The Barbell Prescription: Strength Training for Life After 40 Paperback – December 1, 2016

There are many reasons why I can recommend the book, “The Barbell Prescription, Strength Training for Life After 40”. I suggest that it should be read by anyone, man or woman, over 40. I myself have purchased both the paperback and Kindle versions.Here are a few of the reasons why I recommend this book.1. Experience: The two authors, Sullivan and Baker, have years of experience of coaching the Masters Athlete and this adds to the credibility of this text. I must ask who better to write a book about the barbell prescription topic for Masters then two individuals with the combined credentials and experience that Sullivan/Baker have. They can take a complex topic and make it easy to understand and digest. Too often books written for and about the aging population are written at such a high level that you need a Ph.D. to decipher. This book is deep but the authors write it in a way that anyone can understand at first reading. This book with its layout and progression through the topic, with understandable descriptions, will allow the reader to quickly unlock the mystery of their aging bodies. It explains why barbell training is vital to be able to live a healthy life after 40.2. “Sick Aging Phenotype” explained: This new term as it is defined throughout and the book makes sense. The example of Will and Phil in Chapter 1 about two identical twins living very different lives is a shrewd description of what the authors mean by this term and why they believe strongly in the Barbell Prescription topic for aging adults. This chapter lays out the groundwork for the authors’ premise of barbell training to combat the aging process and what it takes to counteract the previous sickly outcome for most people over the age of 40.3. The book concentrates on the Masters athlete: Most barbell training books are aimed at the younger athlete. The Masters concentration allows the authors to make the differences clear about how an athlete over 40 can and should use barbell training as part of their regimen to counteract the aging process. Thus, Masters can live a healthier life as they age. The authors explain why, "Masters are volume-sensitive, intensity-dependent", why this is different than in younger lifters, and how to work with this principle in the Master athletes own training.4. The authors provide a clear explanation of the building blocks of a training program: The explanations about the Novice versus Intermediate programming is concise. Sullivan/Baker give complete descriptions of the Stress-Recovery-Adaptation cycle. Included in this description are whole chapters on each part of the cycle. They provide clear examples and explanation of training programs for the many different ages what constitute an athlete over 40.The purpose of this book is to present the information needed for the aging population to live by the premise that “Healthy aging is Strong aging”. The authors deliver on that purpose.If someone is looking specifically for a how-to book on how to perform the barbell movements, that is not the purpose of this book. As Sullivan/Baker state in the Introduction and Chapter 7- Elementary Iron, “This book is not intended to instruct the reader in the performance of barbell exercises.” It correctly points to, Starting Strength Basic Barbell Training 3rd edition, for performance and instruction of the barbell movements. Also in Chapter 14 – Programming, they state that, “This is not a cookbook. Read everything before you try anything.” I can say for myself that by reading this book I have been able to take advantage of all the information the authors provide. It was and is both helpful and eye-opening for myself and will be to others. The book makes it clear that being a Masters athlete can help one reach their full “genetic potential”, no matter what their age.As I stated earlier I recommend this book.

The DEFINITIVE weight training book! Plenty of detail and worthwhile examples, easy to follow plans and it WORKS!! Jonathon’s passion, personal results and medical expertise are all on display in this outstanding book. HIGHLY recommend. 💪

As an older lifter, currently 74 years old, finding the three books, Starting Strength by Mark Rippetoe, Practical Programming by Mark Rippetoe and Andy Baker, and The Barbell Prescription by Dr. Sullivan and Andy Baker, changed my approach to strength training. The authors present the science and mechanics of performing barbell lifts in a safe and efficient manner. The books should be read and studied thoroughly. They are a must have resource for lifters of all ages that want to build strength to improve their quality of life. They are also must have resources for coaches and trainers that are focused on getting results for their clients.The Barbell Prescription focuses on the science and programs for Athletes of Aging, those beyond 40, 60, and 70. It is never to late to start strength training and the Barbell Prescription provides the road map to safe acquisition of the strength needed to live a self reliant and productive life as the years accumulate.Following the guidance in these books from Rippetoe, Baker, and Sullivan I have fully recovered from crippling motorcycle crash injuries and have achieved remarkable strength levels as measured by my progress with the barbell lifts. I have purchased multiple copies and have gifted them to friends and family so that they can have the information needed to achieve increased strength also.Buy the Books! Do the program!

i'm 49, with a kinesiololgy degree and 30+ years of weight training, and i've zero injuries and can do weighted chin-ups. so i'm speaking from experience in this review.there's a handful-- seriously, maybe 5-- of genius strength trainers out there, and it can easily be argued they all stem from Mark Rippletoe, as do the authors. what the authors do in this book is, by section:1) lay out the case for strength training as a superior exercise modality for the aging reader (all readers are aging, btw)2) IDs the exercises the reader should employ in a strength training regimen3) provides several programs to employ to build strengthpart 1 is perfect. dr sullivan does a masterful job of laying the case for weight training, and i dare say he, along with arnold schwarzenegger, are the 2 best evangelists for weight training i've seen---and sullivan is making the case medically. --anyone who questions what to do to get in shape wont after reading part 1part 2 and 3 i take some issues with. while part 3 is great (!) for giving programs and philosophies and expectations (great work by the authors here) on how to keep slinging iron as you age (which is what i bought it for), there's a handful of gaps:1) dealing with injuries---as you get older you will get injured just getting out of bed. this is not covered at all. and anyone familiar with rippletoe knows he just says "its part of the game". nonsense. ---IMO the authors should compromise more on the Rip way to adjust to an injury prone master athlete (think rep ranges 6-8 instead of 3-5). strength is still developed, with lower risk of injury. i also see no mention on prehab type exercises (spider crawls, band pull aparts) which are imperative for injury prevention. anyone starting strength training in their 40s+ is in dire need of starting with prehab exercises concurrently with the big stuff2) exercise selection: its quaint to think barbells are the solution to every problem. its also sure to cause injuries. a simple substitution of dumbbells for barbells for the prescribed exercises is the answer. ---eg: barbell bench press gives me strains, dumbbells never do. should i tear a pec in pursuit of strength or be happy with 80+% of the benefit with 99% less risk if i use dumbbells? the degrees of freedom that dumbbells provide equal lower risk of injury. and while the book stresses safety (great job by the authors), this is a huge oversight by baker.3) movement patterns: really ties into 2---people dont need to be strong in the barbell press, they need strength in horizontal and vertical pressing patterns. (and pulling patterns, and squatting and hinging).these are the primary things keeping me from giving this book 5 stars. but if you're a novice ~ 40yrs old or older and unsure what to do when you go to the gym (or afraid if you should), this book is a goldmine of wisdom and will change your life