Thib's Q&A

Training
1521

[quote]Christian Thibaudeau wrote:
dreads989 wrote:
Coach,

I recently attended a USA Weightlifting Sports Coach certification class, about two weeks ago, to prepare myself for an internship I have with the Strength coaches at my University.

I’ve been going over to PT’s in gyms around my area to soak up more information (techinque, what to watch for when athletes perform them, etc.).

I was wondering, if you were cool with offering your two cents, as to common errors you see when athletes first start to clean or snatch? Thank you for your time!

Btw, I brought up tail-under squats to some of the coaches attending the class, and one of them mentioned how he has been able to fix tail-under squats by having the athlete/client lay flat on their back, with feet up at 45 degrees.

While he holds their legs and applies resistance (by pulling back towards himself), he has them gradually bring in their knees until they can’t pull them in anymore. They rep this out until the athlete can bring in the knees closer, and they are able to squat better. Have you tried this technique?

I wrote a whole chapter on the most common mistakes in the olympic lifts in one of my books and discussed them further in another one. I can’t do the same thing in a simple Q&A post… it’s WAY outside the scope of this thing.

Furthermore, I always feel uneasy detailing proper olympic lifting technique only in text form. They are very dynamic exercises and IMHO, without visual support it is actually dangerous to attempt to teach them.

As for correcting a tail under position, I have a simpler method: the wall squat; have the person standing around 2’’ IN FRONT of a wall (facing the wall) in a squatting stance, have them put their hands to the back of their head, from that position have them squat down without touching the wall.

It is impossible to do so with a tail under position because the knees will hit the wall. Excessive forward bend is also prevented since the face would then hit the wall.

This is much faster and more effective.[/quote]

Thank you VERY much for replying. Would you suggest that I start with the Black Book and then move onto Theory and Application? I was also considering Supertraining by Mel Siff. And if you don’t mind me asking, if you could offer one or two pieces of advice to a newbie strength coach, what would that be?

1522

thib, i was curious do you train all your clients in one gym or do you use a bunch of gyms? How dos that whole thing work

1523

Hi Coach,

I read your answer regarding isometrics in a previous post.

It piqued my interest so I just read your article “Isometrics for Mass!”
http://www.T-Nation.com/readArticle.do?id=459399

Do you still use isometrics with training?

Do you think isometrics done while sitting at your desk for office workers is a good thing or can be beneficial?

and specifically does contracting and releasing the glutes while on a long drive or while sitting for a long period of time beneficially stimulate the muscle?

and Congratulations and Best Wishes for your wedding!

1524

is fresh red tilipia a good choice for fish?
many thanks.

1525

Coach,

Have you ever used the Reverse Hyper made by Atlantis? If so, how does it compare to Louie Simmons’ machine and if you had access to both, would you tend to lean toward using Louie’s machine?

On a side note, do you feel leg press calf raises are a good substitute for donkey calf raises, since the hips are flexed and the hamstrings are on stretch in both exercises?

1526

[quote]BoSoxFever wrote:
Coach,

Have you ever used the Reverse Hyper made by Atlantis? If so, how does it compare to Louie Simmons’ machine and if you had access to both, would you tend to lean toward using Louie’s machine?[/quote]

I used both, and despite the fact that I love Atlantis machines. This one is inferior to the actual reverse hyper. The main problem is that you can’t go down as far as with the real thing by Louie, greatly reducing the effectiveness of the exercise,

[quote]BoSoxFever wrote:
On a side note, do you feel leg press calf raises are a good substitute for donkey calf raises, since the hips are flexed and the hamstrings are on stretch in both exercises? [/quote]

They are somewhat decent, but not as good because the stretch is not as important.

1527

[quote]OctoberGirl wrote:
Hi Coach,

I read your answer regarding isometrics in a previous post.

It piqued my interest so I just read your article “Isometrics for Mass!”
http://www.T-Nation.com/readArticle.do?id=459399

Do you still use isometrics with training? [/quote]

Yes, mostly in strength training programs. When it is for hypertrophy I normally use isos at the end of a set. For example, when you reach concentric failure on preacher curls, hold the mid-range point for as long as you can.

[quote]OctoberGirl wrote:

Do you think isometrics done while sitting at your desk for office workers is a good thing or can be beneficial?

and specifically does contracting and releasing the glutes while on a long drive or while sitting for a long period of time beneficially stimulate the muscle?

[/quote]

Unless the individual is completely sedentary and detrained, no it will not do anything.

1528

[quote]crod266 wrote:
thib, i was curious do you train all your clients in one gym or do you use a bunch of gyms? How dos that whole thing work[/quote]

I’m guessing that you are asking because you are considering a career in that field.

There are many different ways to do things and not all gyms are open to all of them.

  1. Rent an office. This is the most common way to proceed. You rent an office in a gym for XXX$ a month. This gives you the right to train people in the gym. You have to do your own marketing, sells, etc.

  2. Rent an office in the gym in exchange for a percentage of your profit. This is similar to option 1, although you do not pay a monthly fee but rather a percentage of what you make each month (normally around 15-20%). The upsides of this is that the gym will often be motivated to sell your services… the more money you make, the more they make. Another positive thing is that if you have a bad month, the rent wont kill you. The downside is that if you are making really good money, the cut you give them quickly exceeds what you would normally be paying for an office.

  3. Roam from gym to gym. But fewer and fewer gyms accept that kind of deal. Mostly because of pressure from trainers who rent an office in the gym. Not fair to them, who might pay 800-1000$ per month to train clients to have a non-resident who doesn’t pay anything be able to train people. Very hard to do business this way anyway.

  4. Open your own private facility.

1529

[quote]Christian Thibaudeau wrote:
crod266 wrote:
thib, i was curious do you train all your clients in one gym or do you use a bunch of gyms? How dos that whole thing work

I’m guessing that you are asking because you are considering a career in that field.

There are many different ways to do things and not all gyms are open to all of them.

  1. Rent an office. This is the most common way to proceed. You rent an office in a gym for XXX$ a month. This gives you the right to train people in the gym. You have to do your own marketing, sells, etc.

  2. Rent an office in the gym in exchange for a percentage of your profit. This is similar to option 1, although you do not pay a monthly fee but rather a percentage of what you make each month (normally around 15-20%). The upsides of this is that the gym will often be motivated to sell your services… the more money you make, the more they make. Another positive thing is that if you have a bad month, the rent wont kill you. The downside is that if you are making really good money, the cut you give them quickly exceeds what you would normally be paying for an office.

  3. Roam from gym to gym. But fewer and fewer gyms accept that kind of deal. Mostly because of pressure from trainers who rent an office in the gym. Not fair to them, who might pay 800-1000$ per month to train clients to have a non-resident who doesn’t pay anything be able to train people. Very hard to do business this way anyway.

  4. Open your own private facility.[/quote]

my fee is just 10�?� per person.if i do 30sessions in a week i pay 300euro. if i do 10 sessions i pay 100.

1530

[quote]Christian Thibaudeau wrote:
RitesOfSpring wrote:

The individual could use either a whole body approach or upper/lower split. It is still possible to include unilateral work, and even SOME isolation work (although it is not as important as getting strong in the basics at first). It could look like this:

WHOLE BODY

DAY 1 - BASICS DAY
A1. Quads dominant compound
A2. Hams/Hips dominant compound
B1. Horizontal pressing compound
B2. Horizontal pulling compound
C1. Vertical pressing compound
C2. Vertical pulling compound

DAY 2 - UNILATERAL MOVEMENTS DAY
A1. Unilateral quads dominant
A2. Unilateral hams/Hips dominant
B1. Unilateral horizontal push
B2. Unilateral horizontal pull
C1. Unilateral vertical push
C2. Unilateral vertical pull

DAY 3 - TRAINING ECONOMY BASICS + ISO
A. Lower body movement involving every muscle (snatch-grip deadlifts would be my choice)
B1. Semi-vertical pressing (e.g. incline pressing)
B2. Semi-vertical pulling (e.g. pulldown leaning back 45 degrees)
C1. Arm flexors (biceps, brachialis, etc.) exercise
C2. Triceps exercise[/quote]

A vertical pull would be like a lat pull down right? But I’m stumpted on what a unilateral vertical pull could be, they all seem to be two handed moves to me.

1531

[quote]Christian Thibaudeau wrote:

Yes, mostly in strength training programs. When it is for hypertrophy I normally use isos at the end of a set. For example, when you reach concentric failure on preacher curls, hold the mid-range point for as long as you can.

[/quote]

Thib,

When used for hypertrophy, roughly how many weeks in a row should this technique be used for before switching off of it for a time so as not to abuse it or wear out its effectiveness?

Do you feel this technique for hypertrophy can be used effectively by trainees at the beginner or beginner/intermediate stage or should it strictly be used by intermediate or int/advanced trainees?

Are there ever any instances where you’d still use or favor pre-fatigue max duration yielding isometrics over the post-fatigue version?

Thanks, coach!

1532

[quote]Christian Thibaudeau wrote:
crod266 wrote:
thib, i was curious do you train all your clients in one gym or do you use a bunch of gyms? How dos that whole thing work

I’m guessing that you are asking because you are considering a career in that field.

There are many different ways to do things and not all gyms are open to all of them.

  1. Rent an office. This is the most common way to proceed. You rent an office in a gym for XXX$ a month. This gives you the right to train people in the gym. You have to do your own marketing, sells, etc.

  2. Rent an office in the gym in exchange for a percentage of your profit. This is similar to option 1, although you do not pay a monthly fee but rather a percentage of what you make each month (normally around 15-20%). The upsides of this is that the gym will often be motivated to sell your services… the more money you make, the more they make. Another positive thing is that if you have a bad month, the rent wont kill you. The downside is that if you are making really good money, the cut you give them quickly exceeds what you would normally be paying for an office.

  3. Roam from gym to gym. But fewer and fewer gyms accept that kind of deal. Mostly because of pressure from trainers who rent an office in the gym. Not fair to them, who might pay 800-1000$ per month to train clients to have a non-resident who doesn’t pay anything be able to train people. Very hard to do business this way anyway.

  4. Open your own private facility.[/quote]

thanks alot thib and yes I am considering it haha. Now when you say rent an office do you mean acually rent an office inside the gym because I go to a very large gym with alot of indiviual trainers but I dont think any have there own office room. Also which one do you use?

1533

[quote]thestudbeast wrote:
Christian Thibaudeau wrote:
RitesOfSpring wrote:

The individual could use either a whole body approach or upper/lower split. It is still possible to include unilateral work, and even SOME isolation work (although it is not as important as getting strong in the basics at first). It could look like this:

WHOLE BODY

DAY 1 - BASICS DAY
A1. Quads dominant compound
A2. Hams/Hips dominant compound
B1. Horizontal pressing compound
B2. Horizontal pulling compound
C1. Vertical pressing compound
C2. Vertical pulling compound

DAY 2 - UNILATERAL MOVEMENTS DAY
A1. Unilateral quads dominant
A2. Unilateral hams/Hips dominant
B1. Unilateral horizontal push
B2. Unilateral horizontal pull
C1. Unilateral vertical push
C2. Unilateral vertical pull

DAY 3 - TRAINING ECONOMY BASICS + ISO
A. Lower body movement involving every muscle (snatch-grip deadlifts would be my choice)
B1. Semi-vertical pressing (e.g. incline pressing)
B2. Semi-vertical pulling (e.g. pulldown leaning back 45 degrees)
C1. Arm flexors (biceps, brachialis, etc.) exercise
C2. Triceps exercise

A vertical pull would be like a lat pull down right? But I’m stumpted on what a unilateral vertical pull could be, they all seem to be two handed moves to me.
[/quote]

Any vertical pull done on a cable station can be done unilaterally too.

1534

CT,

If rotating test-boosting supplements every 7-10 days or so, can this be done for extended periods of time without “time off” or would you need to take breaks at regularly spaced intervals?

I was also wondering if you could list some of the physiological mechanisms that cause myogenic tone or direct me to a solid source of info on the science behind what causes it.

1535

[quote]crod266 wrote:
Christian Thibaudeau wrote:
crod266 wrote:
thib, i was curious do you train all your clients in one gym or do you use a bunch of gyms? How dos that whole thing work

I’m guessing that you are asking because you are considering a career in that field.

There are many different ways to do things and not all gyms are open to all of them.

  1. Rent an office. This is the most common way to proceed. You rent an office in a gym for XXX$ a month. This gives you the right to train people in the gym. You have to do your own marketing, sells, etc.

  2. Rent an office in the gym in exchange for a percentage of your profit. This is similar to option 1, although you do not pay a monthly fee but rather a percentage of what you make each month (normally around 15-20%). The upsides of this is that the gym will often be motivated to sell your services… the more money you make, the more they make. Another positive thing is that if you have a bad month, the rent wont kill you. The downside is that if you are making really good money, the cut you give them quickly exceeds what you would normally be paying for an office.

  3. Roam from gym to gym. But fewer and fewer gyms accept that kind of deal. Mostly because of pressure from trainers who rent an office in the gym. Not fair to them, who might pay 800-1000$ per month to train clients to have a non-resident who doesn’t pay anything be able to train people. Very hard to do business this way anyway.

  4. Open your own private facility.

thanks alot thib and yes I am considering it haha. Now when you say rent an office do you mean acually rent an office inside the gym because I go to a very large gym with alot of indiviual trainers but I dont think any have there own office room. Also which one do you use?

[/quote]

That’s why I said that it depends on the gym. Are the trainers independant or working for the gym?

Personally I wouldn’t even consider working without an office. I find it unprofessional to meet a client at the counter or something like that. Plus, how can you perform body comp testing without an office?

I personally use option 2

1536

[quote]ThetfordMiner wrote:
CT,

If rotating test-boosting supplements every 7-10 days or so, can this be done for extended periods of time without “time off” or would you need to take breaks at regularly spaced intervals?[/quote]

You ca stay on for a long time if you rotate. But I still prefer to take a break every 8 weeks.

[quote]ThetfordMiner wrote:
I was also wondering if you could list some of the physiological mechanisms that cause myogenic tone or direct me to a solid source of info on the science behind what causes it. [/quote]

It is mostly based from experience (lifters who focus on strength and power have denser, harder looking muscles). I’m not sure if there is any research on it, after all it isn’t really a subject that would warrant a university research grant!

1537

[quote]RustBeltGym wrote:
When used for hypertrophy, roughly how many weeks in a row should this technique be used for before switching off of it for a time so as not to abuse it or wear out its effectiveness? [/quote]

4-6 weeks

[quote]RustBeltGym wrote:
Do you feel this technique for hypertrophy can be used effectively by trainees at the beginner or beginner/intermediate stage or should it strictly be used by intermediate or int/advanced trainees?[/quote]

Isos are actually very useful for beginners and intermediate level. You can recuit up to 10% more fibers during an isometric action. Beginners often are inefficient at recruiting their muscle fibers, the isos will be beneficial in that regard.

It also makes them get a better ‘‘feel’’ for their muscle (improved mind-muscle connection) which is very important too, especially for aesthetic purposes.

[quote]RustBeltGym wrote:
Are there ever any instances where you’d still use or favor pre-fatigue max duration yielding isometrics over the post-fatigue version?

Thanks, coach! [/quote]

Yes, when used before a compound movement if the main muscle involved in the compound is a weak point. This id to enhance the ‘‘feeling’’ of the target muscle.

1538

Coach what is the dose of BETA-7 to see the benefits from the supplement (a protocol perhaps?)

1539

[quote]Christian Thibaudeau wrote:
crod266 wrote:
Christian Thibaudeau wrote:
crod266 wrote:
thib, i was curious do you train all your clients in one gym or do you use a bunch of gyms? How dos that whole thing work

I’m guessing that you are asking because you are considering a career in that field.

There are many different ways to do things and not all gyms are open to all of them.

  1. Rent an office. This is the most common way to proceed. You rent an office in a gym for XXX$ a month. This gives you the right to train people in the gym. You have to do your own marketing, sells, etc.

  2. Rent an office in the gym in exchange for a percentage of your profit. This is similar to option 1, although you do not pay a monthly fee but rather a percentage of what you make each month (normally around 15-20%). The upsides of this is that the gym will often be motivated to sell your services… the more money you make, the more they make. Another positive thing is that if you have a bad month, the rent wont kill you. The downside is that if you are making really good money, the cut you give them quickly exceeds what you would normally be paying for an office.

  3. Roam from gym to gym. But fewer and fewer gyms accept that kind of deal. Mostly because of pressure from trainers who rent an office in the gym. Not fair to them, who might pay 800-1000$ per month to train clients to have a non-resident who doesn’t pay anything be able to train people. Very hard to do business this way anyway.

  4. Open your own private facility.

thanks alot thib and yes I am considering it haha. Now when you say rent an office do you mean acually rent an office inside the gym because I go to a very large gym with alot of indiviual trainers but I dont think any have there own office room. Also which one do you use?

That’s why I said that it depends on the gym. Are the trainers independant or working for the gym?

Personally I wouldn’t even consider working without an office. I find it unprofessional to meet a client at the counter or something like that. Plus, how can you perform body comp testing without an office?

I personally use option 2[/quote]

All of the trainers are all independant, even the people who work at the gym do their own personal training. At my gym they dont have trainers working with the gym. Also your right you should have an office but I dont think any of these peopel do and theres at least like 7 diff trainers ive seen.

1540

Coach,

I have a question with regards to BCAA mega dosing while on a ketogenic diet. I have been following your War Room Strategies: Destroying Fat program, my question is if mega dosing with BCAA should one consume them on the heavy lifting days, or lactate days (Monetary Reasons for only wanting to dose 2 times a week)? Right now peri-workout on heavy days has been 50g BCAA, 24g of whey protein, 10g glutamine; post-workout 50g whey, 15g glutamine, 10g glycine, 5g creatine Monohydrate. Thanks for your help!