4 hour body--new Tim Ferriss book - PaleoHacks.com

4 hour body--new Tim Ferriss book

2010-12-02T14:37:56Z

Tim Ferriss, of 4 hr work week fame, just launched his trailer for the 4 hr body. http://www.fourhourbody.com/

He's jumped on the paleo train after a stint as a vegetarian. Robb Wolf has written for his blog previously, but some of the concepts in his book are foreign to me. Tim is very aware of higher fat intake, grass-fed concepts and lights-out concepts,

How to prevent fat gain while bingeing
How to increase fat loss 300% with a few bags of ice
How to sleep 2 hours a day and feel fully rested
How to add 150lbs to your lifts in 6 mo.
How to gain 34lbs of muscle in 38 days on 4 hrs of gym time

I know I'm going to eventually have to buy the book to figure this stuff out, but I'm wondering if anyone would like to speculate, especially on the ice/fat-loss connection and the 2hr sleep part?

Answer by JakeA for 4 hour body--new Tim Ferriss book

2010-12-02T15:29:47Z

It is known that people can adjust to taking periodic naps throughout the day in order to have more time awake. I think that's what the 2 hour sleep part is about. Check out this wikipedia article on polyphasic sleep: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyphasic_sleep#Scheduled_napping_to_achieve_more_time_awake

Answer by JJ for 4 hour body--new Tim Ferriss book

2010-12-02T15:32:49Z

I'm all for remarkable claims. If you had told me 2 years ago that not eating wheat could literally cure certain seasonal allergies, I would have thought you were crazy.

That said, I think Ferriss is very good at what he does, which is marketing.

I'm sure he approaches his training intelligently, from what I've read on his blog. But, I doubt that many people are going to be able to replicate his results consistently.

(Except for the add 150 lbs. to your lifts part -- that should be possible for any novice [and most dedicated intermediates], depending on the lift. Also, as JakeA said, I'm guessing the 2-hour sleep thing is a polyphasic sleep cycle -- which can work in the short run but is very difficult to maintain in the long run.)

I would be pleasantly surprised to be proven wrong here.

In particular, his "34 lbs. of muscle" claim seems to me outrageous, overblown, and gimmicky. He implies on the blog that he went from 146 to 180 lbs.

First of all, he used to weigh around 187-190, and was pretty well muscled. It is much, much easier to re-gain muscle quickly than it is to gain muscle quickly. If you've been 190 previously, it's not that hard to re-gain weight up to ~180.

Second, he is no stranger to cutting weight for fights, seeing as how he once cut 28 lbs. in 18 hours (or claimed to, but I have no reason to doubt him on this one). So, is it possible that Tim dehydrated himself somewhat before his first weigh-in to seem even more puny than he was? I don't mean to make an explicit accusation here, but I wouldn't put it past Ferriss, who is an expert marketer. (If he explicitly denies using tactics of this sort, I'll be happy to retract my speculation.)

Note that I have fewer problems accepting his "on 4 hours of gym time" claim. If that worked for him, great. What really irks me is that he is marketing his book on the idea that he gained an outrageous amount of muscle in a short amount of time, and that anyone else could hope to replicate his results.

I haven't read the book and have no plans to, so take all that with a grain of salt. I don't mean to dismiss any of the information in the book, but I do mean to say that the marketing strikes me as both brilliant and sketchy.

EDIT: added phrase in brackets

EDIT 2: Dec. 13, 2010: I just read his sample chapter and am definitely interested in reading the book now, so I take back what I said about having no plans to read the book. Two main reasons for my interest:

It may turn up some useful lifehacks related to fitness/wellness. Ferriss has a knack for finding them.
It may turn up some interesting anecdotes about what kinds of achievements are possible in certain individuals, which I find inspiring and motivating. In some cases, those achievements will be attainable for me, too (to some extent).

I still have a problem with selling the book as "I gained 34 lbs. on 4 hours, and YOU CAN, TOO!" I stand by my claim that it is very unlikely that will be replicated unless you are regaining previously lost muscle (and possibly do some dehydration for the "before" measurement).

EDIT 3: Dec. 14. I just read Chris Masterjohn's review of the book and am further going to eat my words. I get the impression that the content of the book is going to be better than the gimmicky marketing. (E.g., the cover implies an extreme form of polyphasic sleep, but Ferriss actually recommends a more moderate approach in the book). I guess that's what I get for trying to comment on a book I haven't actually read.

Answer by Mike for 4 hour body--new Tim Ferriss book

2010-12-02T16:33:08Z

This Tim Ferris guy is a sensationalist. I wouldn't buy anything from him. He is clearly hypomanic.

Answer by Bryan for 4 hour body--new Tim Ferriss book

2010-12-04T12:17:53Z

The end result is that the Paleo diet will get even more exposure, which is good for all of us in the end. More doctors who are paleo friendly, more sources of paleo-friendly foods. Maybe even some cities could have a paleo restaurant or two. Not to mention that we won't be thought of as crazies as this becomes more mainstream, and the people around us will be living longer with less health problems.

So, it's good that a marketing genius is going to popularize Paleo concepts. Let's hope he specifically mentions the term "Paleo" in the book though.

I like to think I helped influence his decision. I sent him some emails about how the diet cured my acne and now he's sending me a free copy of the new book.

Answer by Gone for 4 hour body--new Tim Ferriss book

2010-12-06T11:45:40Z

How to produce 15-minute female orgasms

Seriously? This selling point is so utterly, tragically pathetic I can't even find a word for it. On so many levels. Seriously.

I am unable to understand what happens in the minds of people who write stuff like that.

And on top of that I am pretty sure Tim is not able to give me a female orgasm. Not to mention 15 minutes.

Answer by Eric for 4 hour body--new Tim Ferriss book

2010-12-13T05:03:47Z

I've read the book, and although Tim buys into some of the ideas espoused by the likes of Taubes, Guyanet, Wolf, et al -- Tim is absolutely not paleo. Throughout the book he promotes beans, legumes, and whole grains as staples in his "slow carb" diet.

While I do have a decent amount of respect for Tim as a blogger, his first book didn't do anything for me and neither did this. Lots of half-baked ideas presented in an extremely scatterbrained way, fancied up with just the right language to make you think you're reading something that will give you an "edge." There are certainly some nuggets buried within and Tim has done a solid amount of research, but as a whole I wouldn't recommend the book to anyone.

Answer by hemanvt for 4 hour body--new Tim Ferriss book

2010-12-14T18:46:08Z

Has anyone listened to Robb Wolf's podcast this week? Tim is interviewed. Not sure I learned much, but he does state that he is mostly paleo except for an occassional legume and his cheat day.

Answer by Nico for 4 hour body--new Tim Ferriss book

2010-12-15T00:03:06Z

I have no idea why this guy inspires so much vitriol. Listening to the Robb Wolf interview, and reading the Wired interview, he strikes me as a very smart guy who's doing real self-experimentation, and has learned some surprising things in the process. It doesn't strike me as outrageous that, with tinkering and careful self-monitoring, you could find small tweaks that have large effects.

Edit: I've purchased the ebook. I'll let you know what I think (if anyone cares).

Answer by hemanvt for 4 hour body--new Tim Ferriss book

2010-12-15T19:34:12Z

Were any of you surprised that Robb or Andy didn't challenge him on some of his philosophies? They both are always slamming the all day scheduled binge and we all know his stance of legumes?

Answer by dinis for 4 hour body--new Tim Ferriss book

2010-12-15T20:18:40Z

I attended the launch party for the book in NYC.. was good times.. crowded and crazy fun! Pic with Tim here.. http://bit.ly/hbKmlc

Answer by stephthegeek for 4 hour body--new Tim Ferriss book

2010-12-15T21:51:32Z

FYI he often attends the Quantified Self meetups in the SF Bay area and will be at the January meetup: http://quantifiedself.com/

He's kind of an extreme figure and an amazing marketer, but a very smart guy and I certainly think he's done a lot of good things for promoting the data-driven/self-experimentation movement. Like most brilliant but extreme figures, use him as an inspiration and intriguing source of information that often challenges you, but stick with what makes sense for you too!

Answer by Robert Dawson for 4 hour body--new Tim Ferriss book

2010-12-25T00:26:19Z

So having tried the 15 minute orgasm, as a man, I have found there to be quite a bit of sensation available to me throughout the experience that I had never encountered before. Really subtle electricity-type feelings in my chest and hands, for example that feel amazing. My partner is also extremely pleased with the chapter, as you might surmise... As far as the orgasm thing is concerned, the way I understand i being "in orgasm" means feeling sexual sensation in your body, suble or gross. The climax just sounds like part of the cycle. If you're curious about more, here's a link to a video I bought that fills in the blanks: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVXkpvgMJPI