Annotated Bibliography

Ajan, Tamas, Chief Editor. International Weightlifting Federation Handbook 1997-2000. Budapest: International Weightlifting Federation, 1997. The “bible” of international weightlifting. Includes the most up-to-date rules available for international weightlifting as well as information on the governing bodies of all nations and publications of the IWF. This book is “required reading” for all athletes and coaches – you must know the rules of the game.

—- and Lazar Baroga. Weightlifting: Fitness for All Sports. Budapest: International Weightlifting Federation, 1988. Dr. Tamas Ajan has been General Secretary of the IWF for more than 20 years. A longtime sportsman, trained as a physical educator, he was General Secretary of the Hungarian Weightlifting Federation from 1968-1983. Dr. Ajan, in partnership with the IWF President, Gotfried Schodl, has guided the IWF through troubled years when weightlifting was threatened with being eliminated from the Olympic program and has recently succeeded in having women’s weightlifting approved as part of the 2000 Olympic Games, at a time when the IOL is seeking to reduce the number of athletes competing in each sport. Dr. Baroga, placed 5th in the 1964 Olympic Games, coached the Rumanian weightlifting team for 8 years and has been head of the Rumanian Weightlifting Federation since 1964. He became a member of the IWF Executive Board in 1980. These two men have collaborated to produce a very comprehensive book on weightlifting that describes: the physical and mental qualities of weightlifters, many weightlifting and weight training exercises for weightlifting and other sports, a wide range of training techniques, the process of developing training programs, how to develop good technique, restorative methods, and how to measure and record training progress. The book also has many detailed programs for weightlifting training. The Ajan/Baroga book offers a very different approach from many of the Soviet training manuals on a number of levels and should be in the library of all serious athletes and coaches.

Alexander, R. McNeill. The Human Machine. New York: Columbia University Press, 1992.

Alter, Michael. Science of Stretching. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics Books, 1988. Perhaps the most comprehensive book on stretching for sport that is in print. Contains information on the theory and practice of effective stretching.

Amberry, Tom. Free Throw. New York: Harper Perennial, 1996. This small book contains more practical information on perfecting sports technique and one’s mental approach to a game than anything else available. Written by the world’s record holder in basketball free throws, a man who set the record when he was in his 70s.

American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons. Athletic Training and Sports Medicine. Park Ridge, IL: American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, 1991.

American Red Cross. Community First Aid & Safety. St. Louis, MO: Mosby Lifeline, 1993.

Anderson, Bob. Stretching. Bolinas, CA: Shelter Publications, 1980.

Anderson, Paul. Secrets of My Strength. Vidalia, GA: Paul Anderson, 1970. Provides insights into the kind of creative thinking, hard training and careful dieting that made Paul great (no, he wasn’t simply born strong). Paul may well have been the strongest man who ever lived (at a minimum he dominated his era in a way that no one before or since has dominated theirs).

—-. Power By Paul. Vidalia, GA: Paul Anderson, 1974. More tips on the development of strength and power from Paul but with a greater emphasis on the lifts performed in powerlifting competition. Paul Anderson was a prolific thinker and writer in addition to operating his Paul Anderson Youth Home, which is still being run by his wife, Glenda, and other members of the family. The Home’s address is: P.O. Box 525, Vidalia, GA 30474. Paul’s books include: A Greater Strength (his autobiography), The Home: Society’s Pacemaker, A Parental Guide (a guide to nurturing children from a man who helped raise many children across a period of more than 30 years), Weights And Sports (a guide to weight training for sport), Forty And Rising (training for those age 40 and above), Father And Son (father and son weight training), Youth And Strength (when and how a youngster should train), Kook Letters (actual letters Paul received over the years), How It Is (some of Paul’s poetry), 200 Years As I See It (Paul’s views on the US’s 200th anniversary). Paul also recorded a number of cassette tapes and a video has been  made about his career. These items and others can be obtained from his Home at the address provided above.

Arnheim, Daniel and William Prentice. Principles of Athletic Training, 8th ed. St. Louis, MO: Mosby-Year Book, Inc., 1993.

Baker, Gene, ed. Coaching Manual, Vols. I-III.  Colorado Springs: USAW, [1980?].

Balch, James, F.and Phyllis A. Balch. Prescription for Nutritional Healing. Garden City Park, New York: Avery Publishing Group, Inc., 1990. A complete and up-to-date book on the wide range of nutritional approaches that are available to deal with many common medical problems.

Barnholth, Lawrence (with Lewis Barnholth and Peter George). Secrets of the Squat Snatch. Akron, OH: American College of Modern Weight Lifting, 1950. Larry, together with his brothers Lewis and Claude, created the American College training facility. That modest (physically) facility produced two World Record holders (brothers Peter and Jim George) and many national level lifters over the years. The Barnholth brothers were  known for building the character of their lifters as well as their bodies. Secrets  was the first (and perhaps only) book ever written on the squat style snatch. It was prepared at a time when the squat style was viewed as acceptable but was still widely questioned by many coaches (today it is overwhelmingly dominant). Larry presents a step-by-step-system for learning to use the squat style in the snatch and much of his advice is as useful toady as it was nearly 50 years ago.

Bloomfield, John, Timothy Ackland and Bruce Elliot. Applied Anatomy and Biomechanics in Sport. Carlton, Victoria, Australia: Blackwell Scientific Publications, 1994.

Boff, Vic. Feats of Strength. New York: Super Strength Publishing, 1979. A classic on how to perform impressive strength feats from a man who has been doing them for decades, in addition to watching some of the best in history perform.

———. The Bodybuilder’s Bible. New York: ARCO Publishing, Inc., 1985. Vic covers a great deal of territory in this book that addresses a broad spectrum of the bodybuilding world. Vic uses the word “bodybuilding” in its traditional sense of improving health along with increasing muscle size.

Boompa, Tudor. Theory and Methodology of Training: The Key to Athletic Performance, 2nd. ed.. Dubuque, IA: Kendall Publishing Company, 1990.

Bowerman, William and William Freeman. High Performance Training for Track & Field. Champaign, IL: Leisure Press, 1991. Bill is one of coaching’s greats, and his fundamental principles apply to all sports, not only track and field events.

Brancazio, Peter. Sport Science: Physical Laws and Optimum Performance. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1984. A fascinating look at how a physicist sees various sports.

Cahill, Bernard and Arthur Pearl, eds. Intensive Participation in Children’s Sports. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics, 1993.

Carper, Jean. The Brand-Name Nutrition Counter, rev. ed. New York: Bantam Books, 1985. Lists the nutritional contents of a wide variety of foods (includes protein, fat, carbohydrate and caloric counts. as well as some key vitamins and minerals).

Casadei, Marino and Alain Lunzenfichter. 1896-1996: 100 Years of Olympic Weightlifting. Budapest: International Weightlifting Federation, 1996.

Chandler, J. and M. Stone, eds. USWF Safety Manual. Colorado Springs, CO: United States Weightlifting Federation, 1990.

Charniga, Andrew, “Bud”, Jr. Variability Incorporated Into the Training of a Qualified Athlete: A Case Study. Thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Education Degree in Physical Education, 1981. University of Toledo, OH. The author (a national level competitor) analyzes the effect of variability on his own performance.

Charniga, Andrew,  Jr. trans. & comp. Weightlifting Training and Technique. Livonia: Sportivny Press, 1992. A selection of articles from a number of sources in the former Soviet Union from the leading US translator of Soviet books on weightlifting.

Coan, Ed. The Squat. Quads Gym, 745 North Torrance Ave., Calumet City, IL, 60409 USA. (708) 862-9779. Videocassette. Ed is one of powerlifting’s true immortals, having won 10 world championships and having set scores of world records. Ed is also one of the game’s true gentlemen. He has produced a series of video tapes that take you through each of the three lifts in powerlifting competition and describe Ed’s training approach as well (not to mention permitting you to observe Ed do some fantastic lifts). If you are interested in powerlifting, you can learn a lot from Ed.

Colgan, Michael. Optimum Sports Nutrition: Your Competitive Edge. Ronkonkoma, NY: Advanced Research Press, 1993.

Diana, Sam. Jim Williams: Powerlifting’s Greatest Bench Presser. [Scranton, PA, 1990].

Dintiman, George and Robert Ward. Sport Speed. Champaign, IL: Leisure Press, 1988.

Dvorkin, Leonid. Weightlifting and Age: Scientific and Pedagogical Fundamentals of a Multi-Year System of Training Junior Weightlifters. Trans. Andrew Charniga, Jr.. Livonia: Sportivny Press, 1992.

Faeth, Karl, ed. Sports Medicine Manual. Colorado Springs: USWF, [1986?].

Fleck, Steven and William Kraemer. Designing Resistance Training Programs. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics, 1987.

Fodor, R.V. Winning Weightlifting. New York: Sterling Publishing Co., Inc. 1983.

Fox, Edward. Sports Physiology. Philadelphia: Saunders College Publishing, 1979.

Frankel, Victor and Margareta Nordin. Basic Biomechanics of the Skeletal System. Philadelphia: Lea & Febiger, 1980.

Frantz, Ernie. Ten Commandments of Powerlifting. Aurora, IL: Ernie Frantz, [1985?].

Freeman, William. Peak When it Counts: Periodization for American Track & Field, 2nd.ed. Mountain View, CA: Tafnews Press, 1991.

Gallwey, Timothy. The Inner Game of Tennis. New York: Random House, 1974.

Garfield, Charles. Peak Performance: Mental Training Techniques of the World’s Greatest Athletes. Los Angeles, CA: Jeremy Tarcher, Inc. 1984. Presents a number of good approaches to improving one’s mental performance.

George, Peter. “The Psychology of Weightlifting.” Strength & Health Magazine. November and December 1961. Written by a World and Olympic champion, these articles are two of the very few (and the very best) published on various aspects of mental preparation for training and competition. Pete is widely remembered for being one of the earliest successful squat style lifters and for high performance at an early age (he very nearly won the Olympics at age 18). But he is also remembered for his ability to lift record weights with limited training (due to his intense studies in college and dental school while he was competing),  for lifting maximum weights after warming up with 60 kg. and for the intensity of his mental preparation for a lift (Pete paced back and forth behind the bar working himself into a focused frenzy before each lift). Consequently, he knows of that which he speaks. See also the listing for Larry Barnholth above (who Pete collaborated with to create “Secrets of the Squat Snatch”).

George, Peter. “Secretes of the Squat Snatch” Gatekeeper Press, 2018 The Psychology of Weightlifting.” Pete ghost wrote this book for his coach Larry Barnholth, who with his brothers had developed the method of teaching the squat snatch explained therein. Larry’s book, first printed in 1950 by Pete George and his brother George, explained the method he’d used to teach more lifters the squat snatch than perhaps anyone before him (and a more stable squat technique than had ever been used before). By the time the book was published, Larry club “The American College of Modern Weightlifting” likely had more lifters doing the squat snatch than all other lifters in then US combined. Two of the book’s earliest readers were Tommy Kono and Dave Sheppard, two of the many who used the book to learn how to squat snatch. There were no videos or many sequence photos in those days, so Larry’s book was the only material they could rely upon, unless they went to Ohio to train with Larry, which some did (but not Dave or Tommy). Within ten years of the publication of the book, the squat snatch had become the dominant style is the world of weightlifting. Fortunately, Pete saw to it that this book was brought back into print. While some find fault with the method of learning the squat snatch espoused by Larry and Peter, I have never seen a book that presented such a fully developed system for learning an Olympic lift. For that alone, Larry needs to be remembered and Pete helped to do that when he brought back the book in 2021, with some updating. Outside of weightlifting, where he managed to win the Olympics and several World Championships, while in dental school and Columbia University, He later became a member of the International Weightlifting Federation’s Medical Committee and was selected as a coach for the 1980 Olympic Weightlifting Team. He invented the first version of an intraoral device to treat severe sleep apnea and taught at the University of Hawaii School of Medicine and lectured internationally.

Glenney, Judy. So You Want To Become A Female Weightlifter. Farmington, NM: Glennco Enterprises, 1989. Judy, multiple-time national champion and American recordbreaker, a true pioneer in women’s weightlifting and the first female athlete ever to be inducted into USAW’s Hall of Fame, takes you through the basics of weightlifting from her special perspective.

Harder, Dale. Strength & Speed Ratings. Castro Valley, CA: Education Plus+, 1994. In this book Dale pulls together the best performances in history in track & field, weightlifting, powerlifting and various other tests of strength and power. In addition, he often presents summaries of the progress of records over time and lists records for athletes of various ages and bodyweights. If you want to compare what you or other athletes can do in relation to the best who ever lived, this book is for you (the book has been updated since 1994).

Hatfield, Frederick. The Complete Guide To Power Training. New Orleans: Fitness Systems, 1983. Fred has been a prolific thinker and writer on powerlifting and bodybuilding for many years. A former editor of Muscle & Fitness, widely published in the strength field and one of the founders of the International Sports Sciences Association (ISSA), this was Fred’s first complete statement on training. He has added to what he wrote here in his subsequent books and articles, but for straight information on powerlifting training for strength this is still one of the best books around (even if it may be a little rough in terms of format relative to Fred’s later works). Fred “Dr. Squat” Hatfield is a very original and creative thinker who proved many of his theories on his own body. His 1000+ pound squat when he was over 40 and barely above the 242 pound class still stands as one of the world’s all-time great strength feats (and his 500+ pound bench after two rotator cuff surgeries can’t be far behind). There isn’t anyone who can’t learn something from Fred.

———. Ultimate Sports Nutrition: The Scientific Approach To Peak Athletic Performance. Chicago: Contemporary Books, Inc., 1987. Here Fred focuses his fertile mind on nutrition.

———. Power: A Scientific Approach. Chicago: Contemporary Books, Inc., 1989. Updates much of the material in Fred’s earlier Power Training book in a more elegant format.

———. Hardcore Bodybuilding: A Scientific Approach. Chicago: Contemporary Books, Inc., 1991. Fred’s observations on bodybuilding.

Hay, James and J. Gavin Reid. Anatomy, Mechanics and Human Motion. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1988.

Hepburn, Doug. Super Strength. Vancouver, Canada: Doug Hepburn, [1994?]. Doug has some original ideas on training, a number of which contradict current wisdom. But few can quarrel with how effective they have been for Doug (who built himself up from an average-size youth to become the world’s strongest man for a time) and others.

Hepburn, Doug. Strength and Bulk. Vancouver, Canada: Doug Hepburn, circa 1994.

Herring, George. The Natural Cycle “Float Method”. Pamphlet circa 1980.

Hernandez III, Gaspar. Cuban Training Tape. P.O. Box 131 Tranquillity, NJ 07879. Gaspar made this tape during a recent visit to Cuba. It provides some interesting footage of the Cuban training hall and a few of their top athletes training, along with Gaspar’s narration (which supplies information on the training methods of the Cuban team).

International Weightlifting Federation. Proceedings of the Weightlifting Symposium, Siofok, Hungary: Budapest: International Weightlifting Federation, 1989.

Hill, Napoleon. Think and Grow Rich. New York: Ballantine Books, 1937, 1960. Undoubtedly the most well known book on personal achievement ever written in the English language (and translated to many others). Hill became a legend in this field by delivering an inspiring message during the Great Depression in the US and his advice is still very useful, whether you want to lift big weights or make money. While many have copied and tried to improve upon Hill, it is hard to find a better work than this one.

——— and W. Clement Stone. Success Through a Positive Mental Attitude. New York: Pocket Books, 1977. Written primarily by Stone (a long time associate of Hill’s and builder of a the multi-billion dollar Aon Company) with the cooperation of Hill. This is the classic book on the importance of a positive mental attitude in the achievement of anything in life. Valuable for the weightlifter as well as the businessperson.

Hoffman, Bob. Guide to Weightlifting Competition. York, PA: Strength & Health Publishing Co., 1963.

———. Functional Isometric Contraction, 2nd ed. York, PA: Bob Hoffman, 1964. Bob was the power behind American weightlifting when it was at its zenith and he has crammed a great deal of useful information in this short book on training for weightlifting.

———. Weightlifting, 3rd, ed. York, PA: Strength & Health Publishing, 1963. A wonderful history of US weightlifting combined with training advice.

Horn, Thelma. Advances in Sport Psychology. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics Publishers, 1992. Offers an advanced academic look at sport psychology. Technical but very informative.

Jones, Lyn. USWF Coaching Accreditation Course: Club Coach Manual. Colorado Springs: USWF, 1991. This book, as well as the two other books in the series, were written primarily to supplement the coaching certification courses offered by the USWF/USAW. There is useful information in all three books, but they are not designed to stand alone without the instruction offered by the course lecturers. Coaching weightlifting is a hands-on activity, so attending a USWF course is an important way to learn the basics of weightlifting coaching. Information on the USWF course schedule is available from their National Office (see listing in the “Resources” section below).

———. USWF Coaching Accreditation Course: Senior Coach Manual. Colorado Springs: USWF, 1991.

———. USWF Coaching Accreditation Course: Regional Coach Manual. Colorado Springs: USWF, 1996.

Kelley, David. The Art of Reasoning, 2nd. expanded ed.. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 1994. A terrific college text on logic and its applications to everyday life.

Kirkley, George. Weight Lifting and Weight Training. New York: ARC Books, Inc., 1963.

Kirschman, John. The Nutrition Almanac. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1984. One of most complete books written on nutrition for the layperson, with a great deal of information regarding the use of a wide variety of vitamins and other food supplements.

Komi, Paavo, ed. Strength and Power in Sport. Oxford: Blackwell Scientific Publications, 1992. An excellent collection of scientific articles on strength and power science, theory and practice. Perhaps the most complete scientific work available in one volume.

Kono, Tommy. “ABC’s Of Weightlifting.” Strength & Health Magazine. Various issues from the late 1960s through the o mid 1970s. Tommy won 2 Olympic Games, took a silver medal in his third Games, won 8 World Championships and set 26 World Records across 4 weight classes during his career. He was head coach for the Mexican weightlifting team at the 1968 Olympics, the German team for the 1972 Olympics and has coached US men’s and women’s team at many international events. Tommy has also excelled as a writer about the sport and as a photographer of weightlifting. His series of articles in Strength & Health magazine, as well as many other articles written of the magazine over the years, contain a wealth of information for the athlete and coach (Strength & Health –S&H-  magazine was “the Bible” for weightlifters worldwide from the 1940s through the 1970s). In his ABC series Tommy covered technique, injury prevention, training methods and more. If you can find Tommy’s articles (and lots of others in S&H), you’ll be well rewarded for the effort.

———. “Quality Training.” Strength & Health Magazine. June 1968. In  one of the seminal articles written on weightlifting during this decade, Tommy focuses on the importance of quality versus quantity in training. More is not always better (it is often not better) and Tommy suggests that one can lift some huge weights with limited training if that training is high in quality (and in this article he offers suggestions on how to improve the quality of your workouts).  As athletes and coaches often race one another to prove that they (or their athletes) train harder than the next athlete or team, Tommy offers a “reality check” in terms that focus everyone on the ultimate goal – to lift more in competition rather than put in more training time or effort.

Kono, Tommy Weightlifting, Olympic style HKC Publishing, 2001 This wonderful book brought together much of what Tommy and written elsewhere over the years with considerable new material as well. Not only was Tommy one of the greatest lifters of all time, but his involvement in the sport was nearly 70 years and he thought about the sport and how to improve it all his life. His insights are invaluable.

Kone, Tommy Championsnhip Weightlifting  HKC Publishing, 2010. In this book Tommy covers more on his mental approach to lifting than in his first book, but other areas are covered as well. Everyone can learn something from Tommy Kono. We are very fortunate he took the time to share his insights and inspiration with the rest of us. 

Kraemer, William and Steve Fleck. Strength Training for Young Athletes. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics, 1993.

Kraemer, William and Steve Fleck. Strength Training for Young Athletes. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics, 1993.

Kubik, Brooks. Dinosaur Training: Lost Secrets of Strength and Development. Louisville, Kentucky. Brooks Kubic, 1996. Brooks has some interesting ideas on training and his advice on preparing mentally for a training session is excellent.

Kuc, John. John Kuc Speaks On Powerlifting. Kingston, PA: John Kuc, 1982.

Lamb, David. Physiology of Exercise: Responses and Adaptations. New York: MacMillan Publishing Co., Inc., 1978.

Laputin, Nikolai. Managing the Training of Weightlifters. Trans. Andrew Charniga, Jr.. Livonia: Sportivny Press, 1989.

Lear, John. Weightlifting. Wakefield, West Yorshire, UK. EP Publishing, Ltd., 1980.

———. Skillful Weightlifting. London: A&C Black, 1991.

Loehr, James. Athletic Excellence: Mental Toughness in Sports. Denver: Forum, 1982.

Lukacsfulv, Agnes and Ferenc Takas, eds. Proceedings of the Weightlifting Symposium: 1993 Ancient Olympia/Greece. Budapest: IWF 1993.

MacDougall, J. Duncan, Howard Wenger and Howard Green, eds. Physiological Testing of High Performance Athletes, 2nd ed. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics, 1991.

Mevedyev, Aleksei. A System of Multi-Year Training in Weightlifting. Trans. Andrew Charniga, Jr.. Livonia: Sportivny Press, 1989. Describes Medvedyev’s approach to training weightlifters, which is very much oriented toward a high level of variability and long-term planning. A very worthwhile exposition of this kind of approach.

———. A Program of Multi-Year Training in Weightlifting. Trans. Andrew Charniga, Jr.. Livonia: Sportivny Press, 1995. Provides specific examples of training programs for lifters across their careers.

Mihajlovic, Vladan. 80 Years Of The Weightlifting In The World And Europe 1896-1976. Budapest: International Weightlifting Federation, 1977. A wonderful book that has all of the world and Olympic Games results during the years covered, as well as the progress of world records.

Mihajlovic, Vladan. Weightlifting Results: Part II Names, Numbers, Facts. Budapest: International Weightlifting Federation, circa 1983.

Murray, Al and David Webster. Defying Gravity. 1964. A pioneering book on analyzing snatch technique.

Nadori, Laszlo and Istvan Granek. Theory and Methodological Basis of Training Planning With Special Consideration Within a Microcycle. Ed. and trans. Tibor Hartobagyi. Lincoln, NE: NSCA, 1989.

Nideffer, Robert. The Inner Athlete: Mind Plus Muscle For Winning. New York: Thomas. Y. Crowell Company, 1976. One of the earliest books on sports psychology and still one of the best.

Nugent, Daniel. Turning Iron Into Gold: How To Succeed As A Personal Trainer. New York: The Biomechanic Properties, 1995. Phone (718) 217-7506. Most weightlifters need to earn a living outside weightlifting and one of the best ways to do so is to become a personal trainer. Dan’s book takes you through many of the important aspects of embarking on such a career in a very concise and to the point manner. The author is a personal trainer, and physical educator and a trainer of personal trainers.

1974 Weightlifting Yearbook. Trans. Bernd Scheithauer, Stanford University, 1975. To my knowledge the first such yearbook translated to English. This and all of the yearbooks that follow are interesting compilations of weightlifting theory, practice and analysis.

1980 Weightlifting Yearbook. Trans. Andrew Charniga, Jr.. Livonia: Sportivny Press, 1986.

1981 Weightlifting Yearbook. Trans. Andrew Charniga, Jr.. Livonia: Sportivny Press, [1984?].

1982 Weightlifting Yearbook. Trans. Andrew Charniga, Jr.. Livonia: Sportivny Press, 1984.

1983 Weightlifting Yearbook. Trans. Andrew Charniga, Jr.. Livonia: Sportivny Press, 1984.

1984 Weightlifting Yearbook. Trans. Andrew Charniga, Jr.. Livonia: Sportivny Press, 1987.

1985 Weightlifting Yearbook. Trans. Andrew Charniga, Jr.. Livonia: Sportivny Press, 1987.

Onuma, Kenji. The Japanese Frog Style. Strength & Health Magazine. May and June 1969.  This was the first (perhaps the only) article describing the theory and practice of the frog-style pulling technique.

Orlick, Terry. In Pursuit of Excellence: How to Win in Sport and Life, 2nd. ed. Champaign, IL: Leisure Press, 1990.

O’Shea, John Patrick. Scientific Principles And Methods Of Strength Fitness. Corvallis, OR: OSU Bookstores, Inc., 1966. One of the very earliest and best books on strength training written by an academic who was also a weightlifter and all-around athlete. 

———. Quantum Strength Training. Corvallis, OR: Patrick’s Books, 1995. This book picks up where “Scientific Principles…” left off. Pat crams a lot of information into this book, covering the principles of developing training programs, the principles of sport science, proper technique, how one can integrate one’s knowledge of training into sport-specific training and how to modify the training plan as one ages. You can tell from reading this book that the author was not only on top of the research in his field but has practiced what he has preached as well.

The Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia. Drugs in Sport: An Interim Report of the Senate Standing Committee On Environment, Recreation and the Arts. Canberra, Australia, Australian Government Publishing Service, May 1989.  Provides one of the best summaries of the history of drug use in sport that is available and, along with the companion volume that follows, documents the reportedly deplorable situation that existed in the Australian Institute of Sport with respect to employees involved in the promotion of drug use, especially in the sport of weightlifting.

———. Drugs in Sport: Second Paper of the Senate Standing Committee On Environment, Recreation and the Arts. Canberra, Australia, Australian Government Publishing Service, May 1990.

Pearl, Bill. Keys to the Inner Universe. Bolinas, CA: Physical Fitness Architects, 1979. Bill self-published this classic nearly 20 years ago and it still stands an the most complete explanation of weight training (though not weightlifting) exercises that has ever been published. Bill, one of the greatest and strongest bodybuilders or all time (and a real gentleman who remains in great shape to this day), both illustrates and explains the performance of hundreds of exercises, often comments on their benefits, and assigns a level of difficulty. If you want to know how to perform any bodybuilding exercise, Bill’s book is the place to go. The book also contains information on nutrition, putting together a routine and a multitude of other subjects – its a true classic.

Pearl, Bill and Gary Moran. Getting Stronger. Bolinas, CA: Shelter Publications, Inc., 1986. This book focuses more on training than “Keys…”. It describes many important training principles so that one can understand how to devise a program for his or her own needs. Specific programs are provided for bodybuilders of all levels and for the practitioners of sports from golf to wrestling.

Peikoff, Leonard. Objectivism: The Philosophy of Ayn Rand. New York: Penguin Group, 1991. The first truly comprehensive book on the Objectivist philosophy – a philosophy of great appeal to the reasoning mind.

Pick, J. and Becque, M. Percent Activation of Two Quadriceps Muscles During the Squat Exercise in Trained Individuals. Paper presented at the National Strength and Conditioning Association Conference in New Orleans in June of 1994. Reported in abstract form in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, Vol. 9, #3, August 1995, pg. 194.

Platz, Tom. Pro-Style Bodybuilding. New York: Sterling Publishing, Co., Inc., 1981.

Raiport, Grigori: Red Gold: Peak Performance Techniques of Russian and East German Olympic Victors. Los Angeles: Jeremy P. Tarcher, Inc., 1988

Rand, Ayn. Atlas Shrugged. New York: Penguin Group, 1957, 1985.  The novel that made Rand famous as a philosopher as well as a novelist and spawned the development of a comprehensive and widely studied philosophy—Objectivism.

———. The Fountainhead. New York: The New American Library, Inc., 1943, 1971. The book that made Ayn Rand a famous novelist and captured millions of fans. Still a strong seller after more than 50 years.

Rasch, Philip. Kinesiology and Applied Anatomy. Philadelphia: Lea & Febiger, 1989.

Reid, David. Sports Injury Assessment and Rehabilitation. NY: Churchill Livingstone, 1992.

Roman, Robert. The Training of the Weightlifter, 2nd Ed.. Trans. Andrew Charniga, Jr.. Livonia: Sportivny Press, 1988. Roman was one of the great Soviet sports thinkers and this book is a great way to get acquainted with him.

Roman, Robert and Midkat Shakirzyanov. The Snatch , The Clean and Jerk. Trans. Andrew Charniga, Jr.. Livonia: Sportivny Press, 1982. Offers some terrific analyses of weightlifting technique.

Rothenberg, Beth and Oscar. Touch Training For Strength. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics, 1995.

Sanders, Barbara, ed. Sports Physical Therapy. Norwalk, CT: Appleton&Lange, 1990.

Sandler, Ronald and Dennis Lobstein. Consistent Winning: A Remarkable New Training System That Lets You Peak On Demand. Emmaus, PA: Rodale Press, 1992.

Schmidt, Richard. Motor Control and Learning: A Behavioral Emphasis, 2nd ed. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics, 1988. A very comprehensive text at the graduate level. Challenging  reading but worth the effort.

Schodl, Gottfried. The Lost Past. Trans. Aniko Nemeth-Mora. Budapest: International Weightlifting Federation, 1992. Mr. Schodl has been President of the IWF for more than 20 years. He and Tamas Ajan have worked together to guide the IWF to a higher world profile, to Olympic success and toward becoming one of the strongest sports federations in the world in terms of drug testing. One of weightlifting’s most outstanding historians, Mr. Schodl has gathered together some of the great stories and statistics of weightlifting history into this volume. If you are a weightlifting history buff, you have to own this book.

Schodl, Gottfried and Alain Lunzenfichter, eds. From Alexseev to Zubricky:100 Years’ Weightlifting Medals 1891-1991. Budapest: International Weightlifting Federation, 1992. In this book Messrs. Schodl and Lunzenfichter have captured key statistics on individual lifters across the last 100 years. A unique work that summarizes the accomplishments of athletes from Alexseev to Zubricky.

Schwarzenegger, Arnold. Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1985. Arnold is world-renown for his acting, bodybuilding, business and charity efforts. He is a quality guy who always tries to deliver value to his audience. He has succeeded in this book quite admirably. While many stars will put their name on something merely to extend their “empires.” Arnold has delivered the most complete single volume on bodybuilding that has ever been published. It’s a great place for the beginning and intermediate bodybuilder to start and can teach some advanced bodybuilders a few things as well.

Seno, Bill. Pushing For Power: In Powerlifting and Sports. IL: William Joseph Seno, 1984.

Selye, Hans. The Stress of Life, rev. ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, Inc., 1976. The book that started all the talk about “stress” and its effects on our lives. Its message has often been misinterpreted by the popular press. This book lets you hear it from the source.

Sherwood, Lauralee. Human Physiology, 2nd ed. Minneapolis/St.Paul: West Publishing Company, 1993.

Shils, Maurico, James Olson and Moshe Shike. Modern Nutrition in Health and Disease, 8th ed. Volumes 1 and 2. Philadelphia: Lea & Febiger, 1994.

Simmons, Louie. The Squat Video. Westside Barbell Club. 1417 Demarest, Columbus OH, 43228. Tel: (614) 276-0923. Longtime powerlifter and coach of many powerlifting champions, Louie Simmons runs this very active powerlifting club. Louie has produced several very interesting video tapes on his unique training system. I don’t agree with everything Louie says, and his tapes can be a little rough on production value at times, but Louie’s enthusiasm and creativity shine through. His approach is certainly worth a look. Whether you agree with it or not, you can’t help but come away from the experience of watching one of his tapes without some new thoughts of your own as well as a sense that there continues to be a great deal of room for innovation in weight training. Louie also has an interesting line of equipment, some of it of his own design.

Starr, Bill. The Strongest Shall Survive. Washington, DC: Fitness Products Ltd. , 1978. Bill was the editor of Strength & Health magazine for a number of years and was a national level lifter as well in both weightlifting and powerlifting. He provides sound training advice in his hallmark style – which is as entertaining as it is informative. Bill is his own man and bases his advice on what he knows from experience.

—-. Defying Gravity: How To Win At Weightlifting. Wichita Falls, TX: Five Starr Productions, 1981. Even more entertaining than The Strongest…”, this book packs more information on how to compete successfully than almost anything else around. In addition, it entertains the reader with inside stories of the athletes Bill knew during his York days and after that. You have to love Bill’s writing style and his message.

Stone, M.H., O’Bryant, H. and Garhammer, J.A. A Hypothetical Model for Strength Training. Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness (21:336 342-351, 1981).

Strossen, Randall. Super Squats: How To Gain 30 Pounds Of Muscle In 6 Weeks. Larkspur, CA: Randall J. Strossen, 1989. In this compact volume Randy has gathered together information on the one exercise that will give a person who is willing to work hard more results than any other. Other writers have written about high rep breathing squats before, but Randy put it all together and with this volume assures that the bodybuilding benefits of squatting won’t be forgotten.

Strossen, Randall. Iron Mind: Stronger Minds, Stronger Bodies. Nevada City, CA: Iron Mind Enterprises, 1994. A compilation of Randi’s articles that appeared in a well know bodybuilding magazine over a period of several years. This book contains practical advice on handling a wide range of mental challenges in this book.

Tesch, Per. Muscle Meets Magnet. Stockholm, Sweden: PA Tesch AB, 1993. The first large scale attempt to evaluate the way in which various exercises stress particular muscles using an MRI.

Ungerlander, Steven and Jacqueline Golding. Beyond Strength. Dubuque, IA: Wm. C. Brown Publishers, 1992.

United States Weightlifting Federation, Inc. Official USWF Rulebook 1994. Colorado Springs, CO: United States Weightlifting Federation, Inc., 1994. Soon to be updated, this is the most current rulebook available that describes the rules of the USWF/USAW. Every lifter and coach should own and read this book so that they know the rules of the game. Rudy Sablo, former national-level lifter, a coach, an administrator and for many years the head of the USWF’s technical committee, has long been the force behind the USWF rulebook. He, along, with Jack Hughes (former national champion and another incredibly dedicated referee), have trained and tested virtually every referee now practicing in the US. While their contribution has often been overlooked, there are those of us who realize how important their life’s work has been to the sport.

Verkhoshansky, Yuri. Fundamentals of Special Strength-Training in Sport. Trans. Andrew Charniga, Jr. . Livonia: Sportivny Press, 1986.

———. Programming and Organization of Training. Trans. Andrew Charniga, Jr. Livonia: Sportivny Press, 1986.

Vorobyev, Arkady. Weightlifting. Budapest: International Weightlifting Federation, 1978. One of the first and best true textbooks written on weightlifting by one of its great champions.

Vorobyev, Arkady, Heavy Athletics. Moscow: Fiziculture i Sport, 1988.

Webster, David. Preparing For Competition Weightlifting. Huddersfield, UK: Springfield Books, Ltd., 1986

———. The Iron Game: An Illustrated History of Weightlifting. Irvine: John Geddes (Printers), 1976. A splendid history of the sport that contains pictures and references difficult to obtain from any other source. If Dave hasn’t “seen it all” he has seen most of what has been accomplished in weightlifting and now you get to share what he knows.

———. The Development of the Clean & Jerk. Circa 1966. One of the pioneering analyses of the technique of the Clean and Jerk. Dave was perhaps the first person to write about the “double knee bend”.

———. The International Research Training Plan Parts I & II. Circa 1966. One of the earliest expositions of periodization in the Western literature.

Wells, Christine. Women, Sport & Performance: A Physiological Perspective, 2nd. ed. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics Books, 1991.

Wells, Katherine. Kinesiology: The Scientific Basis of Human Motion. Philadelphia: W.B. Saunders Company, 1971

Willoughby, David. The Super Athletes. South Brunswick & New York: A.S. Barnes and Company, 1970. One of the great historians of the Iron Game and other sports as well, Willoughby has put together the most complete collection of strength “best performances” ever assembled. This book is a treasure but is unfortunately long out-of-print. If you see a copy buy it without hesitation. It will provide hours of reading pleasure and give you a new appreciation for athletic performances of every kind, but particularly for the feats of the strong men and women who have made strength history.

Wirhed, Rolf. Athletic Ability: The Anatomy of Winning. New York: Harmony Books, 1984.

Yates, Dorian and Bob Wolff. Blood and Guts: The Ultimate Approach to Building Muscle Mass. Woodland Hills, CA: Wolff Creative Group, 1993. 6 time Mr. Olympia, Dorian Yates is one of history’s greatest bodybuilders and a very strong one inaddition. His simple and clear messages on training and dedication to one’s craft transcend the bodybuilding world. Following his guidance would make anyone a success in any area of life.

Yessis, Michael and Richard Turbo. Secrets of Soviet Sports Fitness and Training. Don Mills, Ontario: Collins Publishers, 1987. Zatsiorsky, Vladimir. Science and Practice of Strength Training. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics, 1995. A very interesting and imaginative work by one of today’s best thinkers and reseachers on this subject, especially in the area of training for increased power.