Thinner Leaner Stronger: The Simple Science of Building the Ultimate Female Body

Buy this book & you'll never look back! It's very well-researched & it's clear that the author is in touch with emerging scientific findings & aware of cutting-edge global studies, which gives the book credibility & integrity. The science is frequently referred to & quoted to support the advice, but it's put in layman's terms that are easy to grasp, so don't let the science deter you. I'm no stranger to gruelling workouts & healthy eating, & follow with interest the latest news to come out of current research into diet & exercise, but the findings outlined in this book are a culmination of several global studies & a revelation in terms of how the body responds to exercise & uses the food we feed it - you'll view your body completely differently & be able to see it less as an enemy out to confound you due to the greater understanding you'll have. I'm normally cautious & take a lot of convincing to commit to a regimen such as this, having been disappointed too many times in the past when the latest fad didn't work. However, I was so impressed with this book that I've invested in barbells, dumbells & a weight bench in order to do the workouts at home. The key 3 exercises are well described & illustrated, & their benefits are clearly explained. While the other exercises aren't outlined in detail (due to being simpler & relatively safe to perform without needing laboured instruction), the book directs you to 2 reputable body building websites for online step-by-step instructions & video demostration. The author's email address is given at the back of the book to answer any questions & for further support - I've contacted him & he's more than happy to provide advice & encouragement. He comes across as genuinely wanting to help people achieve their goals & is very honest about his own frustrating experiences over years of trial & error. His website, Muscle for Life, is also packed with valuable information & regularly publishes useful articles. Buy this book - it'll turn everything you thought you knew about your body on its head & change forever the way you eat & exercise. I can't wait to see the transformation in my body.

Over the years, I've read a lot about fitness and nutrition, researched and tried out all sorts of exercise, both cardiac and weight-training, experimented with all sorts of different ways of eating. I thought I knew quite a lot, and thought I'd found the ideal fitness lifestyle, but have been frustrated just lately because after an initial improvement I seemed to have reached a stalemate. Not just a stalemate, in fact; my fitness level and energy levels seemed to be dropping. I wanted to revive my enthusiasm and maybe experiment with a new variation on my gym regime, which was basically HIIT cardio three or four times a week, preceded by 30-45 minutes of weight training, alternating upper and lower body, lowish reps and trying to increase my weights each time. I was eating a healthy diet, averaging about 1400-1600 calories a day on most days, and nearly all healthy food - all homecooked. I saw this book, and all the good reviews, so decided that for less than the price of a Starbucks and a sandwich, I'd give it a go. So pleased I did. Let me stress, though, that I only bought it at a couple of days ago so haven't tried out the plan properly. However...a review on here should be for the book itself, not the outcome of the plan it explains, which is why I'm writing this now (before anyone points out that I'm jumping the gun. I can see the mistakes I've been making in my regime so far - I haven't been far off at all, but I need to make minor tweaks here and there, and a couple of major changes, and I can see that this should then work, or at least have a better chance of getting me to the fitness level I want to be at. It goes into really comprehensive - and understandable! - detail about what and why you should be eating certain foods. I'd had a little knowledge before so didn't understand fully the point of what I should be eating, but now it makes sense. Exercise-wise, again it's all extremely comprehensive and not only do you get the exercise plan, but you get an explanation of why you need to do the exercises, which ones you should do, when you should do them and how to do them - and it all makes complete sense! There are some reviewers on here who complain about all the links in the book, but ignore these reviews - the links are much better than any pictures as you can click straight through, see exactly how to perform the exercise, then come back again to the book. (NB for this reason, it's good to get it on kindle - I have a kindle app on my ipad which enables me to do this). This is the women's version of the original Bigger Stronger Leaner men's book, and Mike does his best to tailor it for us - however, if you're like me, you will need to work out how you're going to be realistically able to do the weight-training exercises. For example, at my gym, it's very hard to get near the free weights and the barbells because of all the men - a common problem for us! - not just because it's intimidating but because they do tend to quite literally shoulder you out of the way. I emailed Mike to ask him about using the exercise machines at the gym (which I had been using) and he emailed me back (Yes! He really does live up to his promise and reply!) to say I would be much better off using free weights instead. So be aware that you may have to either get yourself a home gym sorted out or look at following a bodyweight regime - which you can adapt so that you are able to do an acceptable version of the lifting plan. (You can find all this information on his website). He's a nice guy, very knowledgeable and dedicated, and enthusiastic. He seems to really know his stuff and I am looking forward to getting started...I am in my fifties now and the dreaded menopause is really trying its best to turn me into a sluggish lump, but I'll do my best to beat it. So give it a go - I think anyone interested in fitness should be very impressed and find it very useful. (My husband has just bought Bigger Leaner Stronger and he's off doing his workout as I write this...)

The book itself it's very good, super detailed and useful. I only have one problem in here: due to my lifestyle (I'm constantly traveling) it's impossible for me to follow the workout advice as I don't have access to the gym regularly and you can't get the results he claims by exercising at home. The nutritional part is complete and helped me a lot. I didn't need to lose much weight (my problem is toning and building more muscles), but since I changed my diet following his advice, I already lost 2 cm on my waist. Which is more than enough for me. Now off to build some muscles, too bad that I won't have the great results I would have had if I could use the gym. I will still apply his recommendations even if just using my body weight and a small set of dumbells I found at home (20 kg in total, not much...), but I'm sure I'll still see some results. Getting back in shape is all a matter of patience, perseverance, right nutrition and appropriate exercises, so this is an excellent book especially if you can use the gym, if not, use it as a guideline for your home routine and don't give up if you don't see spectacular results in a week. It takes time for the body to adjust to exercise. Be patient.

Having completed the Body Coach programme at the end of 2015 I was looking around for inspiration for a training regime for the new year. Having stumbled across a Facebook group for followers of the Thinner Leaner Stronger (TLS) programme I was inspired to buy this book. What it contains is lots of information about the science of exercise, of diet, of willpower, and how Michael Matthews recommends you combine these to build lean muscle and burn fat. Each chapter is very in-depth, but it has a summary at the end so is good to flick back to if you need to remember the key points. He includes how to calculate your 'macros' (which are the amount of protein, carbs and fat you should eat every day) based on your body weight, fat percentage and how much you work out. He includes the workouts, which is mainly based on lifting weights in 8 week cycles, so it changes every couple of months and gets progressively harder. When you've finished you can apply for an e-book which is a day by day programme of the workouts. He also recommends HIIT cardio workouts too, which are explained in the book. For Body Coach graduates it's the ideal next step. What I would say to everyone though is to give yourself a few weeks before you aim to start. Firstly, there's a lot of information to take in, so it's worth reading it properly rather than trying to skim. Secondly, unless you're used to counting macros then it takes a while and practise to work out the right meals which give you the correct grams of each macronutrient. (I would recommend the MyFitnessPal app to help with that!) And finally, whether you work out in the gym or at home you need to allow time to ensure you know what you're doing with the workouts - to make sure your form is correct and the weights are right for you. You basically need to have the right weights to do 8-10 reps only. So in summary I would recommend this as a bible for losing fat and building lean muscle - if you're prepared to put the hard work in too!

I think the general advice in the book is solid, based both on experience and science, and also more simple to put into practice than it looks on paper. That said, if you are looking for a "diet" book with meal plans spelled out "one size fits all" style, this is definitely not for you. Lifting heavy and eating way more than 1200 calories is out of most women's comfort zone and following this books' advice would require a huge leap of faith. It gets only 3 stars because the title is misleading, there is very little in there to address women physique and training, it is clearly "Bigger leaner stronger" dressed up so it would appeal to women, after all add the word THINNER and women are hooked. One glaring example: I still want to meet a girl even pros who wants to train their calves 3 times a week. Glutes? Hell yes, calves so we look like we have footballs attached to our shins when we are in high heels? Maybe not so much. And he puts in as an afterthought, "as a woman maybe you don't want to train your calves so much" ... Duh! It should not even be in the book ...

Excellent book, it tells it how it is, backed up by research that you can check out for yourself. Mr Matthews has put together a guide for the beginner in the weight lifting journey. I have been following his programme for 6 weeks now and I can see the amazing changes, not only am I becoming stronger but also I can see my body transforming. Highly recommended for any woman wanting to become strong, fit and lean, you will not get bulky at all, I guarantee you and the self-confidence and empowerment that comes from lifting is priceless. You can check out the exercises in bodybuilding.com. It is a book for people who think and like to use their brain, if you are expecting a ready made plan with everything served on a tray, forget it. When it comes to real fitness, you need to learn to create your own meal plans and workout programmes based on what really works and adjust as you go. This book tells you what has been proven to work in sports science and then it explains to you what you need to know to plan your meals, how much you have to eat based on the different formulas which, if you sit down and do, will give a pretty good idea of how many calories you need to eat if, for example, you want to "cut" or "bulk". Check his website with tons of useful information, delicious recipes and programmes that you can follow. Thank you Michael!

If you're a girl who lifts weights regularly or if you are just looking to get started, then you definitely want in on the formula in this book! "Thinner, Leaner,Stronger" takes you through everything you need to know about weightlifting and eating right, for the best possible results and to be healthy. Regardless of if you want to lose weight and get thinner or you want to focus on growing muscles and get stronger, Mike Matthews tells you exactly what you need to do to reach your goals. No more spending ages online to try and find the perfect workout routine, the right diet or reading up on various theories on macronutrients and fasting.The author has already done the ground work for you and presents you with a readymade perfect formula that tells you how to eat and train to get the body you desire. After 3-4 years of weightlifting, it wasn't until after I had read this book that I truly understood how to make the most out of my workouts and how to eat in a way that benefits my body and to get the best results at the gym. The best part is that you don't have to starve yourself and you don't have to spend every waking hour at the gym to get the body of your dreams. With the right structure to your workouts and a good meal plan it is a lot easier than you might actually think. This book gives you the tools you need and a clear cut plan to follow. All you have to do is go out there and do it. Highly recommended!

I really like this book, when you get passed the superfluous chapters. It starts out with lots of words and testimonials. I kind of get the impression that some of it is to just bulk the book out I a bit. Anyway, when he eventually gets to the crux of the mater, nutrition and strength training, it’s really really good! Solid information based on facts and research. Options for 5, 4 or 3 days of training, with clear instructions on how to perform each movement. I’ve referred back to this book to refresh my training plans and always find it useful.