Martial Arts Nutrition by Teri Tom (Book Review)

[ninjanurse]

This post was originally published as an article in a dedicated KarateForums.com Articles section, which is no longer online. After the section was closed, this article was most to the most appropriate forum in our community.

This book was provided to me for free by Tuttle Publishing, in coordination with KarateForums.com and its administrator, Patrick O'Keefe. Tuttle Publishing has been publishing books since 1948 and provides access to many great quality books on Asian culture - including many titles relating to the martial arts. I personally own many titles from Tuttle Publishing and have never been disappointed to date.

Teri Tom is a registered dietician, strength and agility coach, and authority on Bruce Lee's Jeet Kune Do, who specializes in sports nutrition for the combat arts. She graduated summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from UCLA and earned her master's degree in nutrition at the California State University in Los Angeles. She has worked with many professional clients and has been a private student of Sifu Ted Wong for over 15 years. Teri Tom also writes a monthly column for Black Belt Magazine and has published two other books, The Straight Lead: the Core of Bruce Lee's Jun Fan Jeet Kune Do and Jeet Kune Do and The Arsenal of Self-Expression , both of which are also available through Tuttle Publishing.

Martial Arts Nutrition: A Precision Guide to Fueling Your Fighting Edge, her most recent effort, is an all-encompassing guide to nutrition for the professional and/or want-to-be fighter and gives the reader a good scientific foundation in nutrition as well as proven and practical advice on getting fit and making weight. It is written from a personal perspective, without any obvious hidden agendas such as corporate sponsorship, which gives it a credibility often not found in today's fitness culture. Teri Tom really gets to the core of nutrition with a no nonsense approach, as she outlines the many challenges found in martial arts training and competition nutrition through solid science and practical advice.

I like Tom's approach to the book because she uses her own personal health and nutrition journey as a platform and sets the scene for the challenges faced by both the newbie and accomplished marital artist alike. She covers the basics of nutrition using both scientific data and martial and philosophical principles that give the information relevancy to the martial artist reader. This makes it less like a textbook and more like a personal counseling session.

Her passion for her "art" (both nutrition and Jeet Kune Do) really shows as she converses with the reader on a more personal and insightful level that almost makes you feel like you are at the gym getting a one-on-one session with her. The writing is detailed but easy to read and the information flows easily through each chapter and on to the next in an ordered and logical manner. Profiles of professional athletes and their nutritional journeys complete the package by providing real-life scenarios to follow. I am sure many readers will identify with these scenarios and use them to shape and troubleshoot their own programs. The book is full of easy to read charts, diagrams and photos that enhance the understanding of the information and also give credit to her training and martial history. It is truly written with the martial artist in mind and pulls no punches (pun intended!).

Whether you are a casual martial arts student or a serious combat competitor, you will find this book a valuable tool for your training. It provides complete nutrition and training information to help readers develop a plan for everything from losing weight to building muscle You'll also find information on proper hydration, use of dietary supplements, vitamins and their sources, calorie based meal plans, body fat assessment and calculations, cardio and various training methods to increase training efficiency as well as fat burning, and foods that fuel the body more efficiently. All-in-all, this is a well-written and practical guide to nutrition that anyone can use: casual martial artist, combat professional and newbie alike.

Buy the book: Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk (KarateForums.com receives a small commission on any sales generated through these links).

[Patrick]

Thank you for the submission, Heidi.

Patrick

[sensei8]

Fantastic book review, Heidi; thank you for it!!

I believe that this book would be an important addition to my library because nutrition shouldn't be overlooked or taking quote lightly. Being 57 years old, I believe that nutrition and the like should be at the top of my bucket-list to keep me on the floor for years to come!!

[DWx]

Great review Heidi.

At my last grading I actually got asked a about nutrition and what my thoughts were about its role in martial arts. As I said to the examiner "you wouldn't fuel your premium Ferrari on economy unleaded gas". Nutrition is just as important as physical training.

[bushido_man96]

Thanks for this review. I know that nutrition is a point in my life that I fall short in, as I'm sure many others do. This sounds like a good read for the serious Martial Artist.

[Titanium]

Sounds an excellent read.

We all know (or may not know) how important nutrition is in MA.