Training

Should you do without classic squats?

Q: I've read that some strength coaches are now practically abandoning classic squats in favor of front squats. They believe that you can't do much wrong with front squats and that this exercise is less risky for the athlete. What do you think? And which variation of front squats do you think is the best?

A: Well, front squats correlate more strongly with performance in sports where the lower extremities are used more than with classic squats. In bobsledding, alpine skiing and speed skating, front squats can help to estimate and predict times. So front squats are a better predictor when it comes to testing.

Why? Because you will kill yourself if you cheat on front squats. For example, you can move more weight in classic squats if you lean slightly forward. You can't do this with front squats without hurting yourself.

But even if this is the case, you can't throw away all your other tools. While I partially agree with these trainers, I keep classic squats in my toolbox. I also use a lot of split squats. There are over 70 ways to perform squats. Saying you only need one variation of this is kind of like saying you only need a hammer to build a house.

The best front squat performances I've ever seen came from a 75 kilo weightlifter doing 240 kilos of front squats. And this wasn't one of those versions that college athletes use in American football - this guy went so far down with his butt that he left a stain on the carpet. The strongest athletes I've seen can move 3.3 times their body weight in front squats.

As for the style of front squats, I prefer the Olympic version to the crossed-arm version. If a trainee has arms that are too bulky or not flexible enough, then they can use bandages to wrap around the bar and hold the bar with.

One thing to remember when using front squats is to never perform more than 6 repetitions per set. This is because the rhomboids fatigue isometrically before the quadriceps fatigue concentrically. You should not train to the point where you are performing squats with a bent-over posture. This is the point where training accidents happen.

If you do sets of 6 reps, you will usually do between 5 and 10 sets. The guy with the 240 kilo front squats I mentioned above (an Olympic silver medalist) does 10 sets of front squats of 6 reps in the morning and 10 sets of classic squats of 10 reps in the evening.

Full body training vs. muscle group splits... once again

Q: Some trainers advocate training the whole body during a training session, while others usually use some kind of split program. The debate is endless, but I'd love to hear your thoughts on this topic.

A: I'm the first to want to improve any training system, but I don't know of any successful strength coach who uses exclusively full-body training programs.

I have coached Olympic gold medalists in sixteen different sports from energy system sports like swimming to short explosive sports like shot put. With nearly every one of these athletes, I used split programs for 70% of the time and then switched to full body programs as the time of competition approached. Whether it was Adam Nelson winning the world championship in shot put or Dwight Phillips winning the world championship in long jump, I trained them all with split programs.

Training sessions need to be short and effective and if you're training for relative strength then you need to do a lot of sets. If you do a lot of sets, then you can't do a lot of exercises. Athletes need to break up their training to get sufficient recovery.

Adam Nelson's training split was as follows:

• Day 1: Chest/back
• Day 2: legs
• Day 3: no training
• Day 4: rotator cuff and arms
• Day 5: No training

Incidentally, Adam presses 240 kilos on the incline bench and uses a fat, 7.5 centimeter thick bar for this.

When it comes to bodybuilding, I don't think Ronnie Coleman did a full-body workout three days a week. I've never heard of a successful bodybuilder who used a full-body workout - and that's even true of guys like Dorian Yates, who trained with very few sets.

The key is to recruit as many motor units as possible and you also need to remember the law of exercise sequencing. There are a few good studies on this topic and here is the short version of them:

If you have one group of exercisers performing exercises A, B, C and D during a training session and you have another group performing the same exercises in reverse order (D, C, B and A), you'll find that the first group will make the most progress on exercise A, while the second group will make the most progress on exercise D. Basically, you will make the most progress on what you do first.

I've seen time and time again that when they reach an elite level, most athletes get the best results when they perform two primary exercises per training session using multiple sets (like 10 sets) and then train again 6 hours later.

Every single Olympic athlete I have coached has used split programs. I've been in this business for over 26 years as a coach and no one has ever managed to convince me through their results that full body training programs are the only way to go.

While training athletes for three different Olympic Games, I have had the opportunity to speak plainly with many successful colleagues. Whether they were from Norway, Germany or Finland, they all came to the conclusion that split programs have far more benefits than full-body programs.

Cardio training in the morning on an empty stomach: the last word?

Q: For a while we were told that cardio on an empty stomach after waking up was the best way to achieve our fat loss goals. Then we were told that this was a bad idea because it could be catabolic. Now we're told about cardio in a semi-fasting state. Which of these is really best?

A: I don't agree with any of it. We were made to throw a rock at a rabbit, not run after it. We are basically anaerobic animals. The fastest way to get lean is through diet.

If you look at the world of sports, you'll see that triathletes and marathon runners have a body fat percentage that ranges from 11 to 14%. 400 to 800 meter sprinters have a body fat percentage between 4 and 6%. Training intensity is the key - not training duration. Take a look at the fat girls on the ergometers at Golds Gym or World Gym. Come back next year and look at their progress: they're still fat or, more likely, even fatter.

The problem with exercise physiology is that people look at the world through a straw. If you look at the amount of energy burned during exercise, that's one thing, but you also have to look at the energy burned during recovery after exercise. This is where most people mess up. All cardio in the morning does is deplete the adrenal glands.

Many people are starting to agree with my German Body Comp principles: the best program for fat loss is the principles that increase lactate production. People from all over the world have told me that this is the best program they have used for their athletes or their clients.

According to recent scientific research, growth hormone production correlates directly with a drop in blood pH. If your body produces lactate (lactic acid), as is the case with German Body Comp training, then your blood pH will drop and your growth hormone levels will rise. When people need to lose a lot of fat quickly and don't have a lot of time for training, we use this type of training for four hours a week.

British scientists have emphasized the importance of the caloric cost of recovery from such training. This has as much to do with the hours following the workout as the actual workout itself.

And by the way, training with weights in the morning is not ideal either. The nervous system does not reach its maximum capacity until three hours after waking up. The good news, however, is that the body will adapt to pretty much anything, which means that you will eventually adapt to early morning workouts.

The muscle burn and mass gains

Q: Is muscle burning or pumping necessary for hypertrophy?

A: There are a lot of ways to increase hypertrophy. Look at Olympic weightlifters who never get a pump. Look at Strongman competition athletes. They hypertrophy anyway.

The best studies on hypertrophy have been done in Finland. Researchers there have found that wrestlers, bodybuilders, powerlifters and weightlifters all hypertrophy...but for different reasons. The most important thing for hypertrophy training is to perform a varied workout. Look at Ronnie Coleman. He used to train as a powerlifter and then as a bodybuilder: varied training.

Look at the bodybuilders before the eighties, when they didn't use the amounts of steroids they do today. Back then, they trained as part of a subculture along with weightlifters and powerlifters. Back then, people who trained with weights were seen as oddballs by society. All these people trained in the same weight rooms and shared their training methodologies.

I saw Robbie Robinson in Norway training together with a Norwegian powerlifting and bodybuilding champion. Robbie is a strong guy, especially for his age. He showed the young guy where the hammer hangs. You could clearly see that these guys came from a culture where you learned to move more weight to become more muscular. Today, you see bodybuilders doing curls with 15 kilo dumbbells - and they still achieve a high degree of hypertrophy,

The forgotten element of hypertrophy training is the overload principle. People no longer try to move heavier weights - they double their steroid dosages instead. Training for a muscle burn is one way to hypertrophy, but it's not the only way. For example, I have you do eccentric squats and eccentric pull-ups. You will build weight, but you will not achieve muscle burning.

Hypertrophy is a function of load vs. time under tension. Since it's a product of both, you can work one end or the other - or both ends. Let's say you can do 10 reps of squats with 65 kilos. Now, if you can do 30 reps with 65 kilos, your legs will grow. Even if you do 10 repetitions of squats with 100 kilos, your legs will grow - but for a different reason. And if you can do 50 reps with 100 kilos, your legs will become really muscular.

Both systems work.

The control of insulin

Q: You once wrote that 68% of Americans are prediabetic. You said that insulin is a hormone of aging and inflammation and you said that controlling insulin is the best way to promote health and longevity. Okay, what is by far the best thing you can do to achieve this?

A: Take fish oil. Scientific research has shown that if you take three grams of fish oil with a high-sugar meal, the insulin response is much weaker.

I've seen some people recommend that you take your daily dose of fish oil all at once, but anyone who knows what they're doing when it comes to functional medicine will tell you to spread your fish oil out throughout the day. Or would you eat all your protein for the day at once?

Best exercise by far?

Q: If you look around most gyms, what do you think is the most useful but most neglected exercise?

A: That would be deadlifts with a very wide grip - and specifically deadlifts with a very wide grip performed from a platform 10 centimeters off the ground. The idea here is to increase the range of motion by standing on an elevation AND using a very wide grip.

If you told me you had to go to prison and only had a barbell and didn't want to get raped in the shower and could only do one exercise to build strength and muscle mass, I would tell you to do deadlifts with a very wide grip from a platform.

This exercise alone makes people build muscle mass like crazy. Whenever I have someone who needs to build weight quickly but doesn't have a lot of time, I have them do this exercise. For deadlifts with a wide grip, grip aids are fine because you'll be doing more than three reps, but don't use them up until you've reached your working weight.

If you think about it, this exercise is the opposite of the sumo deadlift, which shortens the range of motion. Some powerlifters train with ballet shoes to shorten the range of motion. However, we want to increase the range of motion here - and deadlifts with a very wide grip from an elevation will make this possible.

Exercises for the lateral abdominal muscles (obliques) = wide waist?

Q: Some bodybuilders say that direct training for the side abs should be avoided to prevent developing a wide midsection. Should we really be worried about this?

A: You'll mainly see this type of hypertrophy in throwers. The average exerciser should not worry about this. There is some scientific research that shows that the lateral abdominal muscles have very low potential for strength development. It has been shown that the lateral abdominal muscles have one of the lowest potentials for hypertrophy and strength development.

This is the reason why I am against those tornado balls and other things recommended by trainers that can't really make anyone strong. The core is recruited the most by squats and deadlifts, even though no rotation comes into play here.

The average exerciser and the 1RM weight

Q: Is there any reason for the average trainee who is not training for powerlifting to perform exercises with the 1RM weight?

A: Absolutely. Remember that hypertrophy is a function of a certain load and volume and time under tension. The fact is that if a trainee is stuck doing sets of 10 reps with 100 kilos and hasn't improved since Jimmy Carter was in office, some maximal strength training is probably needed to change that.

So if he performs 10 reps of bench press with 100 kilos, he will probably do a single repetition with 125 kilos plus minus 5 kilos. If he then completes a training cycle in which he increases his maximum bench press weight to 140 kilos, he will probably be able to complete ten repetitions at 115 kilos and see new muscle growth.

However, he does not necessarily have to perform heavy single repetitions. A safer way for the average exerciser is to work with six sets of three repetitions.

Source: https://www.t-nation.com/training/question-of-strength-36

By Charles Poliquin

Here is a brief summary:

1. Cell volume is critical when it comes to transporting amino acids into cells. Increasing cell volume is also a fundamental property of compounds such as creatine.
2. Cell volume and pump, although related, are not the same thing. Cell volume refers to the fluid within the muscle cells, while pump has to do with the fluid between the muscle cells.
3. Even though cell volume and pump are different things, an increased pump can promote an increase in cell volume and lead to increased growth.

Nothing is more satisfying after a training session than a pump that literally bursts through your skin. This feeling lets you know that you have accomplished your task during training. The trained muscle is so "full" that even small movements become a challenge and you can literally feel the blood rushing through your arteries.

The fact that your muscles tend to feel extra full during periods of increased growth - even between training sessions - is no coincidence. A full muscle is an anabolic muscle, and increased cell volume works backstage to drive anabolic muscle growth.

It's widely believed that the best way to increase cell volume is to get a great pump in the gym. However, even though cell volume and pumps are related, they are not the same thing. While cell volume refers to the volume of water within the muscle cells, a pump - also known as reactive hyperemia - represents increased volume in the areas between and around the muscle cells, also known as the interstitial area.

Despite this distinction, an excellent pump can promote increased cell volume under the right circumstances. If you have not yet considered this variable as part of your training nutrition strategy, you should do so in the future. Cell volume is crucial when it comes to transporting amino acids into cells, activating protein synthesis and suppressing catabolic protein breakdown during the critical window of opportunity around your workout.

The anatomy of the muscle pump

In response to high-intensity exercise, the local blood supply to hard-working muscles increases, increasing the delivery of oxygen and the removal of waste products. This reactive hyperemia, also known as pumping, results in an increase in the amount of blood plasma in the areas between and around the muscle cells (interstitial area).

The combination of an increased amount of blood plasma and an accumulation of lactate and other metabolic waste products increases the osmolality of the interstitial fluid (1). This generates a concentration gradient that draws additional water from the bloodstream (2, 3) and causes a phenomenon we all know as the pump.

Since the pump is generally considered synonymous with cell volume, it may surprise some that the osmotic forces that conspire to induce the pump actually promote shrinkage instead of volumization.

This makes sense - at least on paper. Increase the concentration of a solute on one side of a semipermeable membrane and water will diffuse across the membrane in the direction of the concentration gradient until the solution reaches equilibrium. In the same way, in muscle tissue experiencing a pump, the increased osmolality of the interstitial fluid will cause water to diffuse out of the muscle cells in the direction of the concentration gradient, which would ultimately reduce cell volume.

Fortunately, skeletal muscle is well equipped to deal with this. Through a process known as regulatory volume increase (RVI), muscle cells are able to maintain or even increase their cell volume despite the increased osmolality that occurs during a skin bursting pump (4).

Understanding how this works is not just of academic interest - it's fundamental if you want to harness the anabolic power of cell volume to your advantage. Cell volume increases during a muscle pump via a coordinated activity of two transport proteins located in the cell membrane (4).

In the first step, the sodium-potassium (Na+/K+) ATPase pump transports three sodium ions out of the cell in exchange for two potassium ions. Since the concentration of sodium outside the cell is typically 10 to 20 times higher than inside the cell, energy in the form of ATP is required to pump sodium out of the cell against the concentration gradient.

In the second step, another pump associated with the membrane, known as the sodium-potassium-chloride co-transporter pump (NKCC for short), simultaneously transports one sodium, one potassium and two chloride ions from outside the cell into the cell.

If we do our math homework, we find that the coordinated action of the Na+/K+ ATPase and the NKCC pump results in a net influx of charged ions into the cell, which increases intracellular osmolality. When intracellular osmolality increases relative to the osmolality of the interstitial fluid, water is drawn into the muscle where it increases cell volume.

The increase in cell volume mediated by the NKCC pump is driven by the sodium gradient generated by the Na+/K+ ATPase pump (4). You can see exactly how this works in the figure above.

Cell volume and amino acid transport

The extracellular sodium gradient generated by the Na+/K+ ATPase pump is not only important for increasing cell volume - amino acid uptake is also driven by this sodium gradient. In order to repair damaged muscle tissue, we need to transport amino acids into the cell to activate protein synthesis. Although all amino acids activate protein synthesis to some degree, leucine is the most potent activator.

Leucine is transported into the cells via a tertiary active transport mechanism. For our purposes here, the exact molecular details of this process are less important than the big picture.

In order to activate muscle growth and the repair process after an intensive training session, we need to transport leucine into the cell. Leucine uptake is driven by cell volume and is dependent on the sodium gradient induced by the Na+/K+ ATPase (5).

At this point, you may have already noticed a trend: just like an increase in cell volume, amino acid uptake is also dependent on sodium, potassium, ATP and water.

Cell volume, protein synthesis and protein degradation

Cell swelling inhibits protein degradation and stimulates protein synthesis in a number of cell types (6-8) including skeletal muscle cells (9, 10). Since hard training stimulates both protein synthesis and protein breakdown (11), we are essentially fighting protein breakdown after every single training session.

If we consistently shift the balance towards protein synthesis and away from protein breakdown, then we win the battle for muscle growth and will build new muscle mass and strength. Since protein turnover increases substantially during the minutes and hours following exercise (11), maximizing cell volume with optimal training nutrition is critical to long-term progress.

A cell volume action plan

Now that we understand how all of this works, there are a number of things we can do to harness the anabolic power of cell volume.

1 - Increase hydration

This goes without saying. At the most basic level, adequate hydration is needed for optimal cell volume. The ability to activate protein synthesis and suppress protein breakdown during the window of opportunity around training is dependent on this. Even if you are only slightly dehydrated, your performance and recovery ability will be impaired.

2 - Optimize your electrolyte balance

To get water into the cells and increase cell volume, we need osmolytes - osmotically active molecules that draw water into the cell. For this reason, it is important to maintain optimal levels of sodium, magnesium and potassium. (Other important osmolytes would be chloride, calcium and phosphorus).

As we learned above, sodium and potassium are needed for cell volumization and amino acid uptake. For this reason, you should not shy away from sodium before and after training. Blood volume is highly dependent on sodium levels and if you are deficient in sodium, the pump you get during exercise will be almost non-existent.

You should also make sure to consume potassium-rich foods. Potatoes, broccoli, bananas and pumpkin are excellent sources of potassium. The function of the Na+/K+ ATPase (12) and NKCC (13) pumps is also dependent on magnesium, which is why your cell volumization will be impaired if you suffer from a magnesium deficiency. Regular ZMA® supplementation can prevent such a deficiency to help you keep the machinery of cell volumization running like a well-oiled machine.

3 - Creatine monohydrate - the original cell volumizer

It's hard to write about cell volume without mentioning creatine, which is stored in muscle cells in the form of phosphocreatine and provides a phosphate group to regenerate ATP during high-intensity contractions.

Creatine supports cell volumization via direct and indirect mechanisms. As an important muscle osmolyte, creatine increases cell volume directly by drawing additional water into the cell when it is ingested.

Creatine also increases cell volume indirectly. We learned above that the Na+/K+/ ATPase pump uses energy in the form of ATP to transport sodium out of the cell against the concentration gradient. This function is so important for life itself that more than 30% of total cellular ATP is used to keep the Na+/K+ ATPase pump running.

Creatine therefore indirectly increases cell volume by providing the supply of energy-rich phosphate to regenerate ATP. Five grams of creatine per day is sufficient to increase cell volume.

4 - Correctly timed training nutrition

Your ability to regenerate and improve your development depends on the timing of nutrients during the training phase. When it comes to nutrient timing from a macronutrient perspective, the best approach is usually what is considered best practice. Amino acids are in themselves osmolytes, which when transported into the cell draw additional water into the cell and increase cell volume.

Insulin not only activates amino acid transport, but also further increases cell volume by inducing glucose uptake. But even though macronutrient timing is important, there are additional factors you can consider to maximize your cell volume:

Pre-workout (45 minutes before):

Consume functional carbohydrates such as highly branched cyclic dextrins in combination with a fast-acting protein hydrolysate to keep insulin levels stable. To maximize cell volume, sodium, water and to a lesser extent potassium, magnesium and calcium are important.

As mentioned above, the Na+/K+ ATPase pump generates the extracellular sodium gradient that makes cell volumization, amino acid uptake and even glucose uptake possible in the first place. In addition, you should already be well hydrated before training and therefore increase your water intake during this time.

Before training (15 minutes before):

Continue to consume functional carbohydrates and fast-acting protein hydrolysates in liquid form. During this phase and during the actual training session, the intake of water and electrolytes (sodium, potassium, magnesium and calcium) is crucial for maximum nutrient absorption and maximization of cell volume. To eliminate the guess work, it is recommended to use a product that is specifically designed for this purpose and includes functional carbohydrates, fast-acting peptides and all the required electrolytes in the right proportions.

Creatine is also useful at this point and in vitro studies suggest that this may be the optimal time to take creatine. Creatine uptake efficiency may increase in response to the increased interstitial osmolality that induces a muscle pump during exercise (14).

Post-workout:

After an intense training session, you need protein, water and rest. Another boost of protein hydrolysate will promote continued protein synthesis. In terms of cell volume, you should continue to drink water with electrolytes. (This is when many drop the ball, as the last thing you tend to think about after a brutal training session is drinking large amounts of water).

5 - Maximize mechanical tension

Although cell volumization is a fundamental driver of muscle growth and recovery, the real magic happens when the volumized muscle is subjected to a large amount of mechanical tension.

Part of the mechanism by which cell swelling activates protein synthesis is increased cytoskeletal tension, which directly increases protein synthesis via an increase in translational mRNA efficiency (15, 16). Mechanical tension in response to high-intensity muscle contractions also directly activates amino acid uptake (17), based in part on activation of the Na+/K+ ATPase pump (18).

By now you should have realized how intense training of a volumized muscle generates a highly anabolic state. Expose a volumized muscle to a heavy load with sufficient time under tension and you will increase amino acid uptake and protein synthesis. Add to this a perfectly planned training diet and you get an anabolic orgy.

References:

1. Lindinger MI, Spriet LL, Hultman E, Putman T, McKelvie RS, Lands LC, et al. Plasma volume and ion regulation during exercise after low- and high-carbohydrate diets. Am J Physiol 1994;266:R1896-R1906.
2. Lundvall J, Mellander S, Sparks H. Myogenic response of resistance vessels and precapillary sphincters in skeletal muscle during exercise. Acta Physiol Scand 1967;70:257-68.
3. Lundvall J. Tissue hyperosmolality as a mediator of vasodilatation and transcapillary fluid flux in exercising skeletal muscle. Acta Physiol Scand Suppl 1972;379:1-142.
4. Lindinger MI, Leung M, Trajcevski KE, Hawke TJ. Volume regulation in mammalian skeletal muscle: the role of sodium-potassium-chloride cotransporters during exposure to hypertonic solutions. J Physiol 2011;589:2887-99.
5. Baird FE, Bett KJ, MacLean C, Tee AR, Hundal HS, Taylor PM. Tertiary active transport of amino acids reconstituted by coexpression of System A and L transporters in Xenopus oocytes. Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab 2009;297:E822-E829
6. Haussinger D, Hallbrucker C, vom DS, Decker S, Schweizer U, Lang F, et al. Cell volume is a major determinant of proteolysis control in liver. FEBS Lett 1991;283:70-2.
7. Haussinger D, Hallbrucker C, vom DS, Lang F, Gerok W. Cell swelling inhibits proteolysis in perfused rat liver. Biochem J 1990;272:239-42.
8. Stoll B, Gerok W, Lang F, Haussinger D. Liver cell volume and protein synthesis. Biochem J 1992;287 ( Pt 1):217-22.
9. Low SY, Rennie MJ, Taylor PM. Involvement of integrins and the cytoskeleton in modulation of skeletal muscle glycogen synthesis by changes in cell volume. FEBS Lett 1997;417:101-3.
10. Low SY, Rennie MJ, Taylor PM. Signaling elements involved in amino acid transport responses to altered muscle cell volume. FASEB J 1997;11:1111-7.
11. Drummond MJ, Dreyer HC, Fry CS, Glynn EL, Rasmussen BB. Nutritional and contractile regulation of human skeletal muscle protein synthesis and mTORC1 signaling. J Appl Physiol 2009;106:1374-84.
12. WHANG R, WELT LG. Observations in experimental magnesium depletion. J Clin Invest 1963;42:305-13.
13. Flatman PW. The effects of magnesium on potassium transport in ferret red cells. J Physiol 1988;397:471-87.
14. Alfieri RR, Bonelli MA, Cavazzoni A, Brigotti M, Fumarola C, Sestili P, et al. Creatine as a compatible osmolyte in muscle cells exposed to hypertonic stress. J Physiol 2006;576:391-401.
15. Kimball SR, Farrell PA, Jefferson LS. Invited Review: Role of insulin in translational control of protein synthesis in skeletal muscle by amino acids or exercise. J Appl Physiol (1985 ) 2002;93:1168-80.
16. Goldspink DF. The influence of immobilization and stretch on protein turnover of rat skeletal muscle. J Physiol 1977;264:267-82.
17. Vandenburgh HH, Kaufman S. Stretch-induced growth of skeletal myotubes correlates with activation of the sodium pump. J Cell Physiol 1981;109:205-14.
18. MacKenzie MG, Hamilton DL, Murray JT, Taylor PM, Baar K. mVps34 is activated following high-resistance contractions. J Physiol 2009;587:253-60.

Source: https://www.t-nation.com/supplements/increase-cell-volume-for-fast-muscle-growth

From Bill Willis, PhD

Box squats for athletes and bodybuilders?

Q: What do you think about box squats for athletes? And what about bodybuilders?

A: I never use them. With athletes, you want the most bang for the buck for the effort invested, as they only have about 11 weeks on average to train with squats during their off-season. That's why the right exercise selection is very important.

The problem I have with box squats is that their scope is limited to powerlifting. The reason for this is that the goal in powerlifting is to move the greatest amount of weight over the shortest distance that is just within the rules. In box squats, your shins don't move forward. I don't know of any sport where the shins don't move forward during a propulsion movement. This means that the mechanics of box squats are not found in any sport.

Do you now think I'm on the hit list of all the Westside supporters? But this is once again the Bruce Lee principle: use what is useful and do without what is not. Box squats are the only element of Westside training that I disagree with. In my opinion, box squats only have a raison d'être in powerlifting.

In addition to this, any type of restricted movement scheme tends to alter the integrity of the soft tissue. One change you'll find in people who do a lot of box squats is that they often have tightness in the piriformis muscle, for example. In sports where you have to change the direction of movement often, box squats will reduce your speed strength as you will not be able to use the corresponding muscles efficiently.

Last but not least, I mainly work with highly paid athletes. When performing box squats, there is always a risk that the athlete will hit the box hard due to a lack of concentration. The trauma that can occur to the sacral vertebrae can be enormous. There are simply better alternatives. If you are a powerlifter, then box squats are a great exercise. However, if you are an athlete of any other discipline, then you should avoid this exercise.

As far as bodybuilding is concerned, you can incorporate box squats sparingly into your training process. They will induce hypertrophy in the thigh and gluteus area.

Doublé training

Q: I've heard you mention the concept of doublé training for rapid improvements in certain exercises or certain muscle groups. What exactly does doublé training mean?

A: Doublé is a French term that means doing something twice. I learned this concept from Pierre Roy, who is perhaps the best weightlifting coach in all of Canada. Basically, this method involves performing the same exercise twice during a training session.

Roy first used this method in Olympic weightlifting, but you can use this method in other sports as well. You simply perform the exercise you want to improve on twice. For example, if you are weak in squats, then do squats at the beginning of a training session as your first exercise and then do squats again at the end of your training session. This technique is excellent for overcoming plateaus and can be used to increase both strength and hypertrophy.

Let's say you have modest calf development. You could then perform 10 sets of calf training at the start of your training session, then train chest and back and finish your training session with another 10 sets of calf training.

Are you made for a low-carb diet?

Q: You wrote that you use low-carb diets for 75% of your athletes, but you also said that these diets are not for every genotype. How can the average person know if a low-carb diet is right for them?

A: We use skinfold thickness below the shoulder blades as a genetic indicator. If you naturally have very thin skin folds in the upper back, then you are more likely to be able to tolerate a lot of carbohydrates in your diet

However, if you are more of a slim person and your skinfold in this area is 15 mm or more, then carbohydrates are less good for you and you should avoid them. If you are getting very slim and your skin fold thickness in this area is only slightly reduced, then carbohydrates are not for you.

Your skinfold around the hips is the measurement that tells you if you are eating too many carbohydrates. In other words, the more you eat, the thicker this skin fold becomes. Even if you are doing well with carbohydrates, this skin fold will increase if you eat too much.

However, the easiest test for your carbohydrate tolerance is to eat carbohydrates for breakfast. You wake up, rate your energy on a scale of 1 to 10, where 10 means you have a lot of energy and 1 means you feel low. You then eat a carbohydrate-rich breakfast, such as pancakes with syrup. If you feel sleepy an hour later and would like to take a nap, then carbohydrates are not for you. If you feel more energized, then carbs are for you, you lucky bastard.

Something to differentiate are neo-carbs vs. paleo carbs. With paleo carbohydrates, the following simple rule applies: were they available during the Stone Age? Would a caveman have had access to grapes and raspberries? Yes. Bagels and pasta? No.

When I talk about people who have adapted to carbohydrates, I'm talking about neo-carbohydrates. If you've adapted to pasta, then you can eat it and you'll feel great. These people can use any carbohydrate source. I trained with Milos Sarcev. This guy can eat white flour products for breakfast and feel great. If I ate like him, I could apply for unemployment benefits right now and sleep all day long.

Usually, people who have a predisposition to building muscle quickly also do well with carbohydrates. You can eat a truckload of carbs and feel good. If you come from a region where agriculture has been practiced for a very long time, then you will probably do better with carbohydrates. If, on the other hand, you come from a meat-eating and hunting background, then neo-carbs are not for you.

I can maintain a body fat percentage of 5 to 6% all year round if I only eat Paleo carbohydrates. Other guys can eat two kilos of pasta for breakfast and still stay slim. You'll find that nutrition experts tend to recommend what works best for themselves, not what works for everyone. This is the reason I prefer individualized nutrition programs.

Keith Klein and others recommend rice cakes as a source of carbohydrates. If I ate rice cakes, I would fall asleep at the wheel! It just doesn't work for me. I've even heard people recommend Pop Tarts - a classic example of neo-carbs.

Basically, our genes have only evolved by 0.2% over the last 40,000 years. So we are mainly designed for paleo carbohydrates. But 25% of the world's population has actually adapted to the type of carbohydrates that come from agriculture. But I still don't recommend that these people choose Pop Tarts, cereal and all the other junk over Paleo carbs. You need to pay attention to nutrient density. It's not just about the glycemic index or insulin load, it's about the PI - the Phytonutrient Index. How rich are these foods in nutrients?

Let's look at blueberries as an example. Blueberries have a very thin skin and any fruit with a very thin skin is going to be richer in antioxidants because it has to protect itself from the sun. This is the reason why berries contain a lot more antioxidants than bananas. This is why berries are the first thing I add back into my diet when I add carbohydrates back into my diet.

As a rule of thumb, the darker and richer the color of food, the healthier it is. Compare blueberries with rice. But I would still rather see someone eat their carbs in the form of rice instead of Pop Tarts.

The Natural Academy of Science medical board has determined that the safe and acceptable amount of trans fats for humans is zero - so why would you recommend pastries packed with trans fats as a carbohydrate source? It will cause blockages in your veins, age your brain faster and double your risk of cancer! Why would anyone recommend Pop Tarts?

The repetition numbers are crucial

Q: You wrote in an article that the first step in designing a weight training program is to determine the number of repetitions to perform. Is this even more important than the exercise selection?

A: Yes, the number of repetitions is the mother of all load parameters. All load parameters are a function of the number of repetitions you choose. It dictates the rest intervals and the number of sets you will use. If you have decided on a number of repetitions, this will also limit the range of exercises you can perform. Power snatches (power cleans), for example, should never be performed with a high number of repetitions as it is an exercise that requires a high degree of coordination.

The best supplement by far

Q: What is the one supplement that every professional athlete, recreational athlete and basically every active person should use?

A: Fish oil. I was introduced to fish oil 12 years ago by my friend Mauro DiPasquale. I was at his house and he had fish oil in the kitchen. I wondered what he used it for and he said "Charles, this is the most important supplement ever."

He told me to go to the Medline site and type in any disease known to mankind along with the word fish oil. He challenged me to find any study that didn't show that fish oil could be useful in treating every disease imaginable. I gave up after 86 studies.

Why is it so useful? It's in our genes. Humans used to consume 300 to 400 grams of omega 3 fatty acids per week. And today, if we consume more than two grams a day, it's considered a lot.

There was a study published four years earlier which showed that if the American government recommended three grams of fish oil a day to the American population, the rate of cancer and heart disease would fall by 50% within a year. Most readers won't care about cancer and heart disease, but those readers might be interested in this: the biggest limiting factor in reducing body fat and building muscle in naturally exercising people is the consumption (or lack of consumption) of omega-3 fatty acids.

If you look at the body structure of cavemen, you will notice that they had a lot of muscle mass compared to modern humans. They got their omega-3 fatty acids from the meat they ate. They often ate what the predators had left over. For example, a lion will eat an antelope starting from the belly and leave the skull and long bones. Primitive man broke open the skull and ate the brain. The brain consists of 60% fat and 60% of this fat is DHA - an omega-3 fatty acid. Scientists have found that the more brain these people ate, the faster their IQ rose.

Primitive man also broke open the bones and sucked the bone marrow from the bones, which is also very rich in omega-3 fatty acids - especially DHA. DHA is the omega-3 fatty acid that is particularly important for brain development, while EPA is most commonly associated with reducing inflammation.

My athletes often recognize each other when they sit at the table and eat together because the ones I train eat fish oil with their meals. This has given me the nickname "the fish oil guy" among athletes. It's also how I get my athletes so lean so quickly.

Anyone who wants to build muscle and lose fat should take 30 to 45 grams of fish oil a day. That's just three tablespoons of fish oil. With capsules this would be quite cumbersome, as this would be about 45 capsules per day, but with fish oil in liquid form it is easy.

Incidentally, I also think a combination of fish oil and CLA is good, as most people are deficient in CLA.

For those of us interested in changing our body composition for the better and maximizing our training efforts, fish oil has 13 possible benefits to offer:

1. Cell Membrane Health: DHA and EPA ensure that cell membranes remain healthy. This means that the membranes are flexible and have a greater number of insulin receptors that are more sensitive to circulating insulin. This results in reduced fat storage in the fat cells.
2. Fish oil activates lipolytic genes (fat-burning genes)
3. Fish oil deactivates lipogenic genes (fat-storing genes)
4. Fish oil reduces the amount of C-reactive protein - a newly identified risk factor associated with various inflammatory diseases including atherosclerosis, coronary heart disease, heart attack, stroke, heart failure and diabetes. The DHA fraction of fish oil appears to be most responsible for this effect. DHA also has the best ability to lower blood pressure.
5. Increased use of fat stored in fat cells.
6. Preferential use of stored fat for the purpose of energy production.
7. Reduced inflammation through physical exercise.
8. Pain management by reducing inflammation.
9. EPA regulates the blood supply to the brain, which is important for maintaining focus during your training sessions. DHA is an important component of the brain membrane and is also important for memory and cognitive function.
10. Fish oil increases serotonin levels (the neurotransmitter responsible for feelings of happiness). For this reason, fish oil can reduce depression, anxiety, panic attacks and carbohydrate cravings.
11. Fish oil will improve your cardiovascular risk profile by lowering levels of VLDL triglycerides, homocysteine levels and fibrinogen levels, as well as increasing HDL levels. A combination of fish oil with plant sterols will improve blood lipid levels even better than fish oil or plant sterols alone.
12. Fish oil can lower blood pressure through several mechanisms. These include improving blood flow, increasing nitric oxide levels, reducing inflammation of blood vessels, blocking vasoconstrictor elements in the walls of blood vessels such as calcium channels that reduce blood viscosity, and inhibiting blood vessel constriction (thromboxane). Lipoprotein (a) is another predictor of cardiovascular disease that can be reduced by fish oil (a reduction of 19% has been observed with the use of natural, stable fish oils, while a reduction of only 4% has been observed with highly purified fish oil).
13. Fish oils are excellent stress fighters. Supplementation with n-3 fatty acids inhibits the adrenal activation of steroids, aldosterone, epinehprine and norepinephrine (catecholamines), which is caused by mental stress via effects on the central nervous system. For this reason, you will produce less stress hormones for the same amount of stress if you regularly consume fish oil.

In short, fish oil is my number one supplement recommendation.

Intensity methods

Q: A lot of trainers today say that you shouldn't use forced repetitions, descending sets, or other intensity-enhancing methods unless you're using performance-enhancing substances and/or have excellent genetics. But do these techniques have a place in the training program of a normal natural exerciser?

A: Well, these methods don't actually increase intensity, but rather time under tension. Don't confuse pain with intensity. These methods are more painful, but they are not more intense. When we talk about strength training, intensity is simply a percentage of your maximum weight.

Now, these methods work when it comes to hypertrophy. I think there are two ways in which a natural trainee can use these methods: once every third training session or for three weeks out of twelve. During these three weeks, you can expect to lose six to eight pounds of lean body tissue. After that, you should use a recovery cycle during which you perform only a few sets per muscle group for two weeks. You'll gain back the weight you lost - plus another 4 pounds of interest.

One problem I often see is that a lot of exercisers are very motivated - so motivated that they abuse these methods. And that's the reason they're skinny. They think that pain equals growth. That's sometimes true, but not always. Look at weightlifters who have legs like tree trunks - and they never train to muscle failure.

However, I still disagree that you should never use descending sets, forced reps, etc. Think of training as a recipe. An omelette tastes better with sour cream or crème fraîche. But if you put 250 grams of crème fraiche on your omelette, then it's no longer an omelette - it's something else. The point is that you should use the right ingredients in the right quantities in your training.

Source: https://www.t-nation.com/training/question-of-strength-35

From Charles Poliquin