If you want to build muscle, I’m sure you’ve heard about the benefits of high-volume training. If not, you’re going to learn about it in this article!
When it comes to building muscle, there are different strategies you have to employ. You can’t just lift weights the same way and keep building muscle forever.
It’s actually quite a bit harder to build muscle than many will lead you to believe. Maybe at first it’s not too hard, but over time it becomes increasingly more difficult.
Why?
Because our bodies are masters at adapting to our training. One thing you must take into account is increasing your training volume over time.
Volume = Sets x Reps x Weight
While traditional training methods work well, German volume training takes a unique approach to volume manipulation. Where most programs may have you do 3-4 sets per exercise, German volume training dramatically increases this to 10 sets of 10 reps. This high-volume approach is what makes GVT workout programs so unique and challenging.
Don’t worry, we’re going to get into the nitty-gritty details in a bit.
In This Article:
• How to Build Muscle
• What is German Volume Training
• Benefits and Drawbacks of German Volume Training
• Does German Volume Training Really Work?
• German Volume Training Workout
• Getting the Most Out of German Volume Training
How to Build Muscle
I’ve already noted that our bodies constantly adapt to what we do in the gym. When we make progress in strength and muscle growth, that progress is because of those adaptations.
Once our body is fully adapted to your training, something has to change to keep seeing progress. Otherwise, it’s too easy for our body to do.
Studies show that increasing volume, mechanical tension, and metabolic stress are all necessary to build muscle (1).
We already know what volume is generally measured with the equation: Sets x Reps x Weight
But what are mechanical tension and metabolic stress? I’ll make it simple. Think of mechanical tension like how hard you’re squeezing your muscles. It’s the amount of tension our muscles create to contract and lift the weight.
Over time, if we’re forced to produce more tension, we’ll be forced to build more muscle and strength. Metabolic stress is a little different.
Think of metabolic stress like pushing your limits in each set. When you push sets to or near failure, you feel fatigued, and you’ll feel that burn from the acid buildup.
Pushing your sets to a point where it’s hard to do more reps will stress your muscles enough to grow. These all go hand in hand as well. Allow me to show you.
If you push all of your sets close to failure, you’re maximizing the number of reps you do. That helps build more training volume.
If you’re using heavier weights that force your muscles to squeeze harder, that’s adding to more training volume, too. You must continue to do this over time to keep making progress.
So, if you take all of this and wrap it up into one equation, it’s all about increasing your training volume over time. Don’t get me wrong, there are other factors too.
• How short your rest periods are
• How slow you perform each rep / how long your sets are
• Adding in other techniques like drop sets and supersets
All of these things can be used to your advantage to help you keep building muscle over time. One thing will always be true if you want to build muscle ... You’re going to have to work for it!
German volume training is a program designed to address those factors. It might be a little over the top, but I’ll get into that in the next section.
What is German Volume Training?
German volume training is a workout program that was started in the 1970s by Rolf Feser. It was later made popular by the famous strength coach Charles Poliquin.
German volume training got its name because, well, it started in Germany. It’s well known because Germans used to dominate the weightlifting sport in the 70’s.
It was said this program was used to help them gain muscle and move up a weight class. The problem is, this is most likely a rumor.
If you know anything about weight-class sports, people generally want to stay in a lower weight class. It gives you a competitive advantage to be near the top of a weight class.
Why? Because you may be stronger than everyone else in that class.
If you move up a weight class, other heavier and stronger athletes would have the advantage over you. So, most likely because it originated in Germany it got over-hyped.
What Does German Volume Training Look Like?
German volume training is a 4-day per week program based around doing 10 sets of 10 reps with 60% of your one rep max. It doesn’t sound too difficult since 60% of your max, you can typically do 15-20 reps with.
After you do the first handful of sets, though, fatigue sets in, and it gets much harder. By the last couple of sets, you may barely hit your 10 reps.
You’d do this with 2 main lifts working antagonistic muscle groups each workout. Afterward, you’ll do some accessory exercises to round out the workout.
With the accessory exercises, you only need to do 3 sets of 10-12 reps.
With a workout program as high volume as German volume training, you’re bound to build some muscle. So it has its benefits, but there may be some drawbacks as well.
Let’s talk about them.
Benefits and Drawbacks of German Volume Training
German volume training can be a powerful program to help you build muscle. As a GVT workout program, it's known for its extremely high volume approach. This can be both a blessing and a curse, depending on your experience level and recovery ability.
Let’s start with the benefits:
German Volume Training Benefits
Well, we already know that it takes volume to build muscle. So there is a lot of potential for muscle growth with this program. Over time, the volume of work on your muscles will add a lot of stress. That will lead to your muscles adapting by adding more muscle to handle that stress.
You also have to use heavier weights over time to keep building muscle in any program. With German volume training, your weights will increase over time.
So you’ll build plenty of strength too! Not to mention, it takes a good amount of muscular endurance to do 10 sets of 10 reps.
German volume training is particularly effective for intermediate and advanced lifters who have hit a plateau. The sheer volume of work in a GVT workout can shock your muscles into new growth when other programs have stopped working.
With German volume training, you can build muscle, strength, and endurance all at the same time.
German Volume Training Drawbacks
While having a huge amount of volume can help with muscle growth, it might not be necessary for everyone.
One study tested German volume training, doing 10 sets of 10 vs a group doing 5 sets of 10. They found no significant differences in muscle growth or strength gain (2).
Based on this, doing more than 4-6 sets may not be necessary. You’ll burn more calories when doing more sets, but it may not help you build more muscle or strength.
They also found a slight decrease in leg muscle size. Now, they didn’t control for their diet, so maybe they didn’t eat enough protein.
It's inconclusive whether German volume training actually causes muscle loss. There are other factors that can contribute to it, and it was a very small loss.
It could be that they weren’t recovering as well from workouts of such high volume. Doing twice as many sets means twice as much muscle damage.
In order to grow your muscles, they have to repair everything that was damaged first. Then they can build size during recovery after that.
You can’t build muscle without breaking it down first, but if the breakdown is excessive, then it may take longer to recover. That could make it harder to build muscle in the long run.
So while German volume training can help you build muscle, you may not need to do so many sets. It did show muscle growth for the most part, though.
So it may be something that some benefit more from than others. You’d just have to try for yourself and see.
Does German Volume Training Really Work?
Well, based on the drawbacks in the last section, you may think the answer is no. You’d be incorrect, though.
Studies do show that German volume training leads to increases in muscle strength and size (3). So it is a program that can give you the results you’re looking for..
It just might not be necessary to do the full 10 sets when 5 sets can lead to similar gains (2, 3).
Here’s my recommendation. If you decide to try German volume training, only do it for 6 weeks when trying to bust past a plateau. That can build up the stress and volume you’re looking for, and give your body a new stimulus to adapt to.
After 6 weeks, do a de-load week by cutting volume in half and prioritizing recovery. Eat plenty of protein, and get plenty of water and sleep.
It’s not something I’d personally recommend doing all the time. If I were going to do this program, I wouldn’t do it very often.
Doing a similar program with 5 sets can get you the same results, and may make injury less likely.
German Volume Training Workout
Here's a complete German volume training workout split. Remember, a proper GVT workout follows specific principles. Mainly, the 10x10 approach with strict rest periods.
When following this German volume training split, remember that form is crucial. While a GVT workout is known for high volume, maintaining proper technique throughout all 10 sets is more important than hitting every rep.
This German volume training program is divided into three main workouts:
GVT Leg Workout
| Exercise | Sets | Reps |
|---|---|---|
| Back Squat | 10 | 10 |
| Romanian Deadlift | 10 | 10 |
| Barbell Glute Bridge | 3 | 10–12 |
| Kettlebell Goblet Lateral Squat | 3 | 10–12 (Each Leg) |
| Calf Raise | 3 | 10–12 |
GVT Chest, Shoulders, & Triceps Workout
| Exercise | Sets | Reps |
|---|---|---|
| Bench Press | 10 | 10 |
| Barbell Overhead Press | 10 | 10 |
| Triceps Pressdown | 3 | 10–12 |
| Dumbbell Lateral Raise | 3 | 10–12 |
| Dumbbell Reverse Fly | 3 | 10–12 |
GVT Back & Biceps Workout
| Exercise | Sets | Reps |
|---|---|---|
| Wide-Grip Pull-Up | 10 | 10 |
| Barbell Bent-Over Row | 10 | 10 |
| Bicep Curl | 3 | 10–12 |
| Barbell Shrugs | 3 | 10–12 |
| EZ Bar Reverse Curl | 3 | 10–12 |
Getting the Most Out of German Volume Training
Whether you’re doing German volume training or a different program, you’re doing it to get results. I get that, but unfortunately, your training program isn’t all you need.
You don’t build muscle in the gym. You build it in the hours and days after your workout.
So you’ll need to prioritize proper recovery in addition to progression in your workout program. That means 3 things...
• Sleep
• Rest days
• Proper nutrition
Sleep and rest days are crucial. You’re breaking your muscles down in the gym, so you have to allow enough sleep and rest time to build them back up.
If you don’t get enough sleep, not only can you lose muscle, but it can also lead to fat gain (4). It’s not great for our metabolism or for optimal hormone production.
If we don’t take enough rest days, we may keep breaking down our muscles before they’ve had time to fully rebuild. That in itself can lead to overuse injuries, so be careful about overtraining!
When it comes to proper nutrition, this is the single hardest part. Not only will you need enough protein to build muscle, but you also need enough calories. Finding the right macros for building muscle can be tough for some.
It’s even harder to understand how to make the right adjustments when progress slows down. There’s a reason people go to school to study nutrition and exercise science. It’s not common knowledge, and it can be frustrating to figure out on your own.
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References:
(1) Krzysztofik M, et al. Maximizing Muscle Hypertrophy: A Systematic Review of Advanced Resistance Training Techniques and Methods. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2019;16(24):4897.
(2) Hackett DA, et al. Effects of a 12-Week Modified German Volume Training Program on Muscle Strength and Hypertrophy-A Pilot Study. Sports (Basel). 2018;6(1):7.
(3) Amirthalingam T, et al. Effects of a Modified German Volume Training Program on Muscular Hypertrophy and Strength. J Strength Cond Res. 2017;31(11):3109-3119.
(4) Song J, et al. Effect of changes in sleeping behavior on skeletal muscle and fat mass: a retrospective cohort study. BMC Public Health. 2023;23(1):1879.
