I first met Eric Harr on the peak of Mount Tamalpais in Marin County, California, as we shot the pilot of a new thirteen-part documentary series called Building a Champion: The Inside Secrets of the World's Best Athletes. In the series, Eric and I travel the globe, training with the best athletes in each culture. We want to learn what really makes them champions -- the premise being that the secrets to true fitness reside in the hearts and heads of champion athletes the world over, not in quick-fix plans or new abdomen exercises. Eric conceived the series; in fact, it's based on many of the same principles as is this wonderful book.

A few words about Eric before I get to his book. The first things I noticed about Eric upon meeting him were his intensity and excitement. From what I've seen, his charisma is infectious, and he can inspire people to reach for new levels of achievement. I've been training competitively as a swimmer for over eighteen years, and I've never met anyone like him. He draws people's passions right to the surface, encouraging them to strive for goals they believed were out of reach.

Eric is also one of the best triathletes in the world. Even in the highest athletic circles, the triathlon event is known to be one of the most physically demanding sports. Here's a sport that requires you to perform at a world-class level in three distinctly different arenas. It takes an incredible amount of discipline, knowledge, and determination to succeed in this sport. Eric not only succeeded -- he was the first rookie ever to be ranked in the world Top 10.

In The Portable Personal Trainer, Eric has distilled the wisdom of a triathlete and combined that with commonsense training tips. The result is a book like no other: a portable, inspirational guide to exercising (and living) to the fullest. And because he's the "real deal" himself, Eric has inside access to the secrets of the world's best athletes. What makes this book so special is that he breaks those high-level concepts into simple ideas and makes them apply to anyone's fitness program. He has encapsulated the best fitness advice from around the world in 100 simple strategies. This book is a unique treasure. I've read hundreds of fitness, diet, and motivational books -- trust me on this.

What do I love most about this book? It's right on the money and it's just a whole lot of fun. I've trained with the best coaches, athletes, nutritionists, and mental coaches, and the best fitness advice I've learned is to exercise intelligently (instead of just as hard as you can) and to have fun. It's really that simple. Do these two things and you'll get more physical, mental, and spiritual fitness results than you can possibly imagine.

This remarkable book will show you how.

Dara Torres