Fitness Science Explained: A Practical Guide to Using Science to Optimize Your Health, Fitness, and Lifestyle (Muscle for Life)

Want to know how to read, understand, and use scientific research to optimize your health, fitness, and happiness? This book is the shortcut. Have you ever wondered why science can appear so contradictory and confusing? Why it seems like there’s a study to “prove” or “disprove” just about any claim about diet, exercise, and lifestyle? And what it really takes to protect yourself from bad science and benefit from good science? If so, then Fitness Science Explained is for you. It’s a crash course in reading, understanding, and applying scientific research to get fitter, healthier, and happier, and it’ll get you up to speed quickly regardless of your educational background. Whether you want to discover and use evidence-based methods for building muscle or losing fat faster, reducing your risk of disease and dysfunction, or maximizing some other aspect of your body, mind, or life, this book will show you the way. Also by Michael Matthews Free Bonus Material (Takeaways, Workout Plans, Research Reviews, and More!) Contents Introduction 1 Good Science, Bad Science: The Difference and Why It Matters 1. Media Misrepresentation Confusing Correlation with Causation Oversimplification and Sensationalism Why Can the Media Get Away With This? 2. Cherry Picking Versus Going by the Weight of the Evidence 3. Different Quality Levels of Studies 4. Science Moves Slowly 5. Science Often Deals in Shades of Grey Rather Than Black and White 6. Lack of Reproducibility/Replication 7. Poor Research Design/Execution 8. Unpublished Research 9. Fabricated Research 2 How to Think About Science What Is Science? The Limitations of Science External Validity Sample Size Animal vs. Human Research Lack of Control in Free-Living People and Inaccuracy of Self-Reporting 3 Welcome to the Hierarchy (of Evidence) Anecdote and Tradition Observational Research Randomized Controlled Trials (RCTs) Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses of RCTs 4 The Anatomy of Research Research Terminology Population Sample Prospective Study Retrospective Study In Vitro Study Control Group Placebo Double-Blind Single-Blind Randomized Matched Crossover Design Washout Period Mean Standard Deviation (SD) Standard Error Confidence Interval Effect Size Cohort Cohort Study Cross-Sectional Study The Anatomy of a Scientific Study Abstract Introduction/Background Methods Statistical Analyses Results Discussion Conclusion Funding/Competing Interests 5 The Anatomy of Statistics Statistical Inference Estimating Error Comparing Groups Type I and II Errors The Multiple Comparison Problem It’s Important to Be Normal Examples of Good and Not-So-Good Statistics in Research The Not-So-Good Study The Better Study 6 How to Rapidly Evaluate Research Putting It All Together: Evaluating Two Studies Study #1 Low-Carb vs. High-Carb For Fat Loss Study #2 BCAA vs. Carbohydrate Supplementation on Body Composition 7 The Complete Beginner’s Guide to Scientific Journals What Are Scientific Journals? Some Journals Are Higher Quality Than Others Journal Impact Factor How to Get Access to Journals and Studies The Most Popular Fitness Journals Exercise Nutrition Supplementation How to Find Studies on Topics You’re Interested In PubMed Search Examples Conclusion Frequently Asked Questions Would You Do Us a Favor? Free Bonus Material (Takeaways, Workout Plans, Research Reviews, and More!) Glossary Endnotes A crash course in reading, understanding, and applying scientific research to get fitter, healthier, and happier. You will discover and use evidence-based methods for building muscle or losing fat faster, reducing your risk of disease and dysfunction, or maximizing some other aspect of your body, mind, or life