squats and milk: Yes, the knee is good now, and I do believe the pin squats helped, if only to maintain core strength and technique. Thanks for checking in!
14th
Rugby Practice: 1hr 40mins, skills and contact work
Off to the gym soon, I’ll report back later…
14th (later)
Squat: w/u with 5x70kg, 4x120kg, 3x160kg; 1 x 200kg, 1 x 220kg, 1 x 225kg (=PR), 1 x 227.5kg (501.5lbs, PR!)
Great squatting again, hit 500lbs+ at last! Very pleased with progress so far, but I need to push on if I’m to hit that WR. Progress continues…
15th
Squat: w/u with 6x70kg, 5x110kg, 4x150kg; 1 x 190kg, 1 x 220kg, 1 x 225kg
Pulldowns: 10 x 83kg, 10 x 90kg, 8 x 98kg, 10 x 77kg
Not bad at all. I didn’t feel great, but the lifts were fine. One thing I have noticed is, possibly because of the knee injury and time off, I’m setting the bar slightly off centre, and leaning slightly too, when I unrack (at least if I don’t think about it). I have been trying to keep on top of it and I’ve minimized the extent of it for now, but I think I need to add in some shoulder mobility work before I squat so I can get my left shoulder a bit further back and setup properly. Still good here though, progress coming quickly…
Congrats on breaking 500! What is the current WR? I always feel tempted to try out everyday squatting but I’m still saving it in my back pocket, haha.
lift206: Thank you, progress stil coming nicely. WR for sub-junior <105kg unequipped IPF is 252.5kg, a tough weight but in my mind totally achievable if I can avoid injury and keep pushing. Short timeframe for me, but why not?
I see what you mean about the daily squatting, but I don’t buy the argument that it limits long-term progress, I think what really limits long-term progress and a lifter’s peak is not pushing hard enough and soon enough to reach elite level before injuries and age catch up with them. Other methods work though, and I don’t consider daily squatting the most important factor in success by any means; other routines can work brilliantly for people who suit them (mentally and physically, mostly mentally).
16th
Strength / Mobility Testing for Rugby:
Deep Beltless Front Squat: to 130kg
Overhead Squat: to 80kg and they said that was enough (more a mobility test I guess)
Chinups (with 2 sec. pause at start and 1 sec. between reps): 10
PM
Squat: w/u with 5x70kg, 4x120kg, 3x160kg; 1 x 200kg, 1 x 220kg, 2 x 2 x 200kg
Deadlift: w/u with 3x120kg, 3x160kg; 3 x 2 x 190kg (beltless)
Not a bad day of training. I don’t feel very good from having had a sore throat and poor sleep for the last week, but still grinding. I left the squats at a reasonably comfortable 220kg for today and hit a few deadlift doubles to get back into it.
[quote]halcj wrote:
lift206: Thank you, progress stil coming nicely. WR for sub-junior <105kg unequipped IPF is 252.5kg, a tough weight but in my mind totally achievable if I can avoid injury and keep pushing. Short timeframe for me, but why not?
I see what you mean about the daily squatting, but I don’t buy the argument that it limits long-term progress, I think what really limits long-term progress and a lifter’s peak is not pushing hard enough and soon enough to reach elite level before injuries and age catch up with them. Other methods work though, and I don’t consider daily squatting the most important factor in success by any means; other routines can work brilliantly for people who suit them (mentally and physically, mostly mentally).
16th
Strength / Mobility Testing for Rugby:
Deep Beltless Front Squat: to 130kg
Overhead Squat: to 80kg and they said that was enough (more a mobility test I guess)
Chinups (with 2 sec. pause at start and 1 sec. between reps): 10
PM
Squat: w/u with 5x70kg, 4x120kg, 3x160kg; 1 x 200kg, 1 x 220kg, 2 x 2 x 200kg
Deadlift: w/u with 3x120kg, 3x160kg; 3 x 2 x 190kg (beltless)
Not a bad day of training. I don’t feel very good from having had a sore throat and poor sleep for the last week, but still grinding. I left the squats at a reasonably comfortable 220kg for today and hit a few deadlift doubles to get back into it.
[/quote]
Absolutely, shoot for big goals and if you do your damn best to get there, you’ll have no regrets no matter what. People often limit what they’re capable of.
I completely agree about not buying into the argument of limited progress. I’ve run smolov base 4 times in 40 weeks. The first 3 were to rebuild technique and the most recent where I’m finally in a position to make progress. People say it’s not sustainable but you just have to find a way to make it work and learn how hard to push and grind. It’s only in my back pocket because I’m trying to see how long my training can last - I’ve definitely made it sustainable through trial and error. The programs I’m itching to do in the future are daily max and progressive range of motion. Anything that allows me to push myself hard, similar to you.
17th
Squat: w/u with 5x60kg, 4x100kg, 3x140kg; 1 x 180kg, 1 x 220kg, 1 x 225kg, 2 x 2 x 200kg
Rugby Practice: light positional skills, 30 mins.
I’m off to train again now, so I’ll update after that. I asked a friend to video the top sets, and they looked good (and very deep) when I watched them back, but I don’t have the videos myself to upload. I’ll try to get some footage up at some point though, for sure.
17th (2nd Session)
Squat: w/u with 5x70kg, 4x120kg, 3x160kg; 1 x 200kg, 1 x 220kg, 5 x 180kg
Leg Press: 35 reps (rest-pause) x 3 pps
Machine Row: 10 x 105kg, 2 x 6 x 119kg
More squat work to finish the day. I was too tired to start bench properly, so I’ll do that tomorrow.
18th
Rugby Skills / Lineout Practice, 1hr
Then:
Squat: w/u with 5x70kg, 4x120kg, 2x160kg; 1 x 200kg, 1 x 220kg, 3 x 2 x 200kg
Bench: w/u with 8x70kg, 5x110kg; 7 x 125kg, 5 x 135kg, 3 x 145kg
Tired today but still a solid session of lifting completed. Going pretty well.
19th
Rugby Match - just a “friendly”, it was pretty one-sided so not too taxing. I played around 65 mins, but the last 30 were with uncontested scrums because the opposition couldn’t cope and had no replacement props. Training resumes tomorrow, I’m not really sore at all so should be full intensity.
20th
Squat: w/u with 5x70kg, 4x120kg, 3x160kg; 1 x 200kg, 1 x 220kg, 1 x 230kg (507lbs, PR!), 3 x 205kg (PR!), 2 x 200kg
Strong session despite feeling sore this morning. Nice progress again!
21st
Rugby Practice - 1hr 20mins
Then:
Squat: w/u with 5x70kg, 4x120kg, 3x160kg; 1 x 200kg, 1 x 220kg, 1 x 225kg
DB Press: 9, 8, x 30kg DBs
Single-Arm DB Press: 4 e/a x 35kg DB, 1 e/a x 40kg DB, 3 e/a x 42.5kg DB
Not terrible. I didn’t feel sharp today, but a reasonable performance. Still going!
[quote]halcj wrote:
I don’t buy the argument that it limits long-term progress, I think what really limits long-term progress and a lifter’s peak is not pushing hard enough and soon enough to reach elite level before injuries and age catch up with them. [/quote]
Absolutely right. Doing not enough volume limits progress. And being too old, injured and rusted limits it too 
Most people can get used to it pretty easy but you can desensitize from all of this volume and/or intensity fast as well - if you want or if you need to.
High volume, deload, high intensity, deload and so forth.
[quote]squats and milk wrote:
[quote]halcj wrote:
I don’t buy the argument that it limits long-term progress, I think what really limits long-term progress and a lifter’s peak is not pushing hard enough and soon enough to reach elite level before injuries and age catch up with them. [/quote]
Absolutely right. Doing not enough volume limits progress. And being too old, injured and rusted limits it too
Most people can get used to it pretty easy but you can desensitize from all of this volume and/or intensity fast as well - if you want or if you need to.
High volume, deload, high intensity, deload and so forth.[/quote]
Agreed. Good points.
22nd
Rest. I’ve had a bad cold and didn’t feel up to training, plus I wanted to rest so I could recover quickly.
23rd
Feeling better. Rugby match today, I played a half for the 1st team (we won) and later I helped the 2nd XV out too, playing about 50 mins. No injuries or anything, and I felt ok, so quite a good day. Squats and bench tomorrow.
24th
Bench from Pins: ramp to 3 x 2 x 140kg, 3 x 3 x 120kg
Bench: triples ramp to 3 x 3 x 135kg, 3 x 3 x 120kg
Later:
Squat: w/u with 4x70kg, 4x120kg, 3x160kg; 1 x 200kg, 1 x 220kg, 1 x 225kg, 2 x 3 x 190kg
Machine Rows: 3 x 6 x 119kg, then drop set with pauses and strong contraction
A nice day of work. After a couple of days off squatting I felt less sharp than usual, so I left it at a respectable 225kg and did a couple of fast triples with 190kg to finish it off. Bench training is going to pick up soon so I can drive forward towards 180kg.
25th
Squat: w/u with 5x70kg, 4x110kg, 3x150kg; 1 x 190kg (beltless), 1 x 220 kg, 1 x 225kg, 3 x 190kg
Had to leave it there for today. Not too bad.
26th
Squat: w/u with 5x70kg, 4x120kg, 3x160kg; 1 x 200kg, 1 x 220kg, 1 x 230kg (=PR), 3 x 205kg (=PR), 2 x 210kg (PR!)
Strong session. Everything before the 230kg felt like death, but I pulled it together and hit PRs without too much of a grind. Still, we need more progress! BW at about 101-102kg, so I need to up my calories.
27th
Squat: w/u with 5x70kg, 4x120kg, 3x160kg; 1 x 200kg, 1 x 220kg, 1 x 230kg (=PR), 1 x 235kg (518lbs, PR!)
Strong squatting! I had planned to hit 220kg then move on to deadlifts, but this was too good to miss! Still moving forward, hopefully 252.5kg+ is on the way…
I might train bench later, so I’ll update then if I do.
Nice work! Inching closer to the goal.
Dude congrtaz on the 518lb!!!