Let me give you the secret to superlative strength and strength training programs: well, it’s too late, you have it in your hands. Rarely have I seen anything that contains as much logic, common sense, and absolute truth about weightlifting than we find here in Paul McIIroy’s Perpetual Strength.

Paul’s life story, the explanations of Comfort Zone Expansion, the details on the actual lifts and the amazing programming all align to give you a complete work on getting stronger. And "getting stronger" is your ticket to body composition improvement, increased lifespan (healthspan), and elite performance.

I’ve known Paul for a while. He notes in Perpetual Strength that he became a bit of a celebrity from the workout he shared with us in Easy Strength (written by me and Pavel). He adapted Steve Justa’s training system and forged himself into one of the world’s strongest men. In Perpetual Strength, he goes on to make me laugh out loud about the endless questions sent to him about this mention in our book. The questions, by the way, NEVER stop coming! Not long after Easy Strength was published, I visited Paul and his brother in Northern Ireland. I met their mom and I had a delightful visit.

I also saw the bullet holes. When Paul talks about his life growing up in "The Troubles," it is not the sanitized Derry Girls. He writes with a blunt hand and a passionate voice. I was there when he twisted the Red Nail and his personal exploits are a wonder to see and read. Paul is, and remains, "the real deal."

The concept of Comfort Zone Expansion sums the best of the track and field (athletics) world and most of us working in individual sports. My coach, Ralph Maughan, summed all of training very simply: "Little and often over the long haul." Paul and Coach Maughan share the same important insight: success takes time. I want to share a quote from Paul that really opened up the whole concept of CZE for me:

"It’s best to lift the weights you CAN lift, to gain the ability to lift the weight you never could. You CAN improve a rep maximum by training with the rep maximum weight, but NOT by doing the rep maximum with that weight in training."

Simple. Elegant. Concise. And…true.

Before Paul dives into the "how" of CZE, he stops and reviews the key movements for superior human strength: the power lifts. He also includes several assistance exercises and the story about the Finnegan Rows deserves several retellings. I think I found a new role model there!

Briefly, Paul’s approach to the lifts isn’t the "one size fits all" model that has been tossed around so much in the past few years. Paul knows that people are different…vastly. So, what might work for me would not be optimal for you. Once again, it’s simple and it’s true.

What will excite many readers is the section on the Power Grid. This is Paul’s genius: he gives the readers the ultimate in the "Do This" of programming. Of course, yes, you have variations like Top to Bottom, Side to Side, the X, the Diamond and Chaos. I didn’t do the math, but following these protocols should probably keep you busy for the next decade or so.

Paul gives you everything you need to know. One of the common criticisms of Easy Strength is that lack of specific poundages. Well, Paul gives you EXACTLY what to do. And, obviously, it will be your job to do it. I know this: if you follow Paul’s advice, you will get stronger.

There is always the one question that seems to float around every strength book: will this help me with building muscle? The short answer is, of course: YES. Paul has a funny line I would like to share on this idea:

"So, I suspect that future studies will show a correlation with muscular hypertrophy and pretty much every rep range from 1 to infinity (that last one might be a long study)."

Paul’s discussions surrounding hypertrophy (bodybuilding) sum the research and experience as well as any author in the field today. But be warned these are HARD workouts. The workouts will challenge you and demand you continue to keep coming back for more and more. This is not a Two Weeks to Titanic Traps books or a social media challenge. You must put the work in and you must work hard.

I hope you enjoy this book. Inside you will find a picture of a young Paul McIIroy with bodybuilder Ernie Taylor. On the picture, Ernie writes something that summarizes Perpetual Strength:

"Train Hard, Win Easy."

Enjoy.

—Daniel John, author, Never Let Go