The Myths of Nutrition and Fitness

by Anthony A. Goodman

This course goes beyond simplistic edicts of loading up on carbohydrates before running and staying hydrated to crack the myths of food and fitness. How do different food groups affect our bodies depending on the activity—from biking and running to hiking and basketball? What should we eat,drink, and avoid before, during, and after our workouts? What activities
with the appropriate nutrition plans will serve us in a meaningful way? What are the keys to eating and drinking in ways that best support our fitness and athletic routines? Each lecture addresses some of the myths and realities concerning the relationship between nutrition and fitness.

Genres: Nonfiction, Health, Audiobook, Science, Fitness, Nutrition, Food

3 pages, Audio CD

First published January 1, 2011

About the author

Anthony A. Goodman is an Adjunct Professor of Medicine in the Medical Sciences and the Microbiology departments at Montana State University in the United States. He was a general surgeon for nearly thirty years, specializing in the surgical treatment of cancer. He is also a lecturer for The Teaching Company, and a historical novelist.

Goodman currently divides his time between teaching surgical anatomy at the medical school, The Biology of Human Cancer to undergraduates in microbiology and writing historical fiction. He is currently researching and writing the sequel to The Shadow of God, which follows the Knights of St. John to their new home on the island of Malta, and the rise of the Ottoman Empire to its apogee under Suleiman the Magnificent through its ultimate decline and fall under the reign of his heirs.

Dr. Goodman is a professor Lecturer for The Teaching Company. His courses include "Understanding the Human Body: An Introduction to Anatomy and Physiology", "The Human Body: How We Fail, How We Heal" and "Lifelong Health: Achieving Optimum Well-Being at Any Age"

Reviews

[Sheri · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of the shorter Great Courses, and the content, while educational, is more of a broad and basic refresher than new information. Eat right, exercise, listen to your body, everything in moderation. The lecture on hydration and the information on protein consumption stuck with me the most.

Clocking in at just 3 hours, this is a good way to see if you enjoy the lectures before taking on one of the longer courses, most of which run 6-12 hours, and some even as long as 18-24 hours.

[Mack · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mixed feelings - I may have not done my homework, though. The doctor adheres rigorously to the scientific method. He discusses listening to your own body. Then again, lesson six is about very high level athletes - mountaineers and marathoners. Then again, he discusses the evidence against multiple vitamins. I had been expecting all six lectures to be about things a regular person could use. It was interesting and enjoyable, but it was sometimes for another audience.

[Buck Wilde · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty standard issue. Eat food, drink water, sugar is poison unless you're about to run a marathon, creatine probably doesn't do anything, the supplement industry is a scam, get more exercise. Thanks!

[Innastholiel · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is the first Great Courses lecture series I genuinely dislike.

For one, The Myths of Nutrition and Fitness is completely useless to me, because it is primarily aimed at athletes, with regular people as an afterthought. And that’s indicated exactly nowhere. If I had known that, I wouldn’t have bothered with it. And seeing as this course is called The Myths of Science and Nutrition, that just confuses me. Because from that title, I’d have thought that a. it was aimed at beginners/people who know very little about nutrition (and fitness), and b. I’d get something out of this course. I didn’t. Nearly none of the information in this series was new to me, and I can’t imagine it would be to most people, however little they know about nutrition. Like, of course a product that is desperately trying to get you to buy it probably isn’t going to be very effective. Duh.
Besides, Goodman has been physically active his whole life (which he mentions constantly), so that’s the perspective he delivers, without being able to imagine other points of view. Again, from the title I imagined this to be useful to the casually interested person, but Goodman keeps talking about athletes and high-performance sports. I can’t imagine anyone in those disciplines would not know a majority of what he is saying.

Goodman also cites a bunch of studies (which is good), but at other times, he doesn’t back up his claims at all, which is just odd. I specifically noticed this when he talks about a “balanced diet”. I’ve been a bit obsessed with LCHF recently, and I’ve been trying to find any reliable information that indicates low carb isn’t safe, and honestly, I can find hardly anything. Which is a bit frustrating to me, because I’m genuinely interested in the other side of this story. But all Goodman says is that high-fat diets (50% of caloric intake, in this case) are “unhealthy”, and that you should eat a “balanced diet” where most calories come from carbohydrates, without backing up his claims or citing any studies that justify this statement. I realise this really isn’t the point of this course, but … still. I just noticed because keto is my current obsession.

Lastly, and possibly the worst thing about this course: Goodman genuinely says that “most scientists agree that humans are at the top of the evolutionary ladder, as far as brain development is concerned […]”. The evolutionary ladder. This course is from 2011. There is absolutely no reason anyone should still believe in an incredibly wrong and simplistic concept like the evolutionary ladder. That’s not how evolution works. And I might have been able to forgive this, if it was just one mention. But the .pdf that comes with this course includes a transcript of each lecture, and a quick search told me that Goodman actually says “evolutionary ladder” twice. And it’s not even corrected in the summary of the lectures. That’s unacceptable.

[Nolan Martin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not a lot of new stuff in this course but that probably gives it more credibility. Dr. Goodman pretty much sticks to the same advice as our own doctors have given us...eat a healthy diet, exercise regularly not excessively, and avoid extreme diets and supplements. All in all good advice especially from an active guy in his 70s

[Phillip · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reasonable advice on fitness activities.

[January · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Myths of Nutrition and Fitness by Dr. Anthony A. Goodman and The Great Courses
The Great Courses: Better Living series
3h 12m + 101 PDF pages narrated by the author Dr. Anthony A. Goodman,

Genre: Nonfiction, Diets, Nutrition, & Healthy Eating; Exercise & Fitness

Featuring: Lectures, College Classroom, Fueling Up for Fitness Routines, Hydration for an Active Life, The Skinny on Exercise and Weight Loss, Some Facts About Vitamins and Supplements, Can You Get Too Much of a Good Thing?, Going To Extremes - The Smart Way PDF Course Guide and Transcript - About the Author, Table of Contents, Important Terms, Lessons From Lecture, Suggested Reading, Questions to Consider, Lecture Transcriptions, Articles, Photos, Guidelines For Rehydration, Eating Disorders in Teenagers, Unhealthy Weight in Sports, Glossary, Bibliography, Websites/Links

Rating as a movie: PG-13

My rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️👨‍⚕️🥗

My thoughts: 📱44% 1:24:13 somewhere in Lecture 3: The Skinny in Exercise and Weight Loss twelve minutes before Lecture 4 - This really does feel like a class. So far the information is pretty basic.

This was okay. Its premise was all of the commercial diet books are wrong so I'm not sure if the information is just dated or if he is stuck in his prejudices and shunned research that doesn't line up with his beliefs.

Recommend to others: Not sure, maybe. I think if you took Health in high school you really don't need to read this book or hear these lectures.

[Vlad Ardelean · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nothing stands out for me from this lecture. Basically "don't go to the extremes, drink water, if you want to lose weight, eat less and exercise, exercising can't make up for over-eating".

Good to know though!

[Gohar · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short set of lectures on popular myths and misconceptions in the field of nutrition and fitness. Some of the information may even surprise you since it deals with myths that are considered as one of the holy practices for most fitness freaks. From protein powders to hydration, this course gives substantial amount of basic information to athletes and sportsmen.
However, Goodman's anecdotes from his own private life could have been skipped altogether and replaced with stories from real athletes and sportsmen.

[Eric · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good overview on the myths of nutrition and fitness, though none of those was something I already hadn't known before, except the specific dietary recommendations, which I thought would be a bit difficult for people to implement to their lifestyles.

[Trung Nguyen Dang · Rating 3 out of 5]

Didn't learn much. Short course.

[Alex Shrugged · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a more practical audio course on diet and exercise than "Changing Body Composition Through Diet and Exercise" by Michael J. Ormsbee. Professor Goodman gets right down to practical matters telling me what I need to do and not do with diet and exercise. Goodman doesn't go into the deep detail that Professor Ormsbee did, but because of what I learned from Professor Ormsbee, I was able to evaluate Professor Goodman's presentation. I'm calling it good and I am recommending both audio courses for a complete and practical understanding of diet and nutrition.

I might listen to this audio course again.

Contents

Lect 01 Fueling Up for Fitness Routines
Lect 02 Hydration for an Active Life
Lect 03 The Skinny on Exercise and Weight Loss
Lect 04 Some Facts about Vitamins and Supplements
Lect 05 Can You Get Too Much of a Good Thing
Lect 06 Going to Extremes-The Smart Way

[Diana-Michaela Shaffner · Rating 2 out of 5]

The lectures are geared towards serious athletes but also aim to address some common misconceptions useful for the average person. The points on the ever important aspect of hydration are very meaningful. Also, the health dangers of overeating protein and the resulting damages to kidneys are good points. However, it is very disappointing that the author repeatedly mentions dairy as a way to get enough calcium when clearly we know today that dairy is a poor source of calcium and even paradoxically contributes to calcium being leached from bones. Many plants and vegetables have plenty of calcium and so do plant-based milk without the added saturated fats and calf-growth hormones that are inadvertently part of dairy since it is the breast milk of a large animal species that nature never intended to be consumed by humans to begin with. Among many institutions, Harvard has articles on its website about dairy being far from the best source to meet your calcium needs.

[Hans · Rating 3 out of 5]

Score: 3/5 (worth listening once)
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Themes: health and fitness
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I didn't really hear much I hadn't before, except exactly why "carb loading" is questionable. But the audio book is so short and debunks so many commonly held ideas that it's a good listen for everyone, regardless of fitness level.

As a fit adult with one kidney I have to keep track of how much protein I eat, so I have a self-interest in the part about the American obsession with a high protein diet and reconsidering how much we consume.

[Tom · Rating 4 out of 5]

Contains succinct, well-thought-out bits of mythbusting. Love it! I would have rated this work 4.5 stars, if possible. I even enjoyed Dr. Goodman's kernels of sports and fitness psychology. I would have given this five stars if the instructor had included a brush up on critical science-based sources.

[Mel · Rating 4 out of 5]

While this didn't cover anything groundbreaking, it is a good summary for people and a nicely organized refresher. There is some information useful for casual exercisers, sports players, and more hard-core athletes. It is very easy to listen to and it is nice to have the information well organized in one place.

[Robert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid, research-backed advice
Not much new, but good reinforcement
Eat and exercise in moderation
Listen to your body
No fad diets
Eat more calories than you burn, you'll gain weight; burn more calories than you eat, you'll lose weight
Drink when you're thirsty
Doesn't matter what time you eat

[M.W. Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

_The Myths of Nutrition and Fitness_ by Dr. Anthony A. Goodman receives four stars from me. The seires would benefit anyone who is an athlete at any level.

Dr. Goodman breaks down the lectures into six focused topic and then discusses the myths associated with those topics. He is uptodate with research.

This is a series I would watch a few times.

Recommended: yes

[Janelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would have liked more detailed examples of the carbs he was discussing when he said low carb diets don't necessarily work. The average person can skip the last lecture entirely. It's about carb loading for extreme athletes and runners, full of info they probably would already know if they were extreme athletes and not someone trying to lose weight and be healthy.

[Jimbo · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a short and easy 6 lectures. It's been a few weeks now, so I can't recall details. I'd like to have gotten more details and further investigations into what science does, doesn't know, and or might have wrong. A lot of the content I had learned before, but it was a great refresher and reminded to get me back into health science.

I think everyone could benefit.

[Chuqin Anderson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book deals with common myths regarding nutritions for workout performance, extreme sports, or weight loss. While I agree with everything he said, there wasn’t any new practical takeaways. I got the audiobook from a free library prescription and listened to it on double speed while doing chores. Personally I wouldn’t pay for it or spend the whole three hours on this.

[♏Vanessa♏ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting and jam packed with a ton of information. In this short course/audio he goes through many different accepted truths about fitness and nutrition and attempts to put them right. Whilst most of what he says makes sense, I wish for more evidence for some of it.
Overall, it was good and well narrated.

[Shelli · Rating 3 out of 5]

A collection of lectures by professors breaking down fact from fiction in regard to nutrition and health. A quick yet informative listen, perfect for anyone curious about the need for supplements, intensity and frequency of workouts, water consumption and more.

[Cindi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting to listen to and I like the focus on peer reviewed studies. But there is so much information from so many different people and studies can be changed to fit any narrative. I’m still confused about what is the best way to care for my body.

[Michelle Bourke · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this is a good starting overview but it would have been nice if he stated the sources of the studies vs just telling.

[L.M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a quick listen and had some very interesting things to say. I was in particular very interested in his take on protein.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book provided some valuable information, and some exercise info that I’m still curious about. All in all, an interesting quick read.

[Michele Cosper · Rating 4 out of 5]

Before I started reading this book I didn't understand camels... now I know.

I liked this book. CICO

<3

[Elizabeth · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not too helpful for me, no new information of substance except for very specific details for timing nutritional intake for serious athletes.

[Mattine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent series of lectures on nutrition. Very interesting findings...