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The
Complete Book of Shoulders and Arms reviewed by |
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I feel my physique's biggest weaknesses, besides my bodyfat and the accompanying waistline, are my arms and shoulder thickness when viewed from the side. I'm a pretty big guy with a naturally large chest and shoulders, and I gain mass on my legs pretty easily. My arms, though, lag behind the rest of my body. I looked forward to the Brungardt Brothers' latest book in their "Complete Book of" series, The Complete Book of Shoulders and Arms. What better book to help me with my weak bodyparts than a book where the focus is just on shoulders and arms, right? Wrong.
The book starts appropriately enough, covering basics like the anatomy and kinesiology of the shoulders and arms. It even has a chapter called "The Mind" on getting mentally prepared for lifting and meeting one's goals. Then comes a 70 page chapter on nutrition. Excuse me? Seventy pages on nutrition? I thought this was a book on shoulders and arms. Okay, skip that chapter (almost 25% of the book) and after a bit you get to the actual exercises. Each exercise is accompanied by a couple of pictures (including a really awful blow-up in the upper left corner of the page--can you say "pixels"?), instructions and "Trainer's Tips". The exercise instructions and variety are okay.
Next up are the routines. Here's where I figured the book was really going to shine. The thing is, though, that the routtines given consist only of direct shoulder, trap, tricep, and bicep exercises (with forearms an option). That's it. Routines for weeks consisting only of those exercises, and when I say direct tricep exercises, I mean isolation exercises only. In other words, no bench press. Not even a mention of the bench press except for the close-grip variety. Excuse me? Let's forget, for the moment, that these routines may help you get bigger arms at the expense of having chicken legs. What kind of "complete" arm routine neglects even a mention of the bench press? Have I not read that the bench press can figure prominently in an arm routine because it is such a powerful compound movement? Pull-ups at least make it in the biceps section (last page). Deadlifts are not even mentioned in the entire book, much less as an exercise that may help trap development. I suppose my fundamental problem with this book is its isolationist approach to weight training. To recommend only upper-body exercises to trainers is missing the point of weight training. Bodyparts do not act alone and you should not just train your upper body. This book seems aimed at beginners who are insecure with their body, especially their arms, rather than a serious weight trainer that knows that training the whole body is the way it should be done.
If you are looking for a book containing great arm and shoulder exercises, you are better off buying a copy of Keys to the Inner Universe and leaving this one on the shelf. You will get more exercises for your arms and shoulders, as well as exercises for the rest of your body. Your legs and back will thank you for it.
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