High-Intensity Training the Mike Mentzer Way

Great book! Mike Thoroughly explains the scientific and driving principles to muscle building as it pertains to high intensity training. I love Mike's rational approach to body-building because it makes sense! His rational approach makes his book counter cultural to the modern body-building paradigms, and I'm all for it because it means I don't have to spend hours in the gym each session or stuff my face with food 24/7. Mike's high instensity, low volume/low frequency regimen is something that I've actually been able to consistently implement and truely understand the scientific principles and outcomes of every movement and exercise I do. I highly recommend this book if you want to both learn about and get results from a scientifically proven training methodology.

The book is in good shape and contains the information it’s advertised to have.

Excellent book. Completely changed my perception on lifting weights. Been following the Mentzer routine and I make progress with every workout. It is an adjustment going from gym trips 5 days a week down to 2, but the results speak for themselves.

We have been bodybuilding since 1995, I am familiar with Mike's training methods based on his early training with Arthur Jones. Mike's book emphasizes H.I.T. to the same degree that Jones taught him while winning the Mr. Universe title. It is none the less, a good book with many tips for all levels of bodybuilders. A book I would recommend reading first is "The New High Intensity Training" book by Ellington Darden. Ellington worked closely with Jones and Mentzer and his book gives more supporting evidence into why HIT training is the way to achieve better gains in muscle mass. The ripped Clarence Bass is also a HIT bodybuilder that deserves reading. I am happy to have Mike's book in my library, he was a great bodybuilder and although he died early he continues to motivate others through this book.

Ah, "High-Intensity Training the Mike Mentzer Way"! Imagine, if you will, a tome that unlocks the secrets of a legendary bodybuilder's revolutionary approach to fitness. This book, penned by the illustrious Mike Mentzer, is like a map to a hidden treasure trove of strength and muscle. Within its pages lies the essence of High-Intensity Training (HIT), a method that defies the norms of traditional bodybuilding. Mentzer's philosophy is simple yet profound: shorter, less frequent workouts that push muscles to their limits, yet allow ample time for recovery. It's a dance of intensity and rest, a balance that promises results without the weariness of endless gym sessions. The book is not merely a collection of exercises; it's a journey into the mind of a visionary. Mentzer, the first man to achieve a perfect score in the Mr. Universe competition, shares his wisdom on training to failure, the importance of recovery, and the psychological aspects of bodybuilding. His words are like a coach's encouraging whisper, guiding you through each rep and set. With fascinating biographical details and striking photos, the book paints a vivid portrait of a bodybuilding icon, inspiring readers to strive for excellence. It's a blend of science and art, a guide that transforms the way one views fitness and strength. So, dear reader, let this book be your guide to a new realm of bodybuilding, where efficiency meets effectiveness, and where the pursuit of muscle is both logical and magical.

I am actually quite excited to try out this "new" system. I say new because it is new to me, the info here is back from the 80's / 90's. I have been working out pretty regularly for about 10 years, I am more a fitness enthusiast than bodybuilder. I don't have any desire to get as big as possible, but more so to have a muscular physique and be in good general shape. I have been following the normal sets x reps for pretty much the entire time I've been working out with decent results. I definitely look better and am stronger than 10 years ago. The reason for looking into this was more of a time-saver. A normal workout is pretty short for me right now, say 20-30 minutes but I'm always looking for a better way to get the same if not better results in shorter time. This system focuses around really taxing the muscle in 1 set, through very slow reps up and down versus the traditional way of larger volume. It also suggests longer resting periods between workouts to really focus on recovery as we know your muscles actually grow during recovery, not training. Will this work? I believe so, it's just science. Once you really tax a muscle out to the point another rep is not possible, give adequate time to recover and then increase the intensity in the next workout through more reps or more weight, why wouldn't it? It's simply following the break it down, let it repair, and then challenge it again harder philosophy that forces muscles to change, and grow. This system just does it in a compressed manner, with more intensity. I figure worst case scenario, even if my gains are the same I am still saving time versus the longer marathon workouts some people do, and that's more time for me to focus on life. UPDATE: I got to try these principles last night as I am in the stage of figuring out which excercises / poundages to start with. I haven't been this sore in a while! This experimental workout lasted about 20 minutes only during which I tried these principles with pullups, behind the neck shoulder presses, preacher curls and side lateral raises for shoulders. Took each set to failure as recommended...what a difference. You must make an honest effort and go to true failure i.e. you cannot lift another rep, which is hard...but then boom! You're done with that exercise and on to the next....This seems to have a lot of promise! UPDATE 2: I am about 2 weeks into this new approach, and I am getting stronger every week. The key is really finding exercises you can perform under perfect control, with little to no sloppiness. That way you can really focus on the movement / intensity vs. the number of reps. I am now more sore after a singe set of this high intensity exercise than I was from 2-4 sets of the regular reps, the key being the much longer reps (4 seconds up / pause 2 seconds / 4 seconds down). It boils down to much more intensity, in much lesser time. I'm a believer!

Really great book to understand and apply heavy duty and make your own routine in the gym and very informative

Mike Mentzer was a genius. I really enjoy this style of training, which has freed up more time for me. Who wants to spend hours in the gym? This book gives you the blueprint and theory behind Mentzer's unconventional but very effective methods, although it's then up to you to train short and hard, then recover harder. John Little is also a very intelligent and clear writer, making this a must-read for intermediate and advanced lifters.

The legend of Mike Mentzer lives on! This is the ultimate distillation of Mike's HIT approach to body-building. Read it, internalize it, do the work, and get stunning results!

Full of good training course for body building

La méthode d'entraînement de Mike Mentzer (reprise par la suite par Dorian Yates) n'est pas une méthode comme les autres, puisque c'est la seule méthode qui fonctionne pour gagner du muscle et progresser en musculation. Comme beaucoup, j'ai cru ce que disaient les coachs fitness et j'ai suivi leur conseil. J'allais donc à la salle de sport 6 fois par semaine, je m'entraînais plus d'une heure à chaque fois et je mangeais beaucoup de protéines. Le résultat ? Aucun progrès ! Non seulement, je ne gagnais pas en muscle, mais en plus cela mes performances ne cesser de se détériorer, j'étais tout le temps fatiguer et pourtant, j'avais du mal à dormir. Aller à la salle de sport était devenu une corvée et non plus un plaisir. Et si jamais je n'allais pas m'entraîner, je me sentais incroyablement coupable pour le reste de la journée. Lorsque j'ai demandé conseil, la seule explication que l'on m'a donnée était que je devais aller m'entraîner encore plus, plus longtemps et manger encore plus. J'ai fini par abandonner et je ne suis plus retourné à la salle de sport pendant 4 ans. Jusqu'au jour où je suis tombé par hasard sur une vidéo de Mike Mentzer, expliquant pourquoi s'entraîner plus longtemps ne fonctionnait pas pour prendre du muscle. Intriguer, j'ai donc continué à regarder d'autres vidéos de Mike Mentzer et j'ai fini par acheter ce livre. Après l'avoir lu et enfin compris pourquoi je ne faisais pas de progrès, en grandes parties parce que les "experts" en fitness sur Youtube ne comprennent pas comment le corps fonctionne et donc donnent des conseils erronés. J'ai donc changé ma façon de m'entraîner grâce à ce livre et maintenant, je ne vais à la salle de sport que 2-3 fois par semaine, pour des séances courtes mais très intense (environ 20-40 minutes), et je mange désormais de façon équilibre avec un léger surplus de calories par jours allant de 200 à 300 calories. Résultat, depuis que j'ai commencé à m'entraîner selon la méthode de Mentzer depuis maintenant un peu plus de 2 mois et demi, je ne cessais de faire des progrès. Désormais, je ne cesse d'augmenter la quantité de poids que j'utilise à la salle de sport, et je progresse de semaine en semaine. Et plus jamais je ne suivrais les conseils des experts en musculation.