The Dream Lounge

Review: Moment Arm Exercise by Bill De Simmone

Posted on 11. Jul, 2009 by Dream in Exercise, Reviews

Introduction

Upon searching, it surprises (shocks?) me to find not one review of this absolute gem in exercise physiology. This book truly is a needle in the hay stack.

While I can not personally vouch for the long term effectiveness of the principles contained within- nor am I especially qualified to criticize or praise those notions on a more scientific basis- Moment Arm Exercise truly is an amazing read.

In light of this- and before beginning the review- I would like to state that this book is not for “beginners” or someone with only a mild interest in exercise.

At the soonest, MAE should be read after a thorough understanding is had of the concepts behind Body by Science- so in a sense it is “continued education” for those highly motivated to continue learning about the human body, exercise, and how it all “works”

In the authors defense, what the book is, is explained right in the introduction. It is not “a comprehensive encyclopedia of exercises”. Nor is it “intended as a heavy duty, academic engineering text”.

MAE, in the authors own words…

“is an approach to strength training that emphasizes aligning the forces and levers, ie the “moment arms”, of both the muscles and resistance.”

Experience thus far

And finally, before beginning the review, I will state that I have tried the concepts in the book (one session thus far, 2 days ago) and that I will continue to apply them in my following workouts should I continue to grow- to the best of my ability and understanding.

I write this review with a back that feels more thoroughly worked than ever before- even in the face of Nautilus and MedX pullovers, lat pull downs to a level of failure that abruptly called my traps into almost exclusive action, and so on.

I also write this review after experiencing a Smith Machine barbell squat in the manner suggested in the book- a indescribably intense compound leg movement only rivaled (from my experience, which includes an 800lb MedX leg press /w 4 holes pinned) by the elusive Hybrid Machine.

I have loved performing “full” barbell squats over the past few months, but never before have any been at this level of intensity- not even close. And while this could have been some sort of novelty effect, it sure as hell didn’t feel that way while my legs were (almost) uncontrollably shaking.

Review

MAE (Moment Arm Exercise) is a well written book on the- well, in my opinion- overlooked bio-mechanics of exercise.

Bio-mechanics that have been “widely accepted” as the norm for far too long. MAE challenges these norms, thoroughly, and with science that makes sense- after reading it a few times over =).

The author adds humor here and there, and it is apparent he has done his best to help the lay reader understand not so easy to understand concepts. Although admittedly, the science makes infinitely more sense once you put yourself through a workout applying it. There really is no understanding like doing.

That said, the book is not formatted perfectly. I don’t believe this is a lack of effort, but a lack of applicable knowledge for the field.

Not that I’m perfect with my endeavors- not by any means- but the field of exercise is sorely lacking in the tech department in relation to other fields. Going off on a tangent, other fields- even the dating advice industry- are light years ahead from most of what I’ve seen… But, perhaps that level of infrastructure is unnecessary or undesirable at this point…

Regardless, the book still flows well, is properly organized, and illustrated when necessary from start to finish.

The chapters are as follows:

1.Finding the Moment Arms in Your Workout

2.Locating the Hidden Moment Arm

3.Moment Arm Meets Machine

4.Congruent Moment Arms and Why They Matter

5.Technology to Perfect Your Workout

6.Moment Arm Exercise: Chest

7.Moment Arm Exercise: Back

8.Moment Arm Exercise: Shoulders

This section proved particularity interesting since one of the exercises suggested is something I am all to familiar with from my years of high volume training. Perhaps not coincidentally, my shoulders were the one area of my body that really excelled even in the face of over training- of course having little idea why then…

9.Moment Arm Exercise: Upper Arms

10.Moment Arm Exercise: The Squat

11.Moment Arm Exercise: Calves

12.Putting it All Together: the Congruent Routine

While some are lengthier than others, all are in depth and leave nothing untouched as it pertains to the premise of the book- which you still may be wondering about.

The premise of the book is this- in my limited and humble opinion( in no way, shape, or form do I speak for the author)- the bio-mechanics behind “full range of motion” may not be optimal for best results in terms of muscular hypertrophy or in particular, overall health of the joints and limbs being exercised.

The author does an excellent job challenging this status quo, at times even revealing where well known texts regarding “full range of motion” contradict themselves (at least that’s how I interpreted it).

So much for “basic anatomy” being agreed upon

You may be wondering at this point, does this book try to justify that machines are better than free weights?

I would be wondering the same thing if I were you, but you would be surprised to find out that no, that is not even a significant theme in the book (that is- what’s better, machines or free weights?).

If anything, Bill shows us how to do with free weights, what has been attempted by machine manufacturers for decades- which is, the attempt to deal with the varying degree of “strength” through a “full range of motion”.

Which is done by…ah hell, read the book. I won’t even begin to try to explain it in my own words, HA.

Again though, the book does not focus on machine usage (although you can use machines once you understand the concepts behind MAE).

It does however refer to them from time to time since the effort he makes is not unlike that effort machine manufacturer’s made in the past- rather than constructing machines for individuals though Bill shows us how to design and modify conventional equipment exercises by applying certain bio mechanical patterns (exercises that end up being relatively similar for everyone).

Sounds fancy, but it’s actually really, really cool.

Favorite Part of the book?

The chart on page 137. It outlines all of the exercises listed throughout the book by muscle group and ranks them from left to right regarding stablization. Super helpful and simplifies things ten fold.

Second favorite part?

The page after that Bill challenges the “novelty” feeling from adding “variety” to your workout. If anything this topic warrants a lot more discussion due to the emphasis placed on it from so many different corners of the field of exercise.

In Summary

You need to get this book (if you’ve completed reading BBS)- and no, I have not been paid or compensated in any way for this post.

There’s no telling how long it will be for sale, and as said in the introduction, it is a gem, pure and simple. Does is void every long held belief about exercise? Hardly, but it does a great job shaking things up a bit- and therefore re-examining those unproven assumptions- and is worth every penny it costs (about $35)-and the minimal amount of time it takes to finish reading (150 pages).

You can find it by visiting Bill’s website and e-mailing him directly at the bottom of the site. He takes Paypal and check- although I’d recommend PayPal for faster delivery (of which, he ships almost immediately).

A++

-Dream

ps- for further reading check out this interview with Bill S. from Doug Mcguff (co-author of Body by Science).

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