Big Beyond Belief by Leo Costa Jr. Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Big Beyond Belief
Book Review: My Secret Weapon
Summary: 5 Stars
I have just read all the reviews for this book. I am now 36 years old. Five years ago my then 20 year old training partner produced this book. I had been training him with minimal success for either of us for several months. I read it. I said to him "let's follow this 4 day per week plan to the letter, on total faith, and see what happens."
Everything the author said would happen, happened. We experienced drops in strength at about week 2 and 3 while our body was adapting to the stress. Then in weeks 4-6 on supergrowth, strength and size improved immensely. We then did ramps 2 and 3.
We trained this program for the 18 weeks with no interruptions, just an extra rest day now and then. Then we did the Level 2 hardcore program for 2 weeks with crazy gains. We were accused of being on steroids because of the amazing progress in size and strength we achieved.
I only went from 70kgs to 78kgs during this time, I am 5 foot 10.5 inches tall, so a bit skinny in general. This does not sound like much of a gain but I am a person who has serious trouble gaining muscle. All 8kgs were muscle with minimal body fat, so I actually looked huge for my size. At my peak I was squatting 160kgs for 10 reps per set. I could have gone heavier but was too scared i would snap in half. My legs and thighs could handle it but was not sure about my back. I rarely if never see any guys lift that sort of weight in the gym unless they are huge, stocky guys. I also was bicep curling 20kgs per side on a 14kg ezycurl bar, same with triceps for skull crushers. My bench was only 85kgs since I have long arms and am not a natural bench presser so to speak. Mind you my chest was my best bodypart appearance wise, after my shoulders. My arms were slightly small in comparison but super strong.
The reason I am writing this review now is that after 4 years of not much training I have started off again at about 70kgs. In my first 9 weeks of training I have swelled up to 76kgs now. I seriously cannot believe it. I am lifting about 75% of my previous best weights already. So this time I am growing faster than when i was 31. The reason? I decided to try the 6 day per week one workout per day routine. Yes it has been hard with my work demands and all but I have stuck to it, and taken the extra sleep I needed when I can. This time I see myself not only getting back my previous physique but getting bigger than before all because of this magic program. Anyone I have shared this with has also gotten amazing results. It makes you freakishly strong.
Don't believe the negative reviews. If any of them truly tried it and did not get amazing results there would have to be another reason like bad health or nutrition. The programs rock.
My training partner and I did not tell many of the meatheads in our gym what our secret weapon was. Those who were closer to us though have been lucky enough to share in the secret.
Cameron, QLD Australia
Book Review: NO BS, THIS ROUTINE WORKS
Summary: 5 Stars
I began using this routine in the Summer of 1997 and experienced an unbelievable amount of gains both in strength and in physique.I had been an avid lifter for approx 10 years and was about 5'9" and weighed approx 150-155 pounds. I was ripped but that was because there was not much of anything on my frame. After I began using this workout, referred to by a good friend from college, in 2 - 3 months I weighed 180 pounds and was shredded. To this day, 2004, people ask me if I am on steriods because of my strength and I smile and tell them that they would not understand.
Currently I am working out with the Titan workout. So far so tiring.
Book Review: NOT WORTH A CENT
Summary: 1 Stars
This book is NOT WORTH A CENT. If I could I would rate it with zero stars. Probably people who gave this book 5 stars were paid to do so (no offence). I read it twice and spent one year training after it. All I got was waisted time and injury.
It is horribly incomplete: there are only programs with sets and reps for every routine. The whole book was probably written in one afternoon (terrible language, lack of crucial info.)
The book is very expensive; it has 171 pages (but half of it are programs and the other half is how the muscles work).
If you want the best book on weight training buy BEYOND BRAWN (over 500 pages of laconic language)for half the price from BBB.
Big Beyond Belief is a big deception famous only because of a good comercial.
Book Review: New to Body Building
Summary: 5 Stars
I am very new to Body Building, though not entirely new to Weight Training. I bought this book when I discovered that there is very dramatic difference between the two, and that what I was doing would not necessarily achieve the goals I desired. This review will be more of a description of my experience and understanding with the Big Beyond Belief system before and after having used it for several weeks.I am a 26-year-old male. I stand at 5'11" and 174 lbs, 12-14% body fat and I have a very ectomorph body type (not exactly ideal for a body builder). My chest circumference is only about 40", my arms 14.5", my mid-thighs 21", with a waist of about 34.5". However, I am very strong for my size!
Most recently, I was doing a routine where only a single body part would be emphasized on a single day (i.e. Chest-Monday, Legs-Tuesday, Arms-Wednesday, etc... etc...). Multiple exercises would be used to target the same muscle groups in different ways. However, missing a single day of working out would put you almost TWO WHOLE WEEKS BEHIND from one given workout and the next. As a result, my development was very disproportionate, and irregular.
Now with Big Beyond Belief (BBB), you work nearly every body part 3 times per week. The purpose of this is based on the Physiological fact that Muscle tissue begins to atrophy within 72 after your most recent workout of that body part (my wife is completing her Doctorates in Physical Therapy, and she has verified this fact for me).
Furthermore, the initially prescribed system in BBB oscillates the volume and intensity both within the weeks and throughout the weeks, (you will have to purchase the book to see how it is specifically done). However, the result ensures that your body is never allowed to fully adapt to the specific stress applied, while simultaneously preventing you from entering into a state of chronic over-training. The author describes this as the optimal training zone (a balance between over and under training).
Each work out is supposed to last no longer than 45 min. The author cites Bulgarian studies that indicate a significant loss of testosterone in the blood after 35-45 min of serious weight lifting. Believe me...this program is very serious.
If you are like me, and are not used to working out multiple body parts, much less your entire body in a single day, I would seriously recommend the Preconditioning Workout supplied by the author.
Though I used to workout 6 days per week, 1 ½ to 2 hours per day; I found the 45 min, four days per week workouts much more difficult. Frequently while using BBB, following my workouts, I would go home and pass out on the couch for a couple hours. Though I work out at 5 am in the morning, I had never experienced this level of total fatigue before. In an effort to counter this level of exhaustion, I increased my hours of sleep from 7 to 9 hours per night. Finally, I was not passing out at home or in class.
By the end of my second week, I still had not adapted to this new type of training and I started to feel nauseous about 50% of the way through my workout. As a result, I have decided to start over, and begin with the preconditioning workout before I start the prescribed routine.
However, I am very encouraged by the fact that some (very large) body builders had noticed growth development and toning in my overall physique. They complemented me on it and asked which supplements I was taking. I just replied, "No new supplements, just a new killer routine!"
When I get further along in my training, I will update this review, to help you decide whether Big Beyond Belief is for you. So far, I am very impressed, but also very tired. To all those huge monster Body Builders out there, "I may not have the nuts just yet to complete the program, but I'm sure as hell, trying hard!"
That is what it takes, trying hard as hell.
Book Review: Not for Pussies!
Summary: 5 Stars
The only bad review for this book obviously came from a guy who didn't have the nuts to try it. I too am a natural bodybuilder. I have gone through Leo's program for over a year and have made incredible gains. Yes to the naive, this may seem like a steroid monster's program. Those of us who had the testicular fortitude to try it know better. I recommend Leo and his book to anyone who wants to gain size and strength quickly. I won't kid you - it's a brutal workout program. I also recommend Leo's Titan Training System book as well. I am on that program now and it's even better. So if you can't handle these programs, grow a pair.