Modern Bodybuilding: The Natural Way to Health & Strength

by Eddie Ferrie

Bodybuilding is one of the most effective ways to improve health, fitness, and appearance. This comprehensive manual features more than 100 exercises, illustrated with 150 photos. 160 pp 6 1/2 x 9 1/2... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1861260873
• ISBN13: 9781861260871
• Release Date: January 1997
• Publisher: Trafalgar Square Publishing
• Length: 192 Pages

Customer Reviews

I Was Surprised. I Liked This Book a Lot.

I have a lot of bodybuilding books. They're pretty much all flawed in one way or another. The best you can hope for is that they're not outrageously incorrect or misleading. I expected no more from this book...and yet, I was pleasantly surprised. It's written by a British team: Eddie Ferrie, a martial artist, and Dennis Oakes, a bodybuilding title holder. Ferrie & Oakes have come up with a solid how-to book on bodybuilding. What's surprising is that they do it without hype, with some humility, and with good structure, editing, and production values. This, as mentioned, is no small thing in the world of bodybuilding books. Specifically, they discuss how to get started bodybuilding, and they keep it real...no lifestyle crud that you and I will never experience. They also discuss specific excercises and diet. The instructional photos were posed by Oakes and--apparently--shot by Ferrie, and they're pretty darn good (another surprise). The book also examines competition, and shows us Oakes competing. It's a refreshing examination without all the media-tie-in hype that surrounds most other discussions of bodybuilding competition. Lastly, Ferrie & Oakes get personal about their experiences with bodybuilding. Sometimes this personal stuff can be over-the-top self-promotion, but these guys come aross as regular Joes. Ferrie talks about his lifelong battle with weight gain, and how bodybuilding helped him. He also discusses the benefits he gained with bodybuilding over some nagging physical pain. Oakes talks in very human terms about his competitions. I especially enjoyed his comments on his meeting the world champion bodybuilder Dorian Yates. It was humble and down-to-earth. It just seemed real to me. Novice and intermediate bodybuilders can gain much insight from one specific point about the book: It shows Oakes in pre-contest and contest condition. It's pretty rare to see that these days. Most bodybuilding books only show bodybuilders cut-up for a show. Those interested should note how Oakes' muscle mass is relatively stable, but that his body fat percentage declines dramatically prior to a contest. It's an eye-opener, and goes to show that bodybuilding is probably half diet. Anyway, a good solid book and highly recommended.