Power to the People!: Russian Strength Training Secrets for Every American

by Pavel Tsatsouline

Book Overview

How would you like to own a world class body-whatever your present condition- by doing only two exercises, for twenty minutes a day? A body so lean, ripped and powerful looking, you won't believe your... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0938045199
• ISBN13: 9780938045199
• Release Date: January 2000
• Publisher: Dragon Door Publications
• Length: 116 Pages
• Weight: 0.92 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 8.4" x 10.9"

Customer Reviews

Don't listen to the naysayers. Buy it and Use it!

Power to the People isn't too thin for the money. It's simply concise. It doesn't fill its pages with useless information, it says exactly what needs to be said. This book serves as a primer into the ways of strength training. After you read this book you'll have a far greater understanding of how strength is achieved without having to wade your way through the mist and muck of conventional fitness wisdom. A great deal of what you'll find in this book goes against what you'd read in the fitness magazines, but I'll guarantee you that you'll get better results from these teachings IF YOU APPLY THE PRINCIPLES CORRECTLY. Let's be honest, how many people follow along with those convential programs only to be left too sore to enjoy life and frustrated that they can't make progress? Then they assume that they're genetically inferior and just stop trying. Too many people are after a one size fits all program to fit all their needs, and even though Pavel provides a few examples of simple but effective, the real magic is in the knowledge and insight you gain into the reality of productive strength training. In reality, the strongest people around are in agreement with Pavel's philosophy's on many key points. Take a look at Milo magazine or PowerliftingUSA sometime, or have a look at some of the writings of the old time strongmen who Pavel speaks so highly of. You'll recognize some of the same content. Power to the People gives you more than the content, though. It gives you a context to fit it all into. From personal experience I can say that the changes I have experienced in my life since I began applying Pavel's principles have been dramatic. I'm a great deal stronger, healthier, leaner (if you want to know how to lose fat the Pavelized way check out The Russian Kettlebell Challenge. I've lost about 80lbs since I started "Pavelizing" last July, most of my weightloss came after Kettlebells) and more athletic than I was a year ago. Although I have 5 of Pavel's books, and I refer to all of them often, this one is still my favorite. When friends ask me how they can get the results I've gotten, this is the first book I loan them. If you really want to be strong -really strong, not just "buff"- buy this book. Now!

It is worth the price.

Reading the other reviews of this book helped me decide to go ahead with the purchase. I have been lifting weights on and off for over ten years. After some consistant training I always had a problem of getting too tight and feeling restricted in my movements. This was even more of a problem as I got more and more involved in martial arts. After all these years I finally found a method to get stronger without feeling like I am loosing flexability (I think I've even gained some range of motion). So far (2 months) I find the claims the author makes on the back cover to be no exaggeration - he's all he is cracked up to be. If you are interested in strength, I recommend this book over all others. Don't waste you time or money on anything else. The author's ideas are contrary to the popular methods in use. But, I find that his ideas match my actual experience. For example, the basic rule of "bulking up" is to do heavy weight for only a few reps. Absolutely not true. For years I bought into that theory. Luckily I came accross this book.Lastly, I recommend this book to all martial artists. You don't have to look like a freak off a California beach to be monsterously stong. In fact you can be equally as strong, probably stronger in MUCH less time. Finally there is a safe way to get strong for those of us that are "chemically challenged." (I should also mention that although I have been getting consitant and powerfull results, I don't know if it works for everyone.) Good luck.

You can teach an old dog new tricks.

I have been a training athlete for over 30 years in a lot of sports. Did everything in High School, played NCAA basketball in college, kick boxed as a pro for 2 years, made it to the NFL in 1982 as a free agent, Powerlifted through my 20's, do Olympic lifting now at 42. I have also been coaching swimming and strength training athletes for 20 years. I give this all this background so the next sentence will register the most. I have never read a book more useful than Power to the People. I have been using many of Tsatsouline's theories for the past 3-4 months and have seen my strength explode like I was in my 20's again with 1/2 the training time.Many Thanks, Carter Stamm

His stuff works!

In the world of strength, flexibility and abdominal training, a Russian guy named Pavel Tsatsouline is getting the attention of people who have tried everything to be successful in all three but have experienced only minimal results. What is unique about Pavel's information in Power to the People! : Russian Strength Training Secrets for Every American is that not only does his methods get results, but they violate many of the "truths" that have been held as sacred for so long. In fact, in his other two books, Beyond Stretching : Russian Flexibility Breakthroughs and Bullet-Proof Abs : 2nd Edition of Beyond Crunches, he also argues against how we have always been taught to train. Consider these points discussed and illustrated in Power to the People! * Get superstrong without putting on an ounce of weight be learning to contract your muscles harder. * But if you want to build big muscles, you can with a classified Soviet Special Forces workout. * Why high-rep training to the "burn" causes a form of rigor mortus - and what it really takes to develop spectacular muscles tone. * Mold your whole body with only two exercises: the Health Lift and the Side Press. * Increase your bench press by 10 poinds overnight. * How to exercise with super-strict form - and lift more weight than you could swinging or cheating. * Why inhaling as you lower the weight and exhaling as you lift sets you up for an injury. * How to hack into your "muscle software" and magnify your power and muscle definitionn be rewiring your nervous system. * How Russian weightlifters get super strong without training to muscle failure or exhaustion. * Design a world class body in your basement - with $150 worth of basic weights in 20 minutes a day. The book is spendy, but those who have learned his methods from his books and videos say that the information is worth much more. Loren W. Christensen, author of FIGHTING POWER: How to Develop Explosive Punches, Kicks, Blocks and Grappling

The best source of strength

It isn't growth hormone... it's Pavel! This is THE definitive text on the art and science of strength training... and that's what it's all about, power! Page after page of the world's most useful and productive strength-training practices are explained in this book. A lot of experienced lifters, who think that they know how to train, will be humbled when they find out how much better Pavel's system is than anything the western iron-game community has ever done. Pavel explains how to build maximum strength (without adding extra bulk) through upgrading your nervous system's control over your muscles AND how to get huge and muscular, if that is your goal... and it's all right here, in black and white, with his usual easy to follow writing style. I have surpassed all my previous bests...and I no longer need or use lifting belts. I learned how to up-regulate tension through his "feed-forward" technique, how to immediately add AT LEAST ten pounds to every lift via "hyperirradiation", and to do it in my best form ever, and how to gain on every lift WEEKLY through the Russian system of periodization without any plateaus! Seriously, I gain every week! You only need TWO exercises! Pavel explains which ones, how to do them and how often. Also, you'll learn how to train to SUCCESS, not to "failure", how to immediately turn any lift into a "hyper lift", teach your nervous system how not to ever "miss" a lift, and simultaneously make your body far less injury-prone! Pavel illustrates the two types of muscle growth and which one you REALLY need, and the all-important power breathing. Pavel's training is the most valuable resource made available for strength athletes since the barbell. The breathing techniques alone are worth the asking price. This book is my personal favorite out of all his works, and in my opinion, they should be owned as a set. This book is superior to all the muscle mags and books that dwell on a content of unessential details of today's "fitness culture" and yet never fully explain the context of training for strength. Pavel cuts right to the heart of the "muscle mystery", by explaining the all-important context of the russian system: quick, efficient, permanent strength gains, without spending a small fortune on "me-too" bodybuilding supplements and without unnecessary, time consuming overtraining. Now I only hope he writes a book on full-contact training...