BODY COMP
GBC supersets on shrinking rest. Burn fat, keep the muscle.
- Length
- 8 weeks
- Frequency
- 4 days/week
- Session
- ~55 min
- Level
- Advanced
The program
PRE SZN's German Body Comp — the founder's own program, based on Charles Poliquin's GBC. Whole-body supersets in descending waves, with the tempo doing the loading and the rests never growing past 60 seconds. Lactate up, growth hormone up, fat down, muscle kept.
Two four-week blocks. ACCUMULATION runs the poster: 5x8 on a five-second eccentric, descending wave by wave to 3x12. INTENSIFICATION goes heavier — 4x6 at 4010 down to 3x15 — with every lift rotated one cousin sideways: the six-workout rotation rule.
Eight weeks, four days a week. The tempo IS the load: if the eccentric breaks down, so has the weight.
Week 1, as written
The actual first-week prescriptions from the app — exercises, sets, tempos and rests, exactly as the program runs them.
Session 1Whole Body 1▾
| A1Front Foot Elevated Split Squat | 5 × 8 · 5010 tempo · 1 min rest |
| A2Lat Pulldown | 5 × 8 · 5010 tempo · 1 min rest |
| B145-Degree Back Extension | 4 × 10 · 4010 tempo · 45s rest |
| B2DB Shoulder Press | 4 × 10 · 4010 tempo · 45s rest |
| Leg Press | 3 × 12 · 2010 tempo · 30s rest |
| Battle Rope Waves | 3 × 30s · 30s rest |
Session 2Whole Body 2▾
| A1DB Incline Bench Press | 5 × 8 · 5010 tempo · 1 min rest |
| A2Trap Bar Deadlift | 5 × 8 · 4010 tempo · 1 min rest |
| B1DB 1 Arm Row | 4 × 10 · 4010 tempo · 45s rest |
| B2Lying Leg Curl | 4 × 10 · 4010 tempo · 45s rest |
| C1Seated Leg Extension | 3 × 12 · 2010 tempo · 30s rest |
| C2Face Pull | 3 × 12 · 2010 tempo · 30s rest |
Session 3Whole Body 3▾
| A1Romanian Deadlift | 5 × 8 · 5010 tempo · 1 min rest |
| A2Dumbbell Pullover | 5 × 8 · 5010 tempo · 1 min rest |
| B1Single-Leg Hip Thrust | 4 × 10 · 4010 tempo · 45s rest |
| B2DB Shoulder Press | 4 × 10 · 4010 tempo · 45s rest |
| Y Raise | 3 × 12 · 2010 tempo · 30s rest |
| Med Ball Slam | 3 × 30s · 30s rest |
Session 4Whole Body 4▾
| A1Walking Lunge | 5 × 8 · 30X0 tempo · 1 min rest |
| A2Parallel Bar Dips | 5 × 8 · 5010 tempo · 1 min rest |
| B1Single-Leg Press | 4 × 10 · 4010 tempo · 45s rest |
| B2Bench Row | 4 × 10 · 4010 tempo · 45s rest |
| C1Sled Push | 3 × 12 · 30s rest |
| C2Plank | 3 × 1 min · 30s rest |
Week 1 as programmed in the app. Later weeks progress loads, volume and variations block by block.
How it progresses
- —Descending set/rep waves inside each block: 5x8 → 3x12, then 4x6 → 3x15.
- —Every lift rotates to a close variation between blocks — the six-workout rotation rule.
- —Rests capped at 60 seconds, always. Density is the stimulus.
- —Hold the eccentric or drop the weight — the tempo is the honesty check.
Who it's for
- —You want to lean out without surrendering strength or size.
- —You have a training base — GBC on real loads is savage without one.
- —You like sessions that feel like a race against the rest timer.
Methods inside
Equipment
Barbell · Dumbbells · Trap Bar · Cable Machine · Machines · Bench · Pull-up Bar · Dip Station · Sled · Battle Ropes · Medicine Ball
Questions
What is German Body Comp?
Charles Poliquin's method for body composition: whole-body sessions of supersetted compound lifts on strict tempos with incomplete rest. The high lactate response drives growth hormone, which is the fat-loss lever — while the loading keeps the muscle you have.
How is this different from circuit training?
Loads and tempos. Circuits go light and fast; GBC pairs real weights with five-second eccentrics and measures rest to the second. It is strength training with the density of conditioning, not cardio with dumbbells.
Do I need to do cardio alongside it?
The program includes sled, ropes and medicine-ball work where it belongs. Add easy aerobic work if you like — but the sessions themselves are the engine.