Overcoming Gravity: A Systematic Approach to Gymnastics and Bodyweight Strength by Steven Low (2011-11-12) Paperback – January 1, 2011

The book felt a little expensive at fifty dollars ($43 on amazon), and it's not even a hardback (Compared to Becoming a Supple Leopard hard cover for $28). But it's over 500 pages, the reviews are great, people on /r/bodyweightfitness seem to really love it, and /u/eshlow is around helpfully answering questions with a positive attitude, so I decided to buy it. After making my way through most of the book, I'd say it's worth much more than what I paid for it.The book isn't just about gymnastic movements; it's almost (see Other thoughts below) an all around workout companion. He spends chapters discussing why and how to develop a balanced routine, and the various ways to go about doing so. He talks about goals and having a plan; strength vs endurance. He talks about programming, what a beginner should follow all the way up to programming for people at the level of competitive gymnasts. He talks about programming for more experienced individuals, and what they can do to continue making progress (daily undulating periodization, heavy/light days, other variations). He talks about problems people have, possible workarounds, and expectations if you have other commitments. There's a chapter on rehab and how injuries affect you and what you can do about it (see a doctor! before it gets worse!). He spends time talking about diet, supplements, and other factors like sleep at the end of the book.If you're serious about fitness, you probably already know most of what is covered in the main text portion (or not; I learned acetaminophen is not an anti-inflammatory). The rest of the book (more than half of it) is devoted to the appendices. He covers sample programming for all levels: what a beginner might cover, an intermediate routine, an advanced workout, and all levels in-between. Another appendix is devoted to the progressions. Here he details the entire progression series from basic movements to full mastery, and explains what each step requires. There's also a quick reference chart to see the progressions at-a-glance.I find Overcoming Gravity to be a very useful reference book. I pick it up all the time to ensure I'm doing a movement right. The progression chart is very helpful, especially with the lateral comparisons in difficulty level (e.g. overhead press vs headstand pushup). It's also helpful to know what to do next (so I can L sit, now what?), or at least, show different options, and it's useful to see what movements can lead to (e.g. leaning dips to maltese). The real value for me is the detailed explanation for each step of every progression, and to a lesser extent, all the material covered in the main section of the book.Pros- Covers all aspects of routine building for all levels (main text), and most related topics- Quick summary progression chart- Detailed explanation for every step of every progression (and a few bonus items)- Author is experienced (gymnast) and knowledgeable (physical therapy) and available (/r/overcominggravity)- All topics are covered in detail (this isn't a short book)Cons- Photographs are low quality- Type-setting is sub-par- Lack of editor is very apparent, grammar mistakes galore, constant use of "we"- No footnotes. Mentioning relevant scientific studies would have been helpful.Other thoughts- Gymnastics work is somewhat lacking regarding leg progressions. This is mentioned in the book, and it's suggested that barbell training be pursued for legs and it's never really discussed again. This is perhaps one of the only things keeping this book from being a "complete" workout guide for a bodyweight-focused routine.- There are several egregious editorial mistakes ("If they are to be used consistently through a mesocycle be careful look for plateaus that as they may develop early because of the extra toll on recovery." p76, "Unlike the front lever, there are many different exercises that help develop the front lever..." p358) and many minor ones throughout the text, but the information contained therein is accurate and congruent with the current scientific understanding of strength training.- If I had a friend interested in learning gymnastics type movements I would definitely recommend this book.

Overcoming Gravity is by far the best book on the market that details how to program your fitness routine to achieve high level gymnastics movements such as the planche, iron cross, and front lever. Unlike other related books such as Chris Sommers, Building the Gymnastic Body, which was extremely weak in its programming explanation, and movement tutorials,and constantly stated that information would be coming in later installments.Instead of this, Steven takes the reader through a detailed learning experience that outlines the principles of strength training, injury prevention/ rehab, flexibility ,and mobility training all pertaining to higher level body weight training. And also teaches the reader how to relate these key concepts to program for the novice, intermediate, advanced, and elite athlete with guidelines that are clear and precise.The programming chapters are unbelievable! Unlike related literature and the dozens of internet tutorials claiming to provide quick 6- month tutorials to obtain skills such as the planche. Steve breaks down the physiology of the movements, explaining how muscle length and various positions influences the difficulty of a skill. He also provides detailed charts that take your max static hold or max reps of a movement, and break it down into recommended sets, reps, that allows you to compare your static holds, eccentrics, and concentric to make keeping your training volume much easier, and training more efficient!Overcoming Gravity also provides the best tutorial and detailed step by step progression for movements such as the basic handstand to the iron cross.Aside from the wonderful content, Steven presents the information in a " No BS" fashion. The text is not overloaded with useless information. But instead he presents the facts, as well as his own personal experience in an easy to read fashion. I did not find myself constantly needing to take breaks with this book, instead I found the text very to-the point and enjoyable.This book is a must have for anyone who is training in gymnastics, or is a fitness enthusiast like myself with an interest in training higher level body weight movements.