[quote]repeaterknee wrote:
Look folks- this is an open forum. Reading articles is optional. If the content is confusing, don’t read it. If you don’t like it, go to a different article. Why waste energy creating negativity? Put you energy into something positive instead.[/quote]
Directing the avarage gym rat away from Scott Abel articles is indeed very positive, Mr. First Post.
Feel free to put up your pictures, if you really are proud of your results. I would hope that paying a small fortune and getting all that bullshit, you would at least be willing to show yourself off on a physique oriented forum.
[quote]Crystol88 wrote:
Shouldn’t have bothered, but I did read through this entire thread. I’m a client. Yup. And a huge amount of Scott’s ideas and writing went completely over my head until I’d been working with him for about a year and through a couple of show preps. Then a few light switches started to come on. Then I went back to some of his literature to connect a few more dots. I’m still learning and still progressing, still maturing, looking better all the time. And I’m no spring chicken.
Yeah, if you decide to hire someone like Scott because of his resume and expertise, you do have to make a leap of faith and accept that the theory and the “why” of what you’re doing may not always be apparent. I did at times wonder why I was doing such-and-such or whatever, but I made the decision to trust the process as an athlete and followed my programs exactly as prescribed.
No regrets. Frickin’ amazing results! And I’m a girl.
And, at the end of the day, these videos are free. There’s no obligation, no cost, nothing. Watch them or don’t. Scott is a helluva guy for putting this resource out there. For everyone. [/quote]
Just want to throw my 2 cents in real quick…
First, let me start by saying that Im not trying to argue with anyone on here.
Bricknyce - Ive always thought in the past you have brought some great things to the forum, and I appreciate that, so this is in no way an attack on you.
[quote]Bricknyce wrote:
whenever there’s a thread about him or an article written by him, his clients swarm them like a bunch of locusts. And it’s usually people who have only a few posts - with all of them being in threads regarding the dude.
[/quote]
Ive been a member of this site and forum for a long time (basically from the start), and after reading through this thread I’m once again ashamed of whats going on here.
Scott Abel puts a bunch of videos on youtube (for free) that express his opinion and expertise, and you guys come on here and start trashing him? I appreciate and agree with intelligent conversation, but this has turned into straight up bashing for the purpose of making oneself feel important.
[quote]Bricknyce wrote:
Do you know how ridiculous it sounds when someone says, “Perhaps Dorian Yates could have progressed and looked better with a different training system.”
[/quote]
You made this comment basically saying that Scott should not have commented on Dorian because of what Dorian has accomplished… so what have you accomplished that makes you feel like you can comment on Scott Abel… A bit of a double standard there.
Scott is one of the most respected, well versed coaches in the world… and who are you guys?
As you said in your post… “this just goes over the limit of decency and RESPECT”.
Some of you are complaining about the “condescending” tone of Scott’s articles… If you take it as “condescending” it’s because you want it to seem that way. His articles are not written for the average joe… I agree. They can, at times, be a little difficult to understand… but that’s because, I believe, he’s not writing these articles for the average joe.
His material is for the experienced trainees…Most of you guys that are commenting on here have the experience needed to benefit from what Scott says, but are blinded by your “know it all” attitudes. You need to realize that you dont know it all, go into his articles and videos with an open mind, and I guarantee you’ll benefit.
If you are willing to really listen to what Scott has to offer, your training and life will be better for it.
The main point I wanted to make in this post is that the bashing that is going on in this thread is ridiculous. Thats not what this site is about, and threads like this are what gives this site a bad name.
[quote]tribunaldude wrote:
Feel free to put up your pictures, if you really are proud of your results. I would hope that paying a small fortune and getting all that bullshit, you would at least be willing to show yourself off on a physique oriented forum.
[/quote]
Nice try. I’m not posting here for your entertainment, buddy. My pictures are in the client section of Scott’s website www.scottabel.com and I’ve posted about 53 photos from my last photoshoot in my profile on his forum. If you’re brave enough to actually do some reading on that forum, feel free to take a look. They are pretty hot if I do say so myself.
His forum seems to be “cult” like with people who worship him. I agree that he does produce results but his clients seem to be brain washed. Wayyyy too much Kool-Aid being served over there. It also comes across as every one needs a coach…and more specifically him.
But then again I can’t really stand anyone who follows or worships any ‘trainer’, ‘writer’, etc… which is also done on this site with CT, CW, Wendler and several others.
I like to read and learn but not blindly follow anyone. They all have some great information but that does not mean that all of their information is great.
I do admit that I would love to see a debate between CT and Abel on the best way to build muscle. Scott likes high reps, all the way up to 100 for legs, to build mass and believes that bodybuilders should not train for strength.
CT on the other hand believes that low reps and concentrating on strength with reps in the 2-5 range.
And yes, I know that in CT’s HS-100 workout it requires a set of 100, however that is for recovery and flushing not hypertrophy.
[quote]lard wrote:
His forum seems to be “cult” like with people who worship him. I agree that he does produce results but his clients seem to be brain washed. Wayyyy too much Kool-Aid being served over there. It also comes across as every one needs a coach…and more specifically him.
But then again I can’t really stand anyone who follows or worships any ‘trainer’, ‘writer’, etc… which is also done on this site with CT, CW, Wendler and several others.
I like to read and learn but not blindly follow anyone. They all have some great information but that does not mean that all of their information is great.
I do admit that I would love to see a debate between CT and Abel on the best way to build muscle. Scott likes high reps, all the way up to 100 for legs, to build mass and believes that bodybuilders should not train for strength.
CT on the other hand believes that low reps and concentrating on strength with reps in the 2-5 range.
And yes, I know that in CT’s HS-100 workout it requires a set of 100, however that is for recovery and flushing not hypertrophy.
[/quote]
Actually if you read both of the trainers works thoroughly you will pretty much see exactly the same principles.
Scott does actually advocate getting stronger, he just doesn’t put an emphasis on it. He instead suggests the you concentrate on rep performance and let that dictate how much weight you use. Sound familiar?
I predict people will see outstanding results from the I,BODYBUILDER protocol developed by CT and others.
I also predict that people would see outstanding results from following Scott Abel’s advice.
Why?
Because both approaches are typically different than what most people are doing now.
I wouldn’t expect many PLers to see much change from an I,BODYBUILDER protocol because that’s already very close to what they’ve been doing for years.
At the end of the day all of the authors and gurus of the world get paid to do a job. At first the job is just to train people and produce results. The problem is that job doesn’t typically pay well until you “make a name for yourself”. How do you do that? Write books, articles, etc. All of these guys typically agree most of the time because training is fundamental. But fundamental training doesn’t fill many pages of a book or lines of an article. Then when you have to continue to come up with new crap it gets difficult to stay “relevant”.
Get stronger in a desired rep range to see gains of strength in that rep range and gains of muscle size provided you’re eating enough. Really we overthink all of this stuff. If you train with intensity you’re going to be hungrier and will want to eat more anyway and want to sleep more. Your body will do what it needs to do, it will tell you what it needs.
Some of Scott’s videos are pretty good demonstrations of the lost art of lifting weights. Other’s are simply various complexes and other ways of getting the heart rate up. I think employing both a limit strength type of program and a hybrid/MET type of program during some point would benefit all of us seeking a better physique and at the end of the day that is what bodybuilding is…the bettering of your physique. I think the physical culture has gotten so out of whack in the internet age that we keep bitching at each other back and forth and back and forth. Lift with STRENGTH, VOLUME, and INTENSITY. Lift a lot of weight, a lot of reps, with limited rest. So focus on getting stronger (max lifts), focus on improving muscular endurance (high reps, MET, whatever), focus on conditioning. All have a time and place.
Alan
[quote]Crystol88 wrote:
[quote]tribunaldude wrote:
Feel free to put up your pictures, if you really are proud of your results. I would hope that paying a small fortune and getting all that bullshit, you would at least be willing to show yourself off on a physique oriented forum.
[/quote]
Nice try. I’m not posting here for your entertainment, buddy. My pictures are in the client section of Scott’s website www.scottabel.com and I’ve posted about 53 photos from my last photoshoot in my profile on his forum. If you’re brave enough to actually do some reading on that forum, feel free to take a look. They are pretty hot if I do say so myself.
[/quote]
Could have not said it any better!
Please do the same for myself - forum name is desi and under expertise of Scott Abel - I am know an IFBB Pro Fitness competitor
www.scottabel.com/clients/desiree.php
[quote]Bricknyce wrote:
There definitely has to be some organized blog and website monitoring going on amongst the Abel Body Squad - because whenever there’s a thread about him or an article written by him, his clients swarm them like a bunch of locusts. And it’s usually people who have only a few posts - with all of them being in threads regarding the dude.
I said it before and I’ll say it again: The guy DOES produce results; I even wrote that in this thread.
[/quote]
At least it’s his hot female clients coming over to support him. 
And yes, you did say he produces results. As I read this thread, it sounds like your only gripe is that his communication skills are lacking. Basically, in any profession, you can find great minds that get great results, but when they write or explain to others, the jargon just turns people off.
I wonder how much of it is marketing. I mean, taking simple concepts and building a jargon filled program around them. Then, people have to consult with you to understand what exactly you mean. They also get the impression you’re more of an expert than the other guy who speaks in plain english.
[quote]Crystol88 wrote:
They are pretty hot if I do say so myself.
[/quote]
Why yes they are!
It is not just jargon…I am a qualified as a stregnth and conditioning coach and personal trainer. I have a BSc in exercise science, CSCS, CISSN, MS in kinesiology and a health and PE cert and many of Scott’s ideas and concepts are unique indeed. It is not marketing, his reputation speaks for itself and if you don’t like it, keep it to yourself. If I could be half the expert he is one day, I’d be more than happy. -Kyle
There are just few of us a little miffed by this thread because of the direction it took based on a very small sample of writing written with a very particular audience in mind.
The thing is, Scott’s clients get to know him to a degree on a personal level, and we’re not likely to take it lightly when he’s insulted and put down the way he has been in this thread. He walks the talk, understands that stuff he writes, but most importantly knows how to apply his knowledge to real-world program design.
And at the end of the day, he is a really, really good person who has come a long way in life. He’s a hell of a Coach because he has not always possessed the self-awareness he has now. As a client and competitor, you cannnot bullshit him with drama. He can see it coming a mile away.
I have so much respect for him, and it’s incredibly difficult to avoid saying something in his defense when he gets skewered like he has been here. And for what? For writing complicated, wordy academic articles occasionally? Expressing his spiritual side and sharing what he’s learned in his life in a blog? If you had any inkling of what sort of man you’re insulting, there’s a good chance you’d be ashamed of yourself for some of the mud being slung in this thread.
Come and read the stuff on his forum where things are simplified and might start to make sense.
I think the videos are great. I added two plates to my leg press today by making some of the simple changes in technique that Kevin Weiss demonstrates in one of the YouTube videos.
I didn’t really read through everything, but if you don’t understand Scott Abel’s writing you can just post about it on his site. He frequently posts on it, I’m sure he’ll be able to explain whatever you don’t get.
BTW I had CT has a coach for over a year and I have been under Scott’s coaching for the past 6 months and I have made much more progress in terms of hypertrophy and muscle maturity under Scott’s coaching. I’m not saying Scott is a better coach or anything like that. I’m not an expert so I can’t really say much. All I know is that I have personally got much better results with Scott, and that’s all I really care about.
I’ve gotta agree with crystal. That was the aim of this thread. I thought that it was an amazing action for Scott and Kevin to publish these videos for free.
It always seems to turn into an Abel bashing tread.
Well, YOU GALS certainly look hot.
Good job.
[quote]desi wrote:
Could have not said it any better!
Please do the same for myself - forum name is desi and under expertise of Scott Abel - I am know an IFBB Pro Fitness competitor
www.scottabel.com/clients/desiree.php
[/quote]
[quote]knewell wrote:
It is not just jargon…I am a qualified as a stregnth and conditioning coach and personal trainer. I have a BSc in exercise science, CSCS, CISSN, MS in kinesiology and a health and PE cert and many of Scott’s ideas and concepts are unique indeed. It is not marketing, his reputation speaks for itself and if you don’t like it, keep it to yourself. If I could be half the expert he is one day, I’d be more than happy. -Kyle[/quote]
Jargon - The vocabulary of a specialized field, esp. when it is unnecessarily obscure to the uninitiated. (New Websters)
Relax, every field has jargon. Odds are YOU understand what he says a lot better than others outside of his field. I guarantee that I can make many engineering concepts completely impossible for you to grasp by using jargon specific to that particular field (and your eyes WILL glaze over) or I can simplify and explain terms in everyday language so that you can understand.
MikeShank wrote:
“… and you will have so much awesome information you won’t know what to do with yourself.”
THAT… is the biggest problem for most on this board who are suffering from lack of progress and not having their head on straight! Suffering is a strong word, but judging from the dumb shit that people bring up here, they are indeed suffering!
Well, I for one like Scott Abel’s videos on youtube. The training videos are fairly good, and he demonstrates how to be explosive on a movement while using a power groove:
Comments: I just saw his top half deadlift movement, and its a great example especially when considered vis-a-vis the sumo floor dead.
He uses the tophalf deadlift as a back movement, because with a close stance you can explode with the bar just below the knees and not have a sticking point - assuming you’re moving the weight with your back and not with a hip extension. The sumo deadlift is a far better movement for the glutes/hams, again because it uses a power groove for that.
This is the kind of stuff Abel should be doing.
Tribunal:
I agree!
His videos are great! I’m surprised that he feels compelled to write and interview in the most ridiculous fashion, when he can just act the way he does in the videos.
It’s awesome that you’re getting something out of the videos. I never get tired of this stuff!
There’s a new interview that’s really pretty good at wanna be big dot com. I don’t think I’m allowed to post the link here, but it should be pretty easy to find. Cool pictures and no jargon. The principles are pretty clear from this interview, simply explained.