My copy of Combat Abs arrived a couple of days ago, and as with Combat Conditioning, I’m pleased and impressed by the actual exercises, though the constant freaking hype annoys the ever-lovin’ daylight out of me.
The ab exercises are solid and worthwhile, and I’ve added a couple to my workouts. I’m varying intensities on everything — I don’t do anything in the same number or the same order, so I don’t have a routine. But I am getting results. I’m much better on the bridge and my nose is almost on the floor — good form and holding for about half a minute with arms for support. Hindu squats — 40 twice a day on intense days.
Hindu pushups. The bane of my workout existence. I’m still trying to get the form, still stuck on five. I could plead to “middle aged woman/ minimal upper body strength” and say that probably isn’t too bad for my age. But, dammit, I want to nail these things.
For abs, I’ve added the Farmer Burns breathing, the vacuum, and the tai chi waist turner. The first two are genuinely hard, and yes, I’m already seeing some results just a couple of days in.
BUT …
The hype really does bug me. No. It does a lot more than bug me. It turns me off of Furey, in spite of the fact that the two books of his that I’ve tried have offered very good information. His philosophy of endless self-promotion and slicing up his information into the priciest possible bits, the goal of which is to wring every possible penny out of every potential customer, is so screamingly different from my own that I looked elswhere to see if you might be able to find the same information for less money, presented in a less infuriating manner.
Here’s what I’ve found.
- Ross Enemait at WarriorFitness.com offers a body-weight training book that, from reviews I’ve read, appears to give you in one volume what Combat Conditioning and Combat Abs give you in two, and for the price of just one. Enemait is sure as hell lower-pressure.
- The TBK Fitness Program by Tamir B. Katz, MD, which sells for $16.50 at TBKFitness.org, and which, from it’s very laid-back promo and from reviews, covers not just a complete program of body-weight exercises but also diet, general health, and more.
I’m not in a position to offer a recommendation for either of these two programs, because I haven’t purchased or tried either one. However, you can read one review of the WarriorForce program here, and one review of the TBK program here. And while you’re at it, read a really pissed-off review of Furey’s Combat Conditioning book by the same reviewer. He doesn’t actually get into reviewing the content, however. He never quite made it past the hype. Clearly, I’m not the only one that bothers.
If you decide to try one of these other programs, let me know how it works for you.
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