Appreciation for the books

Would just like to show some appreciation to Mark and the Starting Strength company for all the information compiled in the books and on the website.

I’ve recently finished the novice program after 5 months of training, and I’m sitting here now reflecting on how I feel compared to before. It’s easy to take strength and your physical ability for granted, but when going from untrained to completing a barbell program only then you realise how valuable strength is on your ability to perform tasks and general well-being.

Before training I wasn’t in bad shape, but I’d be what you’d refer to as an underweight male. I started due to back problems I’d had in the past such as a stress fracture in the lower spine, and wanted a way to get rid of them permanently. Eventually I came across the books after using trial and error on many different exercise methods, seeing some benefits from them but still feeling pain from time to time. The program itself may be the least exciting on paper of every program I’ve tried, but the results have gone beyond any other by far. This, in itself, is what keeps me sticking with the methods detailed in the books.

I’m 23, 6’2 and gained 14kg/31lbs in 5 months on the program, going from a slender 78kg to 92kg, and feeling far more capable than before. My squat strength has just about doubled in that time. I followed the program precisely as laid out in the book, with the exception of drinking just over half a gallon of milk a day instead of the full gallon. Mainly due to not being willing to go and buy a carton of milk a day and fear of my stomach not tolerating it.

Anyway, my results may not be extraordinary, but I’m just sharing my experience of how much of a difference the program has made in just a short space of time.

More recently I’ve equipped the outhouse in the garden with a power rack, barbell, plates, bench and a platform I built, all from following the specs in the book. It’d be nice to use this space in the future to help people who need it.

Again, thanks to Mark, the authors of the books and the Starting Strength company for the help they have provided to make all this possible. It’s been a pleasure.