This manual is like an encyclopaedia of bodyweight exercises. It's hard to think
what Enamait has missed out. Not much. Hindu squats, hindu pushups, divebombers,
one arm pushups, pistols -
it's all here. Plus you get
the methodology - how to put it all together. After all, the exercises
themselves are easy sourced. It's the knowledge of how to make them work as a
routine or in your lifestyle that's just as important. Otherwise
it's like getting the ingredients without the recipe.
You
get sprints, fartlek, tabatas, plyometrics, strength training, skipping, balance
exercises, diet, training frequency etc etc - it's like a one-stop shop. Even
the small chapter on stretching is pretty good. (for more detailed stretching
info check out Thomas Kurz).
There's enough to feed on
for years.
This
review could go on in detail about each chapter - but there's not much point.
It's all good. Enamait makes things easy. Easy to understand and easy to follow.
Unlike some sports conditioning
tomes, you don't need to sit for weeks with notepad and pen and really swot up
on it. There are no complicated graphs of force, velocity & power, flow charts
of 'stimulus and response', no talk of epimysium, perimysium and myotendons -
no complicated 'science-speak'.
Routines
- there are simply loads of them. And this is one of the strengths of the book.
This makes it far more than just a compendium of exercises. You can just pick
a routine, go out and do it. No fussing. Even if you do not adopt the routines
'as written' you will undoubtably be enriched by the mental stimulation they provide.
For example when Ross gives you his bodyweight Tabata routines, you may be inspired
to give them a try with your free weights or rowing machine etc.
Yes,
some writers don't include set routines because they claim 'each person's body
is different' and that you should 'know your own body' and construct
something yourself on that basis. Which is fine, except that you have to have
years of training under your belt before you can understand your needs that well
- and to get there you will have had to have made many, many mistakes apon the
way. (plus it's a nice get-out clause for the 'fitness guru' if his exercises
don't work. If the results are bad, then obviously the reader hasn't 'discovered'
the right routine yet.)
Ross, with his experience has already narrowed down the choices of routine for
you. Result? Less mistakes, quicker progress. Just get on and try them
an adjust as you go along.
Above
all, there's all the ingredients and inspiration to do your own thing should you
choose to.
Enamait's
receipe for success is simple. No gimmicks, just good honest downright hard work
and all the time he's encouraging you all the way to achieve it. The most refreshing
thing is that he doesn't hard-sell. There's no bullsh_tting here. No fancy promises,
no tempting glimpses of other 'must-have' products.
Personal
Training
With
Ross's book you get instant, free personal advice. (You get free advice on his
forum regardless if you purchase or not). You can't really ask for better than
that.
Niggles
None
really. Hell, if I was being picky, then a 'real book' would have been better
than a ring bound collection of photocopies. But Ross is a cottage industry, a
one man show. So that into account, he's made a damn good fist of it.
Two
Free Lunches
No
such thing as a free lunch right? Enamait offers you not one but two. Okay, okay
you're paid for them really, (and it would have been nice to have grouped them
into the main book) but as lunches go they are really rather good. More than token
morsels, Enamait serves up around 15 pages in each.
Freebie
Part 1 gives you a whole bunch of workouts, Pyramids, Circuits, Sandbags, Burpees,
Runs etc.
Part
2 - more workouts, Tabata Intervals, more sand, more burpees, skipping rope, fight
conditioning and more. Colour pics too. All great stuff.
The
Bottom Line.
Enamait's
Underground Guide to Warrior Fitness is The best value bodyweight training book
out there. Recommended unreservedly.
