Strength for Life: The Fitness Plan for the Rest of Your Life [Hardcover]

Shawn Phillips (Author)

Book Description

Release date: April 29, 2008

Shawn Phillips is an internationally respected strength and fitness expert who has helped athletes, celebrities, and tens of thousands of others over the past twenty years. Now he’s sharing his fresh approach to fitness with everyone. Strength for Life is an easy-to-implement program to help you get in fantastic shape, enjoy abundant energy, and maintain a lean, strong physique–not just for 12 weeks but for the rest of your life.

Let’s face it, with the demands of family, work, and life, many of us simply don’t have the time to stick to a rigorous workout schedule. Through his own life experience, Shawn Phillips has recognized this challenge and risen to it, literally reinventing fitness with a results-oriented program that you can embrace even with your hectic schedule and do either at home or at the gym. Homing in on the idea of building mental and physical strength rather than just sculpting your body, Shawn has pioneered a technique called Focus Intensity Training ™ (FIT), which uses the mind-body connection to yield incredible results. The program features

• a workout plan that can take as little as 35 minutes a day, 3 times a week
• illustrated exercises with clear step-by-step instructions
• 3 workout phases–a 12-day Base Camp pre-training period, a 12-week Transformation Camp, and a year-round continuation plan geared to keep you going strong and vibrant for the rest of your life
• a simple eating plan to fuel your body for optimum energy and performance–one that will free you from dieting forever
• goal-setting exercises to help you achieve lasting motivation and reach your loftiest visions

It’s never too late to get in shape. If you’re in your twenties or thirties, Strength for Life will show you how to achieve peak levels of fitness year after year. For those forty and beyond, you can look forward to recapturing the energy and vitality you thought you had lost. By following Strength for Life, you will make yourself stronger, leaner, sharper, and more confident. As Shawn writes: “Strength is about being more, doing more, giving more. It’s not just surviving; it’s thriving. And most important, strength is about having a reserve, a deeper, fuller capacity of body, mind, heart, and soul.”

Editorial Reviews

Review

Advance praise for Strength for Life

“Strength training is unsurpassed in its ability to create superbly sculpted muscles and increase balance, strength, and stamina while ridding the body of unwanted fat. Shawn Phillips has developed an outstanding holistic program that will help you to reach these goals quickly–regardless of age or current fitness level. His unique mind-body approach keeps you constantly motivated, enabling you to achieve true strength for life.”
–Nicholas Perricone, M.D., F.A.C.N., author of The Perricone Weight-Loss Diet

“This is the first book to take you through a 12-week transformation and beyond. It’s like finally hearing the rest of the story. In week 13 and afterward, you set yourself for a lifetime of strength and fitness.”
–Lynn Lingenfelter, 1997 Body-for-LIFE co-grand champion

“Strength for Life is truly fantastic! This is a book and a message that every single person can identify with and be inspired by.”
–Larry North, founder, Larry North Fitness Clubs

“Do you want to be in control of your life? If you do, the answers are in the pages of Strength for Life. This book illustrates the difference between exercise and training. Now my mind is right and my body is ready, and so far each session has been more productive. It reminded me of why we seek to be fit, and seek the ultimate goal of our lives.”
–G. Porter Freeman, 1997 Body-for-LIFE co-grand champion

“Strength for Life is a superb handbook on physical transformation, leading to a complete life transformation, a novel and tremendously effective technique. Highly recommended!”
–Ken Wilber, author of The Integral Vision

“Shawn Phillips is the epitome of form following function. There is no need to suffer through exercise when you hack away the inessentials and focus on what really matters: Strength.”
–Timothy Ferriss, author of The 4-Hour Workweek

About the Author

Shawn Phillips is CEO of Phillips Performance Nutrition, maker of the world’s premium total-nutrition shakes. He lives with his wife, son, and daughter in Golden, Colorado.

www.shawn-phillips.com

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books (April 29, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345498461
• ISBN-13: 978-0345498465
• Product Dimensions: 7.4 x 1 x 9.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (54 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #322,393 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I make complex things simple. That makes me a bit of map-maker. I make maps that help guide you to a fitter, healthier, stronger, more awakened life.

It's really that simple.

Now for the fancy stuff...

A health, fitness and nutrition veteran who studied engineering and excelled in physics and mathematics has, for better than two decades, applied his critical thinking to help people live leaner, fitter, stronger lives.

"I'm fascinated with making the complex simple, and finding the hidden patterns--the universal truth at the center of every seemingly unsolvable riddle like, 'How to lose body fat while maintaining a real life.'," Says, Shawn.

Shawn is concerned that people are deceiving themselves in their widespread fascination with "health." For as he says, "Health, for most people is defined as 'the absence of disease,' not the presence of anything. Hence, it leaves us without focus, goals or motives until we are ill.

In his book, Strength, is health and so much more. It's the abundant energy and capacity to make a difference in your world.

In addition to being an aficionado of the Andy Griffith Show (B&W only) and Seinfeld, Shawn has been a principle founder of three successful, category leading sports nutrition companies, including EAS, the one time world leader.

For nearly his entire life, Shawn has been brother, supporter and at times partner to his younger brother, Bill Phillips, author of Body for LIFE and the recent best-seller, Transformation.

Shawn most recently created the first true Premium Nutrition Shake for men, Full Strength. A delicious, supremely nutritious shake that is designed not simply as a protein shake but a full meal replacement for the busy, driven, "Type-A" man.

Shawn is also the creator of Focus Intensity Training, a system integrating body and mind; blending the depth of Eastern traditions with the Western form and function of strength training. He also has served as a faculty member of the Integral Institute, a leader in the field of human potential.

Shawn doesn't talk about it much, but he has helped hundreds of thousands of people including business leaders, professional athletes, numerous celebrities, clients and friends look great, feel great and unleash their full strength.

While known by many for his signature "six-pack abs," (which you can see in his previous book, ABSolution) his brilliant clarity and inspiring vision, Shawn, a Colorado native, is better known by his family, close friends and associates as a focused, hard-working man with a kind heart and an intense passion for helping people live extraordinary lives.

Shawn currently lives in the foothills of Colorado with his wife Angie and their two children, Nathaniel and Lilly.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

57 of 59 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Highly recommended... easy reading... encouraging tone. May 1, 2008

By Patrick D. Goonan

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

This book by Shawn Phillips is destined to be a bestselling book. While it builds on some of the ideas in Body for Life, which I believe is the best selling fitness book of all time, it is unique in many ways with a more integral approach to fitness, strength development and life as a whole.

Interestingly, Body for Life: 12 Weeks to Mental and Physical Strength was written by Shawn's brother. The major difference that I see is focusing on multiple dimensions that make up fitness including the development of aerobic capacity in a systematic, time effective manner with a lack of fluff.

This book is easy to read, but it has everything you need to know to get stronger. It is written with an encouraging tone and obviously the author practices what he preaches based on the cover photo and other photos I've seen in his other titles. If you liked Body for Life, you will love this book because it goes even further. I suspect Shawn built on what his brother learned along the way with his book as well as his own deep experience.

There are other good reviews that detail the contents of this book, but if you are looking for a fast track and well-rounded program, this may really be for you. I've tried out the workouts and advice here and was very impressed. I must say some of the workout advice may not be appropriate for a beginner, but the program is progressive and you can always start with less and work up to more.

I used to be a Teaching Fellow in physiology and I also did biological research for a living. While I don't believe in a one size fits all approach, this is certainly a good guideline for both men and women. If you want other more specific and detailed information on strength building, I also recommend the following... Build Muscle Lose Fat Look Great: Everything You Need to Know to Transform Your Body, Brawn, 3rd Edition and Beyond Brawn: The Insider's Encyclopedia on How to Build Muscle and Might (Brawn). For supplemental diet advice or more information as it relates to the health of the skeltal system, see FrameWork.

I hope this review was helpful. I don't think you can go wrong with this well-organized, progressive and innovative approach. It is balanced and really considers every dimension of life and how it contributes to overall fitness. It also treats the body and mind as a unit. Interestingly, Ken Wilber reviewed this book and it quoted on the product page. Ken has over 20 books in print some of them for 20 years and is the only living author that I'm aware of who has been asked to do a compilation of his life's work by Random House. I have read much of Wilber's material and reviewed most of it on here. I also compiled a listmania list on my profile page for those who would like to know more.

37 of 40 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Strength For Life! May 23, 2008

By Kendra

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

I received this book a couple of weeks ago and am very pleased with the entire book and completely recommend it.

This book is excellent for those who really don't know much about fitness and nutrition, but it's also good for those who know quite a bit, but need something new to tweak their routines.

And, that's why I purchased the book. Every so often, I feel a workout slump. I change my workout routines every month or so, as recommended and usually work out with weights 3 times per week and do HIIT cardio 3 times per week. I understand how to eat properly and do so consistently (unless I make a conscious choice to eat something less healthy). However, even so, I find that I often dread training. Truly. And, I might waste a couple of hours just putting off my training, because I dread it so much. Consequently, I need a book like this to get me on track. And, this one absolutely does. As a matter of fact, this entire week of training has been entirely different and I'm actually looking forward to tomorrow! And, believe it or not, I enjoyed my High Intensity Interval Training (Cardio) today for the first time in at least 6 months.

Shawn Phillips is an excellent writer. His tone is engaging, conversational, and accessible. After the entertaining introduction, he talks about getting to a meditative state when working out. It's really not difficult, either, but may take some practice for some. I find that working out in my gym at home is much more productive for me than working out at the Y, for instance, and have been doing this for some time for this very reason. It's so important to focus on the muscles you're working out and tune everything else out.

He recommends a 12 day period of rest and extremely light workouts to get ready for the program ahead. This includes ensuring one gets enough sleep. Sleep is incredibly important when training! And, it's something I haven't been getting enough of for several months prior to reading this book (even though I was aware of its importance!). I have since made sure I get at least 7 or 8 hours per night.

Even though Phillips' stresses the importance of this 12 day period, I, uh, skipped it. Only a couple of weeks prior to reading his book, I made some major changes, and I just couldn't bring myself to go back to the three extra-light workouts per week. However, the advice here is still worthwhile.

After the initial period, Shawn explains his Transformation program, and I think it's excellent. I haven't followed it exactly, but I have changed my workout schedule quite a bit. I don't want to explain too much of the book here in the review, but I have to say, I like my new schedule quite a bit and all the information here makes complete sense.

Nutrition isn't ignored, either, and he provides a lot of information. For those who have been following a clean and healthy diet for a while, not much of this is new or groundbreaking, but I've found that I still learned something new.

The claims of this title-- "The Fitness Plan for the Rest of Your Life" is a bit lofty! However, I would say that the information you get here will definitely help you for the rest of your life even if there is some new groundbreaking information in the future and even if you only use some of the what you find here.

30 of 32 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars for me, Strength for Life surpasses even Body for Life May 28, 2008

By Vid Axel

Format:Hardcover

I recently finished my first reading of Shawn Phillips' new book, Strength for Life: The Fitness Plan for the Rest of Your Life (SFL). I'm already reading it again. Even though I've read dozens of books about fitness, this one now stands as my favorite.

For me, like nothing else I've found, SFL unifies consciousness with body, presence with fitness and vision with efficacious action. With SFL, transforming both nutrition and training into deeply enriching, enduring and even meditative practices strikes me as thoroughly achievable.

Yet with what authority can I make such claims?

Many of us benefited immensely from the author's brother's (that is, Bill Phillips') 1999 mega-bestseller. That bestseller was Body for Life: 12 Weeks to Mental and Physical Strength (BFL). Using that system, I personally completed multiple, 12 week transformations. I clarified and achieved goals. I burned fat and grew muscle. My physical strength skyrocketed. Many felt astonished when they saw me in person and when they viewed my before and after photos. Frequently others, even strangers, stopped me for advice.

With time, I also learned and put into practice other fitness strategies. (These others included a 12 week transformation using Shawn Phillips' earlier, BFL-similar, 2002 book, ABSolution: The Practical Solution for Building Your Best Abs.) In the process, I learned volumes about the impact of training and nutrition on my mind and body.

During such journeys I studied, learned and made ongoing progress in my fitness. I reliably kept my body fat low - and I've kept it low. Thanks to patterns of action learned from such practices, even when I've sometimes "drifted," I'm convinced that I've kept nutrition, training and fitness at much higher levels than I ever would have without the influence of BFL.

So I'm not out to knock BFL. It has helped guide me and countless others in a positive direction.

Yet, I've continued to grow in so many ways - including by learning about meditation and mindfulness - and I've increasingly recognized how my needs have exceeded what the original, BFL book alone includes.

Enter Shawn Phillips and his Strength for Life (SFL). The author draws on nearly ten years of experience examining both the short and long term challenges and successes encountered by those putting BFL into practice. In doing so, he acknowledges both the strengths and limitations of BFL.

By my standards - especially within the wider context of a multifaceted and value-rich life (I'm now a parent) - SFL makes the following vivid. In one's fitness efforts, one can enjoy the present moment, relish the journey and yet also make lasting, positive change.

Even so, I'm delighted that while for me, SFL supersedes the older program's limitations, it also harnesses BFL's underlying strengths.

I predict that BFLers will find familiarity - yet also freshness and vast, new depth - in SFL. And I'm betting that newcomers lacking prior, BFL experience will find this program accessible, inspiring, self-contained and remarkably comprehensive. I predict that even veterans will find value in its remarkably holistic approach.

Getting derailed from one's fitness efforts can involve limitations of technique. Yet far more often, I'm convinced, limitations of consciousness lead to such collapse. Given this, I deeply appreciate that SFL emphasizes consciousness as much as the body. With both nutrition and training, SFL clarifies how one can focus positively, deeply and consciously on enjoying the moment while making progress - not only with one's fitness, but also with one's whole life.

For me, SFL incorporates balance in other ways, as well. It does this not only by discussing how to relate to food positively. It also does so by equally valuing exertion and recovery, even during the course of a single workout - and by sensitively addressing the concerns not only of men but also of women.

The SFL book leaves behind the BFL "before" and "after" pictures, and instead includes what for me qualify as beautifully illuminating, illustrative charts. These contribute significantly to my understanding of the book's concepts and its program's content.

The SFL book provides what I regard as the essentials involved not merely in making a major change once, but in sustaining a vitally strong lifestyle thereafter. It considers the cultural assumptions about "health" that so many of us absorb without conscious awareness. It explores our relationship with food and "exercise." It presents the 12 day Base Camp, 12 week Transformation and 12 month Seasons of Strength. And it examines different types of motivation, explaining why some forms have the strength to endure more than others. All the while, with remarkable clarity and brevity, it offers the reasons why it makes its recommendations - which I find crucial since in my fitness and life efforts I want to connect as consciously as I can to "why I do what I do."

I'm especially grateful for the evident effort, care and thoroughness the author brought to this project. For me, these shine through on page after page.

As a complement to SFL, I also highly recommend the concise book, Eat by Choice, Not by Habit: Practical Skills for Creating a Healthy Relationship with Your Body and Food, by Sylvia Haskvitz. By my standards, Eat by Choice, Not by Habit (EBC) wonderfully integrates the consciousness of Marshall Rosenberg's amazingly powerful Nonviolent Communication (NVC) process. I predict that complementary incorporation of EBC in transformation and fitness efforts will further support the harmonious relationship with food, training and life toward which SFL so helpfully points. EBC will facilitate this in part by providing additional tools for dealing with "failures" in compassionate, self-accepting and insight-producing ways. I predict such ways will dramatically help a person cultivate inner peace, growth and further progress.

By my standards, then, this new, SFL approach offers more nuance, clarity, completeness and sustainability than BFL. Moreover, the writing makes it joyfully energizing for me to read. Whether you've previously changed your life with BFL; remain a fitness veteran; want to "get fit" for the first time; or want to make a lasting transformation - I passionately recommend Shawn Phillips' aptly entitled new book, Strength for Life: The Fitness Plan for the Rest of Your Life.