Pure Physique: How to Maximize Fat-Loss and Muscular Development [Paperback]

Michael Lipowski (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 2010

Pure Physique is for anyone who ever felt they should be getting more from their efforts in and out of the gym. This book will teach you how to put together an exercise and nutrition program that is truly tailor-fitted to meet your individual needs and goals. Unlike other books that provide fad diets and canned workout routines, Pure Physique was designed with the individual in mind. With this book, you will finally be able obtain the leaner, more muscular body you've always wanted.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Lipowski has divided his book into chapters that proceed according to a logical chronology, and as a fitness expert who made his reputation on natural - dare we say holistic - training principles, his tone is evenhanded and free of the arch, jocular hyperbole that is typical of muscle lit. --eMuscleMag

If you are like me and have been working out for years and wonder why you have stopped putting on muscle, then this book is for you. It will change the way you work out... It shed a whole new light on why people spend countless hours week in, week out, year after year in the gym lifting weights and not really changing their physique. --TheHealthyBoy.com

About the Author

Michael Lipowski is a certified fitness clinician and the President of the International Association of Resistance Trainers. He is a competitive natural Bodybuilder in the INBF, a consultant to other drug-free body builders, and was the personal trainer for the winner of the 2009 Men's Fitness Fit-to-Fat competition. Michael is a writer for Natural Bodybuilding & Fitness and has written for a number of other health and fitness publications worldwide.

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Price World Publishing; 2 edition (March 1, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0972410279
• ISBN-13: 978-0972410274
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #640,766 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Michael Lipowski is a personal trainer, professional natural bodybuilder and President of the International Association of Resistance Trainers (IART) from Westchester, New York. His interest in learning how to develop a lean muscular physique began at a very young age while growing up on Long Island. Michael was fascinated by the strong muscular bodies of his favorite comic book heroes, the professional wrestlers he watched on television and later on, the bodybuilders he saw in magazines. Wanting to have a strong muscular body of his own led to Michael's passion for weight training.

This passion eventually led to Michael pursuing a career as a personal trainer beginning in 1999 and then opening the PURE PHYSIQUE Personal Training Studio in 2007. It also resulted in Michael developing the "comic book body" he dreamed of as a kid and becoming a competitive natural bodybuilder.

In teaching others how they can build a lean muscular body--naturally and without the use of steroids or other anabolic drugs--Michael combines scientific evidence with personal experience and knowledge acquired from conducting thousands of exercise sessions with hundreds of people of various age, body types, backgrounds, ability, limitations and goals. This gives readers and trainees of all levels (beginner, intermediate or advanced) a more practical understanding of how they must train and diet to develop their ideal physique.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Optimum Health, June 6, 2010

By 

Joseph S. Maresca "Dr. Joseph S. Maresca CPA,... (Bronxville, New York USA) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Pure Physique: How to Maximize Fat-Loss and Muscular Development (Paperback)

Pure Physique - Second Edition
Maximize Weight Training Regimen

by Michael Lipowski
President of the Int'l Association of Resistance Trainers

Reviewed: Dr. Joseph S. Maresca
____________________________________________________________


A thesis of the book is to get the most from the least amount
of exercise necessary while providing for adequate rest
and maximum recovery.

"Basically, muscle building is contingent upon the effectiveness
of a workout in stimulating growth and the time given
to recover from the workout."

The author stresses our uniqueness and; as such, advises us
to craft a training schedule tailored to individual needs.
High training intensity is extolled because muscles grow
in response to stresses.

The book breaks down the three classic muscle fibers.
FT or fast twitch muscles are larger , more massive and
less able to tolerate a high work volume.
ST or slow twitch muscles are small in size but slow
to produce fatigue. Mixed fibers have both FT and ST
characteristics.

FT muscles benefit from exercise that places them
under maximum strain. (30-50 seconds)
ST or slow twitch muscles benefit from muscle training
in the 80- 120 second range of Time Under Tension (TUT).
More importantly, the author discusses the physical
differences between ectomorphs (thin people), endomorphs
(thick body frames) and mesomorphs (medium build with
high muscle and modest body fat).

The author finds that it is best to eat every 3 hours and
to spread the caloric intake as evenly as possible.
The meals should be small but nutritious to stabilize blood
sugar and keep us in an anabolic state (macromolecular synthesis)
by providing muscles with nutrients for continuous repair
and growth.

The book provides 6 classic lessons to peak for weight competition:

o Lesson 1 is that you cannot overload on carbs.
o Lesson 2 is that you look your hardest when carbs are low and
water is high.
o Lesson 3 is to maintain adequate glycogen (carbs) levels
so that the muscles remain full.
o Lesson 4 is that you need sodium to preclude decreased blood volume.
o Lesson 5 is to drink water throughout the day.
o Lesson 6 is to start early to adjust your peak accordingly.

This volume would be an excellent acquisition for the
personal fitness training library.
The book is recommended highly for physical trainers
and trainees alike.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Trainer offers unique ways to improve your physique, August 2, 2010

By 

Susanna Hutcheson "Copywriting for the Discri... (Midwest U.S.A.) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Pure Physique: How to Maximize Fat-Loss and Muscular Development (Paperback)

The first thing I noticed about this book is that it seems to be geared toward those wanting to look good rather than those seeking good health. While it can be argued that they're the same, they're not really. But that isn't a criticism of the book because there are many folks, perhaps you, who are basically interested in getting lean and building muscle and the health benefits are secondary.

The book, while well written, is not written in what I consider a conversational tone. It's more like a text book. Again, this is not necessarily a criticism. There is no right or wrong way to provide information. It's merely an observation.

The author tells us what we're beginning to understand --- that we should train at a high intensity in fewer workouts. He says that muscles fail to grow if we exercise too much. About thirty minutes several times a week is his prescription.

Training, he says, should be effective. "Aside from the aesthetic reasons, exercise is meant to help build and strengthen our bodies so we can better defend ourselves against outside stressors and continue functioning at an adequate level. So, it is ironic that what we use to build up our bodies is the same thing which can tear them down. The more we exercise, the more resources we exhaust and the fewer are available in the future when we need them the most. That's why it's important for our training to be effective in getting us the results we want without exhausting our resources."

The author says the training program should fit your needs and that you should not try to fit into a laid out fitness program. In other words, there is no one-size-fits-all when it comes to how we workout. Each of us is unique and has unique needs. I think this is a critical part of training and it's very much a part of the way the author deals with his subject.

Breaking out from other fitness writers and trainers, the author describes how we should train according to the type of muscle fiber we have. He calls this TUT (time under tension.)

"Muscles that are predominately FT will respond best to exercise that places them under maximum strain (tension) for 30-50 seconds." I've not read this anywhere else and found it quite interesting.

I found the part on nutrition accurate and helpful. But you have to be willing to keep track of your eating and really get it in hand. If you're young and looking to get buff, this is great. Older people will find it boring and rather useless. The older we get the less inclined we are to track everything we eat.

This is a good book for anyone wanting to have the best looking body they can get.

- Susanna K. Hutcheson

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars I've heard it all before, now maybe I'll take it seriously..., March 1, 2011

By 

R. J Kaucher (Cincinnati, OH) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Pure Physique: How to Maximize Fat-Loss and Muscular Development (Paperback)

"Unlike other books that provide you with a fad diet or canned workout routines, which fail to maximize your potential and reach your ultimate goal g a leaner, more muscular body. This book provides you with a thorough and comprehensive understanding of the physical and psychological components of exercise and nutrition and how they affect your success or failure."

The basic premise of this book, described in the quote above, has been espoused in countless articles but not in this level of detail and not in one place. The great thing about it is that you are given an outline of how to craft your exercise routine and your nutritional regime from scratch. The author provides you with the required scientific evidence to guide you but does not dogmatically force you down a rigid path. One of the things that I hate the most is authors who claim to offer the greatest routine/diet/supplementation that exists and all you have to do is follow it. If you make any adaptation of their methods and do not achieve the desired results it's your fault for making the changes - not matter how slight. The system you follow needs to be adaptable to your needs, your schedule, and your physiology in order to be optimal. Your workout/nutritional system is not a religion and no Personal Trainer is Moses.

There were a few points that I feel this book could improve on. I would have liked it if the author had used some of the copious amounts of whitespace left in this book to show how an individual (perhaps an example trainee or two - one male, one female) would go through the process of creating their own system using his suggestions. The guidance in this respect was minimal. I think a chapter dedicated to this might be nice. Also, my time and money is important to me. I really don't want a book like this to straddle the line with self-help. I know the psychological aspect of bodybuilding is important, perhaps more important to others than to me, but I felt that aspect of the book could have been removed and room for more practical material could actually have been made. Focusing on this practicality might also make the book better organized. The index in this book is awesome. Very well composed and needed because at times is seemed the author was writing based on the flow of his thoughts rather than in a structured way. But these are minor complaints compared to the book's content as a whole.

Over all the book is well written and the author explains his point of view and theories intelligently and I highly recommend the book for the advanced beginner/intermediate trainee looking to go to the next step. We've probably seen much of the advice before. But finding it clearly and intelligently described in one place that can be used as a continuous reference is golden.