Charles Poliquin Dead: ‘Strength Sensai’ Dies at 57

Facebook/Strength Sensai

Charles Poliquin, the “Strength Sensai,” has died at the age of 57. Poliquin’s death was announced in a post on his Facebook page on September 27. The post read, “It is with a heavy heart that the Poliquin family from Ottawa announces the sudden passing of their brother Charles, a strength trainer much esteemed in his community. He was 57 years old. He leaves behind his daughter Krystal, his brother Michel, Daniel and Louis, his beloved sisters, Isabelle and Stephanie as well as a countless number of friends. A celebration of his life will take place. Details on the event will be shared in the next few days.” Charles Poliquin’s cause of death has not been made public.

Poliquin Certified Strength Coaches in 50 Different Countries

According to his official website, Poliquin began training while he was a graduate student in his native Ottawa during the 1980’s. Poliquin was a pioneer of German Volume Training. In 2001, he founded the Poliquin Performance Center in Phoenix in 2001 and the Poliquin Strength Institute in East Greenwich, Rhode Island, in 2009. Poliquin left his eponymous brand in September 2013 to set up a new brand, Strength Sensai. Poliquin was a regular contributor to Testosterone Magazine. A tribute feature on Poliquin that was published on the website referred to Poliquin as “wildly unconventional” and “wildly iconoclastic.”

In 2006, Poliquin launched his own nutrition supplement line. In an interview, Poliquin said that he became an advocate for liquid post-workout nutrition after working with the East German rowing team in the 1980s. Poliquin’s bio says that he has certified strength coaches in 50 countries.

Poliquin Trained World Record Holding Athletes, NFL Players & NHL Teams

Among those trained by Poliquin are David Boston, former Arizona Cardinals wide receiver, NHL stars, Al MacInnis, Chris Pronger and Joe Nieuwendyk, as well as world record holding hurdler Nanceen Perry. On his website, Poliquin says that he has also trained the New York Rangers, New Jersey Devils and Ottawa Senators’ NHL teams. MacInnis is quoted on Poliquin’s website as saying, “I have under Charles’s guidance for the last four years, under which I have been selected to two Olympic teams and won the Norris Trophy for best defenseman in the league. Charles’s training system emphasizes quality, not quantity of training. His methods give me the endurance to play over 30 minutes a game when needed, and the power to have the strongest slap-shot in the N.H.L. year after year.”

Poliquin Taught Himself English

Poliquin wrote on his website bio that he was a French-Canadian Catholic who was forced to go to church at 14. He said that at 15 he “decided that I had heard enough of the boring parochial stories and I walked straight past the church to the library where I first heard my calling to learn kinesiology, the study of the body in motion.” Poliquin went on to say that his karate sensei told him to read about strength and conditioning coaching. Incidentally, Poliquin was the youngest black belt in Canadian history. Poliquin says he soon read everything that had been written in French so he read English-language books with a French-English dictionary close by. He jokes, “I actually learned to say “Does pronation increase brachialis recruitment?” before I learned how to say “Where is the bathroom?” in English.” Poliquin also wrote that he took great inspiration from a Bruce Lee quote, “Use what is useful, reject was is not,” in reference to seeking a “magical program” for training.

The Testosterone tribute article says that Poliquin was inspired to go into strength coaching after seeing the 1975 Charles Bronson movie, Hard Times.

A Final Message on His Twitter Page Said, ‘No Pissing, No Moaning’

Poliquin wrote in his Twitter bio, “I turn athletes into Olympic gold medalists.I’ve trained medalists in 22 sports and helped thousands reach their fitness goals.” A tweet was posted on Poliquin’s page following the news of his death, “Coach Poliquin Taught Us Many Great Lessons. One Of Them Was That With Each End, Comes A New Beginning. Today, The Angels Will Get JACKED! I’ll Leave You With This Lesson He Would Like All Of You To Remember Him By. He Lived His Life By It.” That tweet was accompanied with his mantra, “No Pissing, No Moaning!”

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