First and foremost, if you have not read and are not trying to implement at LEAST Starting Strength if not Practical Programming as well, you’re pretty much wasting your time. This book serves as both a FAQ and a philosophical expansion of those two books.

If you are implementing Starting Strength, this is a fantastic and extremely necessary companion for you. While the forum on the website is helpful, your question has probably already been asked and answered and it’s probably in this book. There’s no need to find it and bookmark it, or print it out, it’s all right here.

As for the writing style….Mark is not one of those fluffy “motivational” personal trainers. He has a strong, biting, sarcastic wit about him and it translates into his writing, even more clearly than in “Strong Enough?” I imagine some people will be turned off by that, but it’s their loss. Speaking of that book, with the existence of Mean ‘Ol Mr. Gravity, Strong Enough is now pretty much unnecessary beyond being a fan of Mark, if your goal is to gain strength training knowledge.

This book has a very specific purpose and it does very well at that. If you need it, get it. If you’re looking for a more generalized text, get Starting Strength or The Strongest Shall Survive (or both).

– Christopher M. Hickman, Channahon, IL

[Originally posted on Amazon, January 15, 2010]