Customer Reviews

"Z Last Book You'll Ever Need On Strength Training"

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Todd has an excellent product here. When I first opened the package up, I was a little disappointed to say the least. It looked like the book has just been put together by a cheap production company. But we all know you should never judge a book by its cover. Inside, the book is filled with numerous programs on building strength, and building muscle. He has several different programs which he actually gives you percentages of your one-repetition maximum.

I couldn't believe it. In the past I used workout programs that were very generic in nature, the typical "3x10" "4x8" "2x15" etc. I ha to figure it out. But with his program, he takes you though no more than 24 sets on his longest program and outlines the percentages of EACH set: "8 x 67%, 8 x 71%, 7 x 73.5%". Todd uses a system of linear periodization to construct his programs, meaning that you will usually go from higher repetition/moderate weight - to lower repetition/high weight by the end of the program.

I found it helped when I used an excel spreadsheet and put all my maxes in and had the table figure out the formulas for the exact weight that I should use. In the beginning, 90% of the time I would fail on my LAST REP of my LAST SET! Incredible programming.

The flaws come in when you start to improve; this is understandable because everybody is different. Nobody makes gains the same way, so as a result by the end of my first program my strength levels had increased by more than 10% (which is what he slates out in one of the programs), I actually increased my strength by more than 15% in 12 weeks.

The other reason why I gave it 4 stars was because there are no core exercises. I have an M.S. in Exercise Science and I also possess the CSCS and CPT certifications from NSCA and NASM respectively. I fully believe there should be core exercises at the end of certain workouts at least two days a week. In Todd's defense I will say that if you don't have core strength though doing powerlifting-type exercises then you really should not be doing these workouts. Exercises such as the standing military presses, squats, deadlifts, and bent-over barbell rows all stress stability and to some extent will engage the core, but they are not core exercises themselves. I had to work something else into the end of the programs here.

I would recommend this book if you are looking for a solid foundation, or if you are a novice-intermediate powerlifter. If you are a high-school athlete, this would make a great off-season program, just check with your strength coach to make sure you have proper form on all the basic lifts before testing your 1RM. In fact depending on your experience with weightlifting, a 1RM test may not be appropriate for younger populations, you may want to do a 5-10RM test and use the Bryzecki equation to figure out your 1RM.

All in all though, well done with the programs in here Todd.

"Z Last Book" is a great guide to proper, healthy strength training. This book is thorough, yet easy to follow and gives you the exact formulas, methods, and routines to maximize your full strength training potential. The author takes all of the guesswork out of the science of getting strong and instead shows you what to do, step by step, in a simple and straightforward way. The book has pictures to show proper form and technique as well as routines, formulas and valuable insights. Now my workouts are more effective...and I feel more confident that I train "by the book". I recommend this book to anyone interested in getting peak strength training results the correct way.

This is a great book for anyone that is interested in getting stronger, whether you are a serious lifter or just the everyday person that just wants to get stronger. The first hint is from all of the amazing reviews provided by legends in the industry. Joe Weider, Bill Kazmaier, Phil Pfister...impressive list. Long story short, the book provides a detailed list of the exercises you need, the number of sets, and the number of reps based off of your current lifting abilities to get you amazing results. The formula that he uses is a science that works. I strongly recommend you check this out.

I am 40 years old, 5'11" 265lbs. I currently work for the Vermont State Police as a State Trooper. I have been with VSP since 2001 and have worked in law enforcement since 1992. I have been strength training most of my life and most of that time not really knowing how to train the right way. I have gone through at least 100 differant workout routines in my training career and none really worked. When I saw this book I said I would try it. My big lifts before the book were 360 lb raw bench and 575 raw dead. I started the 3's and 5's workout and it looked like it was going to kill me but once I got through the volume stage I knew that this was the best routine I have ever used. There is no guess work with this routine, exact sets and reps for whatever you need. After 14 weeks April 3, 2010 I benched 425lbs at a raw meet and just missed 435lbs. Deadlift was 625 lbs and just missed 650lbs not bad for my first meet to total 1050lbs for a push pull meet.

The best thing about this book is not what is written in the pages but Todd's committment to helping you achieve your goals. Todd emailed me daily giving me exact sets and warm up for my meet you dont find that every day. Todd does not even know me but over the last 16 weeks we have becaomn friends. I have another police fire raw meet coming up on June 26th and again Todd is personaly traning me for that contest and I am going to get at least 450lbs raw that day.

The point I want to make is you are not going to find this kind of personal treatment with any other book out there. I guarantee you will get bigger, stronger, faster using this book.

This is a terrific, no frills book. It's not full useless crap, it gets right to the point of laying out the programs and conveying the info necessary to use them properly, without excess chit chat. The author dumbproofed the programs too, by giving examples of how EXACTLY to plug in your own numbers to use the programs - the sets, reps, and % of 1 rep maxes are all layed out for you. Effective programming and periodization is at your fingertips if you are ready to toss out the idiotic Flex magazines and start training effectively for serious strength. The author did us a service with this book and took alot of time to write everything out in layman's terms. I give him alot of credit for this book, it fits the bill for powerlifters and others that are usually overlooked when it comes to strength books as there's less money to be made off of them but hey this guy is not trying to sell you anything anyway. Some of the most effective sets and reps schemes to cycle through, using the author's formulas are all here for your lifting pleasure. 5 stars easy. Get serious, pick this one up and start watching the plates on your squats, deadlifts, etc. start stacking up.

If you want a book that is detailed down to the last rep then this is the book for you. Everything is planned out, I LOVE IT!

this is an absolutely fantastic book. It truly is the last book you need. It's so good...takes out all the guesswork...just plug in the numbers and lift....it keeps your workouts short and structured but in line with an overall long term strategy.....I can't really say many negatives about this book...maybe, if it offered some variety or choices in exercises especially for auxillary type moves....maybe, a little more detail on rest periods between sets......but that stuff is not even an issue....just a great book...and I love the responsivness of the author.....you can email him with questions and he gets right back to you......really this is a gem of a book.....I wish I had this book ten years ago.....if you like to stength train and want a road map on how to do it then buy this book...you have to do nothing more than insert your 1 rep max on lifts and calculate the associated percentages....what would be real cool is if this book came with a CD where you can insert your 1 rep max and it automatically populates your entire cycle with your work sets....

great book!

This is a great book for gaining size and strength without all the theory. If you're looking for a program(s) that is based off of solid training principles. The programs are built around squats,deadlifts,bench presses and military presses. Very user friendly, the programs are all laid out neatly in percentages covering all the bases including accessory work. There is no guessing involved on your part. Recovery is scheduled into these programs, which is often overlooked in other programs. I have been training for twenty plus years and know solid programs when I see them. I just recieved the book and haven't had a chance to use the program's yet, but you can't go wrong using the core lifts. There is no doubt that these programs will work for all levels of athletes.

The best programs I have found in over twenty years of lifting and researching strength training. The results I have attained from the diciplined coherence to Bostrom's programs have amazed me. The gains predicted by the completion of each program has consistently proven reliable for me. Since working with Bostrom's formulas I have discarded all other books I have ever owned regarding formulas relative to the methodology of strength gains. And if you buy and use this book, so will you.

Its nice to not have anything to think about. Just follow the book. Its that simple.