training

A popular, (and successful), philosophy among strength trainers is to train harder and briefer. This theme hasn't been applied to the abdominal muscles,(check all the high rep, low resistance 'tools' on TV ads), UNTIL NOW. Pavel uses the the latest knowledge to TRULY isolate, (crunches won't do it), the abs for the first time. What this means is brief sets like never before, ( those ' 6 minutes workouts' for the abs are NOT brief, just trying doing six minutes of crunches). Imagine doing a set of revised situps that stress the abs so well that you've had your best ab workout ever in less than ONE minute! No comparison; the only ab book worth getting.

I won't waste your time with bull.

You want abdominals? Those showy, model abdominals?

Well, those are made in the kitchen. Sorry. Buy "The Metabolic Diet" by Mauro Di Pasquale and lose that spare tire. Also, take a look at "The Russian Kettlebell Challenge" (also by Pavel Tsatsouline) to lose fat and put on muscle at the same time.

You're still here? Oh, I see. You want ABDOMINALS. Not JUST showy, model abdominals, but abs that can stabilize your core with no belt when you're deadlifting 500+ pounds, abs that can take that ham-fisted brawler's hand and laugh it off, abs that are good enough to do circus tricks with, abs that you can build in your basement with less than ten bucks worth of equipment? (Or no equipment at all?)

Pavel's the man that you want for that job, and in this book he tells you how to build a world class midsection capable of these feats and more.

He explains where the conventional thinking on abdominal training in the US went wrong, and why training his way is better. He'll teach you how to make your abs and obliques into "team players" so you can throw farther, punch harder, and drive that golf ball like you've never done before. Moreover, he teaches you "forgotten" midsection breathing techniques and high tension techniques from martial arts that will make all the difference in your abdominal training.

The one thing--the ONLY thing--I don't like about this book is the eight pages he spends hawking his "Ab Pavelizer". I wouldn't mind it so much if he showed you how to correctly perform the Janda situp with a partner, as well, but he doesn't.

The upside of this issue is the website featured in the book. Pavel (or one of the other "comrades") will be happy to tell you how to perfrom the Janda situp correctly. The "tech support" for all of his products is awesome.

I give this product five stars because, if you're like me, you know all of the conventional theories on ab training, you've tried them, and you haven't gotten anywhere. (Or at least not as far as you've wanted to go.) Pavel shows you how to break through that barrier, and he turns all of your previous knowledge on the subject into "superknowledge"--because you can combine many of his techniques with other things that you already know.

Pavel's training is on an entirely different level than 90% of the training literature out there. I can't reccomend his books highly enough.

This book includes a lot of unique & rare info. I particularly liked the info about breathing techniques to use with the exercises. Pavel includes a wide variety of techniques from various disciplines including yoga & martial arts, plus a lot of stregnth-training type exercises. I ended up buying the Pavelizer equipment he discusses in the book, and it is very effective. I also liked the fact that it does not strain my neck. As a belly dance teacher & performer, I'm obsessed with abs, and I've recommended this gem of a book to my students.