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body for life?
- Thread starter amor9818
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BFL was my starting point and for a beginner it is a fairly good place to start IMO. It gets you used to eating the right kinds of foods and familiarizes you with the weights. The cardio portion I believe leaves alot to be desired. I did it at a high body weight and my knees are still paying the price. The high intensity cardio did some real damage. I think you would be better off to follow the dietary plan and the weight program for 6-8 weeks plus 3-4 cardio sessions that are 60 minutes at minimum to moderate intensity. After you get used to the weights you can then split your bodyparts so that you are working each once a week instead of twice a week and go heavier. I still use the rep scheme that he gives in the book. Keep in mind that they are selling supplements and there is no supplement that will do as much for you as good food and the right kind of training.
A lot of serious bodybuilders have taken a dislike to Bill Phillips. But I think you have to give credit where credit is due. He bridges a gap that helps take some of the mystery away, and makes concepts graspable and conceivable to lots of people. Taken on it's own merits, my opinion is that the book does a really good job of explaining some of the basic concepts of bodybuilding regarding diet as fuel and combating the "I have to starve myself to lose weight" and "I don't want to get too big" thought processes. It's written in a very easy-to-read style. The pictures and stories are very motivational. So is the "Body For Life" movie, and his magazine. If it gets you motivated, and into the gym, I think that's great!
THAT SAID: The "Body for Life" enterprise markets to the immediate gratification mindset. The average person who has NEVER exercised consistently is probably not going to develop the discipline to achieve the results you see in the before & after pics within the 12 week time frame of the contest.
I have a hunch that a lot of the folks (not all) that end up displayed in those before and after pics had at least some prior experience. If you have worked out before, the body "remembers" when you start back up and produces results quicker than someone who has never worked out before. The reason why I suspect this is that it takes quite some time to build up the muscle density to get that "tight and toned" look when the fat is shed. Ask MS about this. She had a really good explanation on another thread about the factor of TIME in creating muscle size and density.
The fat loss results in most of those pics are achievable, but you would have to keep your program tight and on track every day of those 12 weeks, right from day 1, and it is demanding physically and mentally. It took me several years to discipline myself to the level of consistency required to stay tight in diet, cardio, and weight lifting day after day, week after week.
But yes, it is possible in three months to drop quite a bit of bodyfat. The heavier you are, the more drastic results you would see. You probably notice that the before and after pics where the woman "isn't that big to begin with" don't look as visually impressive as the ones where they are heavier. When the body has lots of fat stored, it gives it up easier than when there is less - you know how the saying goes "the last 5 pounds are the hardest to lose" - that's because your body is programmed to protect you from losing your emergency stores of fuel. The leaner you get, the more work it is to lose fat. Speed of fat loss will slow down the closer you get to your goal. This can be frustrating if you don't understand what is happening.
And regardless of whether or not you start on that particular program, do take that "before" picture - ya never know when you will end up wishing you had.
Hope this helps.
Fennec
THAT SAID: The "Body for Life" enterprise markets to the immediate gratification mindset. The average person who has NEVER exercised consistently is probably not going to develop the discipline to achieve the results you see in the before & after pics within the 12 week time frame of the contest.
I have a hunch that a lot of the folks (not all) that end up displayed in those before and after pics had at least some prior experience. If you have worked out before, the body "remembers" when you start back up and produces results quicker than someone who has never worked out before. The reason why I suspect this is that it takes quite some time to build up the muscle density to get that "tight and toned" look when the fat is shed. Ask MS about this. She had a really good explanation on another thread about the factor of TIME in creating muscle size and density.
The fat loss results in most of those pics are achievable, but you would have to keep your program tight and on track every day of those 12 weeks, right from day 1, and it is demanding physically and mentally. It took me several years to discipline myself to the level of consistency required to stay tight in diet, cardio, and weight lifting day after day, week after week.
But yes, it is possible in three months to drop quite a bit of bodyfat. The heavier you are, the more drastic results you would see. You probably notice that the before and after pics where the woman "isn't that big to begin with" don't look as visually impressive as the ones where they are heavier. When the body has lots of fat stored, it gives it up easier than when there is less - you know how the saying goes "the last 5 pounds are the hardest to lose" - that's because your body is programmed to protect you from losing your emergency stores of fuel. The leaner you get, the more work it is to lose fat. Speed of fat loss will slow down the closer you get to your goal. This can be frustrating if you don't understand what is happening.
And regardless of whether or not you start on that particular program, do take that "before" picture - ya never know when you will end up wishing you had.
Hope this helps.
Fennec
Last edited:
The book is fantastic and great that it has motivated you!
My only concern is that people I know who have followed the BFL have ended up relying on the EAS supplements and not looked to food groups for the same results, ends up a very expensive training diet!
Then when they finish the twelve weeks don't know how to continue without using the supplements.
I have to agree with Fennec as well - if you look hard at the before photo's you will see that a lot of them have trained prior.
Either way - the first step is being motivated and it sounds as though the book has done that - best of wishes for your training - just stick with it - the results do come but not right away.
My only concern is that people I know who have followed the BFL have ended up relying on the EAS supplements and not looked to food groups for the same results, ends up a very expensive training diet!
Then when they finish the twelve weeks don't know how to continue without using the supplements.
I have to agree with Fennec as well - if you look hard at the before photo's you will see that a lot of them have trained prior.
Either way - the first step is being motivated and it sounds as though the book has done that - best of wishes for your training - just stick with it - the results do come but not right away.
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