'The Hardness Factor' by Steven Lamm, M.D. is an excellent book on health and fitness with the claim that following the 6-week program outlined within will improve both the strength and reliability of a man's erections. The author and designer of the program, Steven Lamm, is a New York-based physician. He developed his program after the number of patients seeking ED drugs made it apparent that there was a need for a better way.

Dr. Lamm is not opposed to the use of Erectile Dysfunction medicines like Cialis for men who truly need them. These men experience great difficulty in just achieving a full erection, let alone maintaining one. Relatively healthy men, however, do not have this problem. They simply have problems with reliability and intensity. It happens to men of all ages, from 18 to 108, although there are several reasons for it increasing with age. One quote I found particularly assuring reads "Does really have to be sick to want optimum health and hardness?” The answer is an emphatic NO!

The 6 weeks entail a slow build-up of a health and fitness program. I will not divulge any of the details of it, but I will give the rough idea, and my take on it.

The program is a regimen of exercise, healthier eating, and dietary supplements, along some lifestyle changes such as reducing one's smoke and alcohol intake. I have a background in physiology and biochemistry, and everything about this program makes sense to me from a medical and scientific perspective. However, it is written for the layman who hasn't had such instruction. It is very easy to read and understand.

Included in the program is a set of healthy recipes specially developed for the program by a chef who was instructed to make them very easy to follow, and to make the act of preparing the food itself be an energizing and sensual experience. The recipes are to be used to create 12 included dinner menus to be assembled two per week for a six week rotation.

The program also includes an exercise regimen developed by a New York fitness trainer and two-time Olympian. It includes walking for aerobics and cardiovascular health, as well as functional fitness training routines designed to "mimic movement patterns one would expect to use during sex." Furthermore, they were designed to be easy to follow for men of all ages, shapes, and sizes.

I would love to tell you that I followed this program to the letter and what my findings were. However, I was hung up on the cost of buying the supplements outlined in the program. There are 9 different types, some of which are found in any grocery store’s vitamin section, some are harder to find, and a few can only be found in specialty stores, most likely online. I put together a few online shopping carts for them, and I estimate it to be around $150 for the 6 week program. There is an even higher 6-week cost after that when you're taking all 9 types every day, compared to the gradual build-up from 1 a day in the first week of the program. I simply can't afford to spend that kind of money on dietary supplements right now. And as a scientist I refuse to follow just part of the program and base my review on an incomplete trial. That may be an interesting experiment for me to try, but it would not be fair to Dr. Lamm's work.

The entire program is very clearly outlined over several chapters, followed by a series of appendices with all the information recapped in table form. The author and his crew have done an excellent job making this program easy to adopt and stick with, as well as making it extremely easy to understand and follow.

Additionally, there is a '4-Day Insurance Policy' which is an "abbreviated, intense program recommended for emergency use only. There is nothing in this chapter that is not found in the Hardness Factor Six-Week Program." Again, exercises, supplements, and healthy living.

While I have not followed the program myself, every aspect of it makes perfect sense in its claims of improving a man's health and vitality, as well as improving his erection quality and reliability. Simply reading the book has given me more confidence in my own quality and reliability, as well as giving me insight into things I can do in my regular routine which can improve things, and ideas of minor changes I can make which step toward the program. Someday soon I hope to be able to take the time and money to follow the program and see how it improves everything for me.