Table of Contents
A Note From The Publisher
Foreward
Preface
Introduction
Chapter 1
A BASIC HEALTH & FITNESS PRPOGRAM
Introduction to the Training Program
Level 1: Warm-up and Conditioning Exercises
Level 2: Beginning Resistance Exercises
Level 3: Weight-Training Exercises
A Primer on Nutrition
Suggestions for Eating Out
Other Factors Affecting Weight Control
A Final Word
Chapter 2
GETTING STARTED ON THE BODYBUILDING LIFESTYLE
Weight Resistance Equipment
Anatomy
Skin
Bones
Joints
Muscles
Central Nervous System
Circulatory System and the Heart
Body Types
Application of Anatomy to Training
Number Ones — Exercises by Priority
Training Intervals
Training Partners
Attitude
Chapter 3
TRANING PROGRAMS
Beginning Level Program
Intermediate Level Program
Intermediate Level Exercises
Advanced Level Program
Advanced Level Exercise Routine (Series One)
Advanced Level Exercise Routine (Series Two)
The Bodybuilding Lifestyle
Chapter 4
PROFESSIONAL BODYBUILDING
Training Techniques
Supersets
Split Routines
My Mr. Olympia Blitz Routine
Training Strategy
Posing
Posing at Contests
Preparing for Contest
Sportsmanship
Chapter 5
BODYBUILDING FOR WOMEN
Chapter 6
BODYBUILDING FOR OTHER SPORTS
Football
Basketball
Baseball
Boxing and Karate
Hockey
Running
Amateur and Professional Wrestling
Tennis and Other Racquet Sports
Skiing
Weightlifting
Powerlifting
Chapter 7
SPORTS INJURIES — PREVENTION AND TREATMENT
Causes of Injuries
The Need for Protein
Overtraining and Incorrect Training
Injury Prevention
Exercises That Should Not Be Done
Treatment of Injuries
Chapter 8
NUTRITION
Food Combining: The Right Way to Eat
My Background in Nutrition
Other Examples of Poor Eating Habits
Food Combining
The Basic Nutrients
Protein
Fats
Carbohydrates
Vitamins and Minerals
Water
Glandular Supplements
Thyroid Medication
Diuretics and Salt Pills
Cigarette Smoking
Marijuana
Caffeine
Alcohol
Chapter 9
STEROID AND OTHER DRUGS
Chapter 10
BODYBUILDING FOR GOOD HEALTH & LONG LIFE
Benefits of Training
My Personal Wish for You
Exercise Glossary
Back Leg Stretch (Hamstring Stretch)
Barbell Rowing
Bench Press
Bent-Leg Raises
Bent-Leg Sit-ups
Bent-Over Lateral Raises
Between Door Presses
Breathing
Calf Stretching
Chins Behind the Neck
Chins in Front of the Neck
Clean
Clean and Jerk
Clean and Press
Concentration Curl
Cross Flyes
Crunch Sit-ups
Deadlift
Dips
Donkey Raises
Flyes
Forward Bends
Front Calf Raises
Front Dumbbell Raises
Front Squat
Incline Barbell Press
Incline Dumbbell Press
Jumping Rope
Jump Squat
Lateral Raises
Leg Curl
Leg Extension
Leg Press
Leg Raises
Lunges
Lying Side Leg Raises
Lying Triceps Extension
Narrow-Grip Bench Press
One-Arm Rowing
One-Arm Triceps Extension
Preacher’s Bench
Press Behind the Neck
Pulldowns/Behind Neck
Pulldowns/Front Neck
Pulley Rowing
Pullovers
Running
Running in Place
Seated Dumbbell Curls
Shrugs
Side Bends
Sitting Barbell Triceps Extension
Sitting Calf Raises
Sit-ups
Squat
Standing Barbell Curl
Standing Calf Raises
Standing Dumbbell Curl
Standing Dumbbell Press
Standing Leg Stretch
Standing Side Bends
Straight Leg Deadlift
Triceps Extension
Triceps Pushdown
Triceps Push-ups
Upright Rowing
Weight Boxing
Wrist Curl
Appendix
VITAMINS AND MINERALS
Vitamins
Fat Soluble Vitamins
Water Soluble Vitamins
B-Complex Vitamins
Recommendations
PAST AND PRESENT
About the Author
Franco Columbu’s Complete Book of Bodybuilding
Dr. Franco Columbu
Creators Publishing
Hermosa Beach, CA
Franco Columbu’s Complete Book of Bodybuilding
Copyright © 2017 Dr. Franco Columbu
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the author.
The majority of the photographs in this book were taken by Art Zeller. Other photographers include: John Balik, Albert Busek, Richard Ortiz, Bill Dobbins, Jimmy Caruso, George Butler, Benno Dahmen (Athletic Sport Journal), George Rodriquez, and Robert Gardner.
CREATORS PUBLISHING
737 3rd St
Hermosa Beach, CA 90254
310-337-7003
Although the author and publisher have made every effort to ensure that the information in this book was correct at press time, the author and publisher do not assume and hereby disclaim any liability to any party for any loss, damage or disruption caused by errors or omissions, whether such errors or omissions result from negligence, accident or any other cause.
ISBN: 978-1-945630-63-7
Third Edition
Printed in the United States of America
To my good friends:
George Lois
Nick Masiello
Ben Weider
Joe Weider
I would like to thank Arnold Schwarzenegger for his assistance throughout my career.
A Note From The Publisher
In 1981, I w
as working out casually and not making a whole lot of progress. One day, I bought a copy of Joe Weider’s popular magazine, Muscle & Fitness. In the back was a full-page ad for courses by Dr. Franco Columbu, which included an office address and a phone number. I knew that Franco was a successful chiropractor but was not sure whether he offered advice for training programs.
When told that he did, I made an appointment and saw him on July 30, 1981. I remember the date because I regard it as the start of a lifetime commitment to health and fitness. His suggestions and advice were so profound — with timesaving techniques to achieve maximum efficiency — that I continue to follow them to this day. Also, he is uniquely upbeat and encouraging to anyone who tries hard.
Franco was a pioneer with his early books. He has a wealth of knowledge about health and fitness. Along with his best friend, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and his mentor, Joe Weider, Franco has helped change the world since he arrived in America in the 1960s.
He offers advice, encouragement and wisdom that, if followed, will change your life.
His books were best-sellers at the time, and their advice is timeless, which is why Creators Publishing is so excited to bring them back into publication as paperbacks and e-books. We are reprinting them exactly as they appeared when they were first published in the late 1970s and early ’80s.
At the time Franco wrote this book, very few hotels offered gyms; people who lifted weights were considered oddballs and muscleheads; and almost no one paid attention to health and fitness. Since then, of course, we have had a worldwide revolution that includes a new language with terms such as cardio, aerobic, anaerobic, CrossFit, boot camp, dinosaur training and a hundred other expressions aimed at the same thing — becoming healthier, stronger, fitter and better-looking through exercise and proper nutrition.
Franco achieved bodybuilding success that puts him at the very top of that field, including multiple Mr. Universe and Mr. Olympia titles, and the same with powerlifting; he broke all strength records for bodybuilders. The reason this is important is that the physique he built in his teens and 20s is basically the same as he has in his 70s. He built solid muscles within a solid framework through hard work, heavy training and always challenging himself. At the same time, he knew the importance of making your workouts fun — so you will keep going back to the gym. As he wrote at the time, “No one has ever just plain enjoyed training the way Arnold and I did, and I’m convinced to this day that that was a major factor in our becoming the two best of all time.”
Too many of the modern bodybuilders rely on chemicals and drugs as substitutes for hard work. There were bodybuilders in Franco’s time who did the same, and today they are a physical wreck, or dead. The handful who trained like Franco are still in great shape today and aging gracefully.
I consider Franco Columbu to be the next generation’s Jack LaLanne. Just as Jack did, Franco advocates challenging your body with vigorous workouts and eating a sensible diet. Franco is better educated than Jack, and his early years in Sardinia — spending vast amounts of time alone in the fields with his thoughts (and the sheep, of course) — gave him a serenity and peace of mind that is unique in today’s world, which at times seems hectic and frantic.
But Franco Columbu has the same enthusiasm for fitness as Jack LaLanne. I read this book when it was first published decades ago and found it helpful and inspiring. After rereading it in the 21st century in advance of our publishing it, I found my enthusiasm for training rekindled. You can’t help but be inspired by this book. If you follow Franco’s advice, you will achieve all of your health and fitness goals.
Rick Newcombe
Creators Publishing
Hermosa Beach, CA
Foreward
By Arnold Schwarzenegger
Dr. Franco Columbu is one of the most remarkable men I have ever met. He is also, I am proud to say, one of my very closest friends.
We first met in Stuttgart, Germany, in 1965. I had come from Austria to compete in the European Bodybuilding Championships, and Franco from Italy for the powerlifting Contest being held at the same time. As two foreigners, we got to talking and immediately hit it off.
A couple of years later, Franco and I wound up training in the same gym in Munich. In 1967, I won my first Mr. Universe title. Afterwards, Franco came up to me and surprised me by saying, “Arnold, I want to do the same thing. I want to become Mr. Universe.”
There were a lot of people around the gym who laughed at this idea. Certainly, Franco didn’t look like Mr. Universe material back then. He was very strong, but his small stature and relative lack of development seemed to indicate he lacked the genetic potential to become a champion bodybuilder.
But I knew Franco well enough not to underestimate him. Once he makes up his mind to do something, he brings to bear a force of will that lets nothing stand in the way of reaching his goal. So we began to train together, and soon Franco was putting such enormous energy into his workouts that even I had trouble keeping up with him.
And all that work soon paid off. In 1970, only three years after Franco decided to switch from powerlifting to bodybuilding, he captured the Mr. Universe title. Almost overnight, he had made himself into one of the great bodybuilders of all time.
But Franco didn’t accomplish this feat just by hard work alone. He had to learn to use all the resources of his mind as well as his body. For somebody like me, with a large bone structure and a 6’2” frame, training has always been relatively easy. All I ever had to do was train, and the results came quickly.
Ben Weider, president of the International Federation of Bodybuilders (IFBB), congratulates Arnold on winning the Mr. Olympia title and Franco on winning the Mr. Universe title.
For a bodybuilder like Franco, with a totally different kind of physical structure, this just wasn’t enough. And so Franco learned about diet and nutrition, began using vitamin and mineral supplements long before it was Common practice, and studied the way his body responded to different kinds of training programs.
Early on I could see that Franco had an interest in how the body worked that went far beyond my own. When we both came to live in the United States, I found myself more and more interested in business while Franco’s desire to develop more understanding of the body led him to attend classes and seminars on nutrition, physiology, and kinesiology. While other bodybuilders spent hours lying around on the beach, Franco studied. And one day he came to me and announced, “I have decided what I want to do with my life. I want to become a Doctor of Chiropractic.”
And that is just what he did. In 1976, Franco Columbu became a doctor of chiropractic. Soon he was swamped by body builders seeking his help. They wanted to know what they could do to develop their bodies to the ultimate, how to diet, and what nutritional principles they should follow. And they came with all sorts of muscle pulls, strains, sprains, and training injuries that they wanted the Drs. Columbu to help them with.
Before the 1981 Olympia, Arnold brings Franco a slice of pizza for energy and John Milius (director of CONAN THE BARBARIAN) asks if the pizza will make Franco look better for the contest.
The Columbu Chiropractic Center has continued to grow. At the same time, Franco has found the energy to combine his career in chiropractic with active participation in bodybuilding, and to write a series of books that make his special knowledge available to everyone.
Nowadays, there are any number of “expert” who are writing books on training and nutrition. But few of them can claim to speak with any real authority. However, Franco has the background of his chiropractic education, and constantly reviews research coming out of hospitals and laboratories all over the world. So when he tells you something, you know you can believe it.