Review of Vince Delmonte's Six-Pack Quest By Mike Westerdal of CriticalBench.com
If you try to keep yourself up-to-date about the latest developments and strategies in the world of fitness and strength training, then you've probably heard of Vince DelMonte. Vince is one of the industry's greatest resources, sharing his experiences and wealth of knowledge through his website, books and training programs. This time around Vince has developed a book entitled No-Nonsense Six-Pack, which includes his strategies for developing the perfect abs.
There's hardly a man on the planet who doesn't want to have the perfect six-pack abs. Who doesn't want to take off his shirt and show off a lean, ripped mid-section? The fitness industry knows this and understands that there's lots of money to be made by promoting all sorts of pills, programs and gadgets to help guys develop the 'perfect six-pack.' The problem though, is that most of them are promoting a magic bullet that promises to almost instantly--and without any effort at all--give you the midsection you've always wanted. Not surprisingly, they don't work.
With No-Nonsense, Vince has taken a different approach. He's not promising a magical overnight solution. And if you're looking for an easy, no-effort program then you should probably look elsewhere because Vince expects you to work for your results--just like he did, and does. In fact, Vince opens the book by saying that your quest for the perfect six-pack could be the toughest challenge you'll ever face.
The first chapter presents a discussion of 15 reasons why the average guy will not achieve his dream of having six-pack abs. It's interesting that most of the reasons that guys fail to obtain perfect six-pack abs stem from the fact that they don't pay enough attention to the mental component of the ab-building strategy. This is critical because the mental aspect of the quest formulates the foundation for everything you do afterwards.
In chapter two, Vince presents a framework for developing a motivational plan to keep you on track. Again, this is a complete departure from the magic bullet approaches, because unlike most ab programs, Vince actually expects you to work for your results. You'll find a lot of great motivators in this section. In the following chapter, he begins to outline the training plan, which is comprised of three cornerstones:
1) create a caloric deficit;
2) increase the metabolic cost of each circuit; and
3) increase the metabolic demand of each workout.
This section is followed by a discussion of the No-Nonsense training principles. For example, while most training programs have you focus on the number of reps, rest periods, tempo or number of sets, Vince believes that it's more important to focus on Intensity, Concentration and Exertion of effort (ICE). The rest of the chapter includes explanations of his other training principles. If you've read any of Vince's other works, then you'll be familiar with these.
Next up is the Cardio Plan. Staying true to his style, Vince provides the reader with information and strategies that aren't part of the typical fat reduction cardio programs you see being marketed today. As an example, he talks about a study that showed that fat burning actually increased when participants did two 30-minute sessions with a break in between versus one continuous 60-minute session.
Developing your own personal six-pack abs nutritional plan is the focus of chapter five. Here, he presents a really interesting approach to nutrition, using what he calls his 'Elimination Plan.' Foods are ranked from 'F' to 'A' with 'F' being the worst foods and 'A' being the best. Pay close attention to this section because it contains some surprises. Also, just like in the rest of the plan, to follow his nutritional approach, Vince expects you to do some work and be accountable if you want to see results. You'll need to calculate your daily caloric intake and take on some other responsibilities as well.
Chapter six provides a nice overview of the No-Nonsense approach to supplementation and chapter seven offers up some tips on living the six-pack lifestyle. Here again Vince doesn't disappoint. He provides excellent, fact-based information and strategies that are overlooked by most other fitness authors. And I don't know about everyone else but personally, I like to work for my results. When I've worked hard at something and achieve my goal, I get an incredible sense of satisfaction. More important, achieving the goal means so much more since it's something that I've really put my efforts into it and persevered to get the results I want. So if that's the kind of guy you are, then Vince's No-Nonsense Six-Pack is probably the right program for you.
