Prologue
1. Are We Born to Rest or Run?
PART I: INACTIVITY
2. Inactivity: The Importance of Being Lazy
3. Sitting: Is It the New Smoking?
4. Sleep: Why Stress Thwarts Rest
PART II: SPEED, STRENGTH, AND POWER
5. Speed: Neither Tortoise nor Hare
6. Strength: From Brawny to Scrawny
7. Fighting and Sports: From Fangs to Football
PART III: ENDURANCE
8. Walking: All in a Day’s Walk
9. Running and Dancing: Jumping from One Leg to the Other
10. Endurance and Aging: The Active Grandparent and Costly Repair
Hypotheses
PART IV: EXERCISE IN THE MODERN WORLD
11. To Move or Not to Move: How to Make Exercise Happen
12. How Much and What Type?
13. Exercise and Disease
Epilogue
Acknowledgments
Notes
Index
DANIEL E. LIEBERMAN is Edwin M. Lerner Professor of Biological Sciences and professor of human evolutionary biology at Harvard University. He is the author of the national best seller The Story of the Human Body: Evolution, Health, and Disease and Exercised: Why Something We Never Evolved to Do Is Healthy and Rearding. He lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
"Lieberman’s inquisitiveness as both a researcher and a fitful
fitness adherent allows him a distinct vantage on the subject...
Drawing on his expertise and knowledge of the way evolutionary
forces work, [Lieberman] takes ideas that have been spun and spun
again, often based on shaky information, and cracks them
open... In addition to exorcising myths and detailing what
kinds of exercise we’re good at, as well as why these particular
activities matter for our physical well-being, Lieberman also gives
us permission to be kind to ourselves if we’d rather not
bother... Most important, Lieberman doesn’t judge those who
find exercising difficult, even after knowing that they should be
doing it, because exercise still isn’t all that fun."
—The New York Times
"Exercised makes important progress in the research topic for which
Mr. Lieberman himself has become best known—the physiology of human
running... my favorite passage of the book concerns dancing.
Dance in many societies is a physical activity connected to ritual,
a highly social activity with deep symbolic meaning to its
participants. It reminds us that beauty, joy and rites of passage
are central to human life, and that physical activity can be
exuberant and ecstatic... I find Mr. Lieberman’s voice of
moderation to be welcome in a world where barefoot running and
paleo diets have become fads... Instead of looking to a
mythological view of our evolutionary past, we should be looking
around us at a broader array of real humans, all of them
moving—happily—through their lives. Getting Exercised is a
start."
—The Wall Street Journal
"Riveting... Highly appealing... Lieberman begins a
process of myth-busting about exercise... An irresistible
aspect of Exercised is Lieberman's firm stance that no
shame or stigma be attached to those who find it challenging to
sustain an exercise program... Another exceptionally
informative part of the book discusses the damage-and-repair cycle
brought on by exercise. Lieberman explains more clearly than I've
ever read what exercise does to the body, and how the body then
begins to repair itself afterwards... Lieberman makes a superb
guide for anyone wishing to understand why it can be hard to commit
to exercising, and why we should do it anyway."
—NPR
"Lieberman’s clarity never wavers... His answers to
physiological questions... inspire... The science beneath his
arguments is revelatory, with thrilling implications for
evolutionary biology. Written in a brisk prose, with ample graphs,
Exercised is an excellent compendium on the broad medical
advantages of exercise and a roadmap out of our pandemic to better
health."
—The Boston Globe
"Entertaining and informative...The book is full of helpful tips...
conveyed in a humorous and sympathetic style."
—The Guardian
“Persuasive... Refreshing... [Lieberman's] illuminating and
frequently humorous work will delight fitness mavens and make those
pesky workout sessions more rewarding for everyone else."
—Publishers Weekly
"Brilliant...This makes for captivating reading."
—Booklist [starred review]
"A good choice for those seeking a macro view of the history of
movement... In appealing, accessible language, the author
tells interesting stories."
—Kirkus
"Lieberman writes in a clear, approachable style, even when
explaining complex research and concepts. "
—Library Journal
“Endlessly fascinating and full of surprises. Daniel Lieberman
strikes a perfect balance of scholarship, wit, and enthusiasm for
his subject. This is easily one of my favorite books of the
year.”
—Bill Bryson, New York Times best-selling author of A Walk in the
Woods and The Body
“Mythbusting, illuminating, brilliant – Daniel Lieberman will
completely change the way you think about your body”
—Alice Roberts, presenter of Our Incredible Human Journey
“Were we born to run, to walk, or to sit on a couch? One of
our leading human biologists takes us through millions of years of
evolution and diverse cultures around the planet to give us
surprising, yet simple, answers. Part user manual for the human
body and part detective story exploring our evolution, Exercised
will change the way you think about exercise, diet, and your own
well-being.”
—Neil Shubin, Robert R. Bensley Distinguished Service Professor of
Organismal Biology and Anatomy, University of Chicago, and
best-selling author of Your Inner Fish
“Excellent. Well-written, amusing, and touching on all our lives.
Seldom if ever have I so enjoyed reading a book on any subject, and
this one is for all of us—those of us who like to exercise and
those of us who don’t.”
—Richard Leakey, co-author of Origins Reconsidered: In Search of
What Makes Us Human
“Fantastic. Such a surprising, erudite, and revelatory look at the
natural history of physical activity and why exercise is both so
necessary for us and so unnatural. It expands and alters our
understanding of exercise, health, motivation, and why we feel the
way that we do about treadmills. A must-read for anyone with a
working body and mind.”
—Gretchen Reynolds, New York Times best-selling author of The First
20 Minutes
“In his earlier work, Lieberman explained how we were ‘born to
run.’ In Exercised, he explains that we were also born to sit,
which often leads to obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, and
heart attacks—chronic diseases unknown to early humans.
Fortunately, Exercised also explains how physical activity can set
us free from these ills. It’s both a fascinating read and one that
could nudge you toward a healthier (and longer) life.”
—Amby Burfoot, editor-at-large, Runner’s World, and winner of the
1968 Boston Marathon
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