GVT vs GBC
GVT is a classic which everyone interested in Strength should have done a least once in their life. An easier start can GBC as it is a bit less volume but with more focus on execution which sometimes lacks with beginners.
What are your goals
Before we move on let me ask you a couple of questions:
- Why do you compare GVT and GBC?
- Why do you want to put on some muscle?
- Why do you want to change your body?
These questions might seem obvious and trivial but make a huge change to your motivation and drive for the gym. Most people structure their messaging into
- What
- How
- Why
Raths tan the other way around
- Why
- How
- What
This is why they fail to inspire action for themselves or for others. There is a great TED talk from Simon Sinek on this. I highly recommend it. The main reasons for doing fitness are
- Looks
- Performance
- Health
As you are comparing GVT and GBC you are most likely in the looks and performance department with a bias towards looks.
If you mainly chase the looks you will be in for a hard time. Everything around you is styled to the brim and has not a lot to do with real life. To achieve these idealized role models you will be hungry, grumpy and tired. Your diet will be the main driver to achieve that six-pack. Workouts will accompany the strategy but diet will be the key component. Therefore your choices might not always be healthy or helping sports performance as you will be undernourished at times. The upshot is that you might become a model and get instafamous.
Performance would be the next category. If you belong to this group you are all about breaking records and winning trophies. At the heart of your Regimen will be hard, regular workouts. Diet will support the overall picture but take a backseat to your insane workload. Injuries will be a result of that. For the ones obsessed with the performance, the choices are not always healthy or pretty. The results will put you down in history.
The last group is mainly interested in health. You seek balance. The extremes are avoided. The good news about this is that you seldomly get injured and mentally imbalanced. The bad news is that you probably won’t make the team. But that’s ok while you watch the madness go past.
German Volume training
German Volume Training has been made popular by Charles Poliquin. At the heart of the program is the idea of doing ten sets of ten repetitions targeting a specific body part. Because of its popularity, you will find quite a few variations and debates on the program.
My personal favorite is
- 10 repetitions for
- 10 sets at
- 60% intensity with
- 30 seconds rest
With this template, I was able to pack on 2.5 kg of muscle in a month using the following exercises
If you feel barbell work to challenging you can also use machines like the leg press, leg curl and lat pull down.
The biggest advantages of German Volume Training are its simplicity and effectiveness. The program is easy to understand and follow. It also has a proven track record to build muscle.
The biggest disadvantages are the time it takes and the lack of clear progression. If you take 2 minutes of rest between sets you are already 20 minutes in the gym doing nothing. It is also hard to pinpoint when and how to increase the load to improve when you do 100 reps per exercise.
German Body composition
German body composition is a variation on German Volume Training which highjacks the branding for popularity and offers something a little different.
German body composition uses Bodybuilding theory and templates to divide you with a program. The blocks are supersets which are rotated to work for the same muscle groups from different directions. This saves time in the gym. It also makes you train more balanced.
Day 1
4 sets:
A1 Romanian Deadlifts (use dumbbells if needed) 3-0-1-0, 12 reps with :30 sec rest
A2 Flat Dumbbell Bench Press 3-0-1-0, 15 reps with :30 sec rest
4 sets:
B1 Dumbbell Walking Lunges 2-0-1-0, 12 reps each leg with :30 sec rest
B2 Pull-ups (use assisted pull-up machine or bands if needed) 3-0-1-0, 12 reps with :30 sec rest
4 sets:
C1 Standing Dumbbell Calf Raise 2-0-1-1, 12 reps with :30 sec rest
C2 Bent Over Barbell Row (use dumbbells if no barbell is available) 3-0-1-0, 12 reps at :30 sec rest
Day 2
4 sets:
A1 Dumbbell Squat 3-0-1-0, 12 reps with :30 sec rest
A2 Cable Machine Row 3-0-1-0, 15 reps with :30 sec rest
4 sets:
B1 Back Extension 2-0-2-0, 15 reps with :30 sec rest
B2 Standing Shoulder Press (Use barbell or dumbbells) 3-0-1-0, 15 reps with :30 sec rest
4 sets:
C1 Dumbbell Step-ups (alternating legs) 2-0-1-0, 12 reps each leg with :30 sec rest
C2 Push-ups (modify as needed in order to reach reps) 3-0-1-0, 12 reps with :30 sec rest
The big advantages of GBT orbits supersetting and optional use of dumbbells. This makes it a very efficient approach.
The biggest disadvantages are the high attention to the execution of the lifts and variety. This might be too much for beginners at once and out them off.
Should you do GVT or GBT?
I think GBT is a very good entry point for beginners who want to get in to bodybuilding. If you are committed you will pay attention to detail and not mind the counting. The lower number of sets will not burn you out.
The program is also good for women as it allows the use of dumbbells. This will ease into free weight work rather than directly going with a barbell.
Further reading
- Can you mix German Volume Training and Stronglifts 5x5
- German Volume training 4-week review
- German Volume Training vs Wendler 531
- German Volume Training vs Stronglifts 5x5
- German Volume Training for CrossFit
- How to prepare for German Volume Training
- Is German Volume Training better than Stronglifts 5x5
- Smolov vs German Volume Training
