evansss
GET BIG
Came across this while reading various other sources of information. Im a big fan of most of Charles Poliquin's stuff so i thought i'd post this and get some feedback from some other people on this board, might possibly be my next routine. Enjoy!
PS its a long read, but fuck you.
The 1-6 Principle
By Charles Poliquin
Years ago, Charles Poliquin introduced German Volume Training to American athletes. I won't recap the thing here, but suffice it to say that it was a new, effective way to train and it got people excited. Finally, there was an alternative to the who-knows-where-it-came-from idea of doing three sets of ten over and over again until we were put in a small closet with handles on it and buried underneath the turf.
Well, it's time to change the way we train again. We're proud to introduce the 1-6 Principle to the bodybuilding world.
The 1-6 principle was first introduced to me at the National Strength and Conditioning Association Convention in San Diego back in 1991 by coach Dragomir Cioroslan, bronze medalist in the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games. This set/rep bracket had been used with great success by elite Romanian and Hungarian weightlifters.
This training system had been known by the ungainly name of the mixed neural drive/hypertrophy program. Of course, knowing how things often work in this business, I half expect Greg Merritt to rehash it in Flex within three months as the "Joe Weider Neuro-potentiation Supermyofibrillartrophic program." Oh well.
The system is based on the neurological post-tetanic facilitation phenomenon as first discussed in strength training circles by German strength physiologist Dietmar Schmidtbleicher from Freiburg University (in order to be a successful strength coach, you must have an exotic-sounding name). In a nutshell, if you do a 6RM (the maximum load you can lift for 6 reps) load within 3-10 minutes of doing a max single, you can use a greater weight that you could have if you hadn't done the 1RM set.
For example, let's say you can normally do 220 pounds for six reps on the incline press. However, if you do a max single four minutes prior to doing your 6 reps—which we'll say for the sake of argument is around 265—you'll be able to do six reps at 225-230 pounds. That's a significant increase.
In fact, many trainees who use this method find that their single poundages improve each wave. In fact, a typical wave for someone who can do 6 reps with 220 pounds on the incline press may look like this:
Set 1) 1 rep with 265 pounds
Set 2) 6 reps with 220 pounds
Set 3) 1 rep with 270 pounds
Set 4) 6 reps with 225 pounds
Set 5) 1 rep with 272.5 pounds
Set 6) 6 reps with 230 pounds
This isn't just a parlor trick. The basic premise is to use maximal loads to potentiate the nervous system. Because of this newly increased, more efficient neural drive, you can use a greater load for six reps which ends up building bigger and stronger muscles.
Finnish strength physiologist Keijo Häkkinen has demonstrated in many of his experiments that long-term strength gains are directly related to how much you increase intensity. Therefore, expect to reach new heights in strength gains with this routine since it makes full use of that intensity increase principle.
This method could also be used by wrestlers or practitioners of some of the grappling sports like Jiu-Jitsu. These individuals are often interested in moving up a weight class while keeping their speed up. Well, this system will not only allow you to gain functional bodyweight, but your power should also go up since the system taps into the higher threshold motor units which are responsible for the production of explosive strength/power.
After I learned about this effective training technique, I returned home and used it with great success with bobsledders, lugers, skiers and speed-skaters who were preparing for the 1992 Albertville Games. Other top athletes have used elements of this type of training with great success, too. For instance, Olympic Gold medalists Valery Borsov and Ben Johnson would squat a 3RM load ten minutes before their record smashing performances in the sprint to make use of this post-tetanic facilitation.
I won't tease you any longer, though. Here's the routine. You should do this five-day cycle a total of six times. Therefore, 30 days are needed to complete this routine.
Editor's note: For those of you unfamiliar with Coach Poliquin's workouts, many are divided into A1 and A2 schemes. For instance, on the first routine below, you'd do one set of your 1RM max on Scott EZ Bar mid-grip curls, rest two minutes, and then do a set of 1RM on close-grip bench presses. Then, after two more minutes of rest, you'd go back the the A1 exercise, the Scott EZ Bar mid-grip curls. You might also be puzzled by the "tempo" designation. Don't worry, it's easy. For instance, on the first exercise below, Coach Poliquin has indicated a tempo of 40X0. This simply means that you should take four seconds to do the eccentric, or lowering portion of the curl. Then, without resting (0 seconds), you should explosively lift the weight (designated by an "X"), followed by no pause at the top of the movement. Likewise, in other Poliquin-type routines, you might see a 3121 tempo. Again, that would mean taking three seconds to lower the weight, followed by a one-second pause; two seconds to raise the weight, followed by a one-second pause before lowering the weight.
Day 1—Arms
A1) Scott EZ Bar mid-grip curls
Rep pattern: 1,6,1,6,1,6
Tempo: 40X0
Rest interval: Two minutes
A2) Close-grip bench presses
Rep pattern: 1,6,1,6,1,6
Tempo: 40X0
Rest interval: Two minutes
B1) Standing medium-grip barbell curls
Rep pattern: 1,6,1,6
Tempo: 40X0
Rest interval: Two minutes
B2) V-bar triceps dips
Rep pattern: 1,6,1,6
Tempo: 40X0
Rest interval: Two minutes
Day 2—Legs
A1) Back squats
Rep pattern: 1,6,1,6,1,6
Tempo: 50X0
Rest interval: Two minutes
A2) Lying leg curls, feet neutral
Rep pattern: 1,6,1,6,1,6
Tempo: 50X0
Rest interval: Two minutes
B1) Trap bar deadlifts
Rep pattern: 1,6,1,6
Tempo: 50X0
Rest interval: Two minutes
B2) Standing calf raises
Rep pattern: 1,6,1,6
Tempo: 22X0
Rest interval: Two minutes
Day 3—Off
Day 4—Chest and Back
A1) Close parallel-grip chin-ups (weighted)
Rep pattern: 1,6,1,6,1,6
Tempo: 50X0
Rest interval: Two minutes
A2) Mid-grip bench presses
Rep pattern: 1,6,1,6,1,6
Tempo: 50X0
Rest interval: Two minutes
B1) Seated cable rows
Rep pattern: 1,6,1,6
Tempo: 50X0
Rest interval: Two minutes
B2) Incline barbell presses
Rep pattern: 1,6,1,6
Tempo: 50X0
Rest interval: Two minutes
Day 5—Off
Comments
Before you bust my balls with hundreds of emails that all wonder why there's no isolation delt work, rotator cuff work, or forearm work included in this routine, remember that the goal of this routine is to promote large increases in strength and cross-sectional area of the high-threshold motor units. While we're on the subject, you might also notice that there are no isolation exercises for the scalenes, popliteus, fibular division of the tibialis posterior, or the pterygoid externus lateralis (lower division of course!)!
Therefore for the purpose of "training time economy," as my German colleague Schmidtbleicher would say, you should focus your attention on compound exercises such as squats and presses. Sorry Richard Simmons fans, there's no room for one-arm cable side laterals or and triceps kickbacks on this one.
Don't worry, though, your delts and forearms won't atrophy in the thirty days you should devote to this training system. If anything, they'll grow, because it'll be probably the first time you've ever given them a break.
Since you're going to be doing a series of 1RM lifts, it's imperative that you warm up. The warm up should always consist of doing reps with the first pair of the exercises listed in the work out. If you've warmed up properly, there's very little need to warm up for the second pair.
For illustration purposes, let say it's Day 2 (leg day) of the program and you can max out at 300 pounds in the back squat and 180 pounds on the Atlantis brand of lying leg curls. Your warm-up would then look like this (take only enough time to move from one exercise to the other, adjust the weight, and complete the warm-up set):
1) Back squats
Five reps with 135 pounds
2) Atlantis lying leg curls, feet neutral
Five reps with 80 pounds
3) Back squats
Three reps with 185 pounds
4) Atlantis lying leg curls, feet neutral
Three reps with 100 pounds
5) Back squats
Two reps with 225 pounds
6) Atlantis lying leg curls, feet neutral
Two reps with 120 pounds
7) Back squats
One rep with 265 pounds
8) Atlantis lying leg curls, feet neutral
One rep with 140 pounds
9) Back squats
One rep with 285 pounds
10) Atlantis lying leg curls, feet neutral
Two reps with 160 pounds
Take a two-minute rest, then start the workout.
Given that you're going to be working with maximum poundages, you should probably use a spotter for lifts like presses and squats. Of course, if the thought of doing heavy singles scares you, and you can't find a spotter, you could modify the routine by adopting a 2,5,2,5,2,5 sets and reps pattern.
Small Steps
Maka a Big Difference
One of the drawbacks to any kind of program where you have to increase your load by small increments is the lack of plates that are smaller than 2.5 pounds. Obviously, when you get to a certain point in your weight lifting career, a jump of five pounds represents a huge leap.
PS its a long read, but fuck you.
The 1-6 Principle
By Charles Poliquin
Years ago, Charles Poliquin introduced German Volume Training to American athletes. I won't recap the thing here, but suffice it to say that it was a new, effective way to train and it got people excited. Finally, there was an alternative to the who-knows-where-it-came-from idea of doing three sets of ten over and over again until we were put in a small closet with handles on it and buried underneath the turf.
Well, it's time to change the way we train again. We're proud to introduce the 1-6 Principle to the bodybuilding world.
The 1-6 principle was first introduced to me at the National Strength and Conditioning Association Convention in San Diego back in 1991 by coach Dragomir Cioroslan, bronze medalist in the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games. This set/rep bracket had been used with great success by elite Romanian and Hungarian weightlifters.
This training system had been known by the ungainly name of the mixed neural drive/hypertrophy program. Of course, knowing how things often work in this business, I half expect Greg Merritt to rehash it in Flex within three months as the "Joe Weider Neuro-potentiation Supermyofibrillartrophic program." Oh well.
The system is based on the neurological post-tetanic facilitation phenomenon as first discussed in strength training circles by German strength physiologist Dietmar Schmidtbleicher from Freiburg University (in order to be a successful strength coach, you must have an exotic-sounding name). In a nutshell, if you do a 6RM (the maximum load you can lift for 6 reps) load within 3-10 minutes of doing a max single, you can use a greater weight that you could have if you hadn't done the 1RM set.
For example, let's say you can normally do 220 pounds for six reps on the incline press. However, if you do a max single four minutes prior to doing your 6 reps—which we'll say for the sake of argument is around 265—you'll be able to do six reps at 225-230 pounds. That's a significant increase.
In fact, many trainees who use this method find that their single poundages improve each wave. In fact, a typical wave for someone who can do 6 reps with 220 pounds on the incline press may look like this:
Set 1) 1 rep with 265 pounds
Set 2) 6 reps with 220 pounds
Set 3) 1 rep with 270 pounds
Set 4) 6 reps with 225 pounds
Set 5) 1 rep with 272.5 pounds
Set 6) 6 reps with 230 pounds
This isn't just a parlor trick. The basic premise is to use maximal loads to potentiate the nervous system. Because of this newly increased, more efficient neural drive, you can use a greater load for six reps which ends up building bigger and stronger muscles.
Finnish strength physiologist Keijo Häkkinen has demonstrated in many of his experiments that long-term strength gains are directly related to how much you increase intensity. Therefore, expect to reach new heights in strength gains with this routine since it makes full use of that intensity increase principle.
This method could also be used by wrestlers or practitioners of some of the grappling sports like Jiu-Jitsu. These individuals are often interested in moving up a weight class while keeping their speed up. Well, this system will not only allow you to gain functional bodyweight, but your power should also go up since the system taps into the higher threshold motor units which are responsible for the production of explosive strength/power.
After I learned about this effective training technique, I returned home and used it with great success with bobsledders, lugers, skiers and speed-skaters who were preparing for the 1992 Albertville Games. Other top athletes have used elements of this type of training with great success, too. For instance, Olympic Gold medalists Valery Borsov and Ben Johnson would squat a 3RM load ten minutes before their record smashing performances in the sprint to make use of this post-tetanic facilitation.
I won't tease you any longer, though. Here's the routine. You should do this five-day cycle a total of six times. Therefore, 30 days are needed to complete this routine.
Editor's note: For those of you unfamiliar with Coach Poliquin's workouts, many are divided into A1 and A2 schemes. For instance, on the first routine below, you'd do one set of your 1RM max on Scott EZ Bar mid-grip curls, rest two minutes, and then do a set of 1RM on close-grip bench presses. Then, after two more minutes of rest, you'd go back the the A1 exercise, the Scott EZ Bar mid-grip curls. You might also be puzzled by the "tempo" designation. Don't worry, it's easy. For instance, on the first exercise below, Coach Poliquin has indicated a tempo of 40X0. This simply means that you should take four seconds to do the eccentric, or lowering portion of the curl. Then, without resting (0 seconds), you should explosively lift the weight (designated by an "X"), followed by no pause at the top of the movement. Likewise, in other Poliquin-type routines, you might see a 3121 tempo. Again, that would mean taking three seconds to lower the weight, followed by a one-second pause; two seconds to raise the weight, followed by a one-second pause before lowering the weight.
Day 1—Arms
A1) Scott EZ Bar mid-grip curls
Rep pattern: 1,6,1,6,1,6
Tempo: 40X0
Rest interval: Two minutes
A2) Close-grip bench presses
Rep pattern: 1,6,1,6,1,6
Tempo: 40X0
Rest interval: Two minutes
B1) Standing medium-grip barbell curls
Rep pattern: 1,6,1,6
Tempo: 40X0
Rest interval: Two minutes
B2) V-bar triceps dips
Rep pattern: 1,6,1,6
Tempo: 40X0
Rest interval: Two minutes
Day 2—Legs
A1) Back squats
Rep pattern: 1,6,1,6,1,6
Tempo: 50X0
Rest interval: Two minutes
A2) Lying leg curls, feet neutral
Rep pattern: 1,6,1,6,1,6
Tempo: 50X0
Rest interval: Two minutes
B1) Trap bar deadlifts
Rep pattern: 1,6,1,6
Tempo: 50X0
Rest interval: Two minutes
B2) Standing calf raises
Rep pattern: 1,6,1,6
Tempo: 22X0
Rest interval: Two minutes
Day 3—Off
Day 4—Chest and Back
A1) Close parallel-grip chin-ups (weighted)
Rep pattern: 1,6,1,6,1,6
Tempo: 50X0
Rest interval: Two minutes
A2) Mid-grip bench presses
Rep pattern: 1,6,1,6,1,6
Tempo: 50X0
Rest interval: Two minutes
B1) Seated cable rows
Rep pattern: 1,6,1,6
Tempo: 50X0
Rest interval: Two minutes
B2) Incline barbell presses
Rep pattern: 1,6,1,6
Tempo: 50X0
Rest interval: Two minutes
Day 5—Off
Comments
Before you bust my balls with hundreds of emails that all wonder why there's no isolation delt work, rotator cuff work, or forearm work included in this routine, remember that the goal of this routine is to promote large increases in strength and cross-sectional area of the high-threshold motor units. While we're on the subject, you might also notice that there are no isolation exercises for the scalenes, popliteus, fibular division of the tibialis posterior, or the pterygoid externus lateralis (lower division of course!)!
Therefore for the purpose of "training time economy," as my German colleague Schmidtbleicher would say, you should focus your attention on compound exercises such as squats and presses. Sorry Richard Simmons fans, there's no room for one-arm cable side laterals or and triceps kickbacks on this one.
Don't worry, though, your delts and forearms won't atrophy in the thirty days you should devote to this training system. If anything, they'll grow, because it'll be probably the first time you've ever given them a break.
Since you're going to be doing a series of 1RM lifts, it's imperative that you warm up. The warm up should always consist of doing reps with the first pair of the exercises listed in the work out. If you've warmed up properly, there's very little need to warm up for the second pair.
For illustration purposes, let say it's Day 2 (leg day) of the program and you can max out at 300 pounds in the back squat and 180 pounds on the Atlantis brand of lying leg curls. Your warm-up would then look like this (take only enough time to move from one exercise to the other, adjust the weight, and complete the warm-up set):
1) Back squats
Five reps with 135 pounds
2) Atlantis lying leg curls, feet neutral
Five reps with 80 pounds
3) Back squats
Three reps with 185 pounds
4) Atlantis lying leg curls, feet neutral
Three reps with 100 pounds
5) Back squats
Two reps with 225 pounds
6) Atlantis lying leg curls, feet neutral
Two reps with 120 pounds
7) Back squats
One rep with 265 pounds
8) Atlantis lying leg curls, feet neutral
One rep with 140 pounds
9) Back squats
One rep with 285 pounds
10) Atlantis lying leg curls, feet neutral
Two reps with 160 pounds
Take a two-minute rest, then start the workout.
Given that you're going to be working with maximum poundages, you should probably use a spotter for lifts like presses and squats. Of course, if the thought of doing heavy singles scares you, and you can't find a spotter, you could modify the routine by adopting a 2,5,2,5,2,5 sets and reps pattern.
Small Steps
Maka a Big Difference
One of the drawbacks to any kind of program where you have to increase your load by small increments is the lack of plates that are smaller than 2.5 pounds. Obviously, when you get to a certain point in your weight lifting career, a jump of five pounds represents a huge leap.
