Pete Sisco - Revolutionary Static Contraction Training

[admin]

After just 10 weeks of Static Contraction Training, these subjects:

Increased static strength 51.3%
Increased their full range 1-rep max 27.6%
Increased their full range 10-rep max 34.3%
Added 9.0 pounds of new muscle (one subject added 28.9 pounds!)
Lost 4.9 pounds of fat
Added 1/2 inch to their biceps
Added 1.1 inches to their chest.

Read the full article!

http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/sisco6.htm

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SCT isn't the newest thing in training---it replicates the "Health Lift" of the 1870's, where trainees worked up to impressive poundages by doing a partial range hand and thigh lift. This technique was never really lost, Grimek, Calvert and a host of other authors including Harry Paschall used it in addition to full range training or combined it with alternative exercises to overcome the limitation of having strength only at one point in the range of motion.

The Automatic Exerciser of 1906, invented by Adrian P. Schmidt, uses leverage to allow a trainee to work up to over seven thousand pounds of resistance through partial range movements. A modern reproduction of the Schmidt machine is available commercially for a reasonable price.

The leg press and the bench press, both of which are used extensively in SCT, are not the best exercises for many people. The bench press has wrecked more shoulders and employed more orthopedic surgeons than any other exercise in history. The leg press can be questionable for anyone with lower back problems. The overhead press or dip, and partial range deadlift are probably better for most people, due to greater stimulus of muscles and are more stabilizing than the bench and leg press.

Nonetheless, SCT looks to be a valuable tool.

Steve Gardener here: How can I do 100% more on the leg press when I already load it to its maximum 560 kilos / 1234 lbs. There is no room for more weight.

[timbo81]

You can do 1 leg at time.

I've tried statics and I'm not a fan. Due to the poundages you are holding I really felt alot of strain especially on the wrists. Like with bench I felt all the stress go to my forearms and nothing in my chest.

[jmack93]

I have a classic runner's genetics (was doing 5min miles at age 13) and have always had problems gaining mass. I bought Sisco's "Power Factor Training" and did that.

Within 6 weeks I had gained FAR more mass than I ever had before with cybergenics, body-for-life, wieder crap principles or any of the other inane systems out there.

Now for me, Power Factor is actually better than Static Contraction, and Sisco has observed this phenomenon. Something probably to do with endurance vs. power genetics ("A" and "B" strength as he calls it I think). In any case they both have worked wonders for me.

People who diss these methods invariably have not given them more than a half-assed attempt. Oh well, not my problem.

Sisco not only has developed a SYSTEM that works, he has also developed the MODEL of how to develop systematic training for any strength application. That's why he's light-years ahead of anyone else, and why he's going to stay there. Even if it takes another 10 years for anyone to figure it out.

Happy gains!

And BTW, I've REPEATEDLY tried to get Sisco to pay me to stump for him, but he refuses. So I'm only doing this out of sheer fanaticism because this stuff works. Go figure.

Originally posted by jmack93
I have a classic runner's genetics (was doing 5min miles at age 13) and have always had problems gaining mass. I bought Sisco's "Power Factor Training" and did that.

Within 6 weeks I had gained FAR more mass than I ever had before with cybergenics, body-for-life, wieder crap principles or any of the other inane systems out there.

Now for me, Power Factor is actually better than Static Contraction, and Sisco has observed this phenomenon. Something probably to do with endurance vs. power genetics ("A" and "B" strength as he calls it I think). In any case they both have worked wonders for me.

People who diss these methods invariably have not given them more than a half-assed attempt. Oh well, not my problem.

Sisco not only has developed a SYSTEM that works, he has also developed the MODEL of how to develop systematic training for any strength application. That's why he's light-years ahead of anyone else, and why he's going to stay there. Even if it takes another 10 years for anyone to figure it out.

Happy gains!

And BTW, I've REPEATEDLY tried to get Sisco to pay me to stump for him, but he refuses. So I'm only doing this out of sheer fanaticism because this stuff works. Go figure.

Once you get to the point where you only train once a month, does it stay that way, or do you start again???

Thanks bro,

NK.

[jmack93]

Originally posted by Unregistered
Once you get to the point where you only train once a month, does it stay that way, or do you start again???

Thanks bro,

NK.

You may or may not ever get to a point where you train only once a month, although certainly people do. It all comes down to monitoring your results. If you keep growing, keep working out as often as you are. Once you plateau or overtrain, add more rest. The only reason you would want to voluntarily stop that progression is when you've reached your goal level of muscular development! And at that point, yeah, you ought to be able to stay at that frequency for the rest of your life! So if that's a month between workouts, then yeah, that's it.

The only reason you'd have to start again is if you rested significantly LONGER than your measurements and calculations indicate you should, but even then, I doubt it would be a problem unless it was like double your usual time off.

Also however, check out Little's "Max Contraction Training" - the latest wrinkle in the system. I've posted about it on here. I'm doing it now and will share more as I know.

Originally posted by jmack93
You may or may not ever get to a point where you train only once a month, although certainly people do. It all comes down to monitoring your results. If you keep growing, keep working out as often as you are. Once you plateau or overtrain, add more rest. The only reason you would want to voluntarily stop that progression is when you've reached your goal level of muscular development! And at that point, yeah, you ought to be able to stay at that frequency for the rest of your life! So if that's a month between workouts, then yeah, that's it.

The only reason you'd have to start again is if you rested significantly LONGER than your measurements and calculations indicate you should, but even then, I doubt it would be a problem unless it was like double your usual time off.

Also however, check out Little's "Max Contraction Training" - the latest wrinkle in the system. I've posted about it on here. I'm doing it now and will share more as I know.

Thanks a lot for the reply, I have been using PFT for 3 weeks and I have gone up in weight and I am stronger. You see, I was taking a weight gainer, then stopped using it. I went down in weight, so I started PFT and my weight has gone back up a couple of pounds. I'm very happy with that.

I only want to get to around 17" arms (lol 'only'). I should reach this goal in just over a year. I eat loads and train hard!

NK.

I still can't believe that this works. I'll have to try it. WO is sometimes boring but I can't believe that 7 seconds holding up a weight 1" can work. Currently I'm working out arms and back one day then I take a day off then do chest and shoulders then take a day off then back to doing arms and so on. I have plateaued. When I get run down and take a few days off I can see the difference in strength and size being down. I really think that this new method would do the same.

The great thing about science is that it doesn't matter what you believe. If it works it works, and you can prove it to yourself. You *SHOULD* be skeptical, that's how we exercise our minds, which is just as important as exercising our bodies.

Give it a shot and let us know your results and experiences!

Originally Posted by Unregistered

I still can't believe that this works. I'll have to try it. WO is sometimes boring but I can't believe that 7 seconds holding up a weight 1" can work. Currently I'm working out arms and back one day then I take a day off then do chest and shoulders then take a day off then back to doing arms and so on. I have plateaued. When I get run down and take a few days off I can see the difference in strength and size being down. I really think that this new method would do the same.

You dont do legs?

And on topic, this stuff works, its not up for debate, it just works - fact. I am using it as my main training regime, which enables me to lose some wight by cardio due to the free'd up time - good good.

Try it, then shut up or come back on here to rant about the benefits - Pete is also a mathmatical genius, hes not some gimp trying to make a few bucks out of BS

What good is training yourself to be strong through a very limited range of motion? This has very little application in sports or powerlifting.

Light years ahead of competition, you say?

Partial rep lifts have been used in the Westside system for awhile. The real way to do partial rep is to pick a weight you want to max, start off moving it very little like this article describes, then gradually increase the range of motion until you can get it all the way through. Squat cages are prefered for this since you can set the pins to limit your range of motion accordingly. Westside also uses boards when doing bench.

This method is basically a cheap imitation of something that works well. Any athletes should stay away from this and stick to training in their full range of motion. As for bodybuilders, I'm sure this won't put on more muscle than training properly for bodybuilding (45-1m rests with a weight you can do 8-12 times).

Gaining size has more to do with your diet anyhow. You will find it incredibly difficult to add size without having a surplus in your caloric intake.

So yeah, this really isn't worth doing.

If your objective is to lift as much as possible in a full range of motion bench press then by all means do full range of motion bench presses. If your objective is to add muscle efficiently then static contraction training works just fine. More muscle = more strength potentially available for whatever you want to do, that's all. For example, I am an Aikido enthusiast. I find the extra muscle I have gained from doing SCT is helpful in Aikido. Of course SCT is not a substitute for going to the dojo but with more muscle I have more possibilities to progress in my Aikido training.

As for the comment about diet: proper diet is a necessary but not sufficient condition for growing muscle. You have to have both proper diet and proper stimulation to grow muscle. SCT can provide the stimulation, the diet is up to you.

[hipoint]

Originally Posted by Tomahawk189

What good is training yourself to be strong through a very limited range of motion? This has very little application in sports or powerlifting.

Light years ahead of competition, you say?

Partial rep lifts have been used in the Westside system for awhile. The real way to do partial rep is to pick a weight you want to max, start off moving it very little like this article describes, then gradually increase the range of motion until you can get it all the way through. Squat cages are prefered for this since you can set the pins to limit your range of motion accordingly. Westside also uses boards when doing bench.

This method is basically a cheap imitation of something that works well. Any athletes should stay away from this and stick to training in their full range of motion. As for bodybuilders, I'm sure this won't put on more muscle than training properly for bodybuilding (45-1m rests with a weight you can do 8-12 times).

I'm 57 years old, have been weight training ever since I joined The Marine Corps in 1966. I have tried every method that has come down the pike during these almost 40 years, OWN practically every book written on the subject (all of Weider's, Arnold's, Paul Anderson's Bio, "Super Squats", you name it), tried it all. NOTHING will put on muscle faster than PFT !! If you are as "in tune" with your body as I am, you can actually FEEL muscle growing between workouts.

At my age, I allow at least a month between workouts, they are so intense. Yesterday my "Lat Pulldown" more than doubled from the previous session... I'm using 405 in "Close Grip Bench"...

If you're looking for muscle mass, there IS no better strategy. If you're looking for speed, endurance or something else, there MAY be something better. But if you want to get HUGE, PFT is the answer.

There's only two reasons why PFT won't work for you:
1.) You're not bringing enough intensity to your workouts. I used to have a personal trainer who was the owner of the gym where I worked out. He told me, "Man, if everybody that came in here would work out as intensely as you, we'd be seeing some fantastic results. Guys come in here and just "play" with the weights. All this huffing and puffing and no real work being done". The vast majority of "bodybuilders" don't even know what a "Max Effort" looks like or feels like. I've worked out with Marines and, even though the group was in their early twenties, we'd have to summon the energy to walk out of the gym after the workout. Arms so sore the next day that you'd have to lower your head down to shampoo it, you couldn't get your arms up that high.

Have you actually EVER taken a muscle so far that it felt like mush after a set ? NOTHING left ? If you bring that kind of intensity to PFT, you won't believe how your strength will increase. STRENGTH ! Not just "strength in partial position" or "strength in full range" ! Strength is strength, guys ! You can either "Deal with the steel" or not, but if you're not bringing the requisite amount of effort to the workout, don't blame the system for lack of results. Go find yet another system you can blame. And another.

2.) You're not allowing enough "rest and growth" time between workouts, which is covered in the book.

[jmack93]

Originally Posted by Tomahawk189

What good is training yourself to be strong through a very limited range of motion? This has very little application in sports or powerlifting.

This has to do with muscle recruitment through varying ranges of motion. The reality is that in your strong range you are recruiting the maximum amount of fibers available at any point in the total range. Are you potentially leaving some uncontracted? Yes. Is it a significant percentage? Maybe - if you are a competitive or serious bodybuilder. But stating that it has "very little application" is totally retarded. Go push a car and tell me how much of your range your triceps, traps and pecs move through in order to do that. Even your legs don't move but through maybe half, because if you're smart you're leaning to get leverage.

Originally Posted by Tomahawk189

This method is basically a cheap imitation of something that works well. Any athletes should stay away from this and stick to training in their full range of motion. As for bodybuilders, I'm sure this won't put on more muscle than training properly for bodybuilding (45-1m rests with a weight you can do 8-12 times).

Whatever. You say "I'm sure" blah blah, but if you haven't tried it or opened your ears to people who have, you're just blowing smoke to make yourself feel important.

FWIW, I now use Maximum Contraction Training instead, but still believe PFT and SCT are valid. MCT is just easier to do safely on easily found gym equipment - with SCT you'll max out normal stuff, so it really requires special equipment that's out of my price range.

[hipoint]

Originally Posted by Tomahawk189

Gaining size has more to do with your diet anyhow. You will find it incredibly difficult to add size without having a surplus in your caloric intake.

So yeah, this really isn't worth doing.

Nothing personal, but this post is "incredibly" stupid, from ALL angles.

Gaining size has more to do with handling huge amounts of steel. If it had to do with "surplus caloric intake, then the "World's Biggest Losers" would feature incredibly muscular individuals.

From your writing, I don't believe you know the first thing about lifting. Lift HUGE, get HUGE. Wimp out, get nothing.

[hipoint]

Thought you might like to know this (maybe not).

It's been a full month since I worked my arms.

I do "close grip Benches" for triceps.
I've rigged up a "Preacher Bench" with a chain to my pin select stacked "low row" to where the pressure NEVER comes off my biceps.

I was trying to decide if it was time to do arms again, so I measured. My arms went from 16 1/4 to 16 1/2. I thought that was pretty impressive. Kind of verifies for me Little's statements regaiding the three stages of growth.

Give your body part sufficient time for the improvement to show up on the tape. In my case it was a month, I've been measuring right along...

[PowerFactor]

I gotta give HiPoint a big thumbs up on his PFT posts. I too have tried literally everything I can find and NOTHING repeat NOTHING comes close to PFT. Sisco makes Arthur Jones look like Tony Little. I truly hope Sisco is given his due and like Jones makes the Forbes 400. < His contributions to bodybuilding will w/out a doubt go down in history as more important than anything anyone has done (Jones included). And that is saying alot considering prior to reading PFT I thought Jones was the god of exercise knowledge. If becoming as large & strong is ur goal (and whose isn't?) then get a copy of PFT (used $4) and put on 35lbs+ in one year will be a easily foreseeable goal. PFT is THE science of current bodybuilding.

[marklloyd]

Why do they have to charge thousands of dollars for a $100 isometric frame with a $50 strain guage?

[james_ashby]

Here is a picture of the orginal EF equipment. It consits of two machines, one for leg and toe presses and one for everything else.

[blade002]

Going off the the subject a little ( sorry guys ), but after listening to pete sisco's audio seminar, im a little confused as to what a Low Pully weighted crunch is, and also whether or not im supposed to do multiple crunches, or am i supposed to just hold it there for 10 seconds like all the other exercises??..

Very confused ... please help!!??..

[james_ashby]

Originally Posted by blade002

Going off the the subject a little ( sorry guys ), but after listening to pete sisco's audio seminar, im a little confused as to what a Low Pully weighted crunch is, and also whether or not im supposed to do multiple crunches, or am i supposed to just hold it there for 10 seconds like all the other exercises??..

Very confused ... please help!!??..

You have seen the machines in the gym that have cables over pulleys, right? Sometimes they will have two sets of pulleys, one high and one low, other times the height of the pulley off the ground is adjustable. And you can adjust the amount of weight on the cable. Anyway, you want to find one where the cable comes out low to the ground. You lie on your back, hold the end of the cable behind the back of your head, and do crunches while pulling against the weight on the cable. If you are doing SCT the idea is to put enough weight on the cable so you can only hold it for 10 seconds. As with all of the other SCT exercises you will want to some warm ups with a lighter weight and then go for the one max effort. Good luck!

This is probably the most retarded program I've ever seen. It will work if you are just starting out but that because everything works! Hardcore bodybuilders? Like who? Those results could have came from any beginner. A guy who benches 135lbs now can bench 200lbs! Hey yeah it sure worked great! Guys don't be fooled by this bull****. They just want to sell you overprice supplements.

This program is a complete joke. If your 120lbs. geek i'm sure it will work for you. Pete Sisco burn in hell you snake oil peddling piece of ****!

[james_ashby]

Skepticism about SCT and PFT is understandable. However, the assertion that Pete Sisco (the SCT guy) or Tony Reno (the guy who makes the equipment that can be used with SCT) sell supplements, overpriced or otherwise, is simply not true. At least it wasn't the last time I looked at their respective web sites.

[hipoint]

Originally Posted by a Powerlifter

This is probably the most retarded program I've ever seen. It will work if you are just starting out but that because everything works! Hardcore bodybuilders? Like who? Those results could have came from any beginner. A guy who benches 135lbs now can bench 200lbs! Hey yeah it sure worked great! Guys don't be fooled by this bull****. They just want to sell you overprice supplements.

REALLY informed response.. Who wouldn't be convinced?

Essentially your position is, "Hey, it's retarded, Dude". Well, with a brilliant, succinct response like that, you've won me over. NOT !!

[hipoint]

Originally Posted by Hardcore BB

This program is a complete joke. If your 120lbs. geek i'm sure it will work for you. Pete Sisco burn in hell you snake oil peddling piece of ****!

Unless you have something to say that takes on the system point by point, why don't you crawl back under your rock ? Somehow I just don't see how your commentary is advancing the cause of bodybuilding. Your jealousy of Sisco is showing.

[sandworm]

Hi guys,

Hipoint, thanks for your encouragement of the program. I've recently obtained a copy of the book after hearing good things around the gym about it. I'm just coming back after 4 or 5 months off, and I'm willing to start fresh and keep a log of whatever gains I make and see if this stuff is really worth its salt. I will start with Static Contraction and see how it goes, and if I feel I need more I'll switch over to PFT.

For the record, my starting measurements for the "B" workout are:

Chest - 39 in.
Legs - 21.2 in.
Calves - 16.1 in.
Body Fat - 13.9%
Body Weight - 76kg

I'll be doing arms and everything else this evening, so I'll measure the rest tonight and post it.

I'll also be supplementing the program with HIIT cardio, which I've just started last week, so it will be interesting to see how that works in.

As of last night, my numbers were:

Lower Back Hyperextensions - 20 kg / 20 sec

Bench Press (done on the machine 'cause I had no spotter) - 100 kg / 10 sec (BTW, this is as high as the machine goes, so I might have to think of something else)

Forward Row Machine - 80kg / 10 sec

Leg Press - 180kg / 40 sec (gotta do something else because I can't push much heavier, but I can sure hold it)

Toe Press - 150kg / 26 sec

Sorry about the Kg's, but I'm in Taiwan and there are no pounds here. It gives me a mental workout everytime I go to the gym

One more thing I'd like to mention about this: Apparently 5 guys including the trainer at my gym who mentioned it to me have tried SC recently, and 4 of them have injured themselves. The reason: Working out more than once a week. The book says to keep it down to once a week per body part MAX. Strangely, after I did my first time, I still felt I could do more (but I was just testing where my strength was). The only guy who didn't get injured stuck to once a week, and made great gains (or so I heard).

Point is, I'll give it a go and see the truth for myself. I'll post the rest of my stats tomorrow.

PS. This is no advertisement, I didn't even buy the book, I borrowed it from the trainer at my gym.

[james_ashby]

Hi Sandworm,

Are you going to be trying SCT or PFT? If SCT the trick is to place the weight so that you are in the stronger part of your range of motion before you actually lift it. Then you move it just enough so that you are supporting the full weight. Also, I believe Sisco suggests that if you can hold a given weight for more than 10 sec it is time to increase.

My experiecne with SCT and free weights was that it was difficult to estimate the proper amount of weight to use. The difference between a weight that I could not move at all and a weight that I could move and hold for longer than 10 sec was not great so I tended to miss one way or the other.

Best of luck to you and I look forward to hearing of your progress.