Training : The New Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding

The New Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding

EUR 16,70


Arnold Schwarzenegger hasn t competed as a bodybuilder since he won the Mr. Olympia title in 1980, but he remains the sport s No. 1 icon. He hosts an annual bodybuilding contest in Columbus, Ohio, and allows a column to be ghost-written under his name in a muscle magazine. Today s bodybuilders may have bigger muscles than Arnold ever did, but everyone inside and outside the iron game gives him credit for exponentially broadening the popularity of physique training. With this updated Encyclopedia (it was originally published in 1985), Schwarzenegger wraps his huge arms around the entire sport. He hits the history of bodybuilding, the champions (he s quite generous in his praise of predecessors, contemporaries, and successors alike), the training systems. Some of the information is more bodybuilding lore than science, for example, exercises are said to expand the rib cage or develop the inner or outer chest, all physiological impossibilities. But they re still good exercises, and the book includes every movement imaginable for every muscle group. If you love the sport of bodybuilding, you ll want this book in your library, if for no other reason than to feast your eyes on the hundreds of photos of the best physiques in the history of the sport. And, in a pinch, the 800-page encyclopedia can fill in nicely for a missing dumbbell. --Lou Schuler

An excellent encyclopedia - use it like any other reference - This is a wonderful refernce if you like to exercise using free weights and get bored with the same routine over and over again. Every excerise you can think of is in here with big, clear photographs and detailed descriptions. Arnold uses the excercises to assemble basic through advanced workout plans that can be used strictly and aggressively, or simply as guidelines. For example, if you don t want to do the clean and press as a primary shoulder excercise in the basic workout, there are a half-dozen other excersises described in detail you can substitute. The point is, there are a lot of ideas that you, your lifting partner, or even your personal trainer might not have thought of.Additionaly, he includes a great section that details ways to impose variations on each of the excercises such as forced negatives, alternate heavy days, super-sets, etc.I have used the workouts as templates for my own program. Arnold stresses a balanced workout, and I think if you keep that in mind while looking at his programs and building your own, you will really get a lot out of this reference.The nutrition section is pretty basic - eat a balanced 40-40-20 (protein-carb-fat) diet, and stay away from excess sugars and junk food. No big surprises. If you re looking for a complete analysis of modern vitamins and nutritional supplements, this probably isn t the book you re looking for. The nutrition section is probably the most dated, but the basic message is simple: along with a lot of heavy weights, stick to whole foods, and drink a ton of water. Maybe you don t want to have a couple of eggs and a 1/4 lb steak for breakfast every morning, but you might not be training for Mr. Universe, either. Again, I think Arnold s point is balance. The key to getting in shape is obviously discipline and consistency - I think using this reference helps because if you get bored doing the same thing for about three weeks (like I do) you can flip through this book and find many many other excercises to maintain a balanced program, but maybe mix it up once in a while to keep the gym interesting. You can also use some of the alternate techniques to put a new slant on your existing workout.This is a very good reference if you enjoy lifting or are just getting started and need a little direction. I flip through a section or two every few weeks just to get some new ideas or reinforce old ones. Take it literally or loosely, just get in the gym or nothing will ever work!

Concise, specific, and detailed - Besides being written by Arnold, this book is a very good reference. It has many of the top exercises used to gain mass and define the muscles. It has been a very valuable reference for my workouts. His workouts are very specific and I didnt find the format of his workouts to be good for me, However the exercises he includes are incredible, I use a good portion of them in my routine and the pictures of the bodybuilders that are best at the exercises show how really to do them. Also there is a good reference section for the actual art of posing and competitive training as well as a brief bio of the sport, Arnold and many of his idols. Must have desk reference but not the end all of weighlifting books.

Best book for anyone interested in bodybuilding! - This book gives information for anyone interested in bodybuilding, no matter your age of your fitness level. The training routines are easy to understand with descriptions of all the exercises. Nutrtion section is a little outdated, but still has good information.

The Best - I am a personal trainer with 3 certifications, 2 from ACE and one from the Baylor Institute of Medicine. I beleive this book is worth every penny and then some. It is written in a nice and easy to read style. If you are well read on the body and enjoy exploring new techniques or need to master old ones, this is the book. I loved learning about who he was and how he faced his challenges in his career and how used his mind to focus his energy for his success in building an awesome body. You will learn so much from the book, from how to be focused,picking a gym,a partner,diet,nutrition and of course how to buil the altimate body. I do not do steroids and I strongly believe that wheather you are trying to learn some basic techniques or trying to compete in body building this book is by far the best one. I have read a lot of books I gaurantee you that if you read this you will learn, grow(metally and physically) and enjoy the stories of how body building and how lifting weights came to life. He does not spend to much time on the history of body building but he does educate you a bit on it in the beggining.I think it is nice to know s little history on the subject. Last Note: Get the hardcover book (it is very nice) and read this book before you decide to go the Frank Zane route.

interesting but not scientific - The book describles the individual bodypart exercise in details.Very outstanding! It includes the chapter of bodybuilding history, which is quite interesting. But majority of the information in the book is not based on scientific and the suggested training programs is too intense. He suggested that advanced trainees train each bodypart 3 times per week .However, this is too intense and easily cause overtaining. For advanced trainees, training each bodypart twice or even once per week is enough to stimulate maximum hypertrophy. Anyway, the part of individual bodypart exercise is so valuable that the book is still good reference in your own library. ....




The New Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding