High-Intensity Training the Mike Mentzer Way (NTC SPORTS/FITNESS) Paperback – Illustrated, 16 Dec. 2002

This book is bloody brilliant. If you want to do something more mindful than just pushing and pulling weights, to actually learn the theory behind building muscles... this is the book for you!

Mike Mentzer was a genius. I really enjoy this style of training, which has freed up more time for me. Who wants to spend hours in the gym?This book gives you the blueprint and theory behind Mentzer's unconventional but very effective methods, although it's then up to you to train short and hard, then recover harder. John Little is also a very intelligent and clear writer, making this a must-read for intermediate and advanced lifters.

Great book very informative

I had this book for well over a year before I finally gave the idea routine from the book a try. It seems there are two camps in weight training/body building either the high volume or HIT. The book talks about how Arnold etc used to train twice a day 6 days a week! I know of no one who trains like this!!Maybe this was the case in the old days but now I feel the most trainees use a routine of 3 or 4 times a week for around an hour.Anyway when I started to train It was 3-4 times a week (split the body up), 3 sets of 8 and no more than 15 sets a session. I gradually over the years reduced this to twice a week (full body routines) and even tried one set per exercise, so I was already using a kind of HIT routine before using the routine in this book.My thoughts on training are you either train to failure one set per exercise and use low volume and frequency or you train more volume and frequency but not to failure (1 or 2 reps shy of it).The routine in this book was to train every 3-4 days one set to failure. So something like chest gets hits directly every 2 weeks.Did it work for me? Well I guess I got stronger but it was only ever by the same weight as the session before plus 1 or 2 more reps. I was expecting a lot more than that, I was hoping either the same weight plus 3-5 more reps or more weight plus 1-2 more reps. Otherwise why bother waiting so long in between sessions?!Because of the low frequency progress was slow! Over 6 months I did make some progress and never went backwards but gains were slow and nothing to write home about.Eventully I went back to more volume (12-15 sets a session) more frequency (3 times a week) not training to failure. The weights are moving forward at steady rate and over a 6 month period would be better than HIT.I would try HIT again, and for someone with limited time to get in the gym it would be great as you would progress every session even if only a small amount.Training to failure is something I enjoyed and I never had a problem getting the intensity high! But because of the low frequency the next few days you would be in pain! Something some people would love I guess!Overall I would recommend it as something to try but I’m not sure about using it all the time. It’s a shame as it’s something I wanted to work as it makes soo much sense. But for me it just wasn’t any better and slightly worse than anything I had tried before. Too much time away from the gym recovering in pain.My view is something in the middle of high volume and HIT works just fine for me.

Good if you want some simple, tome efficient workout plan. Interesting philosophical approach and biography at the end of the book.

"game changing" is such an overused expression. But I really need to use it here.I've known about Mike since early 00s usually as the butt of a joke I'm regards to volume on forums and so ends my exposure, until now at the age of 45 with my training being weighted gymnastics ring calithenics. And I found Mentzer because I had a question.My question was "after 8 weeks of training, and then a week off, why is my first workout back the best in the whole 8 weeks?" It had been bugging me for ages and I was looking for a way to get that first workout back feeling every time. Mike starter popping up in my feed either by accident or through my phones mic 👀He spoke exactly about this situation and so down the rabbit hole I went watching everything on Heavy Duty College. Big shout out to John Little for keeping all this stuff preserved!Mikes high intensity can be summed up as such. Resistance training should be brief, intense and infrequent. This isn't easy training. I was much more comfortable doing 6 days a week 5 sets per exercise and hitting positive failure. going past that to static failure then on to negative failure takes a lot from deep down. It's punishing and done right I was ready to quit near the start... It was even disrupting my sleep at first. It took a month or so to settle in and I'm glad I stuck with it. The gains are utterly insane and 6 weeks after I got my very first "have you started steroids" at 230lbs I'm actually looking to come down to 22lbs as I prefer being lighter for more advanced gymnastics moves but if you're looking for size then this is the book. Each workout was making my muscles look a little different.This style of training works superb for the solo stuff I do. In able to get myself up to the top position of everything I do so I can do the negatives until there's zero left in the tank.Even if you don't follow this book verbatim it will make you look at your intensity, volume and frequency. That in itself is pure gold.10/10

HIT the Mike Mentzer way, what a fantastic book this is. Training to failure sounds ridiculous, but in order to get the gains you require you have to train that muscle. I have been (what I thought was weight training) for 7 years, and even at 43 I feel and notice a difference, just wish I'd discovered this book 20 years ago. My two faults with this book, is 1, one of his work outs for intermidiate training work out 4 is exactly the same as work out 2, needing 4-7 days rest, and the 2nd is there is no forearm exercise in his book. Other than those two points, it's a very good book to train with. I take it to the gym every week, and my cousin and I train almost to the book. HIT training is tough, and you will need the recommended rest days, IF you are training right of course.