only 5 minutes and with three levels depending on where you are at. There is a plan for : a five-minute kickstart; cardiovascular endurance; beginner total body; low-intensity strength; speed and agility; balance and stability; total body mobility; cross training; calorie burning; prehabilitation; posture improvement; core strength; total body strength 1; total body strength 2; lower back strength; upper body strength; lower body strength; low-impact aerobic and cool down.

This is definitely a five star book.

This is another DK books entry and it is just as fantastic as everything they publish. Ingeniously presented to make exercise fun, friendly, and easy to do - with full photographs that beautiful illustrate workouts and routines. More than just a pretty picture, the exercises make sense and are fully explained. Using graphics and photographs rather than endless monologues, the programs are easy to follow and provide great results. You'll feel better and have more energy without having to spend hours fruitlessly at a gym. This is especially ideal for those who, after the age of 40, have become less active and have less energy.

The book breaks down into four sections: fitness basics, exercises, workout routines, and fitness programs. The first section is to ensure you assess yourself properly, shows how to use the book, and discusses safety. The exercises in the second section are broken down by type: locomotion, pushing, pulling, rotation, raising and lowering. The routines are by type; e.g., balance and stability, lower back strength, cool down, warm up, core strength, etc. And then the programs in the fourth section are broken down by type: beginner, intermediate advanced.

To get you right into things, the book gives you a nice flow chart on performing the assessment tests (with step by step pictures and charts), finding your fitness program in the back based on the assessment (with basic instruction on how the plan works and how it is laid out. You then use that to flip to the workout routine with exercises chosen to work together to achieve the workout's goals. You'll know at the end of the workout which five fundamental movements the exercises stressed.

The exercises come with large, beautifully photographed images that are annotated to provide tips to make the exercises as easy as possible. The detailed step by step directions are nicely laid out next to the photographs and there are tips as well as suggestions if you need/want to make the exercises easier or harder.

The exercises require only a small set of dumbells and an aerobic step. A mat and chair are also helpful. So there is very little needed to get started right away.

Because this is by far the best book I've seen on exercise, especially for those after 40, I'm rating this a solid five stars. And because I only have the digital copy, I am also purchasing the hardback to have handy in my room. Easy, friendly, useful, well written, well designed, and everything one wants to make excise as friendly and useful as possible. I had no problem following any exercises and none were too hard or too easy. Reviewed from an advance reader copy provided by the publisher.

Stay Fit for Life provides quick workouts for older, rehabbing or sedentary adults with little additional equipment required.

With 62 exercises, 20 workout routines, and three levels of fitness programs, Stay Fit for Life covers all aspects of older adult fitness. There are modifications for most to make them easier or more difficult. Many of the exercises also include a seated option. The pictures clearly show how to correctly perform all the exercises. Best of all the only equipment needed are a set of dumbbells, floor mat, chair and stair step. Most exercises don’t require anything more than some effort. Each exercise states which of five abilities it will help the user to achieve. The abilities include improved posture, greater strength, increased stability, better mobility, and more endurance. Many exercises hit more than one of the abilities.

The introduction of Stay Fit for Life includes some motivational facts such as every minute spent exercising after age 39 increases live span by 7 minutes and some frightening ones such as US emergency rooms treat an older adult for a fall every 11 seconds. There is even a quick six exercise self-assessment test to determine the reader’s fitness level prior to beginning a fitness program. The fitness programs each include four weeks of exercise routines with two days of rest each week. Day 1 of the beginner’s program only takes 12.5 minutes so it is hard to use lack of time as an excuse not to start exercising.

Stay Fit for Life is so great that I have already pre-ordered a hardcopy from Amazon. It is highly recommended for anyone who hasn’t exercised in years and wants a cheap, quick and easy way to start. 5 stars!

Thanks to the publisher, DK, and Netgalley for an advanced review copy.

There are so many time constraints in today's world, as well as so many conflicting choices. Should we eat more or fewer fruits, vegetables, protein, fish, or carbohydrates to properly fuel our bodies? How much sleep do we need? Vitamins or supplements, yea or nah? What about skin care? More water, less caffeine or more tea less coffee? The advice and choices are endless and come at us 24/7. Wanting to do the best for the only body I have been given while navigating a maze of information can be overwhelming. Who has the time to discover they have made the wrong choices while trying to do the right thing?
That's why I so enjoyed this book. It's straight forward with no pretentious "advice of the moment". Its premise follows the same philosophy as using sunscreen from childhood. Sunscreen will keep your skin in better condition and focus on posture and mobility will allow your body to do more as the years fly by and avoid many injuries that could require physical therapy or extensive rehabilitation. I spend an hour a day in the gym focusing on aerobic exercise, core strength, and weight lifting and still found areas addressed in this book that I am incorporating into my daily life.
I thought the book was well organized, exercises were thoroughly explained and the pictures were very good. Having good physical habits can only benefit the body no matter what your age and almost anyone who wants to take care of their body would learn from and enjoy this book. Greater flexibility for life is a great goal and I hope to be fit and strong for my entire life with a little help from books like this one.
Thank you, Joshua Kozak, DK Publishing and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Exceptionally Helpful

The point of this book is to help you "future-proof" you're body, and in that regard it offers something unique and helpful for older physical specimens, (such as myself). There are lots of books out there about bulking up, ripping your abs, and pumping up your cannons, and that's fine. You can use machines and free weights even though you're lots older than most of the people in the gym, and it's nice to see your strength and stamina improving even as you age.

But, while all of that is well and good, a bit of daily future proofing isn't a bad idea, and is open to anyone with a few minutes to spare. The idea is that as we age there are points at which we could use some tuning up in order to avoid injury or accidents. This book emphasizes stability, mobility, posture, and then perhaps to a slightly lesser degree, strength and endurance. The exercises don't require any particular equipment, (except maybe some light hand weights), and emphasize foundational movements - locomotion, pushing, pulling, rotation, and raising and lowering.

As is often the case with books like this, there is more on offer than one probably needs. The heart of the book is 62 suggested exercises, each designed to focus on one of the foundational movements, (although of course most of them have more than just one benefit). You also get a test to assess your starting level of fitness, 20 workout routines with tailoring for each fitness level, and various one-month fitness programs. If you just review the exercises and select the ones you think you need, well, that already has you ahead of the game. The rest, to me, is optional and a bonus.

The exercises are well described with step by step instructions and photos that are much clearer and more specific than is usually the case. Each exercise ends with a suggested easier option and a harder option. Each exercise identifies its primary foundational benefit. (Sort of as a running joke there is often a practical example - like, "this is good for picking up grandchildren").

Anyway, I picked up a number of good ideas and noted at least a dozen movements I'm going to add to my routine. Newbies will probably find even more useful suggestions. And, I came away with an interesting insight. Everyone knows about rehabilitation after an injury or operation. This book pushes "prehabilitation", or strengthening the same areas in order to avoid a later need for rehabilitation. Maybe that's a bit overly optimistic, but it's a nice thought to get one started.

(Please note that I received a free advance will-self-destruct-in-x-days Adobe Digital copy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)

This is a great book, and for someone who would love to be an 'advanced' strength trainer (but isn't), it's a book that has great recommendations/reminders, and workouts. The photos are extremely helpful (especially with the assessment), and the breakdown of types of foundational movements were new to me, despite being an active person. It was great to have the 'kinectic chain and planes of movement' so simply laid out that I immediately picked up on the information. It's very different from other workout books that I've read where the information is so heavy that it's hard to wade through. I think it's a great book for anyone, but personally, I think it's a very helpful resource/present as an encouragement for those who want to be more active, especially as one gets older.