07 Aug German Body Composition – Lose Fat & Build Muscle

GBC – The most effective way for fat loss and building muscle…

Training frequency: Because this is such an intense program, it'll take you longer to recover. In fact, if you're familiar with the writings of Peter Sisco and John Little, you'll find that the average 'Power Factor Rating' of the 10-sets method is about 8 billion. Consequently, one training session every four to five days per body part is plenty.

At Fitness HQ we spend a lot of time amending and improving our fitness courses to incorporate some of the most up to date training methods, research and trends so that when our students complete their qualification they are well equipped to work with most types of clients. Our personal trainer courses are amongst the best in the UK and we often go above and beyond the recommended content to ensure you are educated to the highest standard possible. During our personal training qualifications we deliver a wide range of advanced training methods and one method in particular which we like to discuss and teach is German Body Composition training.

From experience, German Body Composition training when done right is one of the most effective methods for burning fat and building muscle simultaneously. But be warned, it’s not an easy method and you really need to push your limits to get the most out of it.

What is German Body Composition (GBC) training?

GBC in short is a form of resistance training which comprises of 2 or more exercises, has very little rest between exercises and sets and usually comprises of high reps. In turn this results in an increase of lactate in the blood which is an energy substrate or a fatiguing by-product of the lactate energy system. Elevated levels of blood lactate in the short term is a good thing because, elevated blood lactate results in elevated levels of Growth Hormone which is released by the pituitary gland. Elevated levels of Growth Hormone burns fat! GBC ideally should consist of opposing muscles, opposite movements or upper body and lower body exercises.

Where did GBC come from?

One of the earliest references we can find in relation to elevating blood lactate is Hala Rambie. Hala was a scientist who discovered that elevating blood lactate accelerates fat loss. Since then, ‘fitness gurus’ and elite coaches such as Charles Poliquin have popularised this method through achieving outstanding results with their athletes and clients.

Who is it good for?Mifi advan jr 108 plus 411.

Everyone – providing they have no health conditions. GBC training has resulted in outstanding results with elite athletes, the average gym goers and also physique competitors. However, please bear in mind the intensity of this training system is high. Therefore beginners or clients who don’t have a foundation level of fitness may struggle.

Why does it work so well?

In short, because of the elevated levels of Growth Hormone! It is reported that GBC training can elevate the amount of Growth Hormone released by the pituitary gland up to 9 times more than average. Wow, that is huge!!

Growth Hormone can accelerate fat loss and some theorists suggest that an elevated level of Growth Hormone linearly improves the ability to burn fat.

Example workouts:

Now for the fun bit: we have outlined an example GBC training programme below. But, before you start, we strongly advise that you consult a physician or health professional to make sure you are in a position to complete the workouts safely.

N.B – To gain the most out of these workouts we recommend that you have a stopwatch to be strict with your rest periods and also where it states the target reps, these need to be maximum weights. E.g. if it says 12 reps then you must not be able to perform 13 and the 12^th rep needs to be maximum effort. Take 3 minutes rest between exercises A and B etc.

Session 1 (Monday):

Session 2 (Wednesday)

Session 3 (Friday)

If you are considering a career as a personal trainer then please check out your nearest academy: Manchester, Leeds, Liverpool, Newcastle, Cardiff, Southampton, London and Dublin – Ireland. Our courses are widely considered as some of the best available and we can help you access funding to cover the cost of the course.

Different approaches to strength training can facilitate different body responses, especially when taking a closer look at hormone levels. Most clients don’t realize that trainers consider how their sessions affects them on a cellular level. Which is what Charles Poliquin did when he took advantage of the relationship between lactate and Human Growth Hormone to create German Body Composition Training.

The first origins of inspiration for this method were sourced from Hala Rambie. It is said that this Romanian Sports Scientist defected to West Germany from the Soviet Bloc during the cold war. While in Germany he studied hormone production, more accurately, the possibilities of modifying Human Growth Hormone (HGH).

Rambie found that when blood lactate levels were elevated more HGH was produced. More HGH means greater fat loss and muscle tissue development.

In the 1980’s William Kraemer had a set of studies showing that particular training methods could increase HGH in the body. The most effective of these were higher reps with strictly short rests, a concept was also strongly supported by Vince Gironda in the 1960’s.

It was Poliquin who applied and combined these concepts to create the German Body Composition Training (GBC) system in the 1990’s, and it has been widely used over the last few decades.

The What of GBC

Simply put, GBC is a method of lifting that employs pairs of varying compound exercises at high intensity and short rest periods with the objective of stimulating muscle growth while minimizing the negative effects of lactic acid accumulation.

Here are the specifics:

• There are two groups of 4-5 exercises; group A and B
• The exercise groups are separated by upper and lower body movements or non-competing muscle groups – group A is upper, group B is lower
• Exercises of the two groups are paired together – ex; A1 with B1.
• Each pair is a set: A1 and B1 is Set 1
• Reps stay in the 10-15 range
• Rest between exercises is 30-75 seconds – depending on fitness level

The Why of GBC

When a muscle is working at high intensity lactate, or lactic acid, will be produced within said muscle and can create fatigue and a burning sensation. Interestingly enough, lactate is produced when oxygen is limited in the working muscle to allow the further break down of glucose. This continues energy production for the muscle cell when the aerobic systems fail.

Yet, the systems that are using the lactate to generate more energy do not operate well in acidic conditions. These same acidic conditions are produced when lactate levels increase.

Long story short, the muscle stops working due to an abundance of an energy substrate. Failure is a natural fail safe (pun intended) when a muscle is being overworked, which forces the body to slow down so the muscle can recuperate.

As soon as the work stops, the lactic acid burning sensation goes away. Excess lactate is quickly cleared away when the muscle slows down or stops.

In the GBC system an upper body exercise is quickly followed by a lower body exercise, or as mentioned, non-competing muscles groups. Working between opposing movements allows lactate levels to rise but not to do so locally, meaning the exercises do not impede the execution of the other.

As our good friend Hala Rambie discovered, high levels of lactate increase the production of HGH. This hormone plays a strong role in fat loss and muscle gain!

How of GBC

As stated in the “What” there will be 4-5 groups of paired exercises, group A and B.

Example:

A1 : Romanian Dead Lift – 12 reps

B1 : Bench Press – 15 reps

Alternating between the two exercises, rest 30-75 seconds between. Maintain a strict adherence to the rest time pre-determined. The short rest is an important characteristic of this method and its results.

Complete four rounds and then rest 2-4 minutes before continuing to exercises A2 and B2, following the same instructions of execution.

Tempo

The Poliquin method also applies tempo training. Traditional GBC workouts will have four digits next to the exercises.

Example:

A1 : Romanian Dead Lift – 12 reps 3010

B1 : Bench Press – 15 reps 3010

This 4 digit number represents the pace of the lift:

• First number: the time it should take to “lower” the weight (eccentric phase)
• Second number: the time you spend at the bottom of the lift
• Third number: the time you take to get to the “top” of the lift (concentric phase)
• Fourth number: the time you should pause at the top of the lift

Taking the Romanian Deadlift for this example with a tempo of 3010: The client would lower the bar towards the ground for a count of 3, (take no pause) immediately pull the weight up for a count of 1, take no pause,and then immediately start the next rep lowering for a count of 3.

A few other options for tempo are 2010, 2011, 2020, 5010. When choosing tempo think about the exercise it will be applied to. It wouldn’t be the best choice to have a client do a Romanian Deadlift with a tempo of 1330. This tempo would be awkward for the movement, and possibly put the lower back in a risky position.

A bench press could be safely lowered for a 1 count however, held for 3, pushed back up for 3, and immediately letter back down.

This variance in tempo will certainly keep the wheels turning!

Weight Selection

The GBC system uses a higher rep range than is necessary to be completed in each set comparison to a traditional hypertrophy rep range of 6 to 12. The weight needs to be challenging enough to elicit the lactate response yet allows the client to finish all of the reps. Use a weight that feels like it’s almost too much to complete the set, but still allows the client to do so.

When just beginning with GBC, it will be helpful to have a few weight options that are easily accessible during the exercise. That way, weight can be dropped if needed to complete the set rather than quitting.

Like all fitness systems, there is no “one size fits all”. German Body Composition training is built on solid concepts and research, and on paper sounds incredibly effective. However, I recommend having your own experience with it.

For me, this was new material. I wasn’t familiar with this system and enjoyed researching it for the blog. I have talked to one of my long term clients who has struggled with losing weight, and we are going to try this out.

This might be a great option for one of your clients, or maybe even yourself. I know I am going to give it a shot. If you already have tried this out, let me know what your thoughts are on our Facebook page and if you have any tips to pass along!