Rating: 
Summary: Stick with this book, the results are worth it
Review: I have to say, I have become a true believer in this program. Is it rigid? Absolutely. Do you see results if you stick to this program? Absolutely. As other reviewers have commented, Core Performance, at first glance, seems to have very basic exercises and almost too much content to the point of being overwhelming. In fact, after I purchased this book, it sat on my coffee table for a week before I dove in. But once you make the jump into the program, it is definitely worth the effort. I was a gym defector for the last 6 months and needed a very planned program so I could feel that I was accomplishing something. For me, I love having a 'checklist' of sorts for each day. The only negative - I could of done without the 'inspirational' stories about Mia Hamm, etc, but outside of that - great book.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent book for advanced or beginner
Review: I have worked out for years, and despite seeing good increases in my strength and muscle mass, I could never attain the 'athletic body' I wanted. I was also frustrated because my sports performance was diminishing as I got older. I have read books on stretching, plyometrics, pilates, etc., and have tried to add aspects of them into my workout. This book was the first I have found to incorporate all aspects of fitness - aerobics, strength, balance, flexibility, and power - into one comprehensive workout that doesn't overemphasize one thing over another. Don't let yourself be fooled when you browse through the pages of this book. This is a demanding workout that will definitely get your blood pumping. In only a few weeks I can see a tangible difference, especially around my midsection, and have lost five pounds. I'm not even to the really hard part yet! The program starts with basic flexibility, balance, and strength routines, and then progresses into more advanced circuit training and power training while keeping the fundamentals of flexibility and balance. The early sections of the program are structured so that they can be suited to beginners or advanced. Only in the later stages of the program when advanced plyometrics are introduced does it become more demanding than a beginner could handle (i.e., bench presses followed by plyometric pushups). The best result, though, has been the reaction of others. At a recent meeting, someone asked me if I was a triathlete, because 'I looked like one'. The person who asked was an avid triathlete himself. I also notice women checking me out A LOT, which is great for my ego.
Rating: 
Summary: Too much about Pete, too little about substance
Review: I liked the front flap's inspirational spirit. The rest of the book is "too much to do about nothing". The book contains 59 references to "elasticity", 11 references to "Pete William", but only ONE reference to spinal discs and SIX to hormones. The author coins the term "elasticity" but fails to define it in a scientific context. The book stands as a classic example of the epidemic of poverty of knowledge and lack of education among personal trainers. The author contends that he has a revolutionary approach to workout, yet offers a haphazard collection of exercises and illogical strategy of training. The book lists sets and repetitions for exercises without quantifying the net weekly or monthly load volume that can enhance physical strength. Exercises are thrown in workouts without proper linking to anatomical sequence or functional gain. For example, Leg Curls, Split Squat, and Backward Lunge are prescribed without good explanation on the difference in gain between them, the Romanian Deadlift is prescribed in sets of 6 to 8 repetitions, which defeats the purpose of gaining strength. The author makes false statements, such as "caffeine abuse may damage your adrenals", page 217, and "Exercise causes the release of positive hormones", page 248. Such unpreparedness on the side of the author and the cluttering the book with unsubstantiated methods of training and dieting contribute to the confusion and suspicion of people about commercial health and fitness plots. On a personal note, when I sent my book to Barnes & Noble for review and display in their retail stores, I received a rejection letter from their Small Press Department representative, Diane Simowski. The letter states the following reasons for rejection: (1) The competition in fitness books is fierce, (2) Only titles with greatest name recognition, smartest design, and most aggressive promotion and publicity campaigns achieve a significant sales pattern. The lady (Diane Simowski) has no clue what I was writing about (that was Weightlifting) and did not care about my academic qualifications or national scientific awards, yet she was able to suppress my book from appearing in those national bookstores. Here you can discern, form this book and Arnold's encyclopedia of Bodybuilding, that books that could cause serious setbacks to the sport of strength training and that are authored by unqualified writers can get to the greater public, just because they have publicity, great design, or name recognition.
Rating:
Summary: Great book but...
Review: I love this book. Have worked out extensively for years but this makes so much more sense than what I had been doing. The Movement Prep section alone is worth the price. I went ahead and ordered the CD to be sure I was doing the movements correctly.
My question is for Mark Verstegen is this - the additional training logs at the back of the book state they are new, but they are exactly like the training program listed earlier. This is very dissapointing as I was looking forward to my next 12 weeks on a different progam. Is this a mistake? If it's not a mistake it sure is a waste of paper. If it is a mistake, how do you get the new training logs. Can't get them on the coreperformance.com site (or much of anything else).
To the reviewer who says the program is too complicated, I urge you to take the time to understand the program. It will be worth it.
Rating: 
Summary: Effective, but quite complicated
Review: I'm an ex-personal trainer and very into the science of training. For a while I've been training strictly bodybuilding to maximize size. However I had some nagging hip joint issues, and having started martial arts recently I wanted something that would really cover all bases, and overall make me a better athlete.
On that, Core Performance delivers. My flexibility, cardiovascular capacity, and core strength have skyrocketed all by week three of the program. I'm left feeling energized and physically capable. I don't doubt that the athletes Mark trains receive a more intensive version of this program and that is it quite effective for them. If you're someone who fancies yourself quite active and in shape, the first weeks of this program will humble you (in a good way).
This program's immense value is derived from its emphasis on completeness. Flexibility and core strength are two frequently ignored elements in most programs, with grave consequences. Weight training with inflexible and potentially dysfunctional joints invites injury and can incur unbelievable pain and medical cost later in life. Core Performance, by embracing these less popular program elements, ensures that you will be active with minimal joint issues well into old age. The value of that I cannot emphasize enough.
I do however have two major caveats.
Firstly, the book is lacking in technical justification. I'm someone who always seeks to understand the "why" behind the "how," and there's barely any of that in Core Performance. I have faith in the content, because I know why most of it works from knowledge I've gained elsewhere. And let me say, it is a soundly supported program, both scientifically and empirically. However, if you don't already know a lot of exercise physiology then you'll have to take all of this on faith.
Secondly, the program is grossly underexplained. Given my background, I still frequently struggle to piece together a particular movement or understand the methodology presented. The pictures and descriptions are somewhat helpful, but only because I've seen and done similar things before and know what the goal of each movement is. If I were the target demographic -- an older, potentially sedentary individual -- I would be completely clueless.
Mark does offer a CD that supposedly has audio explanations and video of all the movements. This sounds immensely helpful, but it's an additional $20 from his website. And, given that I paid some $35 retail for the book, I'd expect something like that to be included. Alternatively, personal coaching from someone who has already done the program would suffice.
Summary: great program, remarkably effective, but very confusing. Without a substantial background in exercise physiology, be prepared to buy the supplementary CD or try to find someone who already knows it.
Rating:
Summary: More Praise
Review: I'm another long time exerciser that has become a believer in Mark Verstegen's program. I've had back problems for the last 8 years and after 2 weeks of the exercises in the book I've seen much improvement. I'm also starting to see improvement in quickness when playing ball with my kids. Mark's book provides a 12 week program to increase your functional fitness, not how much you bench press (though that will go up) but giving you fitness for athletic and real world activities. A suggestion would be for this book to be spiral bound as many people will want to use it as a reference during their training. As an alternative you may want to purchase the CD Mark has on his website. It has printable copies of the exercises and programs as well as video clips of the exercises in an easy to use format. Also consider purchasing the book Functional Training for Sports by Mike Boyle. Mr Boyle works with Mark at his training center. Mark's book is written more for the hard core athlete, but after reading Core Performance, Functional Training... is very easy to understand and provides many supplemental exercises to add to the Core Performance Program
Rating: 
Summary: Great workouts; great nutrition advice; But too many gaps
Review: I've been through the book and following the program for 12 weeks. It has helped me increase fitness, but not reduced my bodyfat despite following a strict diet (15%).
In my opinon, there are too many gaps in this approach. It's a 12 week program that doesn't consider your level of fitness. The program implies that you just follow the routines and you'll have a fit body. This cookie cutter approach doesn't work for most people. I have the same complaint about most fitness books! So that doesn't mean don't buy the book, but Buyer Beware.
For instance, a beginner will be overwhelmed by this program because it doesn't adequately prepare small muscles and connective tissue to the rigors of full body exercises. Plyometrics (the elasticity excercises) is too strenuous for the average beginner, yet the book starts you there after 3 weeks!
If you are experienced then you may find the routines too easy....since you skip the first 3 weeks (phase I). That leaves you with a 9 week program. Some of the plyometrics are too easy for experienced athletes, such as the side to side jump.
Another flaw is the lack of suggested weight lifting levels. There are no suggestions for the amount of weight to lift. Do you used the same weight for all sets or do you increase? There are several typos, blanks spots such as this. One phase leaves off Friday in the third week. According to the author (via the week site) this is supposed to be a rest day, but there's no mention of it in the book.
There is no mention of rest after the 12 weeks (or 9). Lack of rest will slow development and cause injuries.
As for positives, the supersets in Phase 3 and 4 are challenging. The exercises are well thought out and if you are in good shape to start with the program will increase core strength and overall endurance and fitness. The information on eating for fitness are excellent. Get the DVD to watch the exercises being done properly.
I took the book, copied the pages and the pictures, and put together my own exercise book. But I have experience doing this. A beginner will be lost in my opinion.
If you're new to exercise and fitness then your best bet is to see a Certified Physical Trainer, get evaluated, and have them set up a program for you. You need someone to watch you do the exercises to avoid injury and get the most benefit. Then buy a book on Sports Nutrition.
Rating:
Summary: Take it to the highest level
Review: If you have been working out for a while and are already comfortable in the gym, this book adds a whole new dimension to fitness. What is exciting is how the author infuses contemporary training methods with the core concepts of Pilates. This is for serious people who are committed to being fit, lean, strong and flexible. It is not for novices, who, like myself two years ago, started out with Bill Phillips' excellent Body for Life program.
Rating:
Summary: Read it, follow it, reap the benefits
Review: If you read this book thoroughly and follow it as closely as possible, you will run faster, jump higher, throw harder, and hit a ball further than you ever have. This book is phenominal and will transform your body and athletic ability, but you have to be ready for the challenge. I love what it has done for me in the batters box and on the mound.
Rating:
Summary: I lost 90lbs on Marks program
Review: If you're not lucky enough to be a professional athlete, and you can't afford to pay a ton of money to train with Verstegen then this book is the next best thing. I was fortunate enough to train with Mark in 2000 when I was preparing for the NFL draft; in just a few weeks I learned more about the way the body works and how to turn myself into a champion than in five years of playing college football. While playing in the NFL I used Marks regiment to maintain a 315lb playing weight. Now that I have retired I have used Marks training and eating program to loose 90lbs, and I've kept the weight off with no problem. If you want the most cutting edge information on how to train, eat, and prepare like a professional this is the book for you. Mark is the best; ask some of the world's top athletes, they will tell you the same.
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