High-Intensity Training the Mike Mentzer Way

I recently (after 10 yrs :) ) got back into fitness and love this book. I bought this book in 2019 but didn't read all the way through till 2024 and that's when I implemented it and have seen very good results in 3 months! Prior to this book, I spent close to 10 yrs following workout routines found every where including Arnold's book which recommend working out 4-5 times a week and doing 8-12 sets per body part! I hardly ever made progress using those workouts. When I got back into fitness recently, I decided to do a very deep dive into Mike Mentzer. I watched every interview of his on YouTube TWICE and read all other of his books such as Heavy Duty 1 and 2. This book was written as the last book and Mike died before this book was finished. But this book has all the stuff you need to know about Mike and his famous HIT workouts. Mike's approach is very opposite to what you hear being talked about every where. He promoted 1 workout every 4-6 days in which you do ONE set per body part.....Yes you read that right...ONE set! If you are looking to validate Mike's theory then i recommend that you watch some of his interviews on YouTube to get a sense why he recommended such a low volume and why that is the right way to go. While you are at it, you might as well look up Arthur Jones who invented HIT and inspired Mike. God bless Mike and may his soul RIP!

Think of this book as Mentzer's High Intensity Training book #s 1 and 2 with Mentzer's latest findings prior to his death. I have read all of Mentzer's books and can tell you first hand, this is the only book you need to buy of Mentzer's as it encompasses all his work from his own words. This book is still in print and can be bought at a reasonable price. Books I and II are out of print and will cost you a fortune used and do not contain all of Mentzer's evolution in the Science of Bodybuilding. All of it is Mentzer's words and the last of his words prior to his death. Little's contribution was in photo selection and structure and getting it to the Presses. Little made a point to preserve Mentzer's words, philosophies, doctrine and work out routines as Mentzer wrote them. Book is written in first person point of view by Mike Mentzer and was his last great book. The Forward is written by Little. This book contains the evolution of Mike Mentzer's work as an Olympian bodybuilder and coach of bodybuilders. (When I was in college, I followed the traditional doctrine of 5-6 day, split routine workouts as done by Colombo and Schwarzenegger, but Mentzer talked about a different way that minimized or even eliminated the potential to over train). Thus, was the introduction by Mentzer of High Intensity Training which revolutionized bodybuilding and muscle development). Mentzer was a genius and a practitioner of the Science of Bodybuilding having won a Mr. American Title with a perfect score and placing 5th in Mr. Olympia; his training philosophy revolutionized training forever and what could be accomplished. This last book Mentzer wrote with John Little captures this and is the evolution of his life's work on the subject. Everything contained in his previous books and the resulting evolution of Mentzer's philosophy and doctrine are contained in these pages. It is an outstanding book and reference manual with the latest practical knowledge on not just bodybuilding but in nutrition, competition and Bodybuilding Science. It is as the book title reads, "High Intensity Training the Mike Mentzer Way!" An A++ book and reference manual; perhaps the best on bodybuilding and Anaerobic Weight Training! (Purchased on Amazon, it arrived ahead of time and well packaged to protect it! A+ to Amazon).

My (until now) uneventful life ended when I was a librarian at Essex University, a very small campus located in a much smaller town. Very few people visited the library and I spent my days just meditating and contemplating life as it went by. I had heard about the network of computers that now covers most of the world but never used it, until one day curiosity got the better of me and I logged in the University server. Of course I was immediately drawn to the biggest book store in the world (Amazon) so I started perusing its shelves until I stumbled on the tome I am reviewing. The only exercise I practiced before was some fisticuff simulated fights against my shadow which (I believe) kept me relatively healthy. The book initially blew my mind with all its novel (for me at least) content so I was enthused to partake of its eccentric techniques. Lo and behold, one day I woke up and was terror stricken to find my whole body full of hard nodules, worst still, the nodules got bigger when I flexed my articulations!. The country doctor received me but his confused look convinced me that he could not do anything to help me so I tried to live with my new affliction as quietly and reserved as possible. But then strange things started to happen. The first thing that went awry was a very intense look by one of the few female students that frequented the library, for some reason (I think it was out of morbid curiosity about my noticeable affliction) she kept asking me personal questions and tried to touch my arm (and chest and belly) on various instances (without success since I was terrorized). After that the library just swarmed with female students for no discernible reason and I was constantly assailed. Obviously I had to renounce my position and (big mistake) I moved the a University on the city. This is were the real nightmare began. Every day I am ogled by female (and some male?) persons which I have never met and I have to move very quick to buy my groceries and go home every day. One day I dropped some milk on my shirt and had to take it out and change to one I found in the same store and was very afraid of the malevolent look I received from all the ladies there (the nodules growth continues and by them my stomach appeared full of knots). I hope my tale serves as a warning for all the poor souls that contemplate buying this evil tome. P.D. I was having trouble paying the apartment rent so I had to accept a female cousin to move with me but (horrors!) she now attacks me every night in ways I do not comprehend and I just close my eyes and try to thing about my old happy life...do not let this happen to you!

[original review January 7th 2003] For those who don't know, Mike Mentzer was someone who challenged the bodybuilding world. Instead of marathon sessions 6 days a week, he believed that training with (eg) 2, twenty minute sessions a week you would get better results. For those that have his previous books, this does not really provide anything new. It is more of a repackaging of all his ideas into one easy to read format. As he passed away a few days after the first drafts were complete, the co-author John Little (also known for his Bruce Lee books) turned this into part memorial. It is filled with a tonne of Mentzer pictures in various poses and lifting routines as well as information on the mans life. An eye opening read for those that have never read his work before, and a good final summary for those that have. *** [Added 2.5 years later - Nov 2005] I look back at my review now and smile. A few points need to be added: Mentzer did not actually use these methods himself when he was a competitive bodybuilder, yet all pictures shown are from his bodybuilding days. Thats clearly misleading to the people reading. I've met a lot of people in person and on forums that like Mentzers writing, but they all say the same thing. After inital success with these methods, you begin to backslide badly, becoming very detrained. The same thing happened to me. (it should be pointed out that not all HIT is the same. Mentzer advocated an EXTREME low volume) A few stories have come out since, including one in the book 'The New HIT' that Mentzer may actually have been mentally unstable. I won't go over the stories here, you can check out the above mentioned book, use Google (and someone else even mentions some stories here in the reviews) Mike's belief that there can be only ONE right answer, is based directly on his love of Ayn Rand and Objectivism. That entire philosophy is based on 'rational thought' and the idea that thinking rationally can only lead you to one correct answer. The problem when applying this to bodybuilding is as follows: There is probably one correct answer for how EACH INDIVIDUAL should train, but since each individual is different (height, weight, age, leverages, muscle potential, body shape, etc...), giving the one answer for everyone does not work. You have to find the correct answer for that PARTICULAR person. You have to be able to find the correct answer for yourself. But Mentzer did find a niche (and some say defined himself) as being the man alone, preaching rational thought in a sea of irrational people, just like the characters out of Ayn Rands novels, Howard Roark (The Fountainhead) and John Galt (Atlas Shrugged). Mentzer has become so popular (and will remain so) because of his personality and charisma, similar to a Bruce Lee or Kurt Cobain. Death creates legends and the saying goes, 'better to die than to fade away'. Don't confuse people's attraction to his personality, with the effectiveness of his training methods.

A well written and insightful book on how and why HIT training works better than the standard type of training for the natural bodybuilder and the slow recoverer. It also goes into the mind of a bodybuilder and what it takes to be successful at it. As a 62 year old man with several serious health issues, I can’t recover from training like I could when I was in my 20’s. While I have no desire to be a bodybuilder, I’ve been using this program for two months and my strength and mobility are rapidly improving.

Great book! Mike Thoroughly explains the scientific and driving principles to muscle building as it pertains to high intensity training. I love Mike's rational approach to body-building because it makes sense! His rational approach makes his book counter cultural to the modern body-building paradigms, and I'm all for it because it means I don't have to spend hours in the gym each session or stuff my face with food 24/7. Mike's high instensity, low volume/low frequency regimen is something that I've actually been able to consistently implement and truely understand the scientific principles and outcomes of every movement and exercise I do. I highly recommend this book if you want to both learn about and get results from a scientifically proven training methodology.

Back in 1975 when I was 17 years old I heard about a guy named Mike Mentzer. He then burst onto the bodybuilding scene in 1978 scoring a perfect 300 in the Universe that year. After that we started to train like Mike. This book explains in detail the "Heavy Duty" or "HIT" type of weight training. Basically using one set to maximum and that's the key word, "Maximum" to complete muscular failure. Using the concentric, static, and eccentric forces to complete muscle exhaustion. Is it the best training method? Could be. Are there other excellent ways to train? Absolutely. HIT might be the best for some people and not that good for others. 8 sets of 8 reps is also good. Nothing wrong with 8 sets of 2 or 5 sets of 5. Mike was always a believer in Nautilus Machines. Not everybody has access to Nautilus. Nothing wrong with Olympic bars and plates and solid dumbbells. High Intensity Training isn't the only way to train. Give it a shot. If it works well for you keep using it. If you're not completely sold on it, try mixing it in with your standard way of training. Mike was a big believer in carbohydrates making up the most of his calorie intake. Most bodybuilders think protein first. Again, try that. If it works well for you keep it in. If not go back to 70% protein, 15% carbs, and 15% fat. The book is excellent. Actually written by John Little after Mikes death in 2001. One thing to keep in mind is that a very small percentage of the bodybuilding/weightlifting world believe in the one set method and training every 7 days. I bought the book because I believe there might be something in there that I have over looked the past 45 years. A person is never to old to learn something new. I'm almost 59 years old now. Still benching, still curling, still pressing. I still love it. Should Mike have won the 1980 Olympia? Absolutely he should have.

I am actually quite excited to try out this "new" system. I say new because it is new to me, the info here is back from the 80's / 90's. I have been working out pretty regularly for about 10 years, I am more a fitness enthusiast than bodybuilder. I don't have any desire to get as big as possible, but more so to have a muscular physique and be in good general shape. I have been following the normal sets x reps for pretty much the entire time I've been working out with decent results. I definitely look better and am stronger than 10 years ago. The reason for looking into this was more of a time-saver. A normal workout is pretty short for me right now, say 20-30 minutes but I'm always looking for a better way to get the same if not better results in shorter time. This system focuses around really taxing the muscle in 1 set, through very slow reps up and down versus the traditional way of larger volume. It also suggests longer resting periods between workouts to really focus on recovery as we know your muscles actually grow during recovery, not training. Will this work? I believe so, it's just science. Once you really tax a muscle out to the point another rep is not possible, give adequate time to recover and then increase the intensity in the next workout through more reps or more weight, why wouldn't it? It's simply following the break it down, let it repair, and then challenge it again harder philosophy that forces muscles to change, and grow. This system just does it in a compressed manner, with more intensity. I figure worst case scenario, even if my gains are the same I am still saving time versus the longer marathon workouts some people do, and that's more time for me to focus on life. UPDATE: I got to try these principles last night as I am in the stage of figuring out which excercises / poundages to start with. I haven't been this sore in a while! This experimental workout lasted about 20 minutes only during which I tried these principles with pullups, behind the neck shoulder presses, preacher curls and side lateral raises for shoulders. Took each set to failure as recommended...what a difference. You must make an honest effort and go to true failure i.e. you cannot lift another rep, which is hard...but then boom! You're done with that exercise and on to the next....This seems to have a lot of promise! UPDATE 2: I am about 2 weeks into this new approach, and I am getting stronger every week. The key is really finding exercises you can perform under perfect control, with little to no sloppiness. That way you can really focus on the movement / intensity vs. the number of reps. I am now more sore after a singe set of this high intensity exercise than I was from 2-4 sets of the regular reps, the key being the much longer reps (4 seconds up / pause 2 seconds / 4 seconds down). It boils down to much more intensity, in much lesser time. I'm a believer!

Really great book to understand and apply heavy duty and make your own routine in the gym and very informative

You rarely find such concepts and facts that are packed in this book. The part about the story of Mr. Mike, his upbringing, challenges, the rigged system and his downfall literally will make you tear up. I have not yet seen a video online that covers his life and other feats like this book did. You will love this book if you like Mr. Mike. RIP sir. I miss you everyday.

Full of good training course for body building

This book is a revelation insomuch that it provides detailed information regarding the overall condition of the body relative to it's capacity to heal fully between workouts. It identifies a system of training that calls for maximum effort during exercise, together with the minimum amount of energy expenditure on the immune system which is responsible for repairing damage and subsequent growth of muscle tissue. This is the ultimate system for training without drugs (steroids) advocating 4 days rest between workouts for recovery. The workout requires only one set per exercise performed to absolute failure. That is the objective to trigger growth which occurs during the resting phase. You will feel healthier, stronger and full of youthful energy with this the most simple yet intelligent approach to fitness or bodybuilding.

La méthode d'entraînement de Mike Mentzer (reprise par la suite par Dorian Yates) n'est pas une méthode comme les autres, puisque c'est la seule méthode qui fonctionne pour gagner du muscle et progresser en musculation. Comme beaucoup, j'ai cru ce que disaient les coachs fitness et j'ai suivi leur conseil. J'allais donc à la salle de sport 6 fois par semaine, je m'entraînais plus d'une heure à chaque fois et je mangeais beaucoup de protéines. Le résultat ? Aucun progrès ! Non seulement, je ne gagnais pas en muscle, mais en plus cela mes performances ne cesser de se détériorer, j'étais tout le temps fatiguer et pourtant, j'avais du mal à dormir. Aller à la salle de sport était devenu une corvée et non plus un plaisir. Et si jamais je n'allais pas m'entraîner, je me sentais incroyablement coupable pour le reste de la journée. Lorsque j'ai demandé conseil, la seule explication que l'on m'a donnée était que je devais aller m'entraîner encore plus, plus longtemps et manger encore plus. J'ai fini par abandonner et je ne suis plus retourné à la salle de sport pendant 4 ans. Jusqu'au jour où je suis tombé par hasard sur une vidéo de Mike Mentzer, expliquant pourquoi s'entraîner plus longtemps ne fonctionnait pas pour prendre du muscle. Intriguer, j'ai donc continué à regarder d'autres vidéos de Mike Mentzer et j'ai fini par acheter ce livre. Après l'avoir lu et enfin compris pourquoi je ne faisais pas de progrès, en grandes parties parce que les "experts" en fitness sur Youtube ne comprennent pas comment le corps fonctionne et donc donnent des conseils erronés. J'ai donc changé ma façon de m'entraîner grâce à ce livre et maintenant, je ne vais à la salle de sport que 2-3 fois par semaine, pour des séances courtes mais très intense (environ 20-40 minutes), et je mange désormais de façon équilibre avec un léger surplus de calories par jours allant de 200 à 300 calories. Résultat, depuis que j'ai commencé à m'entraîner selon la méthode de Mentzer depuis maintenant un peu plus de 2 mois et demi, je ne cessais de faire des progrès. Désormais, je ne cesse d'augmenter la quantité de poids que j'utilise à la salle de sport, et je progresse de semaine en semaine. Et plus jamais je ne suivrais les conseils des experts en musculation.