Accessories

You Can Have A Better Back!
Before I started The Backsmart Fitness Plan, I was experiencing chronic pain for years in my upper back/neck area and having small children didn't help that situation. I started doing these exercises as often as I could. The more I did it, the more I saw results. If I have a setback, I always start with the wall stretch and work my way to the other exercises. There is nothing complicated about these exercises, but you have to do them! I know that my posture has improved and I can see that my overall core strength helps me do better in all of my daily activities.
I have been down many avenues to deal with my back problems--physical therapy, massage, acupuncture, Feldenkrais, and so on. Dr. Weiss' plan is more effective in the long run than any of the things that I have tried. You can have long term relief from chronic pain if you commit to learning and practicing these exercises!

Too Time Consuming
While the concepts in the book seem sound, following the program is way too time consuming for those that have jobs and family. I might be able to complete the workout schedule described if I had no job; but even then most of my day would be spent working out. The author himself is a self-confessed fitness junky and this carries over into the recommended workout schedules. Your best bet would be to mix and match concepts from this book with concepts from other books concerning back and total body fitness to create your own custom work out.

It seems a good, well rounded total body workout book that takes back pain and injury into account has not yet been authored.

Sports medicine
Runners, weight lifters, bikers, golfers, and other exercise buffs (I'm a runner) need serious guidance about injury prevention and how to improve your performance. I found this to be a great guide, not from an amateur enthusiast, but from a doctor who has seriously taken on the problem, even beyond the typical exercises I was familiar with from physical therapy over the years. And yes, they told me I'd likely have to do exercises for the rest of my life. And that's what makes this book so handy, you don't have a therpist with you day in and out.

This book is very specific on how to do the exercises, how to progress, and what not to do. The advice is practical and well researched, and very much consistent with everything all the specialists have told me during my decade of back problems .I found the guidance to be in depth, but still accessible to lay person

Exceptional benefits include the exercise alternates; free weights, exercise balls. Given the constraints of travel and gym availability, alternates are needed. Also, the guidance toward good nutrition and "healthy living" is on the mark.

Backsmart book
I have had recurring back issues for quite some time (12 years) and have done lenghty research to help aleviate pain and improve performance. With that being said, I found this book to be entirely too basic for me. Much of what's covered are sretches and abdominal and bicep exercises.....very little lower/upper back exercises. If you're an athlete or somebody who's been active consistently, you probably won't find your answers in this book. However, for older or non-exercising individuals, this book has decent basic guidlines and is decent starter information.

Great addition to any training library
No matter what type of exercise program you are doing or starting, this book will help you do it better. The pictures really help to get your mind focused on what's happening during specific exercises and everyone seems to agree that is a good thing. Great layout. When you are ready to vary your routine this book can help you by identifying substitute exercises for those you are unable to perform the exercises yet due to back or neck weakness/ pain or simply don't yet have the strength to perform them yet.
You are given many number of different routines to follow, but rather than repeating the same exercises over and over I liked the writer's method of giving me choices of a wide variety and visually pointers throughout numerous exercises that will be the staples of just about any resistance training program. The information on common training injuries - is also indispensable.