Reviewed by: Dr. Joseph S. Maresca, Basil and Spice
May 28--How do you get the most from the least amount of exercise? How do you get your muscles adequate rest and maximum recovery? Are carbs good or bad for your workout? A new book, Pure Physique: How to Maximize Fat-Loss and Muscular Development (Price World Pub/2010), answers these questions and more in six easy lessons.
"Basically, muscle building is contingent on the effectiveness of a workout in stimulating growth and the time given to recover from the workout."
The author, Michael Lipowski, stresses our uniqueness and; as such, advises us to craft a training schedule tailored to individual needs. High training intensity is extolled because muscles grow in response to stresses.
The book breaks down the three classic muscle fibers. FT or fast twitch muscles are larger, more massive and less able to tolerate a high work volume. ST or slow twitch muscles are small in size but slow to produce fatigue. Mixed fibers have both FT and ST characteristics.
FT muscles benefit from exercise that places them under maximum strain. (30-50 seconds) ST or slow twitch muscles benefit from muscle training in the 80-120 second range of Time Under Tension (TUT). More importantly, the author discusses the physical differences between ectomorphs (thin people), endomorphs (thick body frames) and mesomorphs (medium build with high muscle and modest body fat).
The author finds that it is best to eat every 3 hours and to spread the caloric intake as evenly as possible. The meals should be small but nutritious to stabilize blood sugar and keep us in an anabolic state (macromolecular synthesis) by providing muscles with nutrients for continuous repair and growth.
The book provides 6 classic lessons to peak for weight competition:
