Athletics Books

You've heard the saying: "Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me." Shame on me, then, because after writing a lukewarm review for Boot Camp Workout, also by Five Star, I have the same to say about this one. While the workouts presented are credible, the book is very poorly done. Explanations of the exercises are imprecise, and the accompanying photographs sometimes contradict the text. Some exercises in the workout plan are not explained; for example, the workouts often call for you to perform a "Dirty Dog", yet nowhere in the book will you find an explanation of what a dirty dog is.

The workouts are VERY intense. I'm 36 and in pretty good shape. But after 1 week of following this plan, I was too sore to move. If you are not already in excellent condition, then I can't even recommend this book for its workouts.

This book is probably the worst of all of the Five Star Workout Books. It had (in my opinion) too much history of the Academy (not necessary for a Workout book) and it didn't cover anything I couldn't learn from the "Navy SEAL Workout Book" (also by Andrew Flach). Buy that one for the same price! It has far more information and Workout routines and exercises. The only good thing about this book was the 6-week Naval Academy P.E.P. (but I must admit it isn't that good either!). So buy the SEAL Book or just download the "BUD/S Warning Order" for free form any SEAL site and get a GREAT 15-week workout routine that is challenging!

This book has me in shape for the first time in years. Thank you for the detailed approaches to each workout!

The previous reviewer wrote that terms like "dirty dog" weren't explained. If he had read the descriptions under the exercises he would have found the exercise referred to as "dirty dog" and even the "donkey kick."

I like the workout, it's a plan I can actually follow. The exercises are simple and tough. Getting in shape doesn't require complicated machines and workouts. Simplicity and form are what you need for any effective workout.

If you have any other books in this series, you don't need this one. I don't, so it works for me. All military workouts will have a similarity. A previous reviewer mentioned the similarity of this and the Navy SEAL workout in this series. There should be since Navy SEALs are the ones who design and implement the physical education program (P.E.P.)at the Naval Academy. There may be better books in the series, but I think this one will fulfill any of your needs. Ask yourself what you want to look like and find the program that will take you there. This one will get you fit (which is all most people want to be).

Get the book if you want a good workout. The nutrition information is lacking, but that's okay.

I disagree with the previous reviewer who said the workout is too tough for beginners. Any one can use it. You may not be able to all the reps in the 6-week plan, go at your own pace. Take a look at the exercises and think of how many reps you can do. Do as many as you think you be comfortable with. After you're done with a full set of these exercises go back if you think you haven't done enough. Know your limits.

I thought it was a excellent book and it really helped me to get in shape when I go to join the Naval Academy. I am very commited to getting in the Naval Academy and making it as a Marine Pilot. I loved this book! I would recommend this book to anyone who plans on going to the Naval Academy or just wants tips on how to get in better shape. It is an excellent resource and especially if your planning on going to the Naval Academy. If you are plannning to go to the Naval academy I would also recommend "The Naval Academy Canadiate Book How to prepare, How to get in, How to survive" also an excelent resource.

Disclaimer: Don't let the cons of this book discourage you.

On a positive note this book is an easy read and very engaging. On the negagitive side. I think the book needs pics of exercises for the newbie. Another thing is the food supplementation section of the book was researched by Bill Reynolds intern. Due to the neccessity to have the most accurate infomation dealing with vitamins and minerals I'd like to know where her sources came from being as though there is no appendix. Thirdly, I don't know if I would say that the vegatarian section for bodybuilders is totally accurate. Bodybuilders who eat meat on occasion doesn't qualify as a vegatarian.

Conclusion: Great read with more research and books needed. My suggestion is read this from the library to decide if it's for you before purchase.

Good Luck..

This book, was undoubtly my worst investment. My friend and I read this book and it helped us only in the way of supercuting our time and our pocketbook. From an obviously poorly written book, comes content that is just hard to comprehende. Trust me, save your money, because this book is horrible.

I PURCHASED THIS BOOK BECAUSE I WAS LOOKING FOR A COOKBOOK TO USE WHEN PREPARING MY MEALS. THIS BOOK GIVES YOU PLENTY OF INFORMATION ON HOW TO PREPARE MEALS FOR BODYBUILDERS. EACH RECIPE GIVES YOU A LISTING OF NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION AS WELL AS SIMPLE INSTRUCTIONS TO FOLLOW. IF YOU ARE LOOKING TO SPICE UP YOUR DIET BUT STILL WANT HEALTHY FOOD, I RECOMMEND THIS BOOK.

I just purchased this book after searching for a cookbook appropriate to bodybuilders. The information included in the beginning chapters focus on training splits, sample exercises for every bodypart, and how nutrition impacts a bodybuilders' physique. Although there is some focus on weight-gain, most of it can be tailored to fit someone looking for strength and tone without bulk. The recipes that follow are simple yet tasty, and they don't use a lot of complicated ingredients, which is great for those on the run. A fitting addition to any fitness enthusiasts' collection.

This book is really a Fitness Cookbook for Bodybuilders. It contains more than 200 recipes. This handy reference for the ultimate nutrition is filled with:
- Diets for fat loss, muscle gain, and cycle training.
- Nutrition secrets for successful bodybuilding.
- Meals plans.
- Supplements, vitamins and minerals information and advice.

Supercut is highlighted with nutrition secrets and tips from the greats of bodybuilding: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Lou Ferrigno, Dr. Franco Columbo, Samir Bannout, and a host of other male and female bodybuilders.

The book includes recipes for healthful dinning, including vegetable dishes, salads, poultry and dairy products meals, fish dishes, meat, rice-potato-pasta-grain dishes, and also desserts. Each recipe is accompanied with its calorie counter.

I was expecting something that allows you to go through practical exercises from infants to toddlers to do but there was what seems like endless articles on safety (which is not a bad thing), psychology etc but it just wasn't what I was expecting, the other book by Austswim was much better..

I am a swim instructor and I think this book does a great job covering everything that should be taught to infants and preschoolers. It also is the best priced swim instruction book that I have come accross for the intended age group. I recomend it to any parents that want to start teaching their kids the basics of swimming.

This book is a very thorough introduction to teaching swimming to young children and is great for new swimming instructors. It covers the basics how a child's developmental stage intersects with the kinds of swimming skills and water safety children are ready to take on. However, I found it does not provide teachers with concrete ways to actually operationalize these skills through water play and songs. A few pages at the end of the book list out sample lesson plans, but if you aren't familiar with the songs listed you are out of luck (many of them appear to be australian children's songs). To be ready to teach a class you would also need to find a book of water songs and games for kids of different developmental stages.

Informative and logical. Every Swim Instructor and baby aquatics teacher should have one on hand for quick reference. I recommend strongly for all parents of babies attending aquatics programs.

I bought this book hoping to find some specific exercises I could practice with my child in our pool. It was not very useful for that purpose. The book seems more of a way for existing swimming teachers to learn about this organization's philosophies on child development as it pertains to aquatics. It was nice to read a detailed accounting of why a 1-year-old resists back-floating but I wanted more of an idea of how to teach my child to blow bubbles and other beginning skills. It really doesn't go into actually showing you how to teach skills. This is a pitfall of buying a book based only on the title. Were I able to flip through it first, I would've realized this was probably not the book I was looking for.

If you want to learn about strength training for baseball, go to school and learn. All this book will go over is are very basic "meathead" routines with very little reasoning behind it. Not enough information for me. I found this book to be a waste of my money, dont make the same mistake.

Complete training for baseball is a great book. It can change any persons life for the better if that person follows this book. Which is difficult. It almost expects that you have a full gym right in your basement. However if you do have a reachable full free-weight gym near to you this book can deeply help you. Also I would have liked the book more if it had a goal of how much weight should be lifted and how fast you should be. If those two things were added this would be the perfect book for anyone from 7-12 grades.

I bought this book even though I do not play baseball. The descriptions of basic weight training exercises are excellent. Also, there are a number of agility drills and medicine ball exercises for the upper body which would benefit athletes from other sports.

This book goes in depth with all areas of your game to help you reach your maximum ability and beyond in total body conditioning. I was pleased with each chapter and learned many new techniques and drills. There are many drills to chose from so you don't adapt to one training. I didn't know about this before and now I'm excited to set my futre in the right direction of conditioning. The book gives the games most effective secrets I didn't know about before and I now incorporate these secrets in preparing for the upcoming year. The book teaches the need to not just train hard, but smart. I can't tell you enough about how well thought out and written this book is. I believe this book goes beyond 5 star!

I would not recomend this book for people using it as an extra study resource I found it completely useless.

This book is full of the scientific explainations as to why and how muscle grows. It is presented in an easy-to-read manner. Charles Poliquin has recommended this book, and for good reason. Based on East German research, the science of weight training is a far cry from what Mentzer proposes! Set, rep, tempo and rest selection are all included. Probably the biggest faults are the diet and exercise chapters. Some of the exercises recommended have to be seen to be believed! All in all, a good addition to your home library.

Outstanding book!! I have been looking a long time for a book that explains in detail the old soviet sports training techniques. Not only is this book detailed, it is written so that a novice can understand. This book explains Michael Yessis books in more detail. This is a must buy for anyone that wants to get in shape for a sport in the quickest and most efficient way.

This may look odd but I was trying to post someone else's review of my book that they e-mailed to me. I mean, why would I review my own book? I didn't even read it.

NBA players have no respect for the art of tattooing or the history of it-- they simply get tattoos to look tough and/or get attention. This book is about as superficial as the tattoos it portrays.

I was'nt that impressed with this book.I thought it was going to go into alot more detail and show better array of pictures.Most of the pictures you can see on the internet already.The pictures that new were very few and far in between.It is a nice book to add to a collection,if you like tattoos or sports.Not a hreat book to learn about the players tattoos and meanings or even to see pctures of them.Some pictures shown didnt even get explained in the book.

This book is more than just a bunch of pictures of NBA guys with tatoos -- though it has some great pictures. It is wittily written (the jacket says the author is comedy writer) without being condescending to the athletes. It's informative and fun and thorough. The players come off as everything from funny and strange to thoughtful and deep. My only complaint is that the colors in the photography could be a little more vivid. I'd reccommend this book to any NBA, skin art, or self expression.

If you are looking for a comprehensive book that covers everything you wanted to know about running, this one stands out. This books relies quite a bit of past articles in Runner's World but if you have not read this magazine recently, almost everything in this book would seemed new to you. My only wish is that Katie shared more of her running experience. That would make the book more personal and not read like another Runner's World compilation.

Easily the most disappointing running book I have owned. The title and publisher would lead one to believe this is a real guide to running faster and competing; what this book actually feels like is an attempt to recycle miscellaneous Runners World articles in a somewhat organized format. Less than half the book is devoted to road racing; most of it is devoted to pictures of someone stretching and doing strengthening exercises, miscellaneous recipes, and the like. For anyone who really wants advice on racing, try Pfitzinger, Higdon or Glover.

Everything you need to get started or improve your running skills in one place. Includes helpful instructions, motivation, nutrition advice and beneficial cross training tips. Enjoyable read, especially for the beginner runner.

I just wanted to let you know that your book is awesome. It has so much information in it, in one place. Usually I have to one thing here and go to another website for something else. But this book has tons of information all in one place, so it is great and a time saver! Also some of the stuff I notice while browsing through the book I don't remember seeing in books before. I have ran other races (5K, 10K, and 5 milers), but this spring I am training for my first half marathon (LV Half Marathon & helping to put it together with the LVRR) this book will be a great resource for me and other races to come. Thank you so much!

Handy book and quite universal in that the pages are undated, but most of the measurements are in US measurements. Quite annoying for the rest of the word - the pace charts would be wonderful if they were in km and not in miles.

It doesn't have everything I want in it. The log is really basic. It has three lines, one for running, one for swimming (in yards-I count in meters), and one for biking...for each day. I really would like more space to write, more guiding questions about the day (e.g. Weather, temp., time of day), a space for cross-training (e.g. elliptical, weights), space for calories in and out, weight, and space for split times. If I ran or biked twice in one day, there is only one small space for miles/time. But again, I guess since it's my first tri, it's better than writing on pieces of scratch paper as I was doing before.

I like it better than the online site I was using, because there is more space for notes. Wish there were lines for general notes not pertaining to a specific workout, but there's space to write in the margins. Very easy to use & flexible. No wasted space. Good tips.

I'm in my 4th season of triathlon (go SeaTri!) about to do my first marathon. I've tried other logs with more boxes to fill in but they're too customized to someone else, I like that this is a pretty unstructured format. I tried making my own but I made it 8.5x11 and it was too unweildy, so I've come back to this log again and I actually use it. I like the week totals, it's very satisfying to see my marathon training milage ramp up. In the review section I put reminders like gear I need to replace or drinks that did or didn't work for me. I follow their recommendation of drawing a diagonal line across days I didn't work out and it gives a good quick sense of whether or not I'm slacking. My biggest drawback is I have messy handwriting (keyboard junkie ;-) so I have trouble staying between the small lines. I could go digital, but I like that this can kick around in my closet by my gear.

Interesting book for any 'Bama fan. The excellence, glorious moments, Bear Bryant legacy, rivalries... The history of Crimson Tide Football is inside this book. Each chapter is written in a quick way and with a lot of curious articles... A total must-read.

To the best of my knowledge Fireside Publishing has issued three similar type "history of" books about specific college football teams within the last two years. This is one of them; the other two being about Arkansas and Texas. If you are strictly an Alabama fan then you'll probably like it and be happy that it has been added to your collection. However, if you are like me, a sports/college football book collector with no particular attachment to any one team, you'll want to bypass this one and obtain the one about Arkansas. I'm always looking out for publications that offer a large and varied collections of pictures that I've never seen before. (This is definitely hard to do!!!) ALWAYS ALABAMA is disappointing in this regard, particularly given the great winning history of the Crimson Tide. There are too many pictures that appear in other books, the quality of some color pictures are sub-standard, and there are hardly any pics of the non-stars. Whereas the book about the Razorbooks is outstanding. It's a shame that the same effort and attention to detail, at least concerning pictures, was not put into this book. I haven't finished reading it yet, but there does seem to be some interesting little stories and remembrances.

I open all Alabama football books with a skeptical eye. There have been too many poorly done books on the subject. But "Always Alabama" is well done and the best combination of storytelling and pictures I've seen. I was shocked by how many interviews the author did and the fresh perspectives -- even talking to players from the losing Sugar Bowl Penn State team. He added a nice twist by talking to long-time Alabama sports writers. These guys weren't afraid to say what they think. The Bryant pictures in this book were outstanding. It's a fun book, but has actual substance to it, too.

Bill's a pretty funny guy and I well remember his stand-up routines during those long cold nights at the Albany Times Union where he was a young sportswriter, but it doesn't come across very well here. He's at his best doing stand-up. His SI column has never worked either.

Bill Sheft is the best. This book is so great! I very much enjoyed reading this book and his weekly articles in SI.

In this collection, Scheft has gathered some of his best material, along with adding some new jokes, to create a collection that has some ups to go along with too many downs. Too many of the jokes just fall flat (you can almost hear the little drum kick after some of them), and some of them already feel dated. There are some great lines, but they're unfortunately too few.

Scheft, a former writer for David Letterman, now writes what I consider to be one of the weaker elements of SI - a humor column that isn't often funny. I don't doubt that Scheft is funny, especially given the fact that Larry David sings his praises. However, that humor just doesn't come through in this book, and much of it can seem monotonous.

I think this may have worked better if the book was shorter, given that they could have been more selective about choosing material. Or perhaps they should have waited longer, until Scheft had enough quality jokes to justify the length of the book.

This is a fun book to flip through for a few minutes, but certainly not an essential read.