| Charles Poliquin Seminar Experience
By Scott H. Mendelson, CFT
 One of the most important things you can do to ensure your success in the gym and/ or as a fitness professional is to constantly further your education. One of the best ways to accomplish this is to attend seminars given, and read books written by recognized leaders in our field. With that in mind, let me introduce you to a new feature we will be running from time to time. In it we will be profiling either a seminar or book that we feel deserves your consideration for use in that never-ending educational process.
We decided to kick off with one of the best. Charles Poliquin is one of the industry's most recognized personalities, and a definite trend-setter in the strength coaching community. Starting in the pages of Muscle Media 2000 and later moving on to Testosterone.net, Poliquin has helped to popularize many concepts widely used in gyms around the world today. Our roving reporter Scott Mendelson recently had a chance to attend a seminar given by the famous strength coach, and we asked him to let us in on what attending one of Charles' gatherings was really like.
The room became silent as the big guy walked into the New York City hotel meeting room. A crowd of close to 50 people had been eagerly awaiting the arrival of Charles Poliquin, one of the world's most famous strength coaches, early on this Saturday morning. The person next to me whispered "his arms look bigger than in the pictures." In person he certainly has a dominant presence that reveals his confidence. Charles grabbed a marker, wrote strategies for strength training on the dry-erase board, and began talking. It was obvious that this seminar would be conducted in a serious manner. The attendees began to vigorously take notes to keep up with the coach.
For those who aren't familiar him, Charles Poliquin has coached several Olympic medallists, numerous NHL hockey stars, and other athletes participating in many sports on the amateur and professional level. One can easily surmise that Charles is a serious individual from reading his no-frills articles. He has no problem laying down the law in any format to get his opinion across.
Four 3-hour seminars were conducted over a weekend in the same basic format. Charles spoke, and people listened very carefully, until the floor was opened up for questions. The coach would explain a training method, and field questions periodically to further clarify the topic at hand. The audience was largely made up of local personal trainers, and they asked specific questions about application of methods and specific client cases. Poliquin tackled the vast majority of the questions from the crowd, but questions relating to medical conditions were not answered. In addition, he also shared his opinions on how to deal with difficult clients. Many members of the crowd were surprised by the no-compromise approach that Charles described. He made it clear that he coaches serious athletes, who at times need to be put in their place for their own good.
The amount of information conveyed during the seminar was amazing. I had pages of notes by the time the seminars were done. It would have been impossible to get the most out of the seminar without taking notes. One of the best aspects of the seminar was that methods Charles had described in articles of his were covered in much greater detail.
For example, the popular German Volume Training (GVT) method was the first topic of discussion during the mass seminar. GVT is a 10-set training method that exposes the targeted muscle fibers to repeated stress to elicit significant size gains. Poliquin says he has seen trainees gain 8-15 pounds of lean mass in a 6-8 week period using GVT. To set up a GVT workout two main exercises are chosen per workout for the 10-set protocol. These exercises should be compound, and target large muscle groups - i.e., bench presses, squats, rows, etc. Selecting the correct load for this system is very important. Use 60% of your 1 rep maximum, which usually translates to a load you can lift for 20 reps. It is imperative that you successfully complete 10 sets with the same load, so do not be afraid to guess low. Do your best to hit 10 reps for every set, but some deviation is allowed. Sets 6,7 and 8 will be the hardest while sets 9 and 10 may be the easiest, due to a neurological response called post-tetanic facilitation.
Poliquin suggests making each set last between 40-70 seconds for maximum hypertrophy results. Set-duration can be manipulated by slowing the concentric, eccentric or isometric phases of the exercise. The first two exercises in your workout should be used for the 10x10. Two additional exercises can be performed for three sets in the 10-12 rep range, following the volume sets. Charles also gave us the skinny on an advanced version of the GVT. He recommends using GVT for 6-8 weeks, split into two different phases. The first phase should last 3-4 weeks, and consist of the described rep ranges. A second phase lasting an equal amount of time will use 70% of 1RM for 6 reps and 10 sets. Alternating exercises will cut down recovery time in between sets, and allow the trainee to perform a large volume of work within a shorter time frame. The large number of sets performed builds a solid base for future training. In addition, a beneficial hormonal response takes place when a lower volume is performed in later training programs.
Editor's note: Poliquin took the time to work with Scott in designing a GVT program based on the above parameters. It is included at the end of this article or you can skip directly to it by clicking here.
Along with his training advice, Poliquin also has some unique supplement recommendation. One would be his use of BCAA supplements. The coach recommends a liquid branched chain amino acid mix be consumed during the workout for maximal muscle-mass gains. The amount recommended is .44 grams per pound of body weight. For example, a 200-pound man would need 40 grams of BCAAs. Poliquin specifically recommended the company Advanced Genetics, which manufacturers a powdered BCAA/glutamine stack called Gluta Cene. He warned against mixing the solution in advance, because it will not remain stable. Those interested in this type of BCAA supplement can visit Advanced Genetics at www.AdvancedGenetics.com or can call 1-888-629-6277 for more information.
During the seminar, adjustments for individual characteristics were discussed through the use of examples, which was very helpful to the trainers in the crowd. The coach elaborated on many of his techniques, revealing information that is not covered in his articles. For example, Poliquin heads off abdominal fat gain caused by elevated cortisol levels by giving his athletes Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA). He revealed that while athletes encounter stressful situations most of the time, contract negotiations can be very stressful and as a result, elevated cortisol levels can lead to an undesirable belly. Innovative methods such as this are of significant value to advanced trainees who are likely looking for ways to beat the attenuation curve.
Question and answer exchanges were by far the most entertaining part of the seminars. Charles Poliquin is an honest guy who has no problem expressing opinions that go against the grain. A few questions were met with surprising responses; Poliquin will tell you that something is BS if he thinks that is the case. His answers are no holds barred, and the audience appreciated his candor. He had answers to the difficult questions that stump top trainers in some cases. The topic of supplements spurred many questions, and controversial information related to quality and effectiveness was presented. Along those lines, Poliquin described glutamine pills as a rip off, and recommended always using powder.
I benefited greatly from my seminar experience. The cutting-edge information dispersed, and the opportunity to pose questions to one of the best in the fitness business were extremely valuable. Be fairly warned, however; do not attend the Poliquin seminars if you are not completely serious about learning advanced techniques. The coach does not like to repeat himself, or address stupid questions. It is this writer's opinion that Poliquin simply wants to get across a large volume of important information to the audience, and wasting time hinders his objectives.
When you leave a seminar conducted by Charles Poliquin you will definitely leave armed with a lot of useful information that you can put to immediate use in both your personal workouts and your client's. Anyone who has a chance to see coach Poliquin in action would be very wise to take that opportunity, and make the most of it. Those who are interested in articles written by Charles Poliquin should visit the online magazine www.testosterone.net. In addition, those interested in personally attending a Poliquin seminar can access information from testosterone.net, or can go directly there by clicking here: www.testosterone.net/html/body_charles.html.
German Volume Training Workout
Here's how to read the following workout notations; The notation A1 and A2 or B1 and B2 means to superset those two exercises. For example, you would do one set of the A1 exercise, rest for the prescribed amount of time, and then do one set of the A2 exercise, alternating back and forth until all sets for both exercises are completed.
The tempo recommendations should be read as follows: 4-0-2-0 means to lower the weight to a count of 4 and without pausing raise the weight to a count of 2. Upon completion immediately start to lower the weight once again to a count of 4. 2-0-2-0 can be read the same way only you would lower to a 2 count instead. (See Charles Staley's column in this issue for a more in-depth explanation of the tempo concept.) |
