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Finding a way

HOUGHTON – There have been countless books written about fitness and health, but few of them have been written by a Copper Country native.

Jeff Hauswirth, author of the previously published “What Are You Waiting For? A Beginner’s Guide to Weight Training,” has come out with a new book titled “Now You Have No Excuses,” which Hauswirth said was inspired by his first book.

“There’s a lot of people who, for whatever reason, can’t get to a gym or feel self-conscious about it, so I thought, ‘How can I come up with something for people who are at home?’ So that’s where that came from.”

So far, according to Hauswirth, reaction to the book has been pretty good.

“On Amazon, it’s got a 4.9 out of 5 as far as reviews go,” he said.

For people who may still want to go to the gym, though, Hauswirth said they can get over that intimidation simply by exercising.

“One of the many benefits of exercise is self-confidence,” Hauswirth said. “You hear the old cliche, ‘I can’t go to the gym, I’m nowhere near in shape,’ so this is something for those people who are maybe lacking that confidence.”

Hauswirth’s book can also help people who maybe don’t want to or don’t have the money to spend on a gym membership.

“It’s a $9 book that can kind of grow with you as you progress,” Hauswirth said.

For those who are looking to put on muscle, Hauswirth said his book can absolutely help with that.

“This is your bodyweight. Depending on how much muscle you want to put on, you may have to add weights sometime down the road, but this is a great starting point. Realistically, if you’re a beginner, you’re not going to be able to push as much of your own bodyweight.”

Instead of the usual sets and reps, Hauswirth’s exercises are based on time.

“You do each exercise for a minute instead of saying do X amount of this exercise,” he said. “It’s do as much as you can within that minute, so you’re going to gain muscle and the stronger you get the more you’re going to be able to do within that minute.”

Because the exercises are rapid fire, Hauswirth said people can get a great cardiovascular workout, as well.

But one of the most important things that Hauswirth stresses in his book is maintaining a good diet.

“You can never outrun

a poor diet,” Hauswirth said. “You can’t justify having a huge supreme pizza for dinner because you spent 30 or 40 minutes exercising.”

For fitness, Hauswirth said you need rest, a good diet and exercise.

“If you don’t have any one of those three, you’re not going hit your fitness level,” he said. “You could be an elite athlete and do this, too, but we’re just trying to hit everybody to get to that healthy living area.”

Hauswirth also has another idea for a book, which he said is a compilation of pretty much every workout he’s ever designed for clients.

“I’ll put that all together and it’s basically things from no weights needed to full-blown weight lifting exercises.”

Hauswirth said he started weight training when he was 13 with his brother who was a college athlete.

“He really opened my eyes to what it meant to be in shape and get in shape for athletics,” he said. “That’s where I started. It’s been something all my life, whether I was playing, participating, coaching or training people, for pretty much 30 years.”

Hauswirth is a certified American Council of Exercise Health Coach. He also teaches Physical Education and Health at Houghton Middle School. He believes there’s an obesity epidemic going on in this country and thinks that teaching kids early about healthy living is the key to solving it.

“Science is showing that the habits we form as teenagers are the ones we carry into life,” Hauswirth said. “That’s the goal of my health and physical exercise class, to show them what can happen and how the things you do now affect your body as you get older.”

Hauswirth’s book is available online. Call local book stores to check for availability.

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