The Body Sculpting Bible for Men
The Body Sculpting Bible for Men
A complete guide for men who seek the perfect physique. Men everywhere seek the winning recipe for the ideal body—just the right amount of muscle tone, washboard abs, a chiseled chest, big guns, big and broad shoulders and tight buns. Now two certified trainers have put together the ultimate men’s exercise book guaranteed to create the perfect look: The Body Sculpting Bible for Men.Join fitness experts James Villepigue and Hugo Rivera as they reveal a sure-fire plan for male body sculpting, in
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(out of 108 reviews)
List Price: $ 17.95
Price: $ 12.00


Review by Toiler for The Body Sculpting Bible for Men
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The word “Bible” should be reserved for truly ambitious, encyclopedic books. But the authors of this book have only a specific audience in mind and a single, specific workout method to offer (with variations). Though their plan may be excellent for their target audience (and for those who have access to the right equipment), it is hardly comprehensive. One might expect this from a normal workout manual — but not from a “Bible”.
For starters, do not buy this edition of the book if you are an ectomorph (skinny). The authors clearly show their bias in the introduction: “I can remember when I was 14 years old…very heavy and very depressed.” The entire book is written from that perspective. The Appendix *does* include a “14-Day Mass Workout”, but one must rely on divine insight to figure out that it will help ectomorphs to bulk up. You will find nothing but an obscure cross-reference to this workout in the main text. In fact, the authors claim on Page 48 that the book contains only “three different workouts”: the Break-in, 14-Day Body Sculpting, and Advanced 14-Day Body Sculpting. What about the “Mass Workout”? It seems as if it was added to the appendix because the editors noticed that ectomorphs had been ignored.
A further problem with this book involves the way the authors overlapped the different routines. Who should do the Break-in routine #1 versus #2? Who should do the 14-Day #1 versus #2? I vaguely remember this being explained somewhere in the text (which I read) but where? I can’t find it without reading the entire book over again. A page-reference and a phrase should be included on the charts in the Appendix to remind readers which workout is for them. While this may not stop a determined reader, it will certainly frustrate him.
Finally, I appreciate the authors’ enthusiasm, but it often seems disingenuous. Phrases like “blow your mind”, “into the stratosphere”, “soon to be amazing…life” are the stuff, not of “Bibles”, but of quackery. I don’t believe that these authors are quacks, but they certainly need an editor who will do more to keep their occasional bravado and personal editorializing below the “stratosphere”.
I am willing to give their method a try; it seems sound. I only hope that the book can be improved for later editions.
Review by for The Body Sculpting Bible for Men
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The book is divided into 4 parts followed by appendices. Part 1 is background/foundational knowledge: myths, common mistakes, focus/concentration during exercise, etc. About 30 pages altogether. Part 2 explains the components of a successful fitness program; Training, nutrition, rest and recovery. About 52 pages or so. Part 3 explains the exercises. There are individual chapters for legs, back, chest, shoulders, triceps, biceps, and abs. About 140 pages. Part 4 explains the routines. Beginner, intermediate, and advanced routines. About 20 pages. There is an appendix for each of the following: glossary, table of food values, sample diets, exercise chart, nutrition log, tracking your progress, grocery shopping list, body hair free, body-sculpting under special circumstances, anatomy charts, and exercise descriptions.
The book is very thorough. The authors spent the time to make it as complete as possible. The exercises are very well described, and there are photos as well. My only beef was w/ the description of the nutrition program that they recommend. At one point it sounds like they’re recommending a diet based on individual protein needs. But the ready-made diets they provide seemed to be based on calories. I felt that it was a little vague; so I e-mailed them and they answered my questions to my satisfaction (they’re very busy and it did take nearly 2 weeks though, so don’t be in a hurry!). Here is an excerpt from their reply e-mail: “The reason for the discrepancy is the following:
While the best way to determine needs is by
calculating your individual protein requirements (a la
zone style) and then going from there, fact is that
most people get overwhelmed by such calculations…” And later in the e-mail,”SO what we did for those people that are intimidated by numbers is that we broke the diet down by calories
instead of protein requirements. While the protein in
the calorie broken down diets may be a bit higher thanwhat some individuals need, since the amount is not
extremely excessive and total calories are not that
high, the body will not be storing that extra protein
as body fat. Worst case scenario it gets burned as
energy.So for you we would recommend that you follow a diet
based on your individual protein requirements. Use 1
gram/lb for low calorie weeks and 1.5 grams per pound
for high calorie weeks. Also, adjust the carbs
accordingly.As far as the Zone Diet, like you said it does make
sense. The only thing that we do not agree with Dr.
Sears is the strictness that he prescribes in adhering
to very precise gram amounts and the fact that he does
not like starchy carbs. Other than that, he is pretty
much right on the money. Balance, not the banning of
one macronutrient in favor of others is the key for
long term success.”
The book is well-written, comprehensive, and the authors seem conscientious, and willing to answer additional questions. I recommend this book without reservation.
Review by K. McGraw for The Body Sculpting Bible for Men
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If you want an easy way to lose weight and gain muscle- and you are just beginning… This is not a bad book. It will teach you the basics and you will make progress via “newbie gains”. I think the advice and programs are well rounded and sound, but in the end, it’s up to you. You need to make the effort- no book will do it for you.The book is a little misleading in one area. The 14 day body-sculpting workout is just that- 14 days, then you change the program and continue with another 14 day program. Don’t think (and I didn’t when I bought the book)that you will be “ripped” in 14 days because it is not going to happen.For the price, it is a good basic book with exercises that can be done with minimal equipment at home or at a gym. There are several other books out there too that are very similar- The Edge, Body for Life, etc.One thing that I found rather annoying though was the grammatical errors throughout the book. I tend to lose faith in something when I see a bunch of errors. I’m not the best writer, but I’m also not writing books and if I was, I’d hire a better editor.
Review by Buick Riviera for The Body Sculpting Bible for Men
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I am 56 years old and began lifting weights for the first time in my life at age 54. That was 19 months ago. I bought this book about 18 months ago and it has truly been the “Bible” for me ever since.
The substance of the book is excellent. It has detailed exercise instructions and photos (primarily dumbbells oriented, some barbells) and the recommended workout routines are great. The nuitrition advice and diet suggestions are also very helpful. I’ve lost 50 pounds of fat and increased my strength over 200%.
I’ve bought 2 other workout books since getting the “Bible” and I always find myself returning to the Body Sculpting Bible for guidance in my workouts.
Why not 5 stars? Because the editing stinks. The typos and layout mistakes are obvious, distracting and give an amateurish, self-published appearance to the book. Luckily the reader can usually figure out what was intended from the context, although in one workout an exercise is just plain wrong.
I know so because the author maintains a web site and is very good about responding to reader questions and correcting the editorial oversights. The publiser should really consider posting .pdf errata sheet.
Despite the poor editing, I recommend this book and its advice.
Review by Justus Pendleton for The Body Sculpting Bible for Men
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The good: The descriptions and pictures of the exercises are pretty good. The “beginner” and “intermediate” workout routines are pretty decent (although, like other reviewers, I am a bit skeptical about the 6 day workout schedule and its potential for burnout).The bad: As other reviewers have noted there is a definite focus on overweight individuals. This isn’t bad per se but I wish it been made clearer. The section on supplements is terrible. It is wrong in places (they recommend using chromium picolinate), confusing (they say studies have shown taking 1000mg of vitamin C before a workout reduces soreness then they say to take 1000mg 3 times a day…why so much?), and unscientific. There are no cites, no summaries of studies, just stories about how such and such a supplement worked for them. When it comes to supplements and diet I want something more scientific than anecdotes.Finally, there is only ONE routine given. Considering how much fluff there is in the book, and how short it is, it would have been nice if they had included several routines. Not everyone has the same workout goals. Seeing as how they are personal trainers they should know this very well. Providing several routines for people with different goals would have made this book a lot more useful.