• The First 20 Minutes

  • Surprising Science Reveals How We Can Exercise Better, Train Smarter, Live Longer
  • By: Gretchen Reynolds
  • Narrated by: Karen Saltus
  • Length: 9 hrs and 6 mins
  • 3.9 out of 5 stars (212 ratings)

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The First 20 Minutes  By  cover art

The First 20 Minutes

By: Gretchen Reynolds
Narrated by: Karen Saltus
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Publisher's summary

Every Wednesday, Gretchen Reynolds singlehandedly influences how millions of Americans work out. In her Phys Ed column for The New York Times, she debunks myths, spurs conversation, and creates arguments among her readers by questioning widely held beliefs about exercise.

Expanding upon her popular columns, Reynolds tackles the questions we all have and (sometimes) ask about exercise. Consulting experts in physiology, biology, psychology, neurology, and sports, she uncovers how often we should exercise, how long workouts should be, how to avoid injury, and how to find the right form, routine, and equipment for our goals.

She also reveals some surprising answers, like:

  • 20 minutes of cardio at a time is enough to obtain maximum health benefits. (And in some cases, just six minutes is all you need.)*
  • Stretching before a workout is counterproductive. (It's better to just start easy, i.e., walk before you run.)
  • Core strength is nice but not necessary. (A six-pack looks great but actually has little bearing on performance.)
  • Walking improves your memory; housecleaning improves your mood. (The brain is like a muscle - it likes to exercise.)
  • Chocolate milk is better than Gatorade for recovery. (Providing the best sports nutrition is often the simplest.)
  • Drawing on scientific expertise as well as her own athletic experiences, Gretchen Reynolds will help you find the right workout for your body, age, fitness and goals. Whether your desire is to be fit for the rest of your life, to look great in a smaller dress size, or to run your third marathon in Boston, The First 20 Minutes will make your workouts work for you.

    ©2012 Gretchen Reynolds (P)2012 Gildan Media, LLC

    Critic reviews

    "[This audiobook] delivers answers to many perennial training questions [and] does a great job of myth-busting some well-established beliefs. It's a great guide for the mindful athlete who wants to gain all the benefits of physical training while minimizing downtime from injury or over-training." (Danny Dreyer, Founder of Chi Running and co-author of Chi Running, Chi Walking, and Chi Marathon)
    "There has never been a better time in history to grow stronger, faster, and smarter; there has never been a more helpful book than Gretchen Reynolds's The First 20 Minutes. Smart, clear, and beautifully useful, this is the new fitness Bible for the modern age." (Dan Coyle, author of The Talent Code and Lance Armstrong's War)
    " The First 20 Minutes is packed with interesting tips and insights. Pickle juice for cramps, who would have ever thought! Gretchen Reynolds once again delivers a winner." (Dean Karnazes, uber athlete and New York Times best-selling author of UltraMarathon Man)

    Featured Article: Best Home Workout Audiobooks to Help You Meet Your Wellness Goals


    Just because you're spending more time indoors doesn't mean you have to stop moving. In fact, there are plenty of interesting, at-home workouts to try that don't require much equipment, if any at all. From body weight exercises to simple cardio moves, these at-home workout audiobooks have you covered. You don't need a gym to get a great workout in. Discover audiobooks to help you get started on your fitness journey from the comfort of your own home.

    What listeners say about The First 20 Minutes

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    • Overall
      4 out of 5 stars
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      4 out of 5 stars
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      4 out of 5 stars

    A great read, but a little too carb centric.

    Any additional comments?

    Okay I learnt a LOT from this book and would definitely recommend it. Gretchen squeezes a lot of the most recent findings related to exercise and nutrition into a concise and informative narrative.

    This book has changed the way I think and do my exercise and have already incorporated HIIT style running sessions in my training with great results. There are many other gems of information but I won't spoil it. If you are remotely interested in fitness or just turning back the biological clock this is a must read.

    Notes from a low-carb perspective...
    Unlike other books the author does not unnecessarily demonise fat, but seems not ready to make the leap to saying fat can be healthy, and Gretchen still conveys a carbohydrate centric view of diet which was a mild but not unexpected disappointment.

    In the end her only concession was saying high fat diets are fine if you exercise, I might argue similarly for carb based diet, but thats still not mainstream opinion. Even if you are keto / paleo there is still plenty to learn from this book. enjoy.

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    13 people found this helpful

    • Overall
      5 out of 5 stars
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      5 out of 5 stars
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      5 out of 5 stars

    Good info.

    There are hundreds of good tips in this book. It dispels dozens of bits of long-held exercise dogma with plenty of hard science. I would put it in my top five books on exercise and nutrition, and I plan to download the Kindle version and will refer to it often.

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    8 people found this helpful

    • Overall
      3 out of 5 stars
    • Performance
      1 out of 5 stars
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      3 out of 5 stars

    difficult to listen to

    What didn’t you like about Karen Saltus’s performance?

    So. Many. Pauses. Her reading style reminds me of a teacher reading to a classroom full of young children and there are so many pauses at sometimes-odd intervals that I found it difficult to connect the first part of many sentences with the last. I really don't think the performer captured the style of the writer on this one.

    Was The First 20 Minutes worth the listening time?

    Yes, but in small doses. Just when I would get so annoyed with the slightly-to-cheerful, breathy, pause-ridden reading that I would think about abandoning the effort altogether, I would learn something interesting enough to convince me to commit to one more chapter.

    Any additional comments?

    The material is interesting but it really could have been expressed using fewer words.

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    8 people found this helpful

    • Overall
      4 out of 5 stars
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      3 out of 5 stars
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      4 out of 5 stars

    This book doesn't translate well to audio

    There is some important and interesting information here, but the narrator is not a great audiobook reader. So many of the better readers use their voice to help guide the listener to what is most important. This one seems excited about everything, which, ironically, made the book feel monotonous. She might do better with a different kind of book. Until I checked, I thought the book had been read by the author.

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    7 people found this helpful

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      3 out of 5 stars
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      5 out of 5 stars

    Great book, horrible narrator

    Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

    I would recommend that friends read this book rather than try to live through this narration of it.

    What did you like best about this story?

    Filled with great, up-to-date information

    How did the narrator detract from the book?

    The narrator detracted from the book in every possible way. At times she sounds like a computer-generated voice. She gets overly-perky at other times. The sentences are jerky, with pauses coming at odd times. It is difficult to follow the meaning of the sentences sometimes. I could only listen for brief intervals.

    Any additional comments?

    I was greatly looking forward to listening to this book, having heard the author on Fresh Air. I had read the first chapter of the book and I truly wish that I had ordered the book, rather than the audiobook. Let this be a lesson to me. From now on, I will listen to the sample before ordering. The narrator totally ruined this book for me. I've never written a review here before, but I feel so strongly about this poor choice of a narrator and I don't want anyone else to waste their money on it. Why couldn't they have let the author read her own book? She sounded great on Fresh Air.

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    7 people found this helpful

    • Overall
      5 out of 5 stars
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      5 out of 5 stars

    Amazing New Research Well Written in Lay Terms

    If you could sum up The First 20 Minutes in three words, what would they be?

    The research on exercise physiology has never been summarized so well before. Gretchen Reynolds does an outstanding job of presenting the research in an especially helpful manner. I am a medical doctor & runner who finds her writing enlightening & refreshing, as well as inspiring.

    What did you like best about this story?

    She is comprehensive, yet summarizes exercise physiology research in an extremely helpful manner.

    What does Karen Saltus bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

    She reads beautifully with appropriate emphasis in her voice.

    If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

    It would need to be a documentary. "Even very little exercise preserves the brain, as well as the entire body."

    Any additional comments?

    I would recommend this book to everyone.

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    2 people found this helpful

    • Overall
      4 out of 5 stars
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      4 out of 5 stars
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      4 out of 5 stars
    • Ed
    • 07-09-12

    Good info.

    Any additional comments?

    Not sure if I agree with everything she says, but it was a good book

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    2 people found this helpful

    • Overall
      5 out of 5 stars
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      5 out of 5 stars
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      5 out of 5 stars

    Excellent book on many levels

    Well referenced, great topics, ground breaking stuff if you haven’t Incorporated it yet. As a physician, athlete, and coach, I really enjoyed this book, the variety of topics, the numerous studies cited, and the overall flow. Thanks much.

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    1 person found this helpful

    • Overall
      3 out of 5 stars
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      4 out of 5 stars

    good by technical

    loved the narrator, lots of technical biological terms I'm not into but I was able to still enjoy the book. most of all, for a non-exercizer, it gave good, logical thought provoking ideas of why I should get off my duff and ....move it or lose it.

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    1 person found this helpful

    • Overall
      5 out of 5 stars
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      4 out of 5 stars
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      5 out of 5 stars

    Great Overall Review of Current Exercise Science

    This book is a great review of the current science of exercise, diet and health.

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    1 person found this helpful