Inside the Mind of an Iron Icon: on strength training and bodybuilding Paperback – July 14, 2016

I'm 61 years old and have been training since high school. I also train others on occasion as a side gig from my teaching profession. I try to read a variety of different training methodologies to help me better implement training programs. Most of the stuff I read is the same old thing: workout at least 4 times a week, train body parts individually(a lot of trainers aren't saying this anymore, just a side note), do 8 to 10 sets per body part and on and on. If you read the literature on training you know what I'm talking about. Can that type of training be effective? Absolutely. I would even say that more training than this can be effective. Here lies the HUGE caveat though. Who is able to train that much and do so consistently? I sure can't. No one I ever trained was able to devote that amount of time to their training. Reading this book was a nice breath of fresh air. Chuck and Stuart weren't trying to sell anything in the book. It was an honest down to earth interview of Stuart by Chuck Miller. Chuck included many of his own experiences with his training regimens in the book. Both Stuart and Chuck are proponents of abbreviated training. This is the type of training that most people can fit into their already busy schedules. I am also a proponent of this type of training. Not just because I can find the time in my schedule to implement this type of training, but mostly because it is very result producing. It is result producing I believe for 2 main reasons: 1. Since you're only in the gym 2 or 3 days a week it is more likely that you'll be consistent with your training. The training sessions themselves require an hour or so of your time, not two hours. And 2. The training sessions are quite intense. I've found that after 43 years of training myself and others that if you meet these two requirements, you will progress. This book discusses these topics and others. It's just a fantastic read for anyone that's interested in muscle and strength. Basic compound movements are emphasized throughout, which are paramount for strength and size gains. Isolation exercises aren't excluded, but when it comes to building raw size and strength you have to focus on the big compound movements, not tricep kickbacks. After many years under my belt with strength training, I still came away with some valuable information from this book. In closing, if you're tired of giving up a whole morning or good part of your evenings to strength and muscle building, get this book, read it and put the information into practice. This stuff works!!

It's impossible for me to write a review that would truly sum up the genius of this book, the staggering training wisdom that it contains, or the nostalgia that reading it set off inside of me.I just wish that I would have known it's contents, and that of Stuart's other books and publications, back when I was a young teen trying to figure out how I was going to fit Bill Pearl's giant workouts into my life. I wanted so badly to be a football star, but that's hard to do when you barely tip the scales at 130 lbs. The HIT recommendations of Darden and Jones helped some, but after some initial gains, I stagnated with workouts that were too long, despite pushing myself to absolute failure on every set. I felt guilty after every workout, convinced that if I had really worked hard enough I wouldn't be stuck at the same size and strength levels. Much of my weight and strength gain was probably due to normal growth, and although good speed and strength for my size helped me to be fairly successful as a high school athlete, I peaked at a top bodyweight of 170 lbs, and my dreams of stardom never came true.It wasn't until my mid twenties that I came across Stuart's books and Hardgainer magazine, and it was both a complete revelation and the beginning of a wonderful period of my life. I discovered workouts that actually fit into my life, led to clockwork gains without the guilt of wondering if I had tried hard enough, and didn't require me to endure pain that made every workout a miserable affair. Within two years I tipped the scales at more than 230 lbs. and had pushed my strength far beyond my earlier levels. I met friends and mentors on the forum, wrote articles for the magazine, and enjoyed the heck out of the whole process. Chuck's interview of Stuart reminds me of much that happened back then. I just wish that it all took place when I was still playing competitive sports.I think that Chuck and Marty's input about powerlifting, and elite athletes, are a wonderful complement to Stuart's discussion of what works for drug-free, genetically typical trainees. We usually read that there are no secrets in training, but I think that their combined efforts actually served as an expose' of sorts, showing that many elite lifters have reached their staggering success through training programs so intentionally brief that it's hard to believe. If you have avoided McRobert's teachings in the past because you didn't want to associate with 98 lb. weaklings who do nothing but whine about their fragile bone structures, Chuck and Marty's input will show you that you have nothing to fear, and much to gain.To sum up, I think that this is a great book for anyone who is looking for intelligent guidelines that will help them to reach a new level of size and strength, or anyone who would like to know more "behind the scenes" information about the Hardgainer years.Well done, Chuck and Stuart!