ExRx.net

I'm looking into this collection of stuff to buy from Mike Robertson.

They all have a wide range of prices based on what all you purchase with the DVD/book. Does anyone have any suggestions? Should I just go basic and get them at the minimum price or are the e-books, print manuals, etc worth it? Anyone else buy them?

Thanks

I have all of them, and recommend all of them.

What exactly are you looking for?

M2 and Inside Out could (should) be used as the basis for your warm ups for years - I know because they have been the basis of mine for years now (well about 2 and counting). Your warm up will become much more than "getting the blood flowing" if you get these, it will have a corrective element - addressing tight and weak muscles, too, which all warm ups should do in my opinion (to prepare you for better movement).

Bullet Proof Knees does exactly what it says on the tin. It will completely open your eyes to how your knees work and what influences them, and also includes a program that will fit your situation, with progressions to more complex stuff i.e if you're really screwed up you'll start on things like static holds and low box step ups, but you'll work through to squats and DL's. It includes pics and descriptions of everything, including foam rolling, stretching, and exercises. The bonus DVD is probably worth the price of the whole thing, which is just one of Mikes Bullet Proof Knees seminars recorded. Also, it's not too heavy on the terminology i.e. you don't need to be an anatomy freak to understand it, although it will help.

Bear in mind BPK's isn't really aimed at people with knee injuries. It's more aimed at people who think about 'down the line' and want to do what they can to ensure long term health. If you have general aches and pains in your knees and actually follow the program, it will more than likely get rid of said aches and pains but just realise that if you have an injury you really do need someone to look at it.

So, it depends what you want. Personally, i've got amazing value out of those products. Take inside out and M2 - they've been the basis for my warm for about 2 years. That's 4 sessions per week. I also do stuff from them between lifting days. I've read through BPK's about 4-5 times, and watched the DVD about 3 times. A lot of my lower body work is based on what I learn from that manual.

Without sounding like I'm on commision, you need to look at these products as an investment in your own health. So, what's the health of your joints worth to you? It doesn't matter what opinion you hear from whoever on single leg stuff or dynamic warm ups or whatever - Getting the info yourself and reading and understanding and trying it yourself is by far the smartest thing to do.

KPj

Wow! Thanks for the great synopsis!

The status on my joints is to prevent things down the line.

Let me rephrase my question. Is it required to buy all the other materials with the basic DVD/Book to get the most out of it?

I am leaning towards spending more money and getting the e-book, print manuals and all the other stuff, but if I DO NOT need to get them, then I will not.

Thanks again for the post! Much appreciated.

Well, the one downfall of M2 is that it doesn't explain in the video very well exactly what to do or how to progress. The manual came out after the initial launch of the product, after a lot of people complained (and the authors were asked loads of the same questions). Therefore, I would imagine the manual is pretty important for m2.

I really like the manual for Inside Out and would say it's important, too. I just think you would be 'missing out' if you didn't get it....

Why don't you spread your purchases. Leave BPK until later on, and get M2 and Inside Out. BPK references movements from both of those DVD's anyway. Then, once you've got the warm up stuff down, and it's feasable, take things further by getting BPK.

If you need to split it even more, and don't have any particular issues, I would suggest getting M2 first. Simply because I believe in working from the ground up and because, well, most peoples hips are tight as a drum, and M2 stuff will sort that out.

KPj

I wrote a review of each of them. You can read them here:

MM
http://strength-basics.blogspot.com/200 ... ility.html


and here:

I/O
http://strength-basics.blogspot.com/200 ... imate.html

Personally I liked them both a lot, but I got the most value out of I/O. Lots of the MM stuff is available free on the web in various places (Ron Jones' website, for example, or Core Performance), but the I/O stuff was really invaluable for showing me how to organize a complete upper body warmup. The real downside to MM was/is that it doesn't tell you how to make a warmup, it just gives you the pieces. It's still a good product though.

I don't have Bulletproof Knees, so you'll have to stick with KPj's assessment.

That sounds like a good idea KPj. I want to get the most out of those items, I'll just spread out my purchases.

It took me a day or two now but I realized I got into a specific mindset. Basically, it comes down to what price would you pay for good health? We analyze our costs for gym memberships, food, books...even if those things will help us down the line. I feel very short sighted for quibbling over cost now.

Great reviews pdellorto. I explored your blog a bit more after reading them and found more useful information. Good premise behind it and I plan on checking it out often.

Yeah, another thing is, and i've been guilty of it myself, is to get too much at one time. You end up drowning yourself in info. M2 and Inside Out set you up nicely for BPK. It's worth checking things like that, too - what order you should get stuff. For example, I bought the Manual of Structural Kinesiology before I bought a basic anatomy text. As a result, the Manual of Structural Kinesiology sat there, un touched, for months, simply because it was way over my head. If I had bought a basica anatomy book first I would made much more productive use of my time, and that's important to me. For example, Peters correct thatyou can get a lot of the M2 movements on the net (you can also get a lot of the Inside Out movements via the net). However, I would much rather just get the DVD, that way, I just stick it in the player and I have all the movements. Time costs money. If you have the money, just get it, if you don't, then find the time (to search for the free resources)...

YOu have a good point on costs, and that's exactly how I look at it. I know protein powder is cheaper in the US, but over here, the cost of M2 plus manual is not far off the price of a tub of protein, or most of those super powerade/creating supps that give you a great pump and healthy dose of anxiety. And, what my g/f just spent on a night out would probably get me one on one training by one of the coaches themselves, flight and accommodation included. None of those things last years, ya know, and they're purely a luxury, yet, as you said, people don't hesitate to splash out on them.

KPj

Thanks. I try not to "push" the blog around here much, but since I already wrote the reviews I figured they'd help. Glad you find it useful.



I think we all do that. You really need just a little more information than you have now. You get too much at once and you can't process it all. Worse, you can get distracted by each book/DVD/article and you don't really take the time to digest what you've gotten from each one.

But KPj is right - if you've got more money than time, get MM and I/O; if you've got more time than money, dig around first on the web (I mentioned a couple places) and then move into those.

Here's the Core Performance and Ron Jones sites I mentioned:
http://www.coreperformance.com/knowledg ... rm-up.html

http://www.ronjones.org/Coach&Train/Bod ... index.html

The Core Performance one is really handy because it's plug-and-play. You can just try it out, and as you learn more (from MM and I/O, for example) you can swap out stuff for variations or something that helps you better.

Hope that helps,

Peter

That was my complaint about MM also. It has great mobility exercises, but I wasn't sure in which order to do them? Do you master the first group of exercises before moving on? Anyway, I did write Eric and he explained to just mix them up, that I didn't have to follow a protocol.

I have inside out. it really helps with upper body mobility.

Ordered M2 and Bulletproof Knees the other day, got a message that they were shipped. Am really looking forward to it!

I have really enjoyed my last couple purchases. Prior to these I got Nate Green's Built for Show and Eric Cressey's Maximum Strength. I read both and thoroughly enjoyed them. I started the Built for Show workouts this week. I may just start a training log here to keep track of it all.

I figure after I finish Built for Show I'll move into Maximum Strength.

I just read something interesting here:

http://ericcressey.com/random-friday-thoughts-5809

"5. It’s official: Mike Robertson, Bill Hartman, and I are filming a new DVD on June 7th. Lots to prepare before then!"

I wonder if it's a new version of M2?

Rather than start a new topic about it, I thought I would just bring back this old one.

I read through M2 and started doing some of the exercises, and am planning on gradually adding more. When I first started them I was tired by the time I was done, and was concerned about the lifting to follow, but it's gotten a lot better. Not to mention that some of the harder exercises were just that...hard!

I'm working my way slowly through bulletproof knees, really trying to digest all the technical stuff. I'm looking forward to adding in some of the stuff suggested in it.

This is so exciting. All I need to do now is start watching my nutrition and do a little more cardio. Cardio is so hard to do when all I enjoy is watching the weight go up on squats/DLs. Maybe I'll be able to join you guys in the next challenge you have!

I'm curious if the Inside/Out exercises are similiar to what Ron Jones provides on his website for upper body routines?

There's a couple of movements there that are in Inside Out. The 'scarecrow' is on it, although it's called the Egyption in I/O. And '90/90' is very similar to some of the movements on it, although i don't think it's explained or performed very well. For one the knee should really be at 90 degrees and ideally supported on a med ball of some sort and the arm lying down should consciously be pointed to activate the abs,which he may be doing but doesn't specify - these points prevent compensation (from the lower back). Good for a free resource though.

KPj