What is this product and what does it claim?
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Product Description
If you're asking the question, "Is this the ONLY way to get in shape?" when faced with the prospect of long, slow, distance workouts for building endurance and burning fat, the answer is a resounding NO! There are so many alternative ways to do endurance work, you could fill a book - and in fact, here it is.
This well-written, well-organized handbook is truly your A-to-Z guide to building a high level of conditioning and endurance. It includes: 1) a concise presentation of the physiology of training; 2) the general concepts you need to put together effective programs; 3) numerous exercises within 12 different modalities (e.g., agility, sandbag, grappling, bodyweight); and 4) myriad sample workouts and routines. 208 pp.
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Who is the author?
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Brian Jones has an MS in exercise physiology and is a doctoral candidate at the University of Kentucky. He has been involved in strength and conditioning for many years and has trained athletes in a variety of sports from the high shool to professional level. A judo and Brazilian jiujitsu instructor, Brian is especially interested in strength and conditioning as it applies to competetive fighters. Brian is the author of the popular "The Complete Sandbag Training Course", which has made sandbag training a staple in many strength and conditioning programs.
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Where can I get it and how much does it cost?
$25 at Amazon
Review:
Binding\Design\Paper Quality
This soft back is somewhat small in stature and weighing in at roughly 200pgs. The paper is good quality, thick, and sturdy with no bleed through. The print might be just one font size smaller (perhaps an abnormal font?) than I’d like. It’s not impossible to read but just a little uncomfortable. There are many pictures in the book. All of which are small, high quality, BW, and to the point which compliment VS. dominate the pages.
Layout\Commentary:
The book progresses in a logical and easy to follow manner:
Chapter 1 – pgs 12-24 Discusses Physiology of Conditioning.
It’s a pleasant departure from the norm giving background on the energy systems and whatnot but focusing the information in a relevant way. You’re not being bombarded with information on what role calcium plays in a muscle contraction so much of what energy systems are\mean and how to apply that knowledge in a meaningful way.
Chapter 2 – pgs 26-68 Programming
Is a hit or miss chapter depending on your expectations. The largest portion of this chapter (almost twenty pages or half of the chapter) is “workout formats” which isn’t a far departure from most of chapter 4 “workouts”. There’s nothing wrong with presenting workout modalities, I’m just not convinced that it’s “programming” so much as presentation. If there were a reason to pick one modularity over another (short of practicality or interest) and it was presented….programming. No? No.
That said the legitimate programming advice is good. The Conditioning Handbook throws out considerations per workout and grander scheme of your training world including training for specific context (sports).
Chapter 3 pgs 70-132 Training Modalities Chapter 4 pgs 134-179 Workouts
I think the word that would best describe these two chapters is “exhaustive”. Chapter three is essentially an exercise listing coving everything from weight training, punching someone in the nose, to bands, to Indian clubs. If you want to ponder something that can be used in a conditioning context then look no further because it’s probably there.
Chapter four brings everything together and presents a long line of conditioning workouts in a variety of contexts (combat\running\law enforcement\jump rope) and even throws in a 6 and 12 week program
The Appendix: pgs 193-201
Here is a small collection of articles by Zach Even-Esh, Micheal Fry, and Jamie Hale. It’s a bit of “extra” giving some perspective on how to apply what you’ve been learning. Interesting, but nothing really worth commenting on.
Final Thoughts:
I really wasn’t expecting much out of this one when I bought it but can easily give The Conditioning Handbook the thumbs up. The programming isn’t quite as fleshed out as it might be but that’s more than made up for by an extremely impressive listing of exercises and sample workouts\modularity’s (for the lazy). While never going particularly deep into any particular aspect of training or training goal it lightly touches on a staggering number of topics and applications for. Good job.
This is recommended for most. If you’re interested in conditioning and getting some ideas on how to put together a workout and keep things interesting for some time to come OR you just want to skip to the end and so the sample programming, you’re probably going to find SOMETHING interesting here.
GG's - The Conditioning Handbook
"I'm growing older but not up. My metabolic rate is pleasantly stuck. So let the winds of change blow over my head. I'd rather die while I'm living then live while I'm dead."
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