Louie Simmons

Louis (Louie) Simmons is an American powerlifter and strength coach. He is noted for owning a private powerlifting gym, Westside Barbell; developing the 'Westside Barbell' method of training and applying it to powerlifting and other sports; and inventing several pieces of strength training equipment. Westside Barbell is a private "Invitation Only" elite training facility in Columbus, Ohio that was created by world-renowned power lifter Louie Simmons. Louie is one of only 5 lifters to total Elite in 5 different powerlifting weight classes. He has been a top 10 lifter for 30 years and for the last 37 years Louie Simmons has totaled Elite in various power-lifting organizations. He is one of two lifters over 50 years of age to squat 920 pounds, bench 600 pounds and dead lift 722 pounds and total 2100 pounds, and was ranked 4th nationally in 2000 in the open.

Over the many years that Louie has been involved in powerlifting and special strength training, he has gained a vast amount of knowledge on how to produce strength. Through experience and constant, relentless research, his areas of expertise are vast and include but are not limited to the list below;

• The Percent Training Method

• The Conjugate Training Method

• The Dynamic Training Method

• The Maximum Effort Method

• Lifting Technique

• Raising Work Capacity

• Rehabilitation And Restoration

• The Reactive And Contrast Methods

• Special Strength Development

Louie's training methodology is backed up by his athlete's results. Currently his gym holds 5 of the top 10 powerlifting totals of all time, the greatest squat and bench co-efficiently of all time and the strongest male and female powerlifter of all time. He has trained 36 men who have benched over 700 pounds, 10 over 800, and 2 over 900 pounds. In addition Louie has 19 athletes who have squatted over 1000 pounds, 6 over 1100 and 2 over 1200.

He also has 21 athletes who deadlift over 800 pounds, 13 who have a total lifting record over 2500 pounds and 7 over 2600 pound total. Westside Barbell is the only gym in the world to have 2 over 2700 pound totals, plus 5 over 2800 pounds and 1 who has the biggest total of all time with 3005 lbs. He has also had an athlete produce a box jump of 63.5 inches which is still the current Westside Barbell gym record.

All of these athletes train within Westside Barbell. Louie has published over 300 training articles, authored 3 books and produced 10 highly respected training videos. Louie Simmons is also the inventor of the Reverse Hyper® machine, Inverse Curl machine, Hip/Quad machine, Static/Dynamic developer and the Virtual Force Swing. He is and has been a strength consultant for the Cleveland Browns, Green Bay Packers, Seattle Seahawks, and numerous college football teams. Louie has worked closely with Kent Johnson, Johnny Parker and Buddy Morris and a host of other professional and top level strength coaches. Additionally, he has trained 2 Olympic gold medal sprinters, Butch Reynolds and Moe Robinson, both 400 meter sprinters. Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Heavy Weight World Champion Kevin Randleman and Matt "The Immortal" Brown have and still train under the watchful eye of Mr. Simmons. Top-flight rugby teams have and still ask for his advice and Louie has had past dealings with the New Zealand All-Blacks and currently his system of training is followed by the Melbourne Storm to name but one of a long list. ^[1]

Powerlifting career

Simmons has had a long and illustrious career in powerlifting, having competed for over 50 years. He has achieved a 920 lb squat, a 600 lb bench press and a 722 lb deadlift,totaling Elite in five different weight classes over almost four decades.^[2]

Coaching career

Simmons has coached many elite powerlifters, and Simmons' students in the sport continue to cite his methods as fundamental to their training long after they leave his gym.^[3][4] Simmons has also worked as a strength consultant with collegiate and professional sports teams and his training methods are featured in the CrossFit Powerlifting certificate course.^[5] Simmons' articles on training methods were a regular feature in the now-defunct magazine Powerlifting USA.^[6]

Westside Barbell gym

Simmons owns Westside Barbell, a private gym in Columbus, Ohio. Membership is highly selective and is by Simmons' invitation only.^[7] Although the gym is best known for the powerlifting accomplishments of its members, athletes in other sports (e.g., MMA, track and field) also train there.

Westside Barbell methods

Simmons has developed and popularized a system of training named after the Westside Barbell gym, and sometimes referred to as the 'Conjugate Method'.^[8][9] The system is best known for its guidelines on exercise selection; periodization; and the use of accommodating resistance (bands and chains) in strength training. Simmons' method has been used to train athletes in a variety of sports reliant on strength development, including powerlifting, track and field,^[10] combat sports,^[11][12] and football.^[13][14]

Special exercises

Special barbell exercises are used to target weaknesses in the competition lifts.^[15] Upper- and lower-body special exercises are rotated frequently (at least every 3 weeks) on the principle that training the same special exercise for too long will be counterproductive. The training system emphasizes the variety of special exercises. Different lifts can be performed, for example the good-morning instead of the squat. Competition lifts can be altered by increasing or decreasing the range of motion: e.g., squatting to a low or high box; performing partial range-of-motion bench presses, using wooden boards to shorten the stroke; or deadlifting from blocks or pins in a power cage. The conventional barbell can be replaced with specialty bars such as a cambered bar, safety squat bar, or Swiss bar. The use of accommodating resistance adds yet another dimension to the variety of special exercises that can be performed.

Conjugate sequence system

The loading of special exercises is designed to simultaneously increase strength and speed every week.^[8] Two 'Max Effort' (ME) sessions a week—one each for the upper and lower body—require training with maximally heavy weights on the special exercises described above. Two 'Dynamic Effort' (DE) sessions a week—again, one each for upper and lower body—call for training with sub-maximal weights but accelerating as much as possible in the upwards portion of the lift. By alternating ME and DE sessions, the conjugate sequence system is meant to surpass the limitations of traditional Western periodization in strength training, in which only one quality (e.g. hypertrophy, speed, or strength) is developed in a given week.^[16][17]

Accommodating resistance

In the 1990s, Simmons introduced the use of chains and resistance bands to strength training.^[18] The use of bands or chains modifies the strength curve, making the lift more difficult towards lockout. This is achieved through the stretching of the bands or the loading of the chain links from the floor onto the bar, increasing the resistance as the movement progresses towards completion.

Inventions

Simmons has invented several pieces of strength training equipment. Among them are the reverse hyperextension machine, designed to exercise the lower back (US Patents 5,356,359; 6,491,607; and 7,473,212) and the 'Plyo Swing' (US Patent 7,238,148).

References