Not any kind of expert, but i can’t see you losing strength over a couple of days. How long have you been taking your happy- joint meds? And as usual, you’re pushing some crazy squats. Whenever you post a video I find myself saying “THAT’S what I want!”
Can I be you when I grow up?
Farmer that is really impressive stuff. How tall are you?
[quote]kpsnap wrote:
[quote]DaCharmingAlbino wrote:
Not likely in that amount of time, particularly with the way you’ve been pushing hard recently. You should come back stronger, in fact.[/quote]
Absolutely.[/quote]
Thanks. That’s what I wanted to hear.
CK - Been on and off Diclofenac for the last 12 months. Probably more on than off.
Kineticj - Thanks. I’m 5’8" about 210lbs.
This could well be the longest post ever, but I thought I’d write down a few of my thoughts and reflections regarding the Russian Squat Routine I have just completed (bar the 1 rep max test scheduled for Tues or Weds) in case it might be useful to anyone thinking of giving it a go.
The workout is based on a recent 1rm. I worked off 430 and my max tested a few weeks before was 440. I found that to be about right, any less and it would have been a great deal easier, anymore and I wouldn’t have been able to complete it. It would definitely not be a good idea to work off an ambitious estimate or a max calculated from one of those 1rm prediction tables. So use a true recent max or just under. I used 97% of mine.
If you are going to start it I suggest upping your squat frequency to at least twice or preferably three times a week for a couple of weeks beforehand to prepare yourself for the frequency. If you are only squatting once a week it’s going to be a shock, though to be fair not as shocking as Smolov’s 4 times a week. I started it coming off squatting 5 times a week so the frequency for me was not too bad.
The way the wave loading is structured you have a 6x2 day (which I called the base workout) alternated with a much harder workout, but because you squat 3 times a week, it means some weeks are much harder than others. For instance, week one goes 6x2, 6x3 and 6x2. Two easy, one hard. Whereas week two goes 6x4, 6x2 and 6x5, so two hard and one easy and week4 demands 5x5, 6x2 and 4x4, a real killer of a week.
The funny thing is, as you progress you think the base workout is going to get easier and easier but it doesn’t. I foolishly thought that I would start using it as a “speed” day and really blast them up, but near the end they actually become a bit of a struggle in their own right due to the effect the routine starts to have on your recovery abilities.
Having the exact poundage, reps and sets for the whole 6 weeks written out in advance is both a good and a bad thing. On the positive side it means you can look forward to your easy days and adjust your calories, other activities, recovery practices and sleep etc to prepare yourself for the more taxing workouts. The negatives are that the last thing you want to know after struggling to complete 6 sets of 5 is that you’ve somehow got to manage 6 sets of 6 in a couple of days time. I don’t know if it’s just my personality, but I spent all day everyday fretting about this program. I would actually lie awake at night worrying about the next workout. I found this program as mentally taxing as it was physical.
I found the change from ever increasing volume during the first 3 weeks to upping the weight and intensity to be far too sudden for me. Going from using constant weight of 80% of max for 9 workouts to using 85% and then 90% of max within the space of a week is a shock to say the least.
This routine is really just for squat lovers because it leaves little time or energy for anything else. But it does force you to work harder than you normally would and achieve what, looking at the numbers beforehand, you would think was impossible. I know I haven’t tested my max yet, but doubling your current PR for 2 sets in 6 weeks is pretty impressive progress. I will add my actual gains after I’ve tested. I’m also going to test my deadlift because I think it will be interesting if it goes up without having done a single rep.
If I was going to run this again I would modify it a bit. I would squat only twice a week with the 6x2 day on a Friday and the “increase” day on a Monday after a full weekend off. That would give me a free Wednesday to throw in some dead lifts or heavy RDLs if I wanted to. If I had the energy I would perform the 6x2 day as a max speed day. I would also up the weights on the second half of the routine more gradually. I realise this would double the length of time it would take but I think the results would be as good, if not better, if I could attack each workout fully recovered. In fact, after a couple of weeks where I will concentrate on my neglected deadlift (I haven’t done a single rep since the middle of December) I think I will run it again in the following “watered down” format.
WEEK…W/O.1…W/O2
…1…6.X.2…6.X.2
…2…6.X.3…6.X.2
…3…6.X.4…6.X.2
…4…6.X.5…6.X.2
…5…6.X.6…6.X.2
…6…5.X.5.@.82.5%…6.X.2
…7…5.X.5.@.85%…6.X.2
…8…4.X.4.@.87.5%…6.X.2
…9…4.X.4.@.90%…6.X.2
…10…3.X.3.@.92.5%…6.X.2
…11…3.X.3.@.95%…6.X.2
…12…2.X.2.@.97.5%…6.X.2
…13…2.X.2.@.100%…6.X.2
…14…1.RM.TEST
Had to put in all the dots otherwise it was all bunched up and illegible.
Great breakdown and synopsis, Brett. It does sound like a bear. I will be avoiding it, but have much respect for your having successfully completed it.
And, even though it was a pain, I love the fact that you would lie awake thinking about it. It is great to have a focus!!
Thanks Strick. I don’t see why the whole program couldn’t be used for bench or overhead pressing though. The steady increase in volume followed by weight increases up to a new max, all done at percentages. Could work.
07/02/2011
Hill Sprints 35yds x 10
Did these just to keep myself “loose”. When I have more than a couple of days off in a row I start to get stiff and achey and feel like I could pull something at any time. I actually feel better when I’m lifting than when I’m not. Now I’m used to training 5 days in a row, having 3 days off feels like an eternity.
Really enjoyed reading your post-program summary. I felt the same way when I did Smolov Jr. Constantly analyzing what I’d done and what was to come. I think great mental gains can come out of doing a program like this. You learn how to push through sets that you don’t think you can. Like that double-bounce-in-the-hole set. I still find that vid so amazing.
Looking forward to hearing how your max testing pans out.
Thanks KP.
So I saw the Orthopaedic Consultant yesterday, he said my elbow problem is just tennis elbow (as I thought) and gave me a cuff for it and re-affirmed that my knee cartilage is fine (GREAT news!) and I have patellofemoral syndrome which is basically the knee cap not running properly in it’s groove which can be caused by a multitude of things ranging from a simple muscle imbalance to pronating feet etc. So I’m going for a bio mechanical assessment and then physiotherapy. He said it should be easily sorted, which is brilliant.
I also realised that the crunching and cracking noises my knees have been making have been causing me to hold back due to the worry at the back of mind that I could be doing my cartilage serious irreparable damage. So this is such a weight off my mind and I’m raring to go.
09/02/2011
Back Squat warm up to 1 rep max
220 x 2
286 x 2
330 x 1
374 x 1
418 x 1
462 x 1 (new PR + 22lbs)
472 x FAIL
Deadlift warm up to 1 rep max
220 x 2
286 x 2
330 x 1
418 x 1
506 x FAIL - FAIL
Bit disappointed really. I’m split, on the one hand I think, 22 lb PR in 6 weeks not too bad, but on the other hand I can’t help thinking I should have been more confident and ambitious and gone for the 472 on the first attempt because I think I might have got it. I’m no good at this choosing lifts stuff.
The deadlift was going nowhere, absolutely zero strength off the floor.
Not the ideal build up to a 1rm test really, having to come off my pills, have days off I didn’t want etc and while I felt physically rested, I think I lost my mental momentum. Anyway…Time to start a new cycle, haven’t decided what to do yet.
462 lbs x 1 (new PR +22 lbs)
472 lbs x FAIL
10 kg in 6 weeks is pretty damn good. Almost double my rate of increase on 5/3/1. I didn’t want to say much about my experience with the russian squat routine until you were done. I did mention earlier that the last two times I tried it, I was unable to get past the threes week. If I ever were to do it again, I would follow a plan like what you outlined, easing into the heavier reps, extending the length of the program.
I doubt I will do it again, because even when I did successfully get through the program back in my 40’s and younger, I couldn’t maintain my strength gains much past a month. Makes me think most of my gains were neurological, and without constant pushing, I quickly returned to a base level. I hope things work differently for you.
Edit:fixed an arithmetic mistake.
[quote]Carl Darby wrote:
I couldn’t maintain my strength gains much past a month. Makes me think most of my gains were neurological, and without constant pushing, I quickly returned to a base level. [/quote]
I have found this to be the case as well. I think it was Jumpin’ Jack who suggested a Smolov-type program right up to a meet so that the gains can be employed immediately before they potentially drop off.
I think 22 lb. in six weeks is pretty damn good. Not sure about your warmup methodology, but I guess everyone does that differently. Picking numbers and how to work up to those numbers is an art. Especially at a powerlifting meet where you gotta do it all in one day.
Great job on the 462.
Great news on the knee issue and wonderful news on the 22# PR
Wait a second.
Like the others said, 22 lb in 6 weeks is pretty exceptional. It’s not a lot of time. And as far as not liking your deadlift… weren’t you purposely focusing on squats? Like… exclusively?
And maybe you need to start thinking of your lifts relative to your bodyweight. If you want to be squatting 700 lbs, you might need to weigh 300. Unless i miss my guess, Not too many folks on this board can challenge your 1rm:ba ratio.
Great news on the knee. Also, great PR. 22#, in barely over a month, is great! And I think, had you had 472# on the bar during you PR lift, it would have gone.
Good stuff!
Brett my knee has the same problem of cracking and poping and the like. My doctor told me not to woory about it either. Maybe thats why atheletes have their knees scoped to get rid of the cartilege. Mine still pops, but I stopped worring about it. Good job on the squat. Inspiring as always.
Carl - I do realise there will be a drop off. When I was capable of a 440 1rm I was able to knock out a 420 at any time, so now I think I could probably be able to do a 440 maybe. Still an improvement relatively.
KP - What exactly do you think was wrong with my warm up? Just so I can learn for next time. Any advice would be appreciated.
Bulldog, George - Thanks
C_K - You are right about the bodyweight thing. But I’m not prepared to get heavier to go heavier. I always felt crap when I was heavier in the past. I’m content to stay at this weight and just keep plugging away. I still think 500 might be possible one day.
Strick - Thanks for saying that!
UN42 - Now I know my cartilage is fine I’m going to try and do what you do and ignore it. I’ll have to turn my music up so I can’t hear it.
New Routine
It’s really a non routine. Day one - Squat or squat variation and 1 or 2 assistance exercise, plus upper body pull exercise (or two), Day two - Deadlift or deadlift variation and/or posterior chain exercise (or two) plus upper body push.
I’m going to alternate the two days Monday to Friday, weekends off and add in extra rest days as and when needed. Reps and sets dependant upon how I feel that particular day.
For example, feeling really strong and raring to go, then heavy rack pulls for triples and doubles etc, feeling average, snatch grip speed deads or deficit deads 5 x 8 reps (moderate weight), feeling weak and tired, then just some GHRs or light RDLs etc. It should give me the flexibility to adjust things depending upon how I feel and the moderate and lighter days should give my joints a bit of a break. Basically I’m going to do a bit of everything!