How to Build Strong & Lean Bodyweight Muscle: A Science-based Approach to Gaining Mass without Lifting Weights

An absolutely amazing workout book, that strips away all the pointless fluff of many an approach to working, and reduces it to the very basics: a handful of exercises, and only the equipment you can carry in a backpack, making this truly the "anywhere, anytime" workout. The book is a from-the-group up update of Anthony's first book "Homemade Muscle - All You Need is a Pullup Bar", and so much more than that. It completely revamps the program design, and seeks not only to give you a useful strength training program, but to teach you the fundamentals of exercising in general, and bodyweight training specifically, empowering you to create your own programs and your own approach to fitness. Covering training science, nutrition, exercise selection, program design, it also comes with a 6 months+ long program to take you to peak fitness, as well as recommendations for how to maintain your fitness levels once you get there. If you're fairly well-read on exercise theory and nutrition, there aren't any revolutions in the book per se, but instead a refreshingly straight-talking rundown of the universal basics. Anthony bases everything on a combination of his knowledge of exercise science and his own personal experiences, giving a personal touch, without ever descending into bro science. And if you're new to strength training, the book is one of the best introductions to the science and theory behind strength training I've ever seen. Plus, the prescribed programs cover everything from the absolute newbie to very advanced trainees. The personal approach is gratifying for those who doubt whether you can actually build a muscular physique without lifting weights. Anthony is living proof that you can. The exercises and to some degree the program design won't be completely new to those who have followed Anthony's YouTube channel for a while, but instead puts all that knowledge in one extremely well-organised text, meaning I won't have to jump back and forth between his YouTube videos so much (Anthony, if my lack of YouTube traffic hurts your viewing stats, I'm sorry).

This book really resonated with me, as it lays out in expert detail and easy-to-understand logic why progressive, frequent body-weight calisthenics training of basic movements is the absolute best way to build muscle, improve function and conditioning, and preserve joint health. Skills are impressive and interesting, but if building strength and muscle are your goals, stick with the basics and this is the book for you. Very highly recommended.

I was actually impressed with this book on bodyweight training. It is well written and contains some of the latest scientific findings related to strength training and hypertrophy. How to Build Strong & Lean Bodyweight Muscle isn't the most comprehensive books on bodyweight training, but it does contain enough to get someone started on the right path. It does include various training plans using foundational bodyweight exercises (you could easily substitute easier or harder variations), but it's nothing revolutionary or as exciting as other bodyweight training plans I've seen and used. Overall, this is a good book on bodyweight training that is enjoyable and easy to read.

I thought that this book had a great overview on how to incorporate periodization into a bodyweight routine. It was backed by research, the author’s personal and client-based experience, and the consensus of the more reputable and educated fitness trainers out there; meaning that even though the author contributes unique perspective, experience and advice to the larger fitness conversation, he doesn’t go into outer space with anything. There is some advice about getting the most out of bodyweight leg training in here that I am very excited to begin incorporating into my routines; I have been doing dedicated bodyweight training for over a year now, and while I have really enjoyed what it has done for my upper body and even the health of the joints in my legs, I really do miss the lower body strength that I used to have from a barbell-based squat and deadlift routine. Because of constraints on time, space, and a general dislike of the gym environment, it may be a while before adding barbells back into my routine will be an option, but during that time, this author gives me good reason to believe that following his legs training advice would be a great primer for getting back under the barbell in the future. This book is not a compendium of bodyweight progressions. GMB fitness, books by Matt Shifferle, Pavel, the Kavadlo brothers, or Convict Conditioning are better places to go for that, but this book definitely compliments them in terms of “big picture” thinking. Also, this book has good dietary advice that matches what my experience has shown to be sound on many fronts. This book is definitely a worthwhile investment.

The internet is replete with "workouts" and exercise videos. The problem is that it is very easy to get started with them but not follow them over a long period of time. What was missing for me this entire time was a sound way to program my bodyweight workouts - it was far easier to do that with barbell routines. I wanted to go back to training with bodyweight purely for purposes of exercise longevity and avoiding injuries. The programming chapter alone in this book is worth more than the money you will pay for calisthenics programs online. Adherence is the single most important factor when it comes to seeing lasting results, and I this book has the right tools for that. You will still need to go elsewhere to learn proper form for specific exercises (check out Anthony's videos on YouTube) - this book provides a good training program that will keep you busy for a long time.

I liked this amazing book, from Anthony. Finally I discovered why I was training not enough. How correct my workout plan and much more. I love the Specialized Training and the plyo was a total new thing for me. I can only suggest this book at all.

REVIEW FOR BODYWEIGHT MUSCLE I really appreciate the effort Anthony Arvanitakis spent to lay out GOOD thoughts and programs that are reasonable and proven successful. I’ve bought and downloaded all of his stuff I could lay my hands on. A lot of it comes as PDF and it’s even for free! Within the Bodyweight-Muscle-Approach I especially love the statements about Mind-Muscle-Connection and the calm and reasonable way Anthony handles those aspects of nutrition and “rep chasing” versus movement quality. Those are guidelines I often fall back to when things start going sideways or even start to hurt. I also absolutely love the statements about setting up a workout regimen for “the veteranos with high mileage” which makes us stronger and healthier instead of wearing us out. As a guy of almost 56 it’s real soul-food for me, man! My absolute favorite sequence, whatsoever, is this one here: “One of the reasons we all train is simply because we want to look in the mirror and like what we see. Sure, there are other reasons as we mentioned above and will cover later on (health, mood, etc.). But visual appeal is always one of them, no matter how young or old you are. And that’s not a bad thing, especially when the by-product is living an overall healthier life.” Thank you, Anthony. Going to the sauna, walking along a swimming-pool, recognizing people looking at you, some even staring at you, makes A MAN feel DANG GOOD! And “that it is not a bad thing”… man, what relief. I’m not the only one! There’s at least two of us! HA! I plan to set the Bodyweight-Muscle-Approach as a basis for my next workout cycle which is the reason for asking Anthony to provide the MS-Ecxel sheets of the workout regiments listed in the book. I’ve got a fast and friendly response. This guy is so supportive and full of humility. So, I’d like to thank Anthony a lot for his GOOD and inspiring work. For me he’s one of my role-models when it comes to discipline, hard work, dedication, and consistency. Looking at him and the obstacles life threw at him - what valid excuse could I have not to work myself up to the best version I can be? And to do so I was lucky to get grip with the BODYWEIGHT MUSCLE book by Anthony Arvanitakis. In part one he answers the major questions all of us calisthenics -athletes run into and often struggle with - either when you’re a newbe not knowing where and how to start (here, now), or hitting a plateau respectively not getting the results you want as an advanced athlete (work, eat, and recover right). Can you really build Muscle with Bodyweight Training? The Science Behind Building Muscle With Calisthenics The science behind what makes your muscles grow How hard should you train? How many reps? Bodyweight exercise adaptations for building more muscle Training Volume (How much should you train?) How many sets for building Bodyweight Muscle? Overreaching and Supercompensating Training frequency How long should you rest between sets? Within part 2 you get a reasonable, simple approach of nutrition. For me the two major aspects are: one, I can apply it to my daily life, and two, as a veterano with high mileage my caloric demand decreases over time. So, it has to work and I must be able to maintain it with minimum extra effort. Here’s what you are about to get in part 2: Nutrition For Building Bodyweight Muscle Understanding How Diets Work Basic Rules of a proper Diet for building muscle and staying healthy Calories come first Protein Intake Part 3 now comes as the exercise section. How to select and properly execute the major muscle building exercises: Pull (Back, biceps and forearms) Push (Chest, Shoulders, Triceps) Movement (or resistance of movement) generated by the Core Lower body training Building lower body muscle with uphill and upstairs sprints Specialized Training Techniques (STTs) To be able to commence you find a ‘One-year Science-based Workout Plan for Building Aesthetic Bodyweight Muscle’ which provides you with a 3-stage plan including BEGINNER PHASE INTERMEDIATE PHASE with Macrocycle A and Macrocycle B ADVANCED PHASE with Macrocycle A and Macrocycle B This part also gives you the tools to design a simple but effective Bodyweight Program by building your own personalized plan. Anthony Arvanitakis is a guy I mention in one breath with the Kavadlo brothers, Paul Wade, Matt Schifferle, Mark Lauren, Max Shank, Matthias Marquardt. You should seriously consider him, no matter if you’re into calisthenics or not. There’s so much to learn from this guy, not only for,fitness, but for LIFE. This man is one of the warriors I’m honored to live in the same era with. Thanks and credits to my Mentor and Role Model, my Brother From Another Mother, Jocko Willink who inspired me to GET AFTER IT and put the effort in to write this - hopefully supportive - review at four-dark-thirty on Sunday, Oct, 21st, 2018. Thank you Anthony for your GOOD work.

First, let me preface my review by saying I've read multiple books and watched countless YouTube videos on bodyweight training. I recently completed my 3rd month of a high-volume program from a very well-known bodyweight trainer on YouTube and made good progression on that program. That program; however, was progressing into more gymnastic type movements and I was not interested in doing any gymnastic or urban calisthenic type workouts, especially since I'm prone to injuries. I wanted a simple and safe, yet effective bodyweight training routine that focused solely on muscle building, health and fitness. With this in mind, this is by far one of the best books on bodyweight training I've had the pleasure of reading. The book focuses solely on what works best for building muscle and fitness using bodyweight training with an emphasis on health, well being and injury prevention. Anthony explains why he chose specific exercises and why he has designed the programming the way he has, all with the goal of providing the simplest and most results-based bodyweight workout you can do. He lays it all out. The why, the how and the where. Theoretical and applied are both covered. The programs also incorporate deload weeks and he explains when it's appropriate to take breaks. In fact, he goes into details such as what to do on vacations, over Christmas, etc. He gives sound advice on when to modify your training to adapt to life’s up and downs, stressors and demands - all which can impact gains and training. If you follow his programs through all phases you're looking at about 7 months worth of programming that includes the use of supersets, circuits and other advanced training principles. Anthony also explains what to do after you've completed all phases, so you're not left wondering "what now" and three options are provided: continue to build muscle with direction on how to do so with the programming provided, move into maintenance mode where he provides two additional programs - a 3-day or 4-day program, or design your own program based on the principles discussed. The book does not discuss exercise progressions in depth, but this small limitation is more one of convenience as it's easily solved by searching Google or YouTube, so this should be no biggie to any readers who are novices or have limitations e.g. lack strength, too heavy. Excellent book. Well laid out and great value for the money. I highly recommend for the reasons discussed.

Livre plus détaillé sur le programme d'entraînement et les aspects physio. L'auteur a une chaîne Youtube avec une multitude de vidéos

Fantastic book! Learned so much about bodyweight exercises and a bunch extra. This book should come standard in all school gym classes and when you join a gym! How long have I been doing push-ups incorrectly and I knew I was but this book got me to make the change. Great to read something from someone who has a Bachelors Degree in Sports Science and Physical Education. Inspirational and great read!