Train
Smart
By Peter Sisco - Review
Review by Rahul Alvares
When I first
read one of Peter Siscos articles I knew I was reading
something that was radical. It was information that I
had been searching for for years, and writing that made
perfect sense to me, leaving no doubts whatsoever.
"How often
should I train?", "How many sets and how many
reps?", "Which is the most intense exercise
for the Quads?" These are the types of questions
I had struggled to find the answers to for a very long
time with little success. I had talked to ten different
trainers only to get ten different opinions (none of them
the least satisfactory).
Then I chanced
upon one of Peter Siscos articles and a lot of questions
I answered for myself. All the training fundamentals began
to fall into place. I got my hands on every one of Siscos
articles after that and have been a fan of his training
ideas ever since.
If you havent
heard of "Power Factor Training" or "Static
Contraction" you will be spellbound when reading
"Train Smart." The whole concept of measuring
exercise intensity precisely to obtain whole real numbers
is a step ahead of HIT (High Intensity Training) and every
training style or method I have come across. Actually,
it's a Spiderman jump - its that far across. Revolutionary,
thats the word!
The book explains
in a most easily understood way the concepts of "Static
Contraction" and "Power Factor Training."
It takes you through the aspects of recovery, training
frequency, maximum overload, "Power Factor"
calculations, the best routines for all the muscles, and
even has a good section on Alpha and Beta strength. It's
perfect for someone who has been banging weights around
and getting no results whatsoever because he/she has never
stopped to understand the principles of training and progressive
overload in the first place...the person who has spent
all his training time shooting in the dark.
"Train
Smart" has one more advantage and that is it is the
compilation of all the research Sisco and John Little
have done and published in six other books: Static Contraction,
Power Factor Training, Golfers Two Minute Workout, Power
Factor Specialization Abs and Legs, PF Chest and Arm and
PF Shoulders and Back. As Sisco himself says "It
is the meat of all my books."
But if you
have tried "Power Factor" and "Static Contraction"
then there is discrepancy in it you might agree with me
upon. That is, flawless though the training principle
may sound, you will not be able to use it solely or continuously
because it is my experience that you will hit a plateau.
Almost every
bodybuilder will agree that the body adapts to everything.
And I mean even "Static Contraction" and "Power
Factor." Sisco, however, hardly touches the topic
of adaptation, relying only on progressive intensity and
optimum training frequency claiming that these two will
avoid any plateau and keep muscle gains continuous. From
my personal experience, I believe that this isnt
always so.
But otherwise,
I think that the book is simply spectacular and is a must
have for every bodybuilder who should train with intensity,
precision, and who needs to take his/her training to a
whole new level.
Learn more about
"Train Smart"
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