40 Reasons Why You should Read Convict Conditioning by Paul Wade

Convict Conditioning by Paul Wade

If you're looking for some good reasons to convince you to read Convict Conditioning by Paul Wade, then I have 40 reasons why you should read it.

Many of these reasons are what got me to reading the book and transforming my life such as > No. 2 I hate the gym. or >No. 5 I am skinny and wanted to gain weight.

You can filter through the list and find the best reasons that resonate with you. And if you are convinced, you can feel free to go ahead and read the book.

Check out why you should read it:

1. You are looking for simple bodyweight exercises to start.

If you google "Bodyweight exercise for beginners", you'll find hundreds of exercises. This will often leave you confused and overwhelmed.

You would begin wondering where should I start?

The problem is, in the start you want something simple. Something easy to practice. Easy to understand. A good guide.

Convict Conditioning is that book. It contains only 6 exercises to start with. And if you are a beginner or intermediate you can start off with an exercise you are comfortable with.

If you are unable to do pushups, good, you can start with knee pushups or wall pushups.

2. You hate the gym!

If you hate the gym and all that it brings with it, you will connect with Paul Wade.

This is the second paragraph of Chapter 1 from Convict Conditioning.

"I don't know whether to laugh or cry when I see the current generation of men duped into handing over a fortune in overpriced gym memberships and for weights and other exercise gadgets, all in the hope of becoming strong and powerful. I want to laugh because I admire the con trick for what it is-a perfect grift. The fitness industry has duped the whole world into thinking it can't get by without all this equipment; equipment it then sells to the mark, or rents out at exorbitant prices (in the case of gym membership). I want to cry because it's a tragedy; the average modern trainee-who is not on steroids-makes little gain in size from year to year, and even less progress in true athletic ability."

Throughout the book, Paul Wade shows how the gym is not the answer that you are looking for.

There is something more than just a gym. And the answer lies in gaining strength with bodyweight training.

3. You are in jail

You landed in jail because you stole your neighbor's wig or you pissed off a Korean dictator.

Great! You have all the time in the world to spend doing bodyweight training.

Paul Wade spent close to 20 years in jail. He learned the craft from other jail inmates and taught them too.

Who better than Paul to coach you there?

4. You are in jail with the wrong guys.

It’s not just about jail.

This happens in colleges too. Or any boys club.

You enter a territory dominated by men who established power long before you were born.

Anyone new who enters is seen as a threat to authority. If you are strong they are ready to share power.

If you are weak they are ready to show that to you. When that happens, you wished you were strong. To avoid that moment it's better to get jacked. And what better way than learning bodyweight training in the comfort of your cell?

Plus learning it from someone who was in the same place once as you are now.

5. You are skinny and want to gain weight

Until recently I was skinny my entire life.

When I did the convict conditioning exercises and ate in calorie excess, I started gaining weight.

If just eating excess calories hasn't helped you with gaining weight. And you are looking for doing exercises too to gain weight, convict conditioning will help you.

6. You want to lose weight

Convict Conditioning released in 2010. Over the span of 10+ years it has helped many lose weight. Here is an example from Amazon review.

"I’ve been following this program since July 2018 (its now December 2018). I am 38 years old, and when I started, I was 5’11” and 267 pounds. Extremely overweight, bad knees from, well being overweight but also from earlier years of wrestling, football, martial arts, and other combative sports, not to mention my knees scoped for meniscus tears.

I kept getting injured during regular weight lifting (I’ve historically, always used weight training) making it difficult to continue any kind of training. I had literally gotten to the point that the stairs in my house caused me to pause, after climbing them, hunched over gasping for air, and my knees were so unstable I wouldn’t dare go downstairs without gripping the railing...

After reading this book, and following the programs beginning at Step 1 for all exercises. I am now 213 pounds (lost 54 lbs in 5 months), stamina through the roof, and more strength and muscle growth all the time. Now on Step 5 for PushUps, Squats, Leg Raises. Step 3 for Pull-ups and Bridges and just now ready to start handstand push-up series). I was a 44” waist and now 36”... I’ve also began incorporating Exercises from Paul Wade’s “Convict Conditioning 2” and “Explosive Calisthenics”.

This series has literally transformed my life in less than 6 months. My only advice, is work the program! I cannot recommend this book enough! I love this book, and use it every day!" - Brandon Zarbe

7. Gym machines didn't help you build muscle

The problem with modern gym machines is that they work the muscle in isolation. And as is with the human body is that it doesn't work in isolation. No matter how much you work on each individual muscle with a machine, it doesn't help.

If like Lake Godwin, gym machines haven't worked for you then give bodyweight training a go by reading Convict Conditioning by Paul Wade.

8. You are looking for a new hobby at home

You are stuck at home cos it's another Convid 19 lockdown.

Or World War 3 is going on.

Or worse you are the first guy Elon Musk sends to Mars and have nothing much to do there alone except stare at rocks!

A hobby like bodyweight training in this case will help a great deal. It will kill 2 birds at one time. Help you pass your time and keep you fit in spite of a lack of physical activity.

9. You want to look handsome/hot

Can bodyweight exercises help you get ripped?

Can it help you get the 6 Pack Abs that women drool over?

Yes.

Countless men have achieved the lean ripped body and transformed themselves completely using only bodyweight training and without going to the gym.

10. You want to learn calisthenics

Every child is born a calisthenics expert. You go to any children's park area and you’ll see kids monkeying around like crazy all day.

We lose this calisthenics or monkeying around ability as we grow up.

If you have a dream of being able to do what you did when you were small then Convict Conditioning 3 (Explosive Calisthenics) will be a great book for you to start with.

It will help you learn Backflips, frontflips, superman pushups, muscle-ups, etc.

11. You want to learn one arm pushups

One Arm Pushups

It’s crazy to see how few people in the gym can do one-arm pushups. Men in the gym can benchpress 200lb and yet not able to do a single one-arm pushup.

If you want to learn one arm pushups and have no idea where to start, Convict Conditioning 1 contains many variations that can help you go from simply doing wall pushups to doing one-arm pushups one day.

12. You want to learn one leg pistol squats.

Pistol Squats

The same goes for pistol squats as one arm pushups. Convict Conditioning contains 10 variations of squats that will help you go from doing simple two-leg half squats to one leg pistol squats.

13. You are old school.

If you trust your grandma's wisdom more than today's ever-changing "revolutionary techniques", you'll get Paul Wade.

When Paul Wade was in jail he met his mentor Joe Hartigen who taught him the old school art of bodyweight training. Joe before ending up in jail used to workout with the likes of 'The Mighty Atom', one of the strongest men in the world.

So Convict Conditioning will not teach you a "fad" someone discovered 100 days ago and termed it "revolutionary"!

No

You'll be learning from the accumulated wisdom of 100s of years.

14. You are a jail warden

You see many of your jail inmates obsess about this book and wonder what's so amazing about it.

Good. Grap a copy and read it now.

The books helping jail inmates in many ways. Not just physically, mentally too. It's giving them a purpose and something constructive to focus on while in jail.

15. You want to attract more women in your life.

"The first thing most men who were previously out of shape will tell you is the marked increase in attention they receive from women after they got in shape." - Rollo Tomassi

If you want to get ripped and increase the chances of attracting more women into your life you can do with the help of bodyweight exercises in the book.

16. You want to become more disciplined at home.

The best part about bodyweight training is it can be done at home. And if you schedule it right like early in the morning, it will affect your other schedules too. It will make you more disciplined, more focused, and structured. The habit of working out every morning at the same exact time will seep into your other habits too.

17. You have read many books and didn't find the solution you were looking for.

Most books on bodyweight training have way too many exercises in them. The authors fail to understand that this often leaves readers more confused. It also drains away from the power of a handful of few exercises that make the most impact. These important exercises get diluted.

Paul Wades cuts the unnecessary and only keeps the essential 6 exercises in the book. If you keep working on these 6, you will be far ahead of the majority of the people when it comes to strength.

18. You hate modern-day Mr. Olympias

Ronnie Coleman: Eight time Mr Olympia

I get sick looking at modern-day Olympias.

Ever since the Steroid devolution started during Arnold Schwarzenegger's time, things have gone south in the fitness industry.

The ideal goal of man which used to be about strength and aesthetics has fallen towards “who has the biggest muscles”.

Convict Conditioning sticks to the old school way of gaining muscles with respect to both strength and aesthetics.

Don’t be surprised if by the time you reach the master steps of exercises in Convict Conditoning 1 & 2 you find yourself lean and ripped. And your body resembling more like Michaelangelo's David.

19. You prefer lean than looking like a lifter.

The problem with Barbell training is you can gain muscles along with fats.

A 5 pound increase in fat won’t affect your ability to bench press.

Whereas in bodyweight training, it forces you to become and stay lean. Your mind unconsciously tries to stay lean, as an increase in 5-pound fat will impact your ability to work out with your own bodyweight.

20. You are an introvert and hate going out.

If you love hiding away from two-legged unknown brainy animals, well what better than a book that guides you to workout at the comfort of your Batcave?

21. You want to transform yourself without anyone noticing.

You are inspired by movies like Batman where you like to disappear for months and reappear with superpowers.

This book and a place to disappear is enough.

Be warned that when you come back transformed by achieving the Master Step in the book you will have to face the issue of some human staring at you!

22. You want to inspire others in your house to workout.

5 to 6 months down the line when your siblings and even your parents see your unflinching discipline towards practicing the 6 core exercises in the book, don’t be surprised when they ask you to help them out.

If you don’t have the time to train them, just handing them Convict Conditioning book is enough. Paul Wade will take care of the rest.

The book is simple enough that anyone can follow and start out with.

23. You hate gym instructors.

The biggest piss off in the gym more than watching steroid obsessed men/women is an out of shape gym instructor.

If you haven’t found the right coach in your life to guide you, then look no further than one of the greatest coaches in the world Paul Wade.

24. You travel a lot

You are modern-day Marco Polo and can’t find a gym wherever you go.

This leaves you with the only best option of Bodyweight training.

Nothing no matter how different the environment, can stop you from working out. Whether you are stuck in a village in a tent or on Mars.

25. It's a Covid lockdown and you feel like a prisoner for not being able to go out.

As I am writing this coronavirus lockdown in India is still going on. Many things are still closed. The gym, the local trains, the restaurants.

Even though you can move out a little staying at home can feel like a prison.

In such a scenario if you are looking to workout at home it’s best to learn bodyweight training from someone who has spent close to 20 years in prison and spent a lot of time experience what we in lockdown are experiencing (to some extent of course.)

Paul Wade is that guy.

26. Your village does not have a gym.

I spent my entire childhood living in a town that didn’t have a gym. The only gym I saw was my school gym which was always locked, didn’t have a trainer, and was one of the smallest gyms I have seen to date.

If your village is like mine then it’s time to turn your home into a gym and use your own body as weights.

All you'll need is a pullup bar and Paul Wade’s book.

Hopefully, Amazon delivers to your village, and if not… May the Devil be with you!

27. Your parents don't allow you to go to the gym cos you are still small.

One thing that a parent might worry about the gym is their son getting influenced by a bodybuilder and later on get under the influence of steroids.

If that’s your parents then you can convince them to allow you to workout at your home with bodyweight training.

And if they are worried about your training without a coach show them how much influence the book has had on people by showing them Amazon reviews, Reddit reviews, etc, or best telling them to read the book themselves.

28. You heard someone getting ripped by following what's in the book

Paul Wade doesn’t promote his book like other authors do. His marketing is absent.

There is a likely hood that you came across the name through some friend.

If your friend has transformed his life by doing what's said in the book then what are you waiting for? Steal the copy from him and read it now!

29. You are cynical and want to find more reasons to not do bodyweight training.

If you are a fan of gym training then no other book will piss you off like this one.

Paul Wade’s Fuck You attitude towards the gym will hit you so hard that you will give up the thought of doing bodyweight training forever!

Your cynicism will turn into downright hatred!

30. You want to be able to lift heavy stuff one day.

If you are born skinny and find it hard to open a normal jar or find it impossible to move some raw material for your newly opened e-commerce business, then Paul Wade’s exercises on forearm strength will help you a great deal.

These days I am surprised how easily I can open a new bottle of tightly shut Gherkins and I am only at Level 3 of Hanging Exercise for forearm strength. Seven more Levels and my forearms shall have superpowers!

31. You want to be miles away from people who take steroids.

Where do all the steroid loving peeps hang out? Well if you have read so far you know the answer.

And you can avoid going there by setting up your own gym (which is costly) or doing bodyweight exercise at home and following Paul Wade's exercises.

32. You want to teach your children to exercise.

Children are born calisthenics pros.

Go the nearest park and you’ll realize that those tiny little devils are spending time hanging, jumping, falling, punching other tiny little devils! So bodyweight training will come naturally to them.

You just need to discipline them into doing a few exercises from Convict Conditioning and they are set to be fit for life.

33. You are a gym instructor who wants to try his hand at bodyweight training.

From an instructor or a trainer's point of you, this book is best because it coaches people effectively without the coach being there.

Besides, the book will also indirectly teach you the simplicity of teaching bodyweight exercises to your students.

34. You want to make your ancestors proud.

Your monkey ancestors when living in the jungles would jump from one tree to another.

They would hang on to the branch while eating an apple given by a snake.

They built their body naturally.

If you want to tap into some of the methods like hanging on a pullup bar or doing backflips as your ancestors did, Paul Wade lays it out well step by step in his books.

35. You've had too many injuries in the past

The problem with barbell, dumbbell, and gym machine exercises is that it often leads to too many injuries.

With bodyweight training, these injuries are minimized.

These days many who are taking up bodyweight training are the ones who were suffering from too many injuries lifting barbells and doing other weight lifting exercises. One example here

36. You believe in Minimalism (AKA you're flat out broke)

Even though bodyweight exercise requires close to zero equipment you will always find some trainer recommending equipment like, weight for weighted calisthenics, gloves to avoid calluses, resistance bands to help with exercises, pushup grip for better gripping, etc.

The best thing about Paul Wade is he sticks to minimalism and the only thing you will end up spending on is a pullup bar.

37. You dislike gaining strength through protein powder and supplements.

When the Sacred Games character Ganesh Gaitonde enters the gym industry (in an Ad to promote the series), he realizes that gym is not the business of making people fit nor helping them become the best self.

It’s become an industry of greed and money. Greed for selling you protein powders and supplements that you don't need.

There are very few coaches (almost zero) who will not advise you to take supplements. Paul Wade is one of these.

Did Spartans take supplements before going to the battle of Thermopylae?

Did the godfather of Bodybuilding Eugene Sandow gain the strength to fight a tiger with the help of supplements?

Nope!

38. You want to follow the footstep of 19th Century greats like Arthur Saxon, The Mighty Atom, Bert Assirati

This is the only book I have come across which mentions so many greats who were once recognized for their strength.

If you want to follow in their footsteps and become as strong as they were, then Convict Conditoning would be a great book to start reading.

39. You are a fan of Convict Conditioning

Convict Conditioning 2 by Paul Wade

You love the core 6 exercises in Convict Conditioning Part 1?

Great! What are you waiting for?

Convict Conditioning 2 is even more awesome. It will teach you to make your forearms, neck, and calves strong and ripped.

40. You want to exercise naked

Hello Nudist!

This, working out at home or in nature with bodyweight training is another excuse for you to get naked!

Yey! Go for it!

So, that's it!

If you've read the book already, let me know in the comments what inspired you to read the book.