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 enlarge | Author: Nick Evans
Publisher: Human Kinetics Publishers
Category: Book
List Price: $18.95
Buy New: $7.25
You Save: $11.70 (62%)
New (24) Used (21) from $5.12
Avg. Customer Rating:  20 reviews
Sales Rank: 87616
Media: Paperback
Edition: 1
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 203
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.5
Dimensions (in): 10.9 x 8.8 x 0.5
ISBN: 0736051414
Dewey Decimal Number: 613.713
EAN: 9780736051415
ASIN: 0736051414
Publication Date: December 2003
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: prompt shipping
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| Customer Reviews:
 Overall Good Book Though Some Questionable Moments October 16, 2006
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
Basically, there is a lot of really good information in the book. Obviously
being a doctor Nick Evans knows the physiology of the body intimately.
I liked the fact that he stressed not overtraining and backed up his suggestions
by explaining the processes the body has to go through to recover from a tough
workout.
The descriptions of the exercises are pretty good though sometimes the pictures
didn't seem to match the description. For example it says not to lower the elbows
below the level of the bench in Dumbell Chest Flys (pg 41) and in the picture
you see the elbows clearly below the level of the bench. This sort of oversight can be
confusing for someone who may be new to working out.
His intensity techniques and ways to combine them are certainly worthwhile.
I have used many of them before and they definitely will amp up your ability
to maximally hit the targeted muscles.
As far as negatives regarding the book. The thing that probably bothered me
the most is the way some of the supplements were treated. For example
Creatine. On one hand he'd mention some of the possible side effects but
then write them off as not being conclusive. To me,if there's enough negative
(even if it's anecdotal) evidence about a product then I don't think people should
mess with it and certainly a doctor shouldn't be recommending it. The first
rule a doctor should abide by is to do no harm. What's would he say ten years
from now if a whole bunch of his readers who used Creatine on his advice, had
permanent damage to their bodies. Saying "Sorry, I didn't know" later on isn't
going to cut it!
Also, his discussion of Pro-hormones contains the same sort of mixed message. I came
away from his discussion of them feeling that they weren't that much smarter
than messing around with steroids (similar possible side effects) so why on
earth would someone who should be interested in the health of the body (ie. a doctor)
recommend these at all. He should be telling people that under no uncertain
circumstances should they go near them. Remember, in Arnold's day steroids
were perfectly legal, now anyone with common sense who doesn't want to risk their
health wouldn't go near them. Just because these pro-hormones are currently
legal doesn't mean they aren't dangerous.
This all says to me that even someone who is a doctor, but is obsessed with
muscle mass, can say things that seem to fly in the face of clear thinking.
Sure, I workout hard and want to add a good amount of mass to my body, BUT
to me the bottom line is that it should always be done in the healthiest way
possible.
Another ironic thing in this book that baffled me is that Dr. Evans,
while constantly railing against steroids, actually gives instruction
on how to use them in the safest way possible. That's like telling a
Heroin addict that they really shouldn't use the drug but if they are then
"here's the best way to shoot up."
Bodybuilders who do steroids and other performance enhancing drugs that are
potentially dangerous to their health are playing Russian Roulette. So big
deal, you get to be big and pretend to be healthy when in actuality you
really only get to be big for a very short time until your health fails and then
you are too sick to even work out anymore.
I have met several people who are former steroid users and they have said
that the kinds of health problems they had to deal with were not worth
whatever short term benefits the drugs gave them. Some of them were encouraged
(more like "forced" if they wanted to play) many years ago by college football
coaches to do them and now have to live with long term, never ending health problems.
Anyway, regarding this book, there's definitely some worthwhile things
but there's a lot that left me going "huh?".
 Great book on lifting August 22, 2006
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
This book really explains how to lift weights effectively and achieve the best results. I liked the information on how and when to lift, how many rest days are necessary, and nutritional information. The pictures are clear and useful. Overall, I like this book a lot.
One result for me of reading this book is that I don't have to spend so long on working out. I used to lift and run for a combined 2 hours, but I now see that this is pointless, and you start to get into diminishing returns after 1 hour of hard exercise. This for me personally was a major benefit of reading this book. I now either do cardio for 35 minutes, or I lift. But I don't spend (read: waste) so much time anymore. I also used to lift three times a week, but I now see that that is not necessary for my personal goals. All told, I probably save a couple of hours a week just by reading his book.
I am glad that doctor mentioned all the negative things that can be caused by steroids. He seems to be mildly against steroid use, and lists all the negatives. He is not prohibitionistic toward "juicing". I personally am 100 % against steroid use, because I think that people who do it are using themselves like a guinea pig, and the long-term damage has never been studied. I personally would not be willing to get, say 30 % more muscle mass and strength, in exchange for: infertility, baldness, shrunken testicles, "enlarged breasts", liver tumors, acne, etc. Would you ?!
I also have my doubts about creatin, the use of which is extoled in the book. I have done a lot of reading on it in the medical press. The result is the following: the only known positive from creatin seems to be "weight gain", but it is mostly water retention. The potential downside to creatin use is: kidney problems, dehydration. The author does mention that these tend to happen at "high dose", but the problem is, what is a "high dose". Given that the medical community disdains the use of creatin, I doubt that there is a scientifically proven "safe dose". Also, our bodies produce their own creatin, and when I eat meat, I am eating creatin. The idea that we "need more" creatin seems a bit spurious to me, and the effect in the body of "more" seems to be these issues like dehydration and water retention (as well as overtaxing the kidneys). I talked to one doctor who had a young patient who was a football player, and he almost died after taking creatin and then working out (his body basically was "exploding" [expanding], from within).
The problem, in my view is that our society always wants "instant results". We would rather take a "magic pill" and "get big", than do the hard work of getting big the old fashioned way. But there is no real substitute for hard work. I know guys who used steroids when they were 22 and their upper bodies are now soft, like a sponge (did anyone ever study what happens to these "roid monsters" 20 years down the road ?). The long-term effects seem to be really bad. They were big without having real power. Then there are guys who don't use steroids, like UFC fighter Bas Rutten, who are very, very strong, but not really all that big (they are VERY in shape, though). I saw Brian Urlacher recently in a muscle magazine (a guy who I am pretty sure does not use steroids). The thing that really got me was how "small" Urlacher's upper body was compared to the "roid monsters" in the magazine, who had freakish, "ripped" muscles. But who do you think the better athlete is, that guy with the "massive guns", or Ulracher, middle linebacker for the Chicago Bears, and Pro Bowler ?? What I am trying to say is, big is not always good. Big isn't even stronger. Big is often weaker in the long run, especially if you factor things in like acne, "enlarged breasts", shrunken testicles, liver tumors, etc, etc.
Other than that, this book is excellent, and I use it to lift.
Some good advice, but should not be the only workout book in your library January 11, 2006
7 out of 8 found this review helpful
"Men's Body Scultping" isn't a bad book. But it's a mediocre one, and without other sources of information, parts of it will leave you confused or worse, misinformed.
The author is a doctor, but that doesn't make everything he says correct. The problem is that in bodybuilding, there are a great many controversies, as well as "urban legends," regarding what works and what doesn't. How much protein do you need? What is the ideal balance of carbs/protein/fat? How much water should you drink? How much cardio should you do, if any? Should you work out in the morning or the evening? To say nothing of the controversies over supplements and the like. Unfortunately, there is no PROVEN correct answer to many of these questions, so most bodybuilders go on personal experience or anecdotal evidence, even when writing books. Dr. Evans makes a lot of assertions that are not proven, yet because he's a doctor, many people might assume he's stating scientific facts, when he's really only giving his opinion.
That said, he does go into precise, scientific detail on the process of muscle growth, nutrition, and hormones. He lays out some good workout plans, and if you follow his program to the letter, no doubt you will achieve results. So, his advice will work for you.
THAT said... first of all, this isn't a book for beginners. He's writing for hardcore bodybuilders who are really on a mission to pump some iron, the "intermediate" bodybuilder who's had some experience lifting weights but looking for ways to break a plateau. If you're just an average guy looking to get into shape, maybe lose some weight, Evans' program is probably too intense to start with.
Second, while he gives good descriptions of the exercises, he doesn't provide a lot of variety. After you have been working out for a while, you'll want to vary your routine a bit, and then you'll need another book with more exercises for all the different muscle groups.
Third, his diet advice is questionable. The meal plans he suggests are extremely high-protein and rather plain, and supplemented with a lot of protein shakes and other artificial meal replacement products. The "body fat blitz" diet he recommends, for those who want to "burn fat with extreme prejudice," is 60% protein, 10% fat. More significantly, it's only 1500 calories per day. Of course an adult man will lose weight eating so few calories, at least until you get sick of tuna, egg whites, and protein shakes!
Finally, there's a chapter on steroids I found rather odd. He doesn't recommend steroids -- in fact, he goes into detail about how harmful they are and why you shouldn't use them. But he also provides a dosage chart and instructions on how to do injections. Maybe as a doctor, he figures he wants to make sure that if people are going to use them, they'll use them correctly, but it's still rather odd to see this mixed message: "Steroids are bad and I don't recommend them, but here's a step-by-step guide."
 Save time with high intensity December 27, 2005
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I totally agree with Steven J. Sorensen's review. You need much more calories if you want to get big. I love to eat and if 10% of my daily intake was fat....well that would be an almost impossible feat. You can still get cut with 15-20%. The book was a big help for me as far as training goes. My workouts are shorter than before and just as effective if not better. Lift heavier, take shorter breaks between sets, change your routine often, etc.... I leave the gym crazy pumped (careful, you can get carried away and overtrain in a hurry). I like the author's straight-to-the-point approach and his writing sounds intelligent, too. Great book to own.
Great book - stringent diets June 11, 2005
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
Nick Evans did a great job with the Fat loss blitz (Program 2 of 3). I just completed the program in 6 weeks and dropped 4.5 lbs. My body fat went down 2% to 10%. I am going to complete the 3rd of 3 programs to continue cutting body fat to 8%. The first week of the diet I experienced headaches. It did not get 5 stars because there is no place to contact the author to ask questions.
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