Teach Yourself Visually Weight Training

Rating:
Summary: If you can have only one reference for training, this is it
Review: After 50 my strength started to diminish. I started a strength training class at a very good health facility. I found I wanted to understand more about what and why we were doing specific curls, presses, etc and for a given number of reps. I checked this book out of the library. It answered all my whys and more so I am buying the book. Everyone who wants to improve there strength needs this book.

Rating:
Summary: If you can have only one reference for training, this is it
Review: After 50 my strength started to diminish. I started a strength training class at a very good health facility. I found I wanted to understand more about what and why we were doing specific curls, presses, etc and for a given number of reps. I checked this book out of the library. It answered all my whys and more so I am buying the book. Everyone who wants to improve there strength needs this book.

Rating:
Summary: Get the most out of your gym membership
Review: I am a student, so I have a small budget when it comes to exercise. Personal training is out of the question, and at most gyms that I have belonged to over the years, staff and/or trainers rarely offer advice when they spot a member grossly misusing a piece of equipment.

I purchased this book used from Amazon, and it really opened my eyes. I am not intimidated by any piece of equipment anymore, and I have seen more results in terms of weight loss and muscle tone than I have previously.

The book has sections on each muscle group, and it includes sections on stability balls, exercise tubing, and stretching. The stability ball is a great addition to my training!

For me, the least useful section is the nutrition section. It is based on the Food Pyramid, which is a little outdated. I also wish there were a little more on sample routines and circuit traning.

The pictorial lessons on what not to do are invaluable. I read this guide every week to make sure my form is good before I begin. This is the single best exercise book in my library, and I recommend it for anyone who cannot afford a personal trainer.

Rating:
Summary: Very impressed
Review: I am very impressed with this book. It has very nice graphics and an extensive collection of different exercises. Stretching, ball exercises, free weights, machines and more. Best graphic book I have seen on weight lifting. It is very good for beginners.

Rating:
Summary: Helped me get more out of my weight training
Review: I cross country ski race and have been lifting weights for years without any instruction - I've just learned by watching others and seeing pictures in some of the XC ski racing books I've purchased over the years. But I always knew I was missing something: proper form. I'd looked at some of the body building books, but their focus on massive muscle building was not for me - I want fast, small muscles. Excessive bulk just makes it harder to climb hills in a race!

It was with great pleasure that I stumbled on to "Teach Yourself Visual: Weight Training." From my perspective, there are several major benefits to this book:

First, the book has sections for weight machines, free weights, exercise balls, and stretch tubes. I've used all in my training, and it's really valuable to have examples of each in one book. Obviously, the book can't show you every machine out there, but it does provide hints on how you can utilize other equipment.

Second, the book provides clear examples of what to do and - more importantly - what not to do. I found out after all these years that you really need to tighten your abs when you lift. I found that some of the back problems I had been experiencing disapeared as soon as I followed that tip. That simple hint alone was worth the cost of the book.

Third, it clearly shows what muscles are being exercised and tells you ways to make the various exercise easier or harder to fit your conditioning level.

For people who may feel a little imtimidated by books showing muscle-bound, high testosterone men and women, this book is very non-threatening. It provides simple, straight-forward examples using people who look "normal."

There's lots of other info that's useful, too.

Overall: HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

Rating:
Summary: Your Personal Trainer in a book
Review: I have been training with weights for over 15 years, and I think if I were stranded on a desert island and could have only one book on weight training, this would be it. I own many books on the subject, but this is by far the most comprehensive and useful. It gives good photographic illustrations of the movements for free weights (barbell and dumbell) and machine workouts. The most useful for me is the illustrations of good form AND what NOT to do to get the most benefit out of a particular exercise. The text also includes suggestions for easier or more difficult versions of a particular exercise, or a variation which will target specific areas of a muscle or group of muscles. It is well organised and easy to follow. I spent hours with this book when I first acquired it, and have learned a wealth of information that I couldn't find in other books on the subject. This is also very down-to-earth advice and instruction, for your average, everyday person who just wants to get the most out of their workout with weights. I highly recommend this book. The one drawback, as another reviewer mentioned , is the outdated nutritional information. This is a minor complaint, really. Get your nutritional information elsewhere, but cherish this book for good solid weight training information.

Rating:
Summary: This was easy!!
Review: I learned to become a top bodybuilder all from the comfort of my couch! The book shows you how to just VISUALIZE lifting those dumbells over your head without having to lift a finger. Talk about a godsend for all of us armchair athletes and couch potatoes. Have the body of Vin Diesel while sitting in your reclyner! Earn the respect of the opposite sex! Move out of your mothers house!
Just VISUALIZE baby!!

Rating:
Summary: Cheaper than 1hr personal training. Maybe even better???
Review: I signed up with a gym and stayed away from the floor for five months. Lifting weights seemed so intimidating. I went through many weight-training books (including specifically said for women) and finally decided on this one and boy, am I glad! The gym gave me two free personal training sessions, but when you are new, you don't remember whole lot. Watching people work out doesn't always help, either. In my opinion, this is a perfect book if you choose to go to a gym and a very good book if you decide to set up a home gym. Most machines in my gym are covered and now I am learning more free weight options. I carry it to the gym often and just watch people exercise and read the portion while doing cardio. Then I read it carefully when I am learning the exercise. Several people asked me to show the book, too. It is no nonsense, straightforward, but very through book. It thought of everything by covering exercise ball and exercise tube. I actually found stretching part better than any stretching books, so I photocopied pictures and laminated and carry it with my log. My book is almost fallen apart!

Rating:
Summary: Cheaper than 1hr personal training. Maybe even better???
Review: I signed up with a gym and stayed away from the floor for five months. Lifting weights seemed so intimidating. I went through many weight-training books (including specifically said for women) and finally decided on this one and boy, am I glad! The gym gave me two free personal training sessions, but when you are new, you don't remember whole lot. Watching people work out doesn't always help, either. In my opinion, this is a perfect book if you choose to go to a gym and a very good book if you decide to set up a home gym. Most machines in my gym are covered and now I am learning more free weight options. I carry it to the gym often and just watch people exercise and read the portion while doing cardio. Then I read it carefully when I am learning the exercise. Several people asked me to show the book, too. It is no nonsense, straightforward, but very through book. It thought of everything by covering exercise ball and exercise tube. I actually found stretching part better than any stretching books, so I photocopied pictures and laminated and carry it with my log. My book is almost fallen apart!

Rating:
Summary: WOW....this is the best book for learning weight training
Review: I'm a female and have recently began weight training at the gym which I'm very lost.
To educate, I have purchased several books while working out with a personal trainer and I have to say....this is the most easy to understand book. This book has it all and I recommend it highly to anyone that wants to learn more about weight training. The pictures and visual description is outstanding and has helped me tremendously. PLEASE buy this book if you are new to weight training....it's the best out there!