Product Description

"This massive and authoritative Master Blaster book is the greatest bodybuilding book ever written, primarily because it is firmly based on the training principles of the Weider System of Bodybuilding, which have been followed by literally every bodybuilder in the modern history of the sport. I began developing my Weider System back in the 1930s and continue to refine and add new Weider Training Principles to it. You can rely on the information I present in this book to improve your physique. Good luck!" -- Joe Weider On Instinctive Training "One of the most fundamental secrets of successful bodybuilding is getting to know your body and how it reacts to various training and nutritional practices. Unless you have finely honed your instinctive training ability, it will take many weeks, even months, to evaluate each experiment. It definitely pays to master the Weider Instinctive Training Principle." -- Franco Columbo, two-time Mr. Olympia On Progression "The key to building massive, powerful muscles is to doggedly increase the training weights you use. But it is only good to increase training poundage if you do so in perfect form. There is a direct correlation between the amount of weight you use with perfect biomechanics in an exercise and the mass of muscles that move that weight." -- Lee Haney, three-time Mr. Olympia On Muscle Confusion "Once I reached the advanced level of bodybuilding and started entering competitions, I discovered that I quickly became bored with a set training program. I began to use the Weider Muscle Confusion Principle, changing to a new and more challenging routine every time I came into the gym to bomb a particular body part." -- Lou Ferrigno On Supersets "Since supersets constitute a big jump in training intensity, I always tell bodybuilders new to the Weider Supersets Training Principles to experiment with supersets, compounding movements for the biceps and triceps, or forearm flexors and forearm extensors." -- Albert Beckles, IFBB World Pro Grand Prix Champion

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #218864 in Books
• Published on: 1989-09-01
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 528 pages

About the Author
McGraw-Hill authors represent the leading experts in their fields and are dedicated to improving the lives, careers, and interests of readers worldwide

McGraw-Hill authors represent the leading experts in their fields and are dedicated to improving the lives, careers, and interests of readers worldwide

Customer Reviews

A Professional Bodybuilder's Bible--but for the rest of us?
It's definitely a core book for the professional genre, but for the rest of the human population, about 50-60% of the book is probably useless. It does, however, provide a good and very thorough overview for anyone who is thinking of competing professionally and what that legally entails before ever stepping up onto a stage wearing a thong brief--of course it's still plainly evident today that a few underground/criminal connections might help your winning capability too.

Joe W. is still unfazed in this one-of-many of his books: it seems he wants *everyone* to oil up, diet and exercise ferociously, and eventually hop up onto a stage to take their rightful place on top of the world. But is he naive enough to believe that all the top bodybuilders have won within the bounds of the law? Arnold (his star pupil) has publicly admitted to dipping below the law on national television! But I regress at this point.

But what about the plodding nine-to-fiver who never has any intention of hanging up on their careers for which they've 'trained' long and hard for too? Who wants to give up that hard-sought-after security? It's interesting to note that most of the competitors described in this book have their very own gymn in California. Not everyone has such financial security that allows them to devote a major portion of their lifetime to weight training.

There are some of us who have to start exercising again before or because of the medical bills piling up--such as myself--after a long lay-off from any attempt at bodybuilding--ten years--and are still more or less looking for the holy grail of bodybuilding: Time-honored guidelines for beginning, sustaining, and cycling workouts for a lifetime of non-competitive bodybuilding.

Should this book be part of a normal person's itinerary? Perhaps, but only as a source of reference to get a more indepth overview of the various exercises that they are using already and to get an idea of what's involved with training for the ultimately extreme end of bodybuilding: the professional competitor.

Wonderful Reference Book For Practicing Bodybuilder
As someone who has actually been tossing around the iron for longer than I personally like to admit (try 1960 on for size), I have always found this particular book to be a wonderful reference book for the practicing bodybuilder, one he or she can employ to solve persistent problems, answer a technical question, or browse in search of alternative exercises working a particular muscle group from a specific angle. For example, the fact that each exercise emphasizes not only how to correctly perform the exercise, but also stresses which aspects of the muscles are most stressed, hence which are likely to most benefit from regular use of the exercise in a complex routine.

There are many aspects of the book which could use to be revised to improve it, such as its reference to newer machines and new technology in general is a bit lacking, and it also is a bit dated in that it trades heavily on Weider's long association with famous bodybuilders of the classic period of the 1960s and 1970s. For old horses like me, that is neat, but it may not play well to some of the younger enthusiasts. Yet the fundamental facts found in the book are still quite credible, and the fact that it is a paperback issue you can actually drag along to the gym with you is to its credit. I recommend it for the reasons I mentioned, although I would also suggest you purchase a copy of Arnold's own version of a how-to manual, as well as Bill Pearl's superb "Keys To The Kingdom". The more recent Iron Man version is also an excellent resource, especially for the intermediate bodybuilder ready to spread his wings and intensify his workout. Enjoy!

BS, BS, BS, BS, BS...........
Anyone who does not want to waste money and time in the gym should avoid this book like the plague.