Book Review: Strength Training Anatomy 3rd Edition

 Strength Training Anatomy 3^rd Edition is a great book to have around the house. Not only does this book do a great job of educating a person on the anatomy of the musculoskeletal system, but it also does a great job of providing a wide variety of excellent exercises (machines, free weights, and body weight exercises alike) that work specific muscle groups.

Using color coded pictures for your convenience, this book very clearly describes how to perform each exercise safely and effectively using terminology that the everyday person can understand. At the end of each section, a series of different stretches for the corresponding muscle group is also demonstrated.

One of my favorite aspects of this book is that it also talks about common injuries related to strength training and the best ways to prevent/reduce the risk and how to treat them. This book provides you with the tools to have a completely different full body strength training routine each time you workout, whether that be at home or at the gym.

Research continues to support the benefits of Strength Training for those with weight loss goals. Even though a Strength Training workout typically does not burn as many calories per session as a Cardiovascular-workout does, the long term benefits from strength training ultimately have longer lasting calorie burn benefits. The physiological changes that take place as a result of strength training are an increase in muscle mass. Muscle mass takes more energy to maintain than fat mass does. Muscle tissue burns about 9 times the amount of calories that fat tissue does, which means that more muscle = a faster metabolism.

As a trainer, two of the most common barriers that I hear of preventing people from strength training are a fear of “bulking up” and a lack of knowledge (fear of getting injured, not knowing which exercises work which muscle groups, etc…). When people say they have a fear of “Bulking up”, they typically mean they have a fear of looking like the top photo of the woman and the top photo of the man.

 

  

 

 

 

The reality is, it is incredibly challenging to achieve what those on the left have. “Bulking up” takes much more than just 2-3, 30-60 minute, full body strength workouts each week. If that were the case, I would be HUGE!!! In actuality, it is much more likely that your body would start resembling a figure more closely to the people on the right hand side as a result of adding regular strength training in your routine.

If a lack of knowledge (fear of getting injured, not knowing which exercises work which muscle groups, etc…) is the only thing holding you back from incorporating strength training into your routine, then Strength Training Anatomy 3^rd Edition would make a great addition to your collection of books at home!