A few weeks ago I received an advance copy--still more evidence, if any was needed, of how truly 'big-time' I am--of a book called Hardcore Circuit Training for Men, which features a dramatically lit male torso and the tagline "Includes the actual workout used by the cast of 300!" on the cover. Tell the truth, right off the bat, I wasn't particularly impressed. Said "actual workout" has been available online since probably before "300" came out (I don't know but I think I first saw it here), and besides, from a fitness perspective, the "300" thing seems a bit played-out.

Essentially those actors were doing intense hybrid training of the sort that the CrossFitters and many others have been doing for years, combined with a caveman-esque diet. They all lived and ate and trained together. They knew that, soon, millions of people would be seeing them virtually naked, blown up to three or four times life-sized. Added to which they had flattering lighting, body makeup, and CGI effects to give them an added aesthetic boost. And, oh, yeah, they were well paid for their efforts.

Er, under such circumstances--who among us WOULDN'T get in great shape?

But here I am going on about 300 again, and I just said it was played out.

So I wasn't altogether impressed with Hardcore Strength Training for Men out of the gate. I further noted that they recommend sit-up and crunch variations. Now, I'm not so much of a Stuart-McGill-spouting snob to say that anyone who suggests these movements is utterly misguided. Heck, I throw them into some clients' workouts from time to time simply because people love to 'feel the burn', and besides, they do help build a nice six-pack, even if they fry your lower back in the meantime. Small price.

Still, this book is loaded with trunk-flexion movements, which makes me think that authors Jim McHale and Chohwora Udu just didn't get the memo. McHale and Udu both come from the world of boxing which (if my six months' of experience is any indication) doesn't give much credence to mamby-pamby 'advanced' training techniques. There's not a word about foam rolling, about a paragraph on warming up, and another on cooling down, neither of which say anything that couldn't have been written in 1980 or so.

Now look, I don't want to slag them off too much, because I fully recognize that it's easy to get caught up in new ideas and nifty techniques and forget that working out just doesn't WORK unless you WORK. So I do have respect for guys who are willing to say, "Shut up, go to the gym, work your ass off, and you'll get fit." One really can't hear advice like this too often.

Still, I for one like the fact that the exercise science has evolved--rapidly--even in relatively few years that I've been at it professionally. Sure, we've taken some wrong turns, but I suspect that things like foam rolling and dynamic stretching will be around for quite some time to come, and I believe--and hope--that in ten years few people will be doing crunches and sit-ups any more. These strike me as positive innovations with little against them.

So: it's not the most up-to-date book on the shelf. But the workouts ARE hard. I like--LOVE, in fact--the fact that there's a "Hill Workout" chapter (all you need's a hill and something heavy, and it will kick your ass). Any workout that includes exercises like the "Hill Sprint with Overhead Sandbag Throw" and the "Uphill Duck Walk with Sandbag" has me at "Hello." I also like the swim workout, which, for once, acknowledges that going back and forth in a 25-meter pool can be boring as hell, no matter how many clever intervals you use. The swim workout includes some dry-land movements to break up the swim-otony, and adds up to a second killer workout.

Those two workouts are about the best thing this book has going for it.

I hope everyone has a safe and happy New Year. For longtime MPF readers, I wanted to give heads-up: 2010 is going to be an interesting year, starting with a very cool guest-post next Friday. I won't say more...just yet.