Bigger Leaner Stronger: The Simple Science of Buildng the Ultimate Male Body
589372
If you are serious about transforming yourself into a ripped individual read this book. Trust me, this is my bible
4932098
This is a great book for anyone who wants to be in the best shape of their life regardless of age.  Mr. Heart gives enough detailed information to help you make it happen.  It is clear and easy to read.  You don't have to be a professional body builder to get real results.  His methods work for everyone.  My husband and I loved this book.
4923305
This book is an excellent snapshot of fitness and nutrition knowledge. It's not the only way to do things but it's the one that requires the least change to the average person's dietary habits.

Most diets would have you give up carbs or fat or some mixture of the two. This book brings to light the reasons why those diets work and brings you to a happy medium that allows you to have a full variety of foods while also ensuring you Are energized and strong for a workout.

The workouts I am less enthused about. Strength training has been around for centuries and I prefer simpler, whole body barbell routines. This delves into that with the primary exercises but also kinda moves into the long warmups, swiss balls and hypertrophy routines I am not a fan of. I might try it for a while and see if structural integrity actually improves, otherwise I will look elsewhere.

It's an easy read at a great price. If you don't know how to get started, look here.
70495
This is a fascinating book, giving the reader an overall understanding of making one's life healthier -- but that judgement should be amplified.  The first thing to state is that this is not "a diet book."  This is a book about growing physically, psycholgically and (yes even) spiritually toward your higher, better self.  I thought I was buying a diet book, but instead what I bought is a book about comprehensively growing from within one's inner self by improving one's bodily health in all respects. Yes, Mr. Venuto expertly discusses the subjects one would expect if he/she had the goal of "burning fat" and "feeding muscle." But the book takes off from dieting advice, nutritional counseling and developing a bodybuilder's physique into a discussion of developing the total "you" who has taken up the quest toward a fitter, healthier body.  In western thought, the pursuit of a more attractive bodily appearance generally stops at exercising in the gym and correcting one's nutritional shortcomings. Mr. Venuto definitely fulfills any goals the reader may want to achieve in that respect, but he steers you farther -- toward the wholistic development of the entire person through growth in every area that may be based on the reader's desire to lose excessive body fat and grow muscle. Reading this book will get you to where you want to go physically through burning fat and feeding muscle, but additionally you will learn how those two endeavors will lead you to a better you who inhabits the better body that Mr. Venuto's program brings about in your life.
4274353
The Primal Blueprint is a very important book, and it should be read by most.  The author builds a compelling case as to why our current lifestyles are much unhealthier than prehistoric mans.  He stresses a high healthy fat, moderate protein (1 gram per pound of bodyweight), and low carbohydrate (made up from vegetables and fruits) diet.  Spending time in the sun, taking time to play outdoors, and sprinting occasionally are just a few of the tenets he proposes.

Perhaps the real strength of the book lies in the way he expertly explains the complicated workings of the body simply.  The book is not dry tedious reading, but you do learn things from reading it.  I think he makes a very compelling case for why we should all strive to live more primitively.

Among the very few problems I have with the book is that in several places the author directs the reader to his website for more information.  I understand that there are very real physical limitations as to what you can include in a book, but I couldn't help but feel slightly irked to be directed to the website after I had paid for the book.

To me, the biggest flaw with the book lies in the prescribed exercise regime.  The basic premise of doing heavy basic functional movements is sound, but the execution in the book leaves a great deal lacking.  Team this excellent book up with another excellent text, like Mark Rippetoes Starting Strength, and I think you will really have a winning combination.

In summation:  The book does an excellent job at giving the reader a blueprint for a healthier lifestyle.  All the information is explained clearly and is easy to understand.  The exercise recommendations (particularly those pertaining to strength training) leave much to be desired.  Your best bet is to look elsewhere for information on how to lift and become strong and functional.
956154
FLEX has put out an excellent guide for bodybuilders and your ordinary recreational gym rat.  An excellent manual with outstanding pictures to show positions and excercises to be performed.  I've been lifting recreationally for 13 yrs and would recommend this book.  Great diet and supplement section to help you maintain your workouts and increase muscle and strength gains
4131581
Get smart and fit with Covert Bailey's Smart Exercise. This well known fitness author has produced several great books over the last decade. Bailey's clear perception of excess fat as a lack-of-fitness problem is  very useful.  Although a few very heavy-eating fit people might be  overweight, in general "being fat" is a state of not being fit. Attaining  fitness will reduce and end fatness. Becoming fit, in Bailey's view, occurs  at the level of the muscle cell. Aerobic exercise involving breathing  heavily is the key type of exercise for allowing muscles cells to train to  burn fat. Building muscle and making that muscle an efficient furnace of  calories is the key to being trim. As Bailey says, use aerobic exercise to  "be a better butter burner."
The basic Slimming Partner movement  recommendation is to move under your own power, especially walking, for at  least an hour per day.  Although walking is a wonderful, healthy activity  for everyone, Covert Bailey would probably urge activity more demanding  than walking, such as adding wind sprints to a walk.  For someone quite  overweight and out of shape, wind sprint would mean just a faster walking  pace, maybe with some uphill. Bailey feels that the, the normal walking  pace people choose is too slow to provide big fitness and weight control  rewards. He advocates higher levels exertion as a way to become fitter  faster, supporting his ideas with a fairly detailed view of how muscles  train on the level of the cell.
The book's analysis of training at the  level of the muscular cell is informative and useful in creating positive  mental images of the beneficial effects of aerobic exercise. Graphics are  provided that help understanding of fairly complex subjects, energy  metabolism with ATP and cellular enzymes. Bailey quickly and clearly states  these subjects in ways most helpful to the person wanting to lose fat:  Train your aerobic system, which he also calls your fat-burning system.  This is easier to do if you can mentally visualize your trained muscle  cells pulling fat out of your system and burning it as fuel.
In general,  this book is an excellent addition to the library and reading list of  anyone interested in becoming less fat and more fit.
2785394
I'm using this book to do the 3 month "P90X" workout again.  Now I know the real importance of recovery and exactly what to eat to help it.  I feel I have the tools to eat the right fuel and cutout the bad foods.  I'll never drink Gatorade or any sports drink again now that I've learned about electrolytes and hydration replacement.
  This  book is great for any athlete as you'll get an awesome performance advantage, but it's also for fans of Dr. G's famous "80-10-10" Diet book.  Especially those interested in a vegan diet from an athletic perspective.  He really does spell it out for the average person, I now have a better definition of human nutrition processes like metabolism and liver function.  Be warned, his advice is based on science without regard for status quo and will more than likely involve massive changes to your daily routine.
2980804
Excellent book on using bodyweight to create a better body. Well explained with numerous tips on getting started (even if you've never done a pull-up or push-up).  On the downside, there are numerous photos of Danny mugging it up for the camera. Oh, well, it is his book
4800597
I stumbled on Mike's blog (muscleforlife.com) a while back. His site is a great primer for his style of writing and a preview of his experience and research supported advice. I wanted to dig in deeper; so, I picked up this book.

Long story short, this is a book I'll hang on to forever. Loaded with great insight, fundamentals and advice that have permanently changed how I approach and manage my nutrition and fitness.

I've had significant results following his guidance on macro nutrition and strength training. From a starting point of 265lb and 28-30% body fat, I dropped down to under 240lb and 19% body fat in 5 months. That includes a drop from a near 42 waist to a solid 36 and from XXL shirts down to L/XL. I feel I could have done even better if I didn't go "off plan" as much due to work and family travel. I'm going to keep going another 6 months and see how I do.

Even during my "cut," I was able to achieve great strength gains as well following his program. I'm honestly at my best level of strength and overall health and fitness in 15yrs. I definitely recommend this book to help you achieve your goals as well.
2686462
I purchased this book because I heard that muscle building is the shortest and most effective approach to burning fat at specific parts of the body. I don't want to look masculine at all, so I had some hesitation, but a friend of mine who had a success encouraged me. It's too early to report the result yet, as I just started it a few days ago. Many of the exercises explained in this book require a bench press, weight bar or other equipment that are available in the gym, but some can be done at home. For example the abdominal training which I am now on is easy to do at home. I realized that this is an excellent book primarily for people who plan to build masculine muscles, as the tile suggests.
4366641
Jonathan Bailor, and The Smarter Science of Slim, is groundbreaking, meticulous, and could potential transform your body, forever.

Mr. Bailor's writing style hooked me from the beginning.  He begins this journey, by telling you exactly what he's going to accomplish:  First, he's going to annihilate the calorie myths that have brainwashed your mind for the last 50 plus years, but he's going to do it step by step, inch by inch, and back up his presentation, with literally thousands and thousands of scientific research studies, to prove that he's not messing around. Mr. Bailor is not here to sell you nutritional dogma.  He's not here to push a government brochure.  Jonathan Bailor is here, to tell you the truth, why we are obese and, what is the cause of our problems, and what he has to say, will shock you.

Once he methodically proves his case, he then proceeds to provide you with the guidelines you need, to live the SANE life, and overcome whatever obesity, diabetes, or other health issues might ail you.  What is amazing, is how simple the answers are.  There they were, the whole time, staring us in the face.  Truth is truth.  I find the guidelines, the tactics, and the strategies that Jonathan presents to be some of the best I've seen.  Many of them parallel what others have presented before Jonathan.  But, what I personally find most compelling, is how Jonathan packages up this "SANE" living.  He makes sense of all of the food choices we have, and breaks things down to an incredible and powerful set of guidelines, that any reader can use, to carve choices out for themselves in their own lives.

Jonathans' presentation on exercise, blows my mind.  Once again, here Jonathan takes the subject, and turns it on its head, and he does it, with science and data to back him up.  I'd never thought about my muscles in THIS way before, and I had certainly never considered the tactics and strategies that is presented in this book.  I absolutely love when a book surprises me, with new information, that I had never consumed before, something that I can use right now, to make a direct impact on my life, with simple steps, and focused effort.  For me, that's what makes a good book great.  Anyone can write about diet and exercise, but every now and then, a book comes along, that turns over stones, reveals things that were always in front of you the whole time, but for some reason, you just didn't see it, until you turned that page.  Especially with the section on exercise, "Smarter Science" is that book, for me.

The appendix sections, the bibliography, the various tips and suggestions at the end of the book, all of that, is also meticulous, organized, and well thought out.  Coupled with the follow-up support section and 'readers only' material on Mr. Bailors website, this book is a SLAM DUNK!

So, The Smarter Science of Slim, is a groundbreaking book.  I highly recommend it as an excellent addition to anyones' bookcase on health and fitness.
2917968
Bob Harper's "Complete Body Power Transformation," is almost non-stop exercise, with Mr. Harper moving quickly from one exercise to another.  There's hardly any time to rest, although he does give you a little pause here and there. He instructs a group of two men and two women.  Two sets of dumbbells are used.

Total workout time (about 1 hour)

Warm-up (about 2 minutes)
Cool-down and stretches (about 5 and 1/2 minutes)

Workout (about 52 and 1/2 minutes): So intense & long, this is hard to do in one session, especially if one is doing it for the first time.  If you have difficulty completing the workout, here's a little tip: break it into two parts, rest, eat something and do modifications.  That's what I did.

The 54 exercices

Single front arm swing
Arm swing with side jump
Snatch series with shoulder press
Shoulder press
Snatch series, with side swing, with shoulder press
Shoulder press
Double arm swing
Cable fly/cross
Biceps curl in squat hold
Lunge with lateral raise

Lunge pulse with extended arms
Lunge hold with lateral pulse
Seated upper body press, to press hold
Run in place
Sprint
Cable fly/cross
Biceps curl in squat hold, to biceps hold
Lunge with front raise, to front hold
Seated upper body press, to press hold
Run in place

Sprint
High to low plyos
Around the world push-ups
Plank
Row
Rear fly
Side burpee
Side plank leg raise
Around the world push-ups
Plank

Row
Rear fly
Row
Weighted jumping jacks
Weighted sumo squats
Squat hold, to lateral raise hold
Plyo sumo squat
Squat hold, to lateral raise hold
Pike plank
Dive bomber

Pike plank shoulder press
Pike plank
Jumping jacks
Prisoner lunge hold, to alternating jump
Russian squat kick
Dive bomber push up on one leg
Prisoner lunge
Russian squat kick
Chair pose
Sumo squat

Dive bomber push up on one leg
Plank
Around the world push ups
Bridge series

I found the Russian squat kicks new and interesting.  The around the world push-ups are also new to me.

"Bob Harper: Total Body Transformation" DVD actually contains two workouts.  I already reviewed the first one in the above paragraphs.  Here's the second one, "Body Power Quck Bonus". One dumbbell is used.

Workout (under 13 and 1/2 minutes):  This one starts out with a bang, by running in place, which serves as the warm up.

Run in place
Jumping jacks
Scorpion series
Jumping jacks
Scorpion series
Low jacks
Alternating side scorpion
Plank
Pike shoulder press
Low jacks
Turkish get-ups
Single arm shoulder press
Turkish get-ups
Single arm shoulder press
Low jacks
Chair pose series

Cool-down and stretches (about 45 seconds)

Compared to the longer workout, this shorter workout was easy, but I did avoid doing the Turkish get-ups which I alway find uncomfortable to do.
4365432
Zack Palmisano's enthusiasm for body building and nutrition are palpable in his fast-paced, readable and accessible text. He balances the delivery of a lot of detailed information with an enjoyable writing style, helpful explanations and personal anecdotes. The chapters are well-sized and paced, and not overly technical. The book could benefit from more illustrations and photography, which could also be delivered through online resources or links to a related web site. Well done to the first time author-athlete. His tangible, impressive physical transformation suggests that further books and continuous fitness improvement are in store for this inspiring young man.
696657
After reading Man 2.0, I do feel equipped with a new powerful perspective when it comes to training and nutrition, which is optimizing hormone levels through training and nutrition. If anything else, this book provides you with a straight-forward way to view your body when it comes to the exercises you're choosing to do and the way you're eating your food. When it comes to either of those, the one question that should come to mind is "How does this affect my insulin level, test level, and so forth?" (5 stars)

The problem I had with the book itself, however, is that the first 140 pages or so is mostly a sales-pitch and then BAM, intermittent fasting and workout plans (I should have seen this coming after looking at the title). Imagine talking to the guy or lady at the GNC store that may know their stuff but wants you to buy the GNC brand anyway! And the GNC product is the way to go because it has a bunch of scientific stuff you don't know much about that other supplements don't have! Get the picture? At the end of the conversation, you get a product and its up to you to use it and find out if it really works for you or not. Nothing special about that and the first 2/3's of Man 2.0 is much the same way, with the product being the last third of it. This is not to say it won't work for you. This is to say that you will have to find out if it works well for you through research and/or experimentation. Again, nothing special (minus a star)

Furthermore, the nature of the sales pitch is a better life for you in terms of sex and power but this is a half-truth at most. Yes, you would be better able to do things if you're healthier! Is a diet combined with a workout plan THE panacea for solving YOUR life issues? Heck no. Heck to the n-o, NO! Often times, for many people, working out is the catalyst for improvement in their lives but this book takes it a step or two further to say that THEIR product will guarantee you a much better life, the life of your dreams. (minus a star)

So to recap my critique:

  - Man 2.0 provides a great perspective on exercise and nutrition, which is optimizing your hormone levels through exercise and nutrition. (5 stars)
  - First two parts are mostly your typical sales-pitching with the product being a diet (nothing special) and workout plan (nothing special). (minus a star)
  - Claiming a diet and a workout plan will give you the life of your dreams: This works well with women. For men, you may have a better chance with reading the "Art of Manliness" (minus a star)

Result (3 stars):

 This book is fun and easy to read. Some points are indeed valid but the end product is no panacea for living the life of your dreams. At best, it may be a catalyst for changing your life for the better, but nothing more.
4865507
Catt Tripoli is self made through curiosity and self exploration. Her intuition and experimentation have been confirmed and validated by science and years of experience. She is truly gifted in her technique. I admire her willingness to take on the daunting task of translating such complex concepts into a book. This is a MEATY book that is peppered with gems.

She demonstrates how we can get stronger as we age instead of weaker by learning the anatomy of our bodies and applying that to bodybuilding. This is important because it is not how you exercise, but how you use your body to exercise. Bodybuilding is about building a strong body.

For those new to fitness you will find incentives to get fit. For the gym rat, you will be challenged to take your fitness to a much deeper level by shifting your focus. One of the reasons I love weightlifting so much is because it is a mental sport. The authors concepts will be mechanical at first, but over time as you become stronger and stronger, the concepts will become more and more internalized. The challenge is to stay mentally engaged not only for every exercise throughout your workout, but in all aspects of your life.

The sooner the concepts in this book are embraced, the sooner you can preempt serious health issues and can actually begin to reverse the affects of age/injury no matter how old you are or new to exercising.

If you get nothing else from this book other than to take an active role in your health, this book accomplished what it set out to accomplish.

Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase. Martin Luther King Jr.

I have gotten to know the older gentleman mentioned in Catt Tripolis book. He joined the gym, for the first time in his life, in his 80s. James is proof that we are not as limited by our bodies as we are by our minds. I am blessed to share his review of Catt Tripolis book:

To read Catt Tripolis new book, Conscious Fitness is to enter into partnership with Catts strength training program. Her book is perhaps a potent and influential evolution on strength training of our time. The seeds of successful strength fitness are amply distributed in the book for the discovery of the unlimited inner power, that is within every trainee.

Perhaps, Conscious Fitness is the hidden masterpiece which must be discovered only when one enters into the larger life of fitness.
907800
I totally agree with the philosophy of this book and have found short, intense workouts to be MUCH more effective in building muscle and burning fat than long, drawn-out gym sessions. (The saved time is quite a plus too.)

This book gives some great circuit routines that will get your heart pumping and your muscles working. There are gym-free total body workouts, which also are great cardio; dumbbell workouts for your upper and lower body; barbell workouts meant to build maximum muscle mass; ab workouts; cardio routines; and more.

I've already tried several of the workout and was surprised at how challenging they were! This book doesn't disappoint!

P.S. I also highly recommend&nbsp;<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/Bigger-Leaner-Stronger-The-Simple-Science-of-Building-the-Ultimate-Male-Body-The-Build-Healthy-Muscle-Series/dp/1475143389/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">Bigger Leaner Stronger: The Simple Science of Building the Ultimate Male Body (The Build Healthy Muscle Series)</a>&nbsp;because it straightened out a bunch of confusions I had about how to build muscle, lose fat, and be healthy. I was making quite a few mistakes and didn't even know it!