Book Review - The 4 Hour Body

The 4 hour body (4HB) is one of the most promising books I’ve read in many years. It could be considered hacking guide to the human body, with many approaches to changing your physiology. In fact, the most remarkable thing about the 4HB is the variety and density of the information. Any one or two chapters of the 4HB could be the basis of an independent book. The basic approach of the book is to find the minimum action that will produce the maximum benefit. I highly recommend the 4HB; if you only read one book this year, it should be the 4HB. I read many books, but rarely do I find them worth buying (I love the library). The 4HB is unique in that I have purchased two copies, one for my family and friends to borrow and another for me to write in and reference. The 4HB has prompted more changes in my life than any book I can recall reading. Here are some of the highlights

• The slow carb diet. This is a remarkably simple diet that fits in nicely with everything I’ve read on nutrition and weight loss. The five rules are
  • Avoid carbs that are, or can be, white.
  • Eat the same few meals over and over.
  • Don’t drink any calories.
  • Don’t eat fruit.
  • Binge once a week.
• Advice on how to binge effectively, including ways of keeping muscles insulin sensitive so the extra calories don’t tend to go to fat.
• How to use supplements to speed up weight loss. The 4HB uses Policosanol, Alpha-lipoic acid, Green tea flavanols, and Garlic extract.
• Using cold exposure to boost fat loss by raising the level of brown fat.
• What it takes to lose the last 5-10 pounds of fat. I’ve not come across this type of advice before and it provided great insight into what is required.
• How to add muscle. Lots of muscle! The example is 34 pounds of muscle in 28 days, which initially made me think this was a fraud. Further reading has suggested this is actually possible.
• How to improve your sex life. Being a ‘suitable for all audiences’ type of site, I won’t go into details.
• Optimizing sleep, both avoiding sleep problems and using polyphasic sleep to reduce overall sleep requirements.
• Advice on improving running, which I found fascinating. There is advice on sprinting and ultramarathon distances.
• How to improve on other sports like swimming or baseball.
• An evaluation of approaches to living longer.

Also see 2010 New Years Resolutions.