Sounds like a Hatfield progression almost?
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@Voxel could be, not really sure. Just a basic progression.
Work for today:
Press (ss. Band pull aparts):
5 x 40kg
5 x 40kg
5 x 50kg
3 x 60kg
1 x 65kg
1 x 70kg
3 x 70kg
Brian Alsruheās press/walk medley with a trap bar:
5-4-3-2-1
Notes:
- Short on time and energy at the minute, so this is just a bare basics session. Got my 3 reps, so happy there.
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Work for tonight:
50 navy seals
Notes:
- Did this slowly while watching UKs strongest man, in preparation for WSM. Iām kind of liking this, far less standardised than what iāve got used to in modern strongman, and I know none of the ācharactersā, so itās a little more engaging.
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Thatās some really decent grappling skills (and I promise I wonāt be more facetious than this tonight)
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Who said I was grappling? Got to earn a living somehow
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I almost made a @Cyrrex -like interpretation when you first posted it but thought better of it, but now after this counter here I canāt not make that interpretation.
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Happens to the best of us
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Survival mode activated until Christmas. Work and illnesses in the house, plus Christmas prep, mean that Iāll be doing very minimal training for the next week. Iām calling this āpolishing my before photoā for the Transformation challenge (which I assume is still going to happen this year @Chris_Colucci).
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It really should be a competition for who has the worst before photo, I think that could actually get me to enter.
Take it easy, mate.
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Iām trying to think how to clean it without smashing my teeth out 
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@Cyrrex thanks man, Iāll be fine. Fat, but fine.
@kd13 sideways. Think Steinborn Squat style. I use a rack for heavier presses, obviously.
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Also:
Open to suggestions for approaches to lifting in the new year. Simple, basic, flexible and press/Squat focused would be ideal.
Ever consider co-opting Pavelās āPower to the Peopleā and swapping the dead for a squat?
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I havenāt, which is odd because I believe I have the kindle, but I remember nothing about it.
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It turns out, I have Power to the People professional which at a brief scan seems to include all sorts of exciting and definitely not reccomended programs like Smolov and Smolov Jnr, as well as a fair chunk on Conjugate style training. Likely worth a read for entertainment, but probably not appropriate for what Iām looking at.
I have some thoughts in terms of the short term (year long) goal that will likely suggest a sensible, achievable method anyway. Essay incoming when time allows.
Apparently I meant Hepburn Progression. Do one more rep on each exercise this session compared to last. Not one rep per set, one rep total.
I havenāt tried Hepburn progression myself, but Iāve had goes where I just add a single rep per session. I found one T-nation article that explains it,
but it differs a little from the explanation on the Thibarmy article titled āHepburn Layering For Strength And Sizeā
What are you into and why donāt you want to do things youāve already done?
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Iāve done something similar before for push presses, I believe?
I enjoy exploring different ideas. Honestly though, I think Iām putting the horse before the cart here and trying to pick methods that sound fun before considering how that fits (knits?) into the bigger picture. I seem to be trapped under a sleeping sprog, so I guess now is as good as any to expose my thoughts and see if they stand up to scrutiny.
My ābig pictureā goals (or those that wonāt be met by any sensible training and eating approach) are:
- Health. Can I live until I die, to quote Mr John.
- Looks. Iām old and increasingly vain/self conscious.
Breaking that down, that means:
- Lose bodyfat. All the important metrics will improve decreased bodyfat. This is priority no.1, to be dealt with largely in the kitchen.
- Cardiovascular conditioning. Again, all the important metrics will improve with increased cardiovascular conditioning. Priority no.2. I need a consistency goal here. Potentially a big performance goal too
- Get bigger āphasicā muscles:
- Delts
- Glutes
- Upper back
- Quads
- Biceps
These muscles also, coincidentally happen to contribute well to an āXā shape.
- Get better posture. I suspect that an approach to stretching the ātonicā muscles will be a good start here, but Iām not experienced enough to know for sure.
So, what does that mean for a lifting program? My lifting contributes most to priority 3, which means that more than 2 sessions a week dedicated to it is overkill. It also means that my lifting should be focused on squats, presses and hinges/pulls.
Iām drawn towards the basic outline I used for one of my most successful periods of training:
3 main lifts (in this case squat, press and some kind of hinge/pull), each one done each session as either heavy/medium/light ie:
Day 1:
Heavy squat
Medium Press
Light hinges
Day 2:
Medium squat
Light press
Heavy hinge
Day 3:
Light squat
Heavy press
Medium hinge
A few (limited) moves can be added to fill gaps, if needed. I would need to fight the urge to add an unsustainable amount of āextrasā to each session, but it definitely has legs, especially with some smart exercise selection. With the ārightā exercise selection, I suspect I can also make some contribution to posture and health in the weight room too.
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My ātrickā for this is to make those movements your conditioning. Back needs more work? Chin EMOMs. Shoulders need bringing up? Grace. Excellent way to sneak in volume.
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I will absolutely do that, but also look at opportunities to make them ārequiredā as well. I want my conditioning to be as chaotic and unconstrained as possible with the only requirement being that it raises my heart rate noticeably for a time. Whether thats burpees, or swings or barbell complexes or hill sprints or rucking or swimming or running or jump rope or Crossfit doublets or whatever. Iāll do whatever sounds fun, or fits schedule and location or aches and pains without having to worry about āfitting in some extra pull upsā.
Iām finding that it becomes instinct eventually. This morning, I did viper presses. I was āsupposedā to do front squats. Iāve done enough front squats: vipers were what was needed.
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