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From dieting to lifting to cardio, No-Nonsense Muscle Building delivers an on-target program for the “too skinny.” Emphasizing a total-body, balanced approach, Vince helps the skinny trade up to the buff body that gets noticed.This is the program that transformed Vince from a skinny long distance runner into a fitness model champion and the one Vince has successfully used to bulk up his personal training clients.

Once he has you excuse-free and correctly convinced that you are in control of your muscle gain destination, Vince puts forth the 9 growth principles that his workout methods are based on. Quite simply, any and every significantly successful muscle building program adheres to these principles. It is when trainers misinterpret, forget about or are unaware of these principles that their training results suffer.

These are principles that you must understand and correctly implement into each and every one of your workouts if you want to make the big gains. Vince does a very good job of explaining each principle and making absolutely sure you “get” what he means by such things as working with intensity, heavy weights and progressive overload.

A few of the principles have as their base the necessity of proper rest and recovery. The failure to allow the body to recuperate is a major reason why trainers find their training producing minimal results. Vince spends quite a bit of time drumming into his trainee’s heads the importance of recovery. He devotes an entire chapter to techniques designed to accelerate recovery.

He also devotes a chapter to hormones. When you understand the significant role that hormones play in building muscle, you understand the importance of optimizing your hormone levels. Vince’s dieting and training recommendations are designed to maximize your muscle building hormones.

Vince isn’t giving you a simple routine and sending you to the gym… this is a periodization program with cycles. Unlike the typical HIT based program where the focus sticks primarily to heavy weights at a certain rep range, Vince’s periodization has you changing sets and reps in an effort to prevent adaptation and stimulate different muscle fibers. Each phase builds to the next.

At first glance, the workout program may seem a bit complicated. It will take a couple of reads to get a grasp on exactly where it is taking you (trust me though, it is taking you towards some impressive gains). Fortunately, Vince includes access to a member’s area for his 52-week workout plan. You’ll find a calendar there where all you do is click the date and that day’s workout is laid out for you, complete with animated exercise descriptions and tips for correctly performing those exercises.

With this addition, the workout plan becomes clear and there is no question as to what you need to be doing with each workout to achieve your goals.

For the most part, the program has you in the gym for 3 quick but intense full-body workouts each week. However, an emphasis is placed on individualizing your program and Vince helps you determine if your performance is indicating that a lighter schedule may suit you better. Methods for accurately determining your intensity and progress are taught.

Other things Vince covers in the training section include flexibility training (he has you stretching to increase flexibility from day one), minimizing muscle imbalances (evening up the strength between your strong and weak sides) and specialty workouts aimed at your weak spots. The weight training program starts you at the basics and then eases you right on up to some very advanced techniques.

There is an emphasis throughout the training section (and the entire ebook) on teaching you to learn to listen to your body, to use the powers of intuition and instinct to guide your training decisions. Without question, it is when trainers learn exactly what, why and how various stimuli affect their unique bodies that they truly get the key to positive and significant physique change.

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In certain places, the ebook seems a little disorganized. Part of that is undoubtedly due to the fact that this program takes a somewhat unique approach to training. That approach is one of periodization which is a bit more complicated to explain. Vince does tie it all together with the help of his member’s area.

There isn’t a listing of alternative exercises. While this shouldn’t be a problem for the trainer heading to a reasonably equipped gym, it can present a stumbling block for the home-based trainer.

If you are convinced you can’t gain quality muscle weight and attain that dream physique, I’m willing to wager that Vince can convince you otherwise. Vince takes every single excuse, every single bad habit that leads to the skinny, weak body and systematically replaces them with the positive thinking and positive habits that build and maintain the world’s awesome physiques.

Vince literally presents you with a daily step-by-step plan to achieving your muscle-building goals. He has planned out every meal and every workout for you. All you have to do is follow along. If you can do that, be prepared to accomplish some amazing things.

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