A Fitness Bible.....My Fitness Bible
(20 of 21 Found this Helpful)
January 26, 2003
Dr. Colgan writes a complete and thorough book which describes the process to develop an athletic and useful body. I've followed him faithfully for the last 15 months with remarkable results. I'm a 53 year old man who was unfit. Cogan has changed my life. It's that simple.
The best advise among much is his common sense approach to preparation in the gym. If you follow his advise to build the connective tissue and stablizing muscles you will reduce the chance of injury. THAT will save you a trip to the Chiropractor or Orthopedic Surgeon!
I did a chin-up for the first time in 30 years a few weeks ago after 15 months of training! That might sound strange. If you're a couch potato then I challenge you to get down on the floor and do 20 push-ups. Better yet, find a bar or beam and pull yourself up. You can't do it, most men can't!
Get the book, follow, and change your life before it's too late!
Added 03/05: This program is very intense. If you're an athlete then this program is great.
For people who have not exercised for years, you need to go VERY slowly or you'll injure a joint or two. Watch your elbows for pain. It is intense on the elbows, especially the Power portion.
For seniors I would not recommend lifting any weight you can't handle for at least 5 repetitions. During the Power phase you lift your maximum weight, which is frankly dangerous for most. Arnold Swazeneger had a heart attack and his doctors told him NOT to lift the Max weights. Go lower weight higher reps.
Much of the program involves 4 days a week. You're arms take a beating by doing resistance training 2 days in a row. For example, one series involves "Shoulders" on Monday followed by "Arms" on Tuesday. Shoulders involve the arms secondarily, then turn around and do arms on Tuesday. You risk an elbow injury.
It's a good challenging program, but listen to your body. If you're sore than don't lift weights with that muscle. Colgan doesn't give enough information for most people to judge this.
March 2010 update: Still following much of what Colgan teaches in this book. I added several of his other books to my library. The best is the New Nutrition. I'm doing more cardio these days, bought a bike and ride a 40 mile ride every Sunday. Last Saturday did a 12 mile time trial and averaged 20.9 MPH. Colgan helped change my life from a fat/weak old guy to a 61 year old athlete. Thanks to him and several others for that!
Finally, some clarity!
(10 of 10 Found this Helpful)
January 27, 2001
This book does away with so much confusion, conflicting ideas, and misinformation circulating in this field. It gives you an in-depth, yet easy to follow guide to real strength training.
Colgan has trained olympic athletes for decades. Also the founder of the Colgan Institute, he's a research scientist and covers the whole spectrum of what goes into strength training. Coincidentally, he's probably the best guy to consult regarding sports nutrition, too.
I think, the book took at least two years longer than planned to be released, but the final result was well worth the wait. With the exeption of the silly cartoons at the end of chapters (a Colgan trademark), this book is masterfully conceived.
SUPERB EXPLICATION FOR ACHIEVING MUSCLE PERFOMANCE OUTCOME
(10 of 15 Found this Helpful)
February 1, 2001
Dr. Michael Colgan's superb explanation and well illustrated text make for the reader an enjoyable understanding of how to apply the latest research shown techniques of periodic eccentric and concentric training for muscle performance outcome. All athletes now have a textbook which puts within their reach the principles by which a muscle progressively gains dynamic torque, whether it be for strength, power, or endurance demands.
Good summary of other books
March 15, 2004
After reading about a dozen books on power training in hopes of
improving my performance in martial arts fighting, this book offers a concise summary of most of the conclusions in other books. The more books one reads, the more contradictions arise.
I have to say that in addition to the staple, top sports conditioning books, this book is great.
Although his writing style is on the sensationalist side, I relished his treatment of core muscle training. What I really would have appreciated were example pages of his Olympic training programs. For example, he talks about a particular sprinter training with one-legged eccentric squats yet doesn't
demonstrate how to do them. Aside from keeping those programs a secret, the book has numberous illustrations of exercises in his four stage program.
Good fitness book
May 23, 2010
This book got me on the right track to reaching alot of my goals. Offers a wide range of info and makes an excellent fitness guide. The cons are that this was written almost 10 years and things always change with advancements and research. The author leans on the conservative side for avoiding injuries bashing many stretches that are commonly used; the same with commonly used lifts like the upright row and good mornings. i see his point but it is debateable. He touches briefly on plyometrics but doesn't give enough info and the same with nutrition. However the info in this book is very good very valuable worth reading but take some of his opinions like the stretches I mentioned with a grain of salt. Very opinionated author but knows his stuff.
