The Barbell Prescription: Strength Training for Life After 40

As an older lifter, currently 74 years old, finding the three books, Starting Strength by Mark Rippetoe, Practical Programming by Mark Rippetoe and Andy Baker, and The Barbell Prescription by Dr. Sullivan and Andy Baker, changed my approach to strength training. The authors present the science and mechanics of performing barbell lifts in a safe and efficient manner. The books should be read and studied thoroughly. They are a must have resource for lifters of all ages that want to build strength to improve their quality of life. They are also must have resources for coaches and trainers that are focused on getting results for their clients. The Barbell Prescription focuses on the science and programs for Athletes of Aging, those beyond 40, 60, and 70. It is never to late to start strength training and the Barbell Prescription provides the road map to safe acquisition of the strength needed to live a self reliant and productive life as the years accumulate. Following the guidance in these books from Rippetoe, Baker, and Sullivan I have fully recovered from crippling motorcycle crash injuries and have achieved remarkable strength levels as measured by my progress with the barbell lifts. I have purchased multiple copies and have gifted them to friends and family so that they can have the information needed to achieve increased strength also. Buy the Books! Do the program!

There are many reasons why I can recommend the book, “The Barbell Prescription, Strength Training for Life After 40”. I suggest that it should be read by anyone, man or woman, over 40. I myself have purchased both the paperback and Kindle versions. Here are a few of the reasons why I recommend this book. 1. Experience: The two authors, Sullivan and Baker, have years of experience of coaching the Masters Athlete and this adds to the credibility of this text. I must ask who better to write a book about the barbell prescription topic for Masters then two individuals with the combined credentials and experience that Sullivan/Baker have. They can take a complex topic and make it easy to understand and digest. Too often books written for and about the aging population are written at such a high level that you need a Ph.D. to decipher. This book is deep but the authors write it in a way that anyone can understand at first reading. This book with its layout and progression through the topic, with understandable descriptions, will allow the reader to quickly unlock the mystery of their aging bodies. It explains why barbell training is vital to be able to live a healthy life after 40. 2. “Sick Aging Phenotype” explained: This new term as it is defined throughout and the book makes sense. The example of Will and Phil in Chapter 1 about two identical twins living very different lives is a shrewd description of what the authors mean by this term and why they believe strongly in the Barbell Prescription topic for aging adults. This chapter lays out the groundwork for the authors’ premise of barbell training to combat the aging process and what it takes to counteract the previous sickly outcome for most people over the age of 40. 3. The book concentrates on the Masters athlete: Most barbell training books are aimed at the younger athlete. The Masters concentration allows the authors to make the differences clear about how an athlete over 40 can and should use barbell training as part of their regimen to counteract the aging process. Thus, Masters can live a healthier life as they age. The authors explain why, "Masters are volume-sensitive, intensity-dependent", why this is different than in younger lifters, and how to work with this principle in the Master athletes own training. 4. The authors provide a clear explanation of the building blocks of a training program: The explanations about the Novice versus Intermediate programming is concise. Sullivan/Baker give complete descriptions of the Stress-Recovery-Adaptation cycle. Included in this description are whole chapters on each part of the cycle. They provide clear examples and explanation of training programs for the many different ages what constitute an athlete over 40. The purpose of this book is to present the information needed for the aging population to live by the premise that “Healthy aging is Strong aging”. The authors deliver on that purpose. If someone is looking specifically for a how-to book on how to perform the barbell movements, that is not the purpose of this book. As Sullivan/Baker state in the Introduction and Chapter 7- Elementary Iron, “This book is not intended to instruct the reader in the performance of barbell exercises.” It correctly points to, Starting Strength Basic Barbell Training 3rd edition, for performance and instruction of the barbell movements. Also in Chapter 14 – Programming, they state that, “This is not a cookbook. Read everything before you try anything.” I can say for myself that by reading this book I have been able to take advantage of all the information the authors provide. It was and is both helpful and eye-opening for myself and will be to others. The book makes it clear that being a Masters athlete can help one reach their full “genetic potential”, no matter what their age. As I stated earlier I recommend this book.

The Barbell Prescription is a must-have book for anyone past their early 40s who is dedicated to getting and staying strong. I don't have a lot to add to the top reviews here: they're thorough. I started barbell training in 2015 at 49 using Mark Rippetoe's Starting Strength: Basic Barbell Training (SSBBT). 4-1/2 years later, when the gov't shut down my gym a year ago because of COVID, I deadlifted 480 lbs., squatted 415, and pressed 195 overhead. Have recently gotten back in my gym and am approaching those numbers again. Dr. Sullivan is correct when he notes that barbell training is Big Medicine and that lifting and getting strong in middle age is a veritable fountain of youth. First things first: I taught myself to lift using the SSBBT book, as I'm a DIY kind of guy. Get yourself a coach (online or in person) who uses the Starting Strength method and you'll be much more efficient in getting up the curve than I was. Secondly, it’s important to understand the difference between The Barbell Prescription and Rippetoe's Practical Programming (PPST) book. I’ve seen other reviewers claim that if you’re in your 40s you should buy PPST instead. I disagree. The Barbell Prescription has the same sorts of programs as PPST; following the more aggressive of these will suit those in their 40s. However, it also has excellent material on the biology of lifting and how our bodies respond to it, the considerations for aging lifters, and programming guides that are specific to Masters-age lifters. Programming for Masters lifters beyond the initial stage of lifting is different from that for younger ones and it's important that the lifter understand this early on. Accordingly, if you’re in your 40s I assure you that by your early 50s you will want to buy The Barbell Prescription. Do it now, understand what you’re bound to encounter as you reach your 50s, and save yourself duplicative expense. The Barbell Prescription was published in early 2017, after I'd moved into the intermediate stage of training. Accordingly, I didn't buy it for a long while because I was already using Rippetoe's Practical Programming book. That was a mistake because I was missing out on Sullivan's and Baker's programs specifically for Masters lifters. Buy the SSBT blue book for Rip's detailed explanation of how to do the lifts, and The Barbell Prescription for understanding how to tailor the programs as you progress into middle age. I also recommend drawing on the Starting Strength Web site, videos, forums and podcasts; on Dr. Sullivan's GreySteel Web site; on Andy Baker's blog; and on the Barbell Logic Web site and podcasts as you become an experienced trainee. These have excellent material (nearly all of it free) for learning and refining your techniques and programming. Rippetoe, Sullivan and Baker have done us an enormous service by creating a systematic template for staving off the deleterious effects of aging, and making us psychologically and physically as resilient as we can be. I'm living proof that this system works. At 55 I have the bone density, blood pressure, and blood-work panels of a 25-year-old, after all of these indicators had declined through my 40s. My doctor, who scolded me several years ago for discarding "cardio" exercise for heavy barbell training, gave up after a couple of years when she saw what my lifting did positively to nearly every indicator of my health. She just marveled at it all and told me to keep doing whatever I was doing to produce these results at my age.

This is a fairly large, information dense book. A collaboration between a strength training coach and a doctor, it is a unique blend of training advice for strength training. This publication is less dogmatic than Mark Rippitoe's Starting Strength, and is geared toward the mature novice and intermediate trainer. Dr. Sullivan allows his wry sense of humor to sneak in occasionally, and it is refreshing to see that a doctor actually DOES what he prescribes for others.

The Barbell Prescription describes how to use the Starting Strength method of linear progression for novice lifters over the age of 40. The book lays out the reason for lifting for life, how to execute the lifts safely and how to implement the program. I'm 55 years old and my only experience with barbell exercises was almost 20 years ago when I tried a HIT style program of squats, deadlifts, weighted dips, chin ups and seated dumbbell presses. I made some progress but stalled and gave up after about 6 months. Since then I've had long periods when I did nothing strength related and some decent periods of work with kettlebells and body weight strength exercises. I decided to give the barbell one last shot while I'm still young enough to significantly increase my strength. I'm so glad I found this book. I was looking for Starting Strength and saw the link to this book and bought it and read it first. I ended up purchasing the kindle version of SS as it contains more detailed descriptions of the base exercises and is a worthy purchase on its own. Part one of The Barbell Prescription was preaching to the choir for me, go look at the table of contents if you want to see the topics. Part two gives a decent overview of the exercises used in the Starting Strength method and how to properly execute them. Part three discusses the SS progression model. So simple and yet so effective. There are so many programs out there that most novice lifters just want somebody to tell them, "Just do this". That's what this book does. Part three tells you, "Just do this" to SAFELY get stronger in the least amount of time. For those of you worried about conditioning, part three does not disappoint. Those of us on the wrong side of 40 (or 50) need strength and need basic conditioning. Stealing a quote from a book on clean eating I read, "I want to die young at a very old age". I think this book will help me do that.

At first glance, it's not an easy book to understand from the get-go, because it covers different circumstances. An over-40 weightlifter may not have the same routine as over-50 and so on. Also, once you move from novice to intermediate, there isn't a one size fits all program, so it covers the various modifications. If you're an experienced weightlifter that doesn't want to read any of the basics, then this book may not be for you. Likewise, if you're an older beginner, and just looking for a program without putting any thought into customizing it -- well this book isn't for you either. This book is great for someone that may be new to strength training at an older age, and appreciates some of the basic knowledge. And also willing to read through some of the technical details so you can come up with a customized program for yourself. I read one negative review where someone criticized the book for recommending the Texas Method to older intermediates. That's not exactly true -- it offered the Texas Method for those Masters up for it -- but also offered modifications to the method that may be more appropriate for older athletes. It's the modifications that matter. I especially liked the sample logs and programs that the book provided. I found myself following the program for my age bracket, and progressing just as written. Yes there are YouTube videos that cover some of these exercises, and all other sorts of material on weightlifting. But none of them are complete. I find myself using this book along with Starting Strength along with the free Mark Rippetoe Art of Manliness YouTube videos. They all have something to offer along with the many other countless videos out there -- but this book has been an immense help.

I’m kind of mind blown by this book, I can’t put it down. I am 71, an insulin dependent diabetic, and a rock climber living in the desert. I didn’t take up climbing until I was 65, so I receive constant comments about how strong I am and how incredible it is that I am climbing at this age. But my strength on the rock has predictably declined, and both knees have become inflamed and painful. I have definitely plateaued as I don’t have the upper body strength to do more of what I want. I’ve given a lot of focus to diet and sleep, but the last thing I expected to be doing was strength training with barbells. There’s no other way to look at this other than I am generally deconditioned from head to toe and soon, if I don’t work hard to turn this around, I will not be able to climb. So I’m all in. When I’m not climbing, I am out hiking and scrambling, but I have noticed that all this aerobic work is actually making me weaker and this is discussed in great detail in this book. Hiking is wonderful, but it does not build muscle or strength. The authors of this book continually say that this is not a how-to book and that we must have the companion book and also seek coaching from an expert, and that is exactly what I will do. That squat looks deadly to me, but I suspect it will be the most useful exercise I can do– – I just may have to work up to it with the “adaptation exercises”. I’ve never been able to do a chin up in my life, but again there are some exercises that can meet me halfway. One of the biggest aha moments I have had is understanding that muscle is an endocrine organ that produces its own growth hormones so just having more muscle means we also generate more of the wonderful anabolic hormones that decline so precipitously with age. Over the past couple of years, my health guru has been Dr. Stacey Simms, who specializes in fitness for women and it is her constant mantra that we must “lift heavy sh*t”. So the barbell prescription looks like it fits the bill perfectly. Once I am really into this program, I will come back and update my review.

This is simply the best Strength Training book out there for non-competitive athletes of any age. I am a 52 year old man and a CSCS (for what that's worth) with ten certifications and seminars under my belt (the Starting Strength Seminar was hands-down the best), and a voracious reader of health and fitness books. I have been using the principles and methods of Mark Rippetoe's Starting Strength (SS) and Practical Programming for Strength Training (PPST) for my training for the better part of the last 10 years. Barbell Prescription combines the information found in SS and PPST while filtering out the information that only applies to high school/college football players and competitive powerlifers and Olympic lifters. It presents the novice Starting Strength program as well as the intermediate Texas Method with enough variants to apply to anyone of any age or experience level, and to provide for a lifetime of sequential programming (as opposed to random variety). A 20-30 year old could jump in on the baseline programs then refer to the age-related modifications as life dictates. Advanced programming is also discussed for those very few non-competitive athletes that may need it. The only exception to the above is the guy who wants a beach body. While these programs will pack on muscle, it will be go muscle, not show muscle, and washboard abs are not a consideration. Having said that, I don't think Sullivan, Baker, or Rippetoe would have an issue with someone doing a few sets of hanging leg raises, bicep curls or triceps extensions (lying triceps extensions are prescribed as an assistance exercise in some of the PPST programming and bicep curls are dicusssed in Barbell Prescription) for the sake of vanity after the heavy barbell work is done. Younger guys looking to train primarily for appearance may want to consider a hybrid strength/bodybuilding program such as Michael Matthews’ Bigger, Leaner, Stronger. Only one complaint; the authors go into great detail about the benefits of high intensity interval training (HIIT) over long slow distance (LSD) work for general conditioning, but they are skimpy on the details of how to optimally program HIIT. They just give a few examples of HIIT work/rest time intervals and some non-prescriptive figures of how conditioning could be formatted into a weekly strength program, but give no rationale and leave the details up to the coach or athlete. For an excellent approach to HIIT, check out Marty Gallagher and Chris Hardy’s “Burst Cardio” heart rate-based methodology that automatically adjusts to the athlete’s training and recovery status in their book Strong Medicine. Joel Jamieson has a ton of free cutting-edge conditioning info on his website, but unlike the authors of Barbell Prescription, he recommends 80% LSD and only 20% HIIT for general conditioning. The Starting Strength organization is known for its expertise in strength, not conditioning, so perhaps some outside assistance could help this section become a prescription (instead of general guidance) like the rest of the book. I will be enthusiastically recommending this book to my athletes, friends, and anyone else who asks me about training. Read it cover to cover (it’s ok to gloss over the dozen or so pages on bioenergetics and muscle fiber types), study the videos at the Starting Strength website, then seek out a qualified powerlifting coach to get you started. Speaking from experience, the vast majority of globo-gym personal trainers are clueless on the safe and effective performance of the lifts presented in this book. Starting Strength and Practical Programming for Strength Training belong on the bookshelves of every coach and trainer, but for the non-competitive layman, The Barbell Prescription has it all.

Pour l'initiation à la musculation, parfait et très complet. Si seulement ça existait en français, ce serait encore mieux et indispensable pour commencer ou continuer l'exerce physique.

In perfect condition

Este es un libro imprescindible para todos aquellos de más de 50 años que desean iniciar con el levantamiento de pesas, especialmente si se enfocan en su salud, longevidad y calidad de vida. El contenido es de gran calidad y se encuentra escrito por un médico, por lo que la información se sustenta en literatura científica, artículos y evidencia. Altamente recomendable.

The Barbell Prescription: Strength Training for Life After 40" is an empowering masterpiece that transcends the boundaries of conventional fitness literature. Dr. Jonathon M. Sullivan and Andy Baker have crafted a definitive guide to strength training, specifically tailored for individuals navigating the journey of life beyond 40. Their profound insights, combined with practical wisdom, make this book an indispensable companion for anyone seeking to reclaim their vitality and redefine their physical potential. From the outset, the authors captivate readers with their compelling arguments for the significance of strength training as a cornerstone of lifelong health. With meticulous research and expertise, they dispel age-related misconceptions, instilling hope and inspiring readers to embrace a path of strength and resilience. Sullivan and Baker's emphasis on barbell training sets this book apart from the crowded fitness landscape. The authors elucidate the transformative power of compound movements, underscoring the efficacy of barbell exercises in stimulating muscle growth, improving bone density, and promoting functional mobility. Their focus on proper technique is admirable, ensuring that readers embark on their strength journey with confidence and safety. Beyond the physical aspects, "The Barbell Prescription" delves into the profound mental and emotional benefits of strength training. Readers are enlightened about the positive impact of training on mental well-being, self-esteem, and stress reduction—truly a holistic approach to a fulfilling life. Navigating the book, one encounters a wealth of knowledge on programming and progression. The authors provide comprehensive guidance on structuring personalized training plans, accommodating individual needs, and embracing continuous growth. This blueprint for success is invaluable for novices and seasoned lifters alike, transcending age or experience. What sets "The Barbell Prescription" apart is its accessibility and inclusivity. Written with clarity and warmth, the book fosters a sense of camaraderie and encouragement. Inspirational real-life stories amplify this connection, proving that strength training knows no age limit, and transformations are within everyone's grasp. Throughout the pages, the authors address and debunk common myths, presenting evidence-based perspectives. This scientific approach ensures credibility and instills confidence in readers seeking to optimize their training journey. In conclusion, "The Barbell Prescription" is not just a book—it's a transformative experience. Sullivan and Baker have crafted a masterpiece that uplifts, educates, and empowers. Through their expertise and genuine passion for well-being, they illuminate a path to longevity and vitality that readers can embrace and savor. For those seeking a life enriched by strength, resilience, and meaning, this book is an unmissable gem—a testament to the power of the barbell and the boundless potential within us all.

Per me che ho più di 60 anni libro con ottime procedure e suggerimenti. Valido anche per i piú giovani con gli aggiustamenti del caso