Rating: 
Summary: If it sounds too good to be true...
Review: I am an extremely active woman. I run 20-30 miles per week and work out at a gym 2-3 times per week. I decided that I wanted to lose some inches and gain some strength to improve my running and that's when I found this book.
After following the program "to the letter" for over six months, I found that I had lost a miniscule amount of fat/inches and had definitely lost the fun in gym workouts.
Two days per week is simply not sufficient for fat loss or good tone and does not work at all for sculpting and toning. I gave the program six months and that was enough.
I'm presently using one of the workout plans from "Total Strength Training for Women." by Amazin Lethi. It's excellent.
Rating: 
Summary: Very Good
Review: I bought Power of 10 almost a year ago, and read through it. Tried a few workouts at home, and then wandered onto other things.
When the school I work at installed a complete Nautilus Nitro based gym, I picked the book up, read it again, and have been quite pleased with the results.
I workout, approximatetly, 20 miuntes, one time per week. I am certainly getting stronger, and my body composition is getting more tonus. During the Christmas Holidays I took a few weeks off and Airdyned 4-5 days a week instead of lifting, having returned now to Power of 10, I am seeing my weight decrease, and strength returning.
This is a great way to stay in shape. It will not help you train for a marathon or climb Everest, but if your goal is to be fit, have a better shape then you have had, and have increased strength for your weekend golf match, or Thursday night softball game, this is the deal.
Rating:
Summary: Honest... This is a Miracle!!
Review: I can't tell you how wonderful this program is! I haven't even tried to lose weight, and I've lost 10 lbs! Everything Adam says is true! If you stick with the program (who couldn't)you will see the results! I adore this program! I've even gotten family members to try it! I'm 130 lbs, and I can leg press 460! Try it! You WILL see results!
Rating: 
Summary: A great book- the system really works
Review: I picked up this book in late December and started the program in January. My main motivation was to spend less time at the gym so I could pursue martial arts. I just didn't have the time for karate with doing weight training 3 times a week and cardio 3-4 times a week. Well, I was a tight size 8 before I started and now I am a size 4. I really didn't expect to lose weight or inches just to maintain my fitness level. I also read the "Slow Burn Fitness " book which is very informative. I feel Slow Burn does go into the science of why it works better than "power of 10" but on a practical level it is a bit harder to follow. It also does not discuss the nutrition aspect as well as power of 10. From the Power of 10 I realized that I was actually working TOO HARD and neglecting rest, which is highly underrated in my opinion. I always thought I was not seeing progress because I was not doing enough but in reality I was not giving my body a chance to build the muscle. People have asked me how I lost the weight and I tell them " I stopped trying so hard. " The nutrition plan is very easy to take, similar to "Body for Life " but better because it doesn't push alot of supplements and shakes. It is very simple and balanced. Eat protein with every meal. Don't eliminate carbs- just the low quality white carbs. Don't deprive yourself totally- eat what you want one day a week. Honestly, I am not even that strict about keeping to the nutrition program and I am still losing inches! I don't agree about the book's claim that cardio is totally unnecessary but I agree that cardio has been overrated. Now my weight training is a priority and if I have time for the cardio ( which I love for stress relief anyway ) I do it. I do feel less pressure to do the strenous cardio however so if I want to take a brisk walk rather than an intense spin class I don't feel guilty. If I feel like it I do intense cardio like spin classes for 30 minutes rather than a full hour class. If you are getting frustrated with your progress in your usual routine or want to start working out and don't have much time, do yourself a favor and start this program. It really works. A note to women: When explaining my new regime to trainers at my gym and others involved in fitness, they responded by saying that this sort of program will build too much bulk in women. This was not my experience at all and I tend to bulk up. I think that the nutrition and exercise program helped me lose some of the surface layers of fat that were laying on top of the muscle I had. I am definitely trimmer than I was before. (...)
Rating:
Summary: Dogma vs. Dogma (and the grey truth somewhere in between)
Review: I preface this by saying that I am a certified Superslow Instructor. However, I enjoy a fair debate as much as the next.Many, many, many people seem confused as to 2 topics:
1. Cardiovascular health and it's relationship to aerobics
2. Fast Twitch vs. Slow Twitch muscle fibres and how they are recruited by the body. I will touch on this and give readers a bit of "Grist for the mill". 1. Superslow Protocol is cardio, but not in the traditional sense. Let me explain; muscles require blood and oxygen in order to function. As you fatigue your muscles and they start using more oxygen, you will begin to pump blood faster and breath faster. Your body doesn't know if you're running or strength training; it only knows that you need more blood and more oxygen. Furthermore, the heart and lungs are not like skeletal muscles, as they are constantly working and intense bursts of intensity may be all they need to stay in top shape. Also, there has been no definate link between cardiovascular ability and cardiovascular health. This may explain why marathon runners have dropped dead of heart attacks and a pack-a-day smoker lives to be 90. On a personal note, Superslow has taxed my aerobic ability greater than baskeball ever did. I am still out of breath 30 minutes after I finish and 2 hours later I still have shortness in my breathing. 2.Fast twitch vs. slow twitch is easily explained. Recruitment of these fibres has nothing to do with the speed of the movement, but rather the weight on the movement. Your body recruits muscle fibres in in order (slow, medium, fast, fast-glycolitic). Walking around and doing mildly difficult daily tasks uses only slow twitch. When you do superslow or any heavy weight training, you will recruit up to fast twitch because the movement is so heavy. Any muscle physiology book will explain this in further detail. I just want to close with this final thought: these types of arguements are on many, many message boards without good reason. People are arguing weight training, this is not a religious arguement of any sort, thou some treat it that way. Relax, keep an open mind and remember, if not for thinkers in this field, you'd all still be trying to work out 7 days per week/4 hours per day.
Rating:
Summary: Easy to follow and effective
Review: I've enjoyed reading Zickermans's book and also enjoy the workouts! Being a general skeptic I did a fair amount of research into some of the background concepts he's drawing on, specifically SuperSlow weight training. The ideas regarding muscle cells and metabolic changes via lean muscle mass are quite real and well substantiated. I'm now convinced that a) weight training is the key to staying fit and b) SuperSlow methods are the best way to weight train. They are simply more efficent and less dangerous. And they *feel* right - you feel like you really are working your body, and you're not worried about injuring yourself. I always thought that there was something wrong with having to go to the gym three or four times a week and operate those tedious steppers and treadmills. That kind of workout made me feel like Sisyphus rolling the rock up the hill, all the while knowing you'll very soon have to do it again. Worst-case scenario: over the long term we find out that once-a-week is too good to be true, i.e. it isn't quite often enough; it will still be the case that SuperSlow weight training is more efficient than other methods, thereby requiring less time at the gym and achieving better results. Ultimately, I'm very glad someone like Zickerman has taken the pains to make these insights public, and done so in such a conversational accessible style. Cheers Adam.
Rating:
Summary: Well-written science
Review: I've enjoyed reading Zickermans's book and also enjoy the workouts! Being a general skeptic I did a fair amount of research into some of the background concepts he's drawing on, specifically SuperSlow weight training. The ideas regarding muscle cells and metabolic changes via lean muscle mass are quite real and well substantiated. I'm now convinced that a) weight training is the key to staying fit and b) SuperSlow methods are the best way to weight train. They are simply more efficent and less dangerous. And they *feel* right - you feel like you really are working your body, and you're not worried about injuring yourself. I always thought that there was something wrong with having to go to the gym three or four times a week and operate those tedious steppers and treadmills. That kind of workout made me feel like Sisyphus rolling the rock up the hill, all the while knowing you'll very soon have to do it again. Worst-case scenario: over the long term we find out that once-a-week is too good to be true, i.e. it isn't quite often enough; it will still be the case that SuperSlow weight training is more efficient than other methods, thereby requiring less time at the gym and achieving better results. Ultimately, I'm very glad someone like Zickerman has taken the pains to make these insights public, and done so in such a conversational accessible style. Cheers Adam.
Rating:
Summary: the program might be good but this book isn't
Review: If you know absolutely nothing about weight training then this book *might* offer something to you. If you *do* know something, then the book is almost worthless. The Power-of-10 program is so simple it can be explained in less than a page, so why is an entire book needed? Ideally, the book would contain lots of explanation -- preferably backed by rigorous scientific studies, or at least empirical anecdotes -- to explain why slow-lifting is as good or better than the traditional methods. But you won't find any of that here. If you know anything about weight lifting this book does nothing to dispel your questions about the slow-lifting methods espoused within. What do you do when you hit a plateau? What about the usual concerns of always doing exactly the same exercises in the exactly the same range of motion? Are the *only* benefits from cardio weight loss? Instead you'll get passing mention of one study that found an initial benefit when pregnant women slow-lifted and scads of anecdotes that basically all say, "I've been doing Power-of-10 for X months/years and I've never felt better." How much has their BMI decreased? Or the 1RM increased? Or their waist shrunk? Or their arms increased? Just give me *something* to go on other than a single study and a bunch of "I feel great" anecdotes. Power-of-10 might very well be a great program that works but there isn't much in the book to convince you of that. And the actual program itself is so simple it seems to silly to pay money for this book when a simple google search will turn up a dozen web pages that explain the program just as well but without all of the excess verbiage.
Rating:
Summary: Good Content but Author is Clueless on Sweeteners
Review: The workouts work! Plain and simple! However Zickerman states more than once in the book that 'manitol, sorbitol, and xylitol' sweetners are bad. He missed the fact that xylitol is a low-caloric sweetner. Other than that I enjoyed the book and am enjoying my sore muscles too. Combining Power of 10 work outs with Dr. Atkins diet is making a huge difference in my life. I can now lift as much or more in slow motion now as I could lift the old way! Highly recommended for the workout part of the book.
Rating:
Summary: It Does Work
Review: This book was marketed towards the large market of people in the United States who have: no time. Individuals who don't have time to do--anything. And one of the many things they don't have time for is--being healthy, or maintaining their health by exercising on a regular basis. Perhaps the title should be: "The slow-motion lifestyle revolution," not the "slow-motion fitness revolution." There is plenty of helpful information to help people workout properly at home using dumbbells which can provide a full body workout. Stretching, and even the medicine ball are thrown in. Illustrations, a muscle directory, and directions of how to exercise with proper form are provided. Cheating and poor form also noted in particular. One piece of particularly helpful advice for example, is the one-legged standing calf-raise. Zickerman doesn't recommend using the Smith Bar for standing calf raises because it compacts the spinal chord. Good advice. Zickerman is qualified and experienced and his approach has produced results for me that were very positive for a period of time. The effect of eccentric or negative training, which is the slow movement of heavy weight, (on the way down) helps build endurance. Over time however, the body adapts. Going to maximum failure, which this program advocates does tap into the Central Nervous System (CNS), and this not appropriate for everyone. The ten second concentric and the 10 second eccentric movements are designed for people to achieve maximum failure as the author claims, in approximately twenty minutes, or a little more. The assertion that this can burn fat, increase metabolism, and spur LBM growth is definitely pushing it for the other six days of the week has not been corroborated by valid research studies. There are several different workout programs: HST, Power/Rep. Range/ Shock, West-side, High Intensity Training (HIT), Pyramid training, AVT, and so on. The power of 10 is one among many. For neophytes and those who only want to only put in twenty minutes of effort during a full week, this will suffice. But the results won't necessarily be sufficient. For some it will work; others it won't. The symptoms of an unhealthy lifestyle which is endemic today isn't solved by a particular workout program, because it is caused by a lack of time and commitment, which is the cause of the problem in the first place. Reiterating the point and theme of this book is important because it's why it recommends what it does. "The Power of 10" was written specifically to be marketed to Americans who don't have the time, will, nor motivation to do what's necessary to achieve or maintain a healthy lifestyle.
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