"Blows everything else away" -- the customers' turn to speak out: Kettlebells, Strength, Fitness, Martial Arts

"Blows everything else away" -- the customers' turn to speak out

From: John Du Cane
Subject: Fitness
Date/Time 2008-07-24 12:59:02
Remote IP: 66.213.223.238

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Many of the industry giants have hailed Marty Gallagher's The Purposeful Primitive as one of the best, if not THE best book ever written on fitness.

What do our own customers think?

Well, the first wave of reader reviews are in and have rocketed The Purposeful Primitive to #7 in our Top Ten List.

Here are all 45 unedited reviews. To read them on our site or for more information on The Purposeful Primitive click on the link at the bottom of this post.

Customer reviews of: The Purposeful Primitive Average Rating:
9.4 in 45 reviews

If you are a student of the Iron Game, if Marty writes it, read it! Rated 10 out of 10

Unless you were a competitive bodybuilder and powerlifter in the 70's, 80's and 90's; or even if you were, you would be hard pressed to find more and better information about the real world of training than in Marty Gallaghers lastest epic, The Purposeful Primitive.
Marty is without peer as a writer in the Iron World, combining a rare and unique ability to transmit inportant training and historical data at the same time making it seem like he is just telling a story to his training buddies.
Marty last book about the greatest powerlifter in history Ed Coan: THe Man,The Myth, The Method was just a taste of the information and in depth insight Marty has given to the critical aspects of body transformation in The Purposeful Primitive. Covering resistance training, cardiovascular work, real world nutrition info from the trenches and the rarely examined but critical aspect of the mental game Marty hits on all cylinders in a very easy to read examination of how to REALLY change your body the way it's been done by experts for many years. He backs it up with many examples of regular people using his techniques with great success.
The fact that Pavel considers Marty his mentor should say it all.The fact that Marty writes so well makes reading everything he writes a joy.
I love the in depth look at the Iron Masters; the guys I grew up idolizing and patterning my training after.Information, inspiration and motivation all in one incredible book. Great job Mr Gallagher, can't wait to see what you come up with next!

Mark Reifkind - San Jose Ca

Holy Sh*t! It's about Freakin' Time!!! Rated 10 out of 10

I haven't even read the entire book, and I am FLOORED with this information. POWERFUL, INSPIRATIONAL AND PRACTICAL...Oh yea, the workouts I've read, the info prescribed, all of it will transform anyone into a freakin' animal!

Where was this stuff when I was a competitive athlete! This is going straight into the hands of the Coaches at my gym for education and inspirational purposes.

This book is about what training should be and unfortunately is not in way too many places. It is long overdue that we have such a book like this!

The photos, the stories and the workouts are so freaking inspiring, it makes me wanna drive right back to my gym and kill the weights! I am fired up and please don't take this as arrogance, but, I rarely endorse other products! This one is amazing!

I'm getting the inside look at how men of amazing strength trained, how powerful gyms were formed, the type of foods to eat for super human gains in strength and he development of lean muscle.

Marty, I never met you or ever spoke with you, but damn do I feel like we're related! Thank you sincerely my friend, this is the kind of stuff that is near and dear to my heart.

When I was a teenager, you would find me awake at night, at 2, 3 in the morning, reading Arnold's Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding, planning my workouts, getting pumped up looking at the old school bodybuilders in the endless black and white photos.

It's too bad this book wasn't available for me back then, but hell, I'll take it now!

I am grateful beyond words!

In Strength,

Zach Even - Esh

Owner, Underground Strength Gym
Zach Even - Esh - Edison, NJ

The best book on weight training I've ever read Rated 10 out of 10

I've read several books on weight training over the years, starting with Randall Strossen, culminating with Pavel's Beyond Bodybuilding. A lot of great stuff out there, but this just blows them away. Gallagher has a very engaging writing style and his knowledge is second to none. I recommend this to anyone interested in weight training - should be the start of their collection if they are just beginning, I feel. Worth every penny.
Sladd - Los Angeles

A master piece on the world of strength. Rated 10 out of 10

If you are a power lifter Gallagher's "The Purposeful Primitive" is a must read. Templates and training tips from the worlds greatest power lifters and strength athletes are interspersed with prose that will amuse, delight, and educate anyone interested in the world of strength training. I have already read and reread the gems of knowledge that Gallagher has mined from the minds of the experts in lifting, mental focus, and nutrition. As a fellow lifter said, "If reading this book doesn't put pounds on your total, you ain't paying attention".

Gallager's ability to enlighten us regarding the greatest lifters the world has ever known is worth the price of the book in itself. Yet this book is so much more. (The section on the transformation of obese individuals who Gallager put on power lifting programs should be required reading for every spandex wearing personal trainer and internet "fitness guru" on the planet.)

Are you all about getting bigger and stronger, are you driven to constantly lift more weight, do you find yourself enraged by the "get fit quick" schemes/devices on TV and the internet, are you constantly searching for hard cold truth on improving power liting performance, do you eat, drink, sweat and bleed iron? If you answered yes to any (or all) of these questions then you need to make Gallager's master piece a part of your strength library.
Ken Kaiser - Westminster, CO USA

The best writeing style you will ever see in a fitness book!! Rated 8 out of 10

I think that if some one is new to fitness or the iron game they need to purchase this book. The history is so interesting and is told as a series of short stories. Each story though is a building block for what is to come in the latter half of the book. Sometimes we all need to be reminded of the obvious or what should be obvious and this book does that well. The templates and such are very useful for someone that has a lot of anxiety about doing their own program design. In my opinion the mental training discussions in this book are worth the price of the book even if everything else is not new to you. Since the mind is truly the final frontier for so much of what we can become to not use it to its full potential during your training or weight loss is simply a waste of your most significant resource. After all it is our mind and all it's abilities that separate us from the rest of the animal kingdom.
John Baumchen - Lennon, MI USA

Solid, but could have been more compact Rated 8 out of 10

I enjoyed reading the book and learning about the training routines of the athletes featured as well as the amalgamation. There was a lot of useful information. However, the book probably could have been shorter. While every book of this size and type has some info that appears redundant or superfluous, some of the essays really seemed unnecessary.

The only real problem I had with the book was the cardio section. I rowed competitively for nine years and the assertion that using light hand weights while walking outstrips rowing as a cardiovascular activity is one of the most bogus things I've ever heard. There are any number of negative things to be said about rowing as cross training cardio, but lack of cardio development is not one of them. In fact, the two sports with athletes possessing the ability to pump the most blood with their hearts over a protracted period of time are rowers and speed skaters. Maybe the author was using a different definition of cardio.

Aside from the cardio section, I have really enjoyed the book and will be incorporating the training methods when I lift with my classmates. I'm always on the lookout for good training ideas, as I'm a law student right now and lift to stay in shape.
Joe Fay - Washington DC

old school Rated 10 out of 10

I totally loved the book. Especially how Paul Anderson did heavy partials and lifted and played golf at the same time. Bill pearls two hour marathon workouts is a great contrast to Mark Chailets once a week singles. And where else can you find the polar oposite diets in the Warrior Diet to John Parrillo's mega calorie regime. What this book really shows is that there are many ways to be successful and that they can be rotated to get the best and strongest body that can be achieved.
Jeff Hackett - Wellsville, NY USA

Concisely this information plus your willpower always gives results Rated 10 out of 10

I was an amateur powerlifter in my twenties and was blown away at how much of my own training practices are so thoroughly explained and expanded upon in Mr. Gallagher's book. Thank you Dragondoor for such a concise presentation of Old School ways that when applied ALWAYS work!!
Rob Cole - Jackson, TN USA

Top Notch Rated 10 out of 10

I have read everything (or pretty close) on strength training and this is in my top 5 for absolute must reads if your interested in improving your physique. From average Joe to elite powerlifter, there is something for everyone in this masterpiece. The mental/psychological section of this book is worth the cost alone and seperates it from all the others. I will probably have to buy a second copy because I have a feeling I'm going to wear this one out. Worth every cent and then some.
T.Hildreth, Powerlifter - Westminster,Colorado USA

A great resource Rated 10 out of 10

This book is a great extension of a lot of the principles I've been working on from Pavel's books. I'm not planning on bulking up like the Iron Masters, but I'm looking forward to applying the synthesis Marty has provided to my own fitness. Add in the Mind and Nutrition information, and this is just a fantastic resource for all-around health.
Matt - Seattle, WA USA

It`s the recurve bow and timber VS. the compound bow and carbon fiber! Rated 10 out of 10

This book is high quality. The pictures,color,headers and border are top notch. It`s obvious this book`s final visual appeal was well thought out. I really liked the exercise descriptions along with the pictures. Outside of the training information I really like the writing style and great stories. The book kept me smiling, it was hard to put it down. The best thing about this book is that it reminds me of the history and the people I read about when I started to train. It wasn`t about bodybuilder against powerlifter, it was just train hard like the the "Greats" did. To say the book is motivating is a understatement.
T. Pestun - Michigan

Good Book Rated 10 out of 10

It's everything you said it would be. Nice work.
Barry Martin - Roberts, Idaho

Very Disappointing Rated 2 out of 10

I love Dragon Door and Pavel's work. Let me say this upfront.

This book however, is the most disappointing product they have ever produced. It is filled with outdated information that is just not used much. It is very limited application to most sports. Much of the material is redundant. I like things where you can read on Monday and use on Tues. There is hardly anything in here that fits.

The information on Diet is contradictory if not outright confusing. How can you have a 6+ mean a day plan next to a 20 hour fasting plan? Most of the mental training is High School stuff.

Mostly, virtually ALL of this information can be found on the Internet free.

Pavel's books help. This is just hype. Save your money until your favorite Commrade prints a new text.
Dr, Rob Paige - San Diego, CA

Required Reading Rated 10 out of 10

The book is clear, concise and to the point. The section covering the mental aspect of lifting is worth the price of the book. This book is a must in every strength training library,
Tom Gelveles PT - Brightwaters, NY

Entertaining, Interesting, Informitive Rated 10 out of 10

If you're curious to learn how elite lifters achieved amazing results, you'll love this book. These athletes did not all train exactly the same way. Some believed in more frequent training. Some trained less often. Some trained to a max lift in each workout. Some rarely ever did. However, all approached their craft with dedication, intensity, and enthusiasm.

The book is well written and enjoyable to read, not only for the training insights, but for the biographical information about such strength luminaries as Paul Anderson, Bill Pearl and Ed Coan.

I highly recommend it.
Jim Boston - Houston, TX

The Purposeful Primitive approach to age, infirmity and weight Rated 9 out of 10

I bought the book to get advice on how, at 70, I can lose weight and regain a moderate degree of fitness. I took a while to plow through the accounts of super strongmen which were interesting but did not appear to relate to my question. Then, in the middle of the book, some useful advice appeared on weight programs for the faint of heart. These have been worth the cost of the book, especially the concepts of whole body training rather than the spotting one is forced into on weight machines. Stories of physical wrecks being turned around and made into successes were encouraging but lacked detailed advice on how others might follow in their footsteps. I would like to have seen more of the "primitive" philosophy applied to those of us who need it most, i.e. we in the worst state of disrepair who want to fix the problem, and less on the people who already have the message, and merely need thir ideas reinforced. Overall a good thoughtful read. 9 is good in my view. 10 would have to be truly fantastic. I would recommend it to others for its alternative look at life.
Doug Marriott - South Lebanon, Ohio, USA

I highly recommend it Rated 10 out of 10

I`m a strength addict with a passion for hardcore training and the history of strength. Within 3 decades I have never read an author in the strength field as magnificient as Marty. I have not yet read the book except the 1 st chapter which is a 10. Marty never has disappointed me as an author so I keep me the enjoyment til end of year when I`m in the finishing stage for a raw powerlifting contest. Plus I have platinum reading to look forward to.
Wolfgang Hasenmaier - Stuttgart, Germany

Great information Rated 10 out of 10

I just received my copy of the book two weeks ago. I have read it and picked it apart and it is still giving me tips, insights and ideas how to make myself better. I enjoyed the stories and the ideas. Well told and amazingly written.
Kevin - Yongin, South Korea

Strength training as Literature Rated 9 out of 10

I started training for Master's rowing four years ago with strength coaching from a bodybuilder, very traditional nutritional advice: eat less and rowing cardio emphasizing steady-state and later, intervals. Missing were key elements that Purposeful Primitive makes clear: 1]Lift priorities(squat, press, deadlift); importance of strength endurance (kettlebellls) as a special form of cardio; usefulness of calorie tracking heart rate monitors; nutrition strategies that complement intense training; accessible mind strategies: will vs enthusiasm in diet, importance of visualization in perfecting technique, developing the empty mind for perfect mindless focus.
I believe that I could be a year further in my athletic quest if this book were available four years ago.
art lee, (D.Sc.Med. physiology/surgery, MD) - atlanta, GA

A valuable reference material for any lifter. Rated 10 out of 10

The stories of various lifters from the past was worth the price of the entire book. I really enjoyed reading how some really strong people trained and got where they did. This book gave me more insight into all the aspects of training; I had been neglecting the mental aspect of lifting and I have found new value in cardio training. I will use this book to reference back to during the coming months and years to help my training to continue forward.
Darren Lamar - Temple, OK USA

The greatest bible of strength training since Dinosaur Training Rated 10 out of 10

Finally, a book that covers all aspects of strength training and fitness in great detail: exercises, routines, the mind, and nutrition. There is something in this book for everyone regardless of their goals. Whether you're young or old, or a novice or a veteran; if you only want to read one book for all of your information, this is it. Since I read the book and followed the programs I have lost pounds of fat and gained pounds on my lifts. The warrior diet really works. The real life examples are very helpfull and inspire one to work to their max.
George - Stevens Point, WI USA

Fascinating piece of work Rated 10 out of 10

I don't think I've ever seen a strength book quite like this one. It provides not only practical advice, but adds a mature philosophical and historical dimension that adds real gravity to the work.
Michael Dyer - Houston, TX

WOW! Rated 10 out of 10

Having lifted for years I thought I knew all that I needed to know. Techniques, schedules, and progression. However, having started the new ideas and process that this program offers I realize that I have more to learn. I have not been so sore in the last few years. I am hoping that this will transfer into my martial arts training.
Robert M. - Knoxville, TN USA

The Purposeful Primitive provides pleasant provocative perusal. Rated 10 out of 10

Buy this book! It is great for unskilled and skilled body builders or fitness trainers alike. It is a fun read of the experience of proven top winning body builders and what they thought made them great. It includes lots of gossip about their lives and historical, "I was there," material.
John Devine - Culleoka, TN USA

One of the best books on the market today Rated 10 out of 10

I bought this book for my husband and he is thoroughly and completely enthralled with it. He reads a little every night as he wants to take everything in. There is so much useful information in it --- he has already started putting some of the principles to work. Thanks for a great book and keep up the good work.
Jeanette Santangelo - Greece, NY, USA

This book is superb Rated 10 out of 10

I am not a body builder; although I was first introduced to weight training in that manner over 50 years ago. I have spent most of my life/energy in full contact karate. About 4-5 years ago I re-discovered kettlebells and the works of Pavel Tsatsouline. I had a brief experience with KB's as a teenager before they disappeared from the American scene.

I have read and re-read Gallagher's book. It contains basic principles that every serious fitness nut ought to know. I wish I had had the wisdom of this book when I was a teen/young adult. Attitude/training/eating, etc. are covered in this work. Gallagher is not spreading BS. If you are serious, GET THE BOOK THEN READ IT and DO IT. You will save yourself a lot of time. SOUND Wisdom.
Thanks Dragon Door.
Don Rankin - Birmingham, AL

If you are into strength training, this book belongs on your shelf. Rated 10 out of 10

A truly great book. Clearly written, lucid, easy to apply. Took me back to when I used to read John McAllum's articles in the old Strenght & Health. In 1962, Bill Pearl and Reg Park were my idols as well. This has the same "Real Deal" info.
Pete Pickering - Massapequa, New York

A Must Read for Beginners, Intermediates, and anyone with a love for the history of the Iron game Rated 10 out of 10

Marty Gallagher has written a book on the crossroads of bodybuilding, power-lifting, and fat loss, one that I've enjoyed more on each reading.

Marty coached or met everyone who was anyone in the world of Power lifting in the 80s and 90s, and he fills the book with anecdotes that give a real feel for the characters that made a half-underground sport what it was. Marty's prose style is concise, engaging and accessible. For me, these looks into Iron History were the strongest points in a very strong text.

Marty also uses these anecdotes to great effect when discussing training styles and nutritional strategies, building his recommendations for various phases of body recomposition around the greats he trained with or coached. Marty's genuine love of the sport shines through. The tales of strength he shares are inspiring, and he has a knack for presenting even the roughest of his subjects with their humanity intact.

The training and diet information are comprehensive. Marty is a big believer in old school training splits and volume, and he has plenty of experience to back up his position. It's an approach to training that will seem revolutionary to someone caught up in the unproductive isolation and machine training so many unqualified trainers end up foisting on their clients.

On the downside, the training section will be most useful for beginners and intermediate trainees. Marty's weight training recommendations are excellent, but many more experienced lifters are already following similar programs. His cardio and diet recommendations are very solid, but not likely to change the way more experienced lifters train or eat (it's another case of "I already do that"). On the other hand, even advanced lifters will benefit from seeing this information laid out so clearly, and a reminder to do what you already know you should can be very useful.

Marty also doesn't make much of a distinction between training for Body Building, Power Lifting, Strong Man Competition, Olympic Lifting, Martial Arts, or other strength sports. To a more advanced lifter who knows where he wants to fit in the strength game, that cuts into the book's utility.

The place where the book most left me wanting more was in its reticence on the subject of steroids. It's a tough subject to honestly discuss. Talking about it opens you up to attack from the For The Children crowd and scares the heck out of the majority of the market. Athletes don't want their reputations tarnished by the public admission that they were using, and supplement manufacturers hate admitting that their spokes-user did not achieve twenty inch biceps at three percent body-fat solely through the use of their products.

So, Marty doesn't talk about steroids much. We miss out on part of the story of power lifting and bodybuilding in the day, and we're left wondering about the differences in training for those who use and those who choose not to.

Despite minor criticisms, this remains one of the best books I've seen on weight lifting and body recomposition, possibly the best single volume of its kind currently on the market. I very highly recommend it.
Robert Dorf - Cherry Hill, NJ, USA

Definitive Rated 10 out of 10

I'm 27, have power lifted since I was 13, fought MMA since 1999 and played football before that. I live for exercise and training. I love all the info I can get my hands on, watch or hear.

This book is the Bible of training for strength, cardio, nutrition and mind. Marty leaves no stone unturned. Growing up on Ed Coan and Kirk Karwoski, this book had high marks to meet just by mentioning their names in the pre-release. It delivered in spades. THE Definitive book on fitness.

Bravo Marty, bravo.
Patrick E. - Los Angeles, CA

"THE" book for all who love the iron game Rated 10 out of 10

Congratulations to Mr. Gallagher - he has written "THE" book for lovers of the iron game. He takes you there - right there with the big boys, and you feel like you are a part of the action! I really think that this book is more valuable than we know at this date and time. I highly recommend this book - a must have for the ironman's library. Kudos and thank you Mr. Gallagher.
Gil Flores - San Mateo, CA

Dont waste your money Rated 2 out of 10

Most of the book covers training programs that have already been published in other books and magazines.
Marty Gallagher is a colorful writer, but the training programs can be found in old issues of Powerlifting USA Magazine.
GravityFighter - USA

Good men stepping up Rated 10 out of 10

(Marketing) tyranny gets a foothold when good men stand by and do nothing. Its great to see the good men - Marty, Pavel, and the rest of the Dragon Door authors - stepping up with the no-nonsense info. Marty Gallagher has given everyone not only cut and dried templates for optimizing health and fitness, but a very entertaining and down to earth read. If this book can't do it for you... fold your cards.
Mike Edwards - Gainesville, FL USA

READ THIS BOOK NOW Rated 10 out of 10

Marty Gallagher has cut through all the crap that is modern "health and fitness" to give you the simple truth. The truth is painful. It won't be easy. But it will work. And that's what is different from all the "new weight loss secret" "easy" "medical breakthrough" garbage we are bombarded with incessantly. Rather than being disheartened with the work ahead of me, I became excited to finally have the knowledge... the tools needed to achieve what I want for me and for my family. I have a quiver full of arrows that I can draw out whenever I hit an obstacle. In the three weeks since I've read this book I've actually cut down the time I spend working out. I'm eating delicious food, real food, to satiety. I've lost 8 pounts of fat. I have energy to spare and oh, by the way, I have only pulled out a couple of the arrows in my quiver. And if you haven't figured it out yet...I WAS NOT DISAPPOINTED.
BILL - Vernon, FL USA

The dog's b******s Rated 10 out of 10

The headline will make more sense to a Brit perhaps, suffice to say I was very pleased to receive this book. It's clear, well written and full of information.
Gavin Pollock - Cockermouth, UK

No Nonsense Advice From A Master Rated 10 out of 10

This is the most authentic - useful - information on how to develop strength I have ever seen. Marty Gallagher is a true "Master" of IRON SKILLS! He is a great writer and the book is hard to put down once you start. My advice - buy it!
David Girdley - Orlando, Florida United States

Entertaining, informative and ecclective Rated 10 out of 10

At first, when I started reading, I thought that I ended up buying a book on powerlifting and body building. I was a little dissapointed.

HOWEVER as I got into the book I realized this book is an enormous eclectic collection of weightlifting/ressistance training, nutritional guidence, cardiovascular work, medative and mindset work
and a whole lot more.

As a recovering cardio junkie I realy appreciated the explanation of the 3 types of cardio. There are many examples of what proffesional athletes have done to garnish success and importantly HOW A REGULAR GUY WITH A DAY JOB CAN APPLY THESE PRINCIPLES.

Another pluss, the book is nearly 500 HUGE pages. These pages are in normal size print, with no unneccesary photos to fill space and there is no 30 or so pages at the back of adds. This book is big and there is ALOT of info in it. I will keep this book around and use it and revisit it like the enormous refference manual that it is.

Final praise, beyond being informative I realy enjoyed reading it.
This book is primarly about lifting when it comes to exercize,
I love the book and guess what, I have always been a cardio guy, I never lifted a weight before I got into kettlebells 4 months ago. It has inspired me to add squats and deadlifts to my training.

I still read and gained usefull knowledge from every word.
Honkey - Maine USA

Buy for the lore, not for the tips Rated 5 out of 10

A few comments:

1. The profiles of the various lifters are terrific and worth the price of the book. That said...

2. The training exercises are disappointing -- I doubt that any of the superstar lifters profiled do any dumbell triceps extensions or Romanian deadlifts, for example. As Pavel says, "to press a lot, you must press a lot."

3. The book barely talks about the role of doping -- Bednarski and dianabol is one mention that I can think of in the book. I have known and trained with several of the lifters mentioned in the book -- all were dopers. Hardly anyine can squat 1000, BP 700 and/or DL 900 without serious pharmalogical assistance. The drugs don't lift the weight but they do permit lifters to train harder than they otherwise would be able. Downplaying the role of dope in lifters moving amazing poundages does a disservice to the young.

4. The book also fails to emphasize the role of body type and mechanics. The best squatters are compact, the best BP-ers are barrell-chested and the best DL-ers have long arms and huge hands. If you want to excel in weightlifting/powerlifting, you need to figure out what your body is built for.

5. Ignore the power-walking crap -- I'm surprised that Pavel would endorse a book that embraces "the dishonor of aerobics." Sheesh...
Privacy Please - Anytown, USA

Back To The Basics Rated 9 out of 10

The Purposeful Primitive is a great read and contains many timely reminders that optimum results in strength and body shaping endeavours comes from hard work, heavy weights, basic exercises, healthy food and some aerobic content. Marty Gallagher is a fine researcher and writer and we are fortunate to have him working in our sphere.
Ron Prestage - Your location here Nelson New Zealand

Interesting SUbject Matter Rated 10 out of 10

I have been reading and rereading The Purposeful Primitive for the last couple weeks now. It is very holistic and detailed, so once over is just not enough to absorb the encyclopedia of info that it presents. This is typically how I "absorb" books anyhow...I drain them dry.

I am struck by Mr. Gallagher's choice of subject matter. A couple of non-traditional subjects stand out so I want to discuss them here. It seems odd that a self proclaimed muscle head is exploring this type of info.

First of all his section on the mental and spiritual connection as being a fundamental aspect of athletics left me really inspired and impressed.

Another area that has not really progressed into fitness mainstream is his discussion of raw and organic foods.

I am impressed at his diet choices. Though he recognizes that there is NO magic bullet diet that automatically works for everyone he champions the Parillo Nutritional System and the Warrior Diet. He believes that these systems can be used alone or in cycles to keep the body progressing. He presents all of the info you need to begin with either system.

His cardio section discusses non-mainstream approaches to cardio as well as set in stone methods like steady state. I love the discussion of "3rd Way" cardio and it's ramifications.

I also appreciate his section on fasting. To see a powerlifter talking about the benefits of fasting is extremely refreshing.

Last but not least his simple machine free methods for strength training appeal to my own primitive inclinations.

I just continue to be impressed with this book.

Com. Atl - EUbank, KY USA

Learn the secrets of the worlds Elite!!!!! Rated 10 out of 10

I just finished the Purposeful Primitive and I am so excited to start fully implimenting Marty Gallaghers "amalgamation" of some of the worlds elite in the areas of resistance training, cardio, and nutrition!! Marty bears all and doesn't hold anything back and takes pride in smashing conventional fitness myths, only to leave us with THE most proven and effective methods of the fitness elite! I especially enjoyed the Mind Methods section where Marty outlines the technique to increase strength on top lift sets by 10-15 percent, simply by preparing the mind!!! Do yourself a favor and transform yourself from Fat and Flaccid (or scrawny for that matter) into Lean and Powerful! You will have no doubt in your mind how to do it after this spectacular read!!!
Hunter B. - Cincinnati, Oh

Simply fantastic... Rated 10 out of 10

I have just completed my first reading of Marty Gallaghers's new book The Purposeful Primitive (notice I said 1st reading) and have been educated, challenged, validated and entertained. This fitness book contains true "fitness wisdom" and is a must have for trainers and trainees alike.
Not a fluffy feel good approach to what is referred to today as "fitness", the Purposful Primitive is a clear distillation of a simple approach to strength, nutrition, cardio and the mental side of performance. Simple does not mean easy as you will earn your primitive stripes!
Brett Jones, MRKC, CSCS - Pittsburgh, Pa

Inspiring Rated 10 out of 10

It has taken me several days to digest "The Purposeful Primitive". It is an amazing read - a straight-forward, no-nonsense, practical, and at times humorous account of legendary athletes, trainers and teachers' approaches to creating strength and health.

The book is so extensive in its breadth, covering not only strength training, but mental approach, diet, and cardio-health, and refreshing in its reflection that it almost make you think "Well, that's it. I guess there's nothing left to say - he's just about covered everything!"

If you have any interest in strength sports or just lifting, you will love this book. I recommend it to anyone without reservation.
Boris Bachmann, RKC - Des Moines, IA USA

Breath Taking Rated 10 out of 10

It's amazing what Iron knowledge and good writing skill can achieve. Put the two together you get Gallagher's book. It is like an anthropological case study of weight lifters and their community. The book has templates for programs which, when stripped down, go to the basic fundamental laws of cycling. And when he says cycling and periodization, he means it. You will not want to stop reading this book. When you do, you will wish it were not over. It is packed full of information, anecdotes and unadulterated truth. My only gripes are as follows: exercise descriptions could have been clearer for my taste, and it was pretty much focused (or seemingly so) on the males, though I believe the information within is applicable to all. This book is to the strength community what fire was to humans.
Peter Baker - Tampa, FL

Pure Gold Rated 10 out of 10

I just got Purposeful Primitive by Marty Gallagher. Marty is a 3 time World Master Powerlifing Champion and has been a strength and fitness writer for over 30 yrs. This book big...473 pages big, I have had it less than 24 hrs and have read some of the best quotes about strength training I have ever read. Marty quotes his old Zen power coach "you think you 're training hard until you get sucked into a training group , a group way smarter and way stronger than you". Better to train in a dump with superman than a posh palace surrounded by low-pain tolerance politically-correct metro-sexual sissies!!!
Pure Gold
Jason Wood RKC ZR - Denver,Co

Hard to put down Rated 10 out of 10

The Purposeful Primitive is one of those books that reads like good fiction but contains a wealth of training information. Marty Gallagher is the perfect combination of coach, fan of the Iron, technician and storyteller. Much like John McCallum, Marty's writing causes me to identify with the people in the stories while absorbing the practical knowledge. His passion for all things related to strength is apparent on every page. I know this will be a book that I will continue to reference for years.
David Whitley, Sr. RKC - Nashville TN USA

Invest in a copy of The Purposeful Primitive by no later than midnight PST on Wednesday, July 30 and receive this promise on your investment:

Keep The Purposeful Primitive for up to a WHOLE YEAR and test-drive its methods for hacking off fat and building lean muscle at warp speed.

If you are not 100% convinced that The Purposeful Primitive was not worth every cent of your original investment and have not seen the fat loss and muscle gain you expected�then return the book to us and we will promptly issue you a 200% refund on your original purchase!

Note: this 200% money-offer is limited to one purchase of The Purposeful Primitive per customer, not does include a refund of the original shipping charge and is only valid for copies of The Purposeful Primitive purchased within the week of this special offer, or from Tuesday, July 22 through Wednesday, July 30.

http://www.dragondoor.com/b37.html

"Blows everything else away" -- the customers' turn to speak out: (613) John Du Cane (2968) - - 2008-07-24 0:59 pm

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