A lot of people ask me what books they should read in order to build muscle the Hardgainer way. My answer is pretty simple – anything written by Stuart McRobert. I first heard about McRobert when I use to frequent Cyberpump. In fact, it was Cyberpump that originally introduced me to High Intensity Training.
What attracted me to McRobert’s writing is the down to earth advice focused on training safely. Not only that, his writing was (and still is) the most detailed you can find on High Intensity Training.
I have bought pretty much everything McRobert has written. His original works – Brawn and Beyond Brawn are classics. I recommend Beyond Brawn to anyone who is looking to get into weight training as it provides everything that you need to know.
When I heard that McRobert launched a new book, I was pretty excited. It arrived the other week and I have been busily reading it so I could provide you with a review. The title is Build Muscle, Lose Fat, Look Great.
The book appears to be aimed at beginners and people looking to get fit rather than those trying to build some serious muscle. That isn’t to say that you shouldn’t grab the book if you are a serious muscle trainee. I just think you would response better to Brawn and its content.
However, if you are a beginner interested in getting into strength training, then this is the book for you. In fact, it is essentially a combination of Beyond Brawn and his other book The Insider’s Tell-All Handbook on Weight Training Technique (which provides excellent pictures and advice on how to do weight training exercises correctly for injury-free training).
So, what do you get with this book? Essentially, you get a complete guide to strength training. Everything from what exercises to train, how often, how much, how to do them, what you should look for in a gym and how to recuperate. I’m very impressed with this book and will recommend it to anyone looking to get fit and lose weight.
One of the most interesting aspects of the book for me personally was his chapter on correcting physical restrictions. This is actually some very relevant to me as I have been struggling with severe knee pain for over ten years. My right hip is higher than my left which leads to a functional leg difference between my right and left. This causes excessive torque on the knees.
I have been to several Chiropractors, Physiotherapists and massage therapists to no avail. McRobert describes his own story and how Active Release Therapy helped him to overcome the problems that he has suffered for many years.
As a result, I have also sought out a Chiropractor trained in Active Release Therapy. At this stage, it is too early to tell but I will keep you update. The Chiropractor doesn’t seem to be taking a holistic view on what the cause is and is instead focusing on trying to treat the knee – and not the root cause, the hip imbalance. This is despite the fact that I have told him that previous treatment focusing only on the knee hasn’t worked. I will need to change to another therapist if I can’t talk to him around. I have also been looking into Rolfing which tends to look at the body from a complete perspective. This may be a good alternative.
