Oh you delightful lunatic! It’s funny: I was actually excited for you to run MMS because I figured, with your weightlifting background, these complexes would suit you a lot better than they suited me. The clean was the limiter for me: there were weights I simply couldn’t get into the rack position in order to perform the rest of the complex. I was contemplating switching to an axle so I could continental it instead. But this is just going to get even wilder! The CDB for the 1 armed presses will also be interesting to observe.
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Haha, I think I’ve hit my barbell clean quota for life. I’ve maxed out that stat. I may use it for heavy attempts but that’s about it. I think Dan John would sign off on this change - he talks about building “anaconda strength” with sandbags and axles and so forth. And plus, I want to do the high volume complex days with my bigger stone/sandbag, so I can “permit” myself to buy the next size up, haha.
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12/19/24 - Chaos Is The Plan: Week 12, Day 4 (deload)
- Double KB Clean & Press each rep (35’s) - 6 sets of 10
1a) Chinups/Pullups (various grips) - 3 sets of 5
1b) Wide Dips - 3 sets of 10
19:28
- Solid day. Doing chins after high rep cleans is character building. Same with dips after high rep pressing. I have a goal of doing 10x10 with these bells in 30 minutes. I think I’m probably there but likely won’t include much assistance work in that session. Maybe a good time to do some throws before each set.
- Had an epiphany that I could use only kettlebells for my deload week. They’d still be going overhead every day; it’s just the lighter load would be a natural “deload”. Even heavy kettlebells aren’t that heavy. Maybe next month…
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12/20/24 - Chaos Is The Plan: Week 12, Day 5 (deload)
6 round giant set:
A) Med Ball Backwards OH Toss (10lb) - 6 sets of 1
B1) Log Clean & Press each rep (106lb) - 3 sets of 5
B2) Keg Clean & Press each rep (100lb) - 3 sets of 4
C1) Sled Backward Drag (+132lb) - 3 sets of 20yd
C2) Sled Forward Drag (+132lb) - 3 sets of 20yd
19:22
- I think I notated that correctly. Each round I threw the med ball, then clean & pressed one of the implements, then dragged the sled one direction. I liked this workout. It pairs very well with yesterday - chins and dips yesterday, throws and sled today. Very upper/lower. I think I’ll do assistance like that more often to really blow out the muscles.
- I’m liking the log more and more with each time I use it. I think I’m stronger at it than I am on the axle. I may use it my next “heavy” day and see where the chips fall.
- I added some weight to the sled and it was the right call. Forces me to slow down and really feel the legs working.
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You’ve hit my “desert island” workout right there. I boiled it down that, if I could only do 2 movements, it’d be log vipers and high handle prowler push. Sled is close enough, although I like the upper body involvement on the push. I’m sure you’re feeling it yourself right now, but those two movements are enough to hit just about everything, and similar to “being that which does”, if you locked some dude in a cell for 4 years and only allowed him to do those 2 movements, when he came out, he’d be a scary dude.
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Haha I remember reading that from you somewhere but it didn’t even click that I put it into action this morning. It is a heck of a combo, especially done back to back like this. I drag the sled with tow straps, not the silly belt loop way, so there’s still some upper body involvement going on. Definitely rigid from head to toe.
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Oh hell yeah: strap dragging is awesome. Good approach. And yeah: back to back would be ideal. I’ve thought about doing it Litvinov style too: hit 8 vipers and then go sprint with the prowler. That’d absolutely floor you.
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12/23/24 - Chaos Is The Plan: Week 13, Day 1 - Mass Made Simple workout 2
- 1-arm KB Clean & Press away (44lb) - 2 ladders of 2-3-5 per arm
- Complex: Row + Clean + Squat + Press + Squat + Good Morning - 5 rounds of 3 reps per exercise; all rounds with 65lb atlas stone
- Squat - 89 x 30, 30
Assistance:
4. Axle Curls - 25 x 50
29:36
- Went with the kettlebell over the circus dumbbell today for logistics purposes. The KB is grab and go, whereas my DB is really an adjustable thick handle that requires a little more setup. This is already an equipment heavy session. And I want to get better at KB pressing anyway.
- To anyone who is having trouble getting a mind-muscle connection with their biceps - do 5 rounds of an 18-rep stone complex and chase it with 50 rep fat bar curls. The weight isn’t heavy but holy cow.
- The squats still aren’t heavy either but doing that extra set of 30 after only like 90 seconds rest was definitely eye opening.
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I can’t wait for this advice to make the rounds online.
And too true on the squat: it’s like the first jump scare in a horror movie. You’re starting to realize exactly what you’re in for, haha.
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12/24/24 - Chaos Is The Plan: Week 13, Day 2
10 round circuit, 30 minute EMOM:
A) Med Ball OH Backwards Toss (10lb) - 10 sets of 1
B1) Axle Clean & Press each rep - 88 x 5 x 5
B2) Log Clean & Press each rep - 95 x 5 x 5
C) Rope Chins - 10 sets of 3
29:28
- The throws have been a great addition. I can feel the effects of them very quickly. As the session goes on, I am putting more force into my presses and making the plates rattle at the top.
- I think this is just about a perfect workout for this protocol. I think 5’s are the sweet spot for clean AND presses. I like 10’s on occasion but they come at a pretty big recovery cost.
4 Likes
12/25/24 - Chaos Is The Plan: Week 13, Day 3
10 round circuit, go every ~2.5 minutes:
1a) Double KB Half Snatch (35+44): 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10 (switch sides each set)
1b) Viking Thruster (110 total weight): 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1
Assistance:
2) Wide Dip x 20 into Dip x 3 into Wide Pushup x 10 into Pushup x 5
29:00
- Wanted to do thrusters to hopefully alleviate some of the leg DOMS that finally showed up from Monday. They always pair well with snatches, which incidentally these uneven half snatches went way better than last time. Shows how quickly the body adapts.
- In keeping with my “no junk volume” rule, wanted something quick to totally blow out the chest and triceps. Mission accomplished on the assistance.
- Time to reverse sear a beef tenderloin. Happy Holidays to all my new friends here!
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12/26/24 - Chaos Is The Plan: Week 13, Day 4
-
Circus Dumbbell, 1 rep per arm at each weight, going every 2-3 minutes:
Clean & Press-
40
51
55
Clean & Push Press-
59
63
65
Clean & Jerk-
68
73
77
79 -
Keg Clean & Press to OH Carry (100lb) - 2 sets of 70 yard carry (2-turn course)
28:21
- First time doing push presses or jerks since starting this protocol, so a long time. I still think strict press is the ultimate display of badassery, but Brian Alsruhe and Jamie Lewis both talk about using some leg drive to overload the shoulders/triceps and break plateaus, and tons of kettlebell dudes do them, so I feel vindicated in including them. Always good to have more tools in the toolbox. Also, my best ever strict press (154) happened right around the same time as my best ever jerk (255), and I was doing a lot more push press/jerk at that time than strict. Sometimes you gotta dance with the one that brought ya.
- That OH carry was a doozy. I didn’t realize how long the course was until I just plugged it into Google Earth. I had to really chalk up to keep my hands from slipping. Great movement though.
5 Likes
12/27/24 - Chaos Is The Plan: Week 13, Day 5 - Mass Made Simple workout 3
- 1-arm KB Clean & Press away (44lb) - 3 ladders of 2-3-5 per arm
- Complex: Row + Clean + Squat + Press + Squat + Good Morning - 2 rounds of 5 reps per exercise; both rounds with 65lb atlas stone
- Squat - 89 x 30, 111 x 30
27:36
- Motivation was very low this morning. I’m chalking that up to having to do 2 of these squat workouts in 1 week. That being said, I crushed this workout. You can tell by the time that I am not farting around. I am getting it done with very short rest periods.
- KB presses are feeling very easy. I may start using a heavier bell for the doubles and (maybe) triples on those ladders. I’m not sure if Dan John allows this in the MMS book, but I know he gives it the OK elsewhere, so game on.
- That stone complex was absolutely brutal again. The first round wasn’t bad but doing the 2nd one after 2 minutes rest sucked. Realizing as I write this now that it was basically 2 more sets of 30 in addition to the squats. The clean is the oddest movement; I’m basically doing a “1-motion/high pull”.
- The squats weren’t bad, maybe even easier than Monday. The worst part is counting that high; I think I did 31 reps on the 2nd set by accident. Not really in the business of doing extra credit. Need to come up with a system for that.
EDIT: Just had an epiphany of how similar Mass Made Simple is to his Armor Building Formula. That’s the book where he says it’s ok to vary the weights on those ladders. They each have the Clean & Press away ladders and the complexes, MMS just has the brutal high rep squatting, too.
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If you don’t already, consider counting backwards. I discovered during Super Squats I seemingly can’t count to 20, but you can’t really miss counting to zero!
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I think I’ve tried that too but can’t hurt to give it another shot! Another trick I’ve done is gone in multiples of 5 or 10.
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12/30/24 - Chaos Is The Plan: Week 14, Day 1
- Atlas Stone Clean & Strict Press each rep-
65 x 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
95 x 1, 2, 3
115 x 1 (Push Press)
Assistance:
2) Ring Dip x 10, rest pause into Dip x 12, rest pause into Pushups x 13
3) Axle Curls - 26 x 50
29:18
Tough day. Missed a few attempts at strict pressing the 115 so decided to say “F it” and went for the push press. Also missed the 2nd rep on the first try at the double at 95. Just a dumb mistake, trying to rush and not making sure every rep is perfect. On the bright side, I am making the 65 look like a pebble now, and that was pretty solid upper body assistance work.
4 Likes
12/31/24 - Chaos Is The Plan: Week 14, Day 2
A) Med Ball Backwards OH Toss (10lb) - 7 throws
B) Log, 6 rounds, 1:00 work/~3:00 rest:
Clean & Press each rep - 106 x 9, 8
Clean & Push Press each rep - 128 x 5, 5
Clean & Jerk each rep - 150 x 3, 3
Assistance during rest periods:
B1) BW Face Pulls on ropes - 3x10
B2) Barbell Rollouts - 3x5
29:14
- Solid day. I like the “Press > Push Press > Jerk” shell and am going to do it each week with a different implement. The circus dumbbell, log, axle, and kettlebells all make sense for it. Probably not a good idea for sandbag/stones and pretty pointless for the keg.
- I’m a way better jerker than I am a push presser, but at that weight the log was getting a bit cumbersome, especially lowering it back down. It will be interesting practicing the leg drive movements on all the different implements. I’d like to get 200lb overhead on the log/axle and 100lb on the circus DB.
- Shaking my head for not thinking of the barbell rollouts sooner. Awesome ab movement and saves me from having to buy an ab wheel for the home gym.
3 Likes
1/1/25 - Chaos Is The Plan: Week 14, Day 3 - Mass Made Simple workout 4
A. 1-arm KB Clean & Press away - 2 ladders of 2-3-5 per arm; ladder 1 = all sets with 44lb, ladder 2 = 53lb for the double and 44lb for the triple/quintuple
B. Complex: Row + Clean + Squat + Press + Squat + Good Morning - 3 rounds of 5 reps per exercise; all rounds with 77lb axle
C. Squat - 111 x 25, 25, 25
29:00
It’s kind of ironic that these workouts are the easiest ones of my week right now, but by the end of the program they will be some of the hardest workouts of my life. There’s a lesson there about not needing to push hard all the time, building up momentum, whatever. That being said, I think I might be pushing a bit too hard right now. Sleep and libido have been below par lately, which is usually a sign of overreaching and having a little too much cortisol in my system. Looking objectively at my log, I did 6 AMRAP’s in 30 minutes yesterday and way overextended myself trying to press the 115 stone Monday before I’ve hit my rite of passage with the 95. Need to be better about keeping my wild side in check.
Some notes specific to today-
- KB pressing went well. Made a point to hold the bell in the clean rack position after each rep instead of just blitzing through the set. I have big goals for KB press so want to make sure I am really mastering the movement. I’d like to eventually introduce the 62lb into these ladders.
- The axle was kind of meh for the complexes. I could go heavier but then the press becomes the limiter. Even with the thicker grip it’s easier to get a handle on it and just fly through the reps. Why I prefer the stone and eventually sandbag for this.
- High rep squats are getting more and more manageable. My conditioning is rock solid; I’m recovering between sets quickly. It will all come down to if my legs are strong enough to do the work for the heavy sets. We shall see…
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1/2/25 - Chaos Is The Plan: Week 14, Day 4
A1. Sandbag Clean & Press each rep (100lb) - 6 ladders of 1, 2 (18 total reps)
A2. Pullups/Rope Chins - 40 total reps in sets of 3-5
29:28
Solid day. First time doing reps on the sandbag and I’m pleased with how easy it felt. And chins are always awesome. Going to do some kettlebell stuff tomorrow and maybe some sled work.
4 Likes
1/3/25 - Chaos Is The Plan: Week 14, Day 5
Double KB Clean & Press each rep (2x35) - 10 x 10
Assistance here and there:
- Med Ball OH Backwards Toss (10lb) - 5 x 1
- Barbell Rollouts - 3 x 5
- Weight Vest Good Mornings (+20lb) - 3 x 10
28:41
Solid day. Had that 10x10 benchmark in my head for awhile and decided to just go for it. Wasn’t too terribly difficult and was able to get some productive assistance work in there as well. Next step - do it with the 35+44.
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