Well, I’m operating under the premise that I haven’t achieved what I want so I need to do more to get there. Smashing that idea together with SGSS might be a mistake.
I might shift over to doing a couple all out sets on the back work instead of multiple straight sets.
Today is my daughter’s 7th birthday. It really sucks not getting to throw her a party but she’s handling it well. She was upset when school got canceled because she wanted to take cupcakes to her class for her birthday.
ELLIPTICAL
8 min warm up
SQUAT
135 x 5
165 x 5
195 x 5
225 x 3
255 x 3
285 x 2
225 x 3
255 x 3
285 x 2
Damn, I felt good again today. That’s back to back squat sessions of feeling good and hitting that top set for a double. And not only did I hit 285 for two, I did it twice.
INCLINE
135 x 5
155 x 8 x 5 sets
DB BENCH
70 x 8, 8, 10+3+3
RFESS
115 x 5 ea x 3 sets
Pause for a little girl’s birthday lunch. We had homemade pizza, cake and ice cream. The birthday girl is playing with her new LOL doll and I’m digesting a bit before I return to the basement. I just have a little bit left to finish.
ELLIPTICAL
Another 8 min warm up
SEATED DB OHP
55 x 8 x 5 sets
DB LAT RAISE
25 x 35
SA DB OH EXT
25 x 25+9+7
Looks like a good day man! Does your 5/3/1 book have the Spinal Tap info in it?
I looked like spinal tap or training maximally.
Btw happy birthday to the little girl, I hope she can bring cup cakes when school returns
I think it does. I have Beyond. I actually only like Training Maximally these days. I hate PR sets and I feel like a lot of Jim’s stuff is just junk volume.
Training Maximally fits my personality to a T. I suppose I could use it for another lift, too. But I have seven weeks of SGSS remaining and I’m going to finish it.
That actually reminds me that I’m going to make some adjustments to my training (like anyone cares). Standard SGSS is an upper/lower split. The upper day is a horizontal push and pull along with a vertical push and pull. By splitting it into a push/pull split I’ve been able to add exercises. I’ve added too much, but I think I have a good idea to adjust it.
I’m designating a few exercises as main lifts and I’ll continue to do SGSS on those. Main lifts will be deadlift, hang power clean, meadows or pendlay row, incline, and DB OHP. Hang Power Clean is a bit different in that I won’t do 3x5 and 5x5. I’ll do 3x5 both days but add clean pulls to the higher volume day.
All other upper body lifts will be two to three sets to failure. I might even just do one rest/pause or drop set. I won’t worry much about progression because progressing on the “main” lifts still increases the overall load or volume of the session. The goal is muscular fatigue because CT and PC say that’s what drives progress in advanced lifters. I don’t know if I’m advanced. I just don’t want to do double progression on everything. It’s too much. I also don’t want to drop exercises because my training just might be working.
I mostly agree. I’ve said it before, a lot of 531 seems based on throwing volume at the main lift and hoping some of it sticks. Then assistance is treated as an afterthought.
Now, I can see exactly why Jim would do this, because he’s a smart guy and knows how to train. He set up a one-size fits all program, and released it for people to run. He would have known full well if he had even hinted that assistance work is pretty much essential to build the muscle to drive the main lifts, people would immediately get bogged down in trying to program assistance and end up fucking things up. So he says, assistance is just that, assistance. Do something and have done with it, don’t think about it much.
When you look at the original, which I maintain is the best book, the assistance templates are great. Periodisation Bible especially is excellent. You could go a long way looking before you find something better than PR set and Periodisation Bible.
Over time Jim realised that he underestimated the propensity of people to fuck programs up, so he started being more and more prescriptive which culminated in Forever.
I think Jim has followed a great path and Krypteia is the culmination of all his work. That program puts the “junk” volume where it needs to be - single leg work and abs (and still pulling stuff). It’s also done via super set/combo set so it hits work capacity nicely. I think the average Joe could build a respectable physique and strength with that program. I’m happy to see Jim using it with young athletes.
I’d like to run Krypteia or Bodybuild the Upper/Athlete the lower but they don’t align with my goals. Unfortunately, 5x10 BBB on bench and OHP don’t work for me (or my joints). My current training is moving me in the right direction for a bigger chest and shoulders.
I mean, with a bit more running and jumping, isn’t this kinda what you’re already doing?
That sucks man. Good on her for taking it well.
We did a “half birthday” for my son this year, because his birthday is in the summer and it’s hard to catch all his friends between vacations and camps and whatever they do. That way he got to have a party while everyone is in school.
Maybe she can do that at the start of next school year when we can go back?
I think you might actually dig spinal tap then. It’s pretty similar to what you did on that most recent squat workout. Either way, keep up the good work man!
A lot of running plus it has you basically hitting full body four days a week. You do the single leg and core assistance on pressing days and the push/pull assistance on leg days.
With the school year being carded canceled, I think it’s just going to be a miss this year. I’m hoping to do something with the family this summer, though. We might have to have a group party. My mom’s birthday is in April, my dad’s is in May, and my son’s is in June.
I’ll take a peak at it out of curiosity, but for the first time ever, my Frankenstein program is going well (even if it is a constant work in progress).
@mr.v3lv3t, I glanced at Spinal Tap. Part 2 seems fitting for me by only using triples. But how would you do it with two sessions per week?
I’m actually really loving Training a Maximally with a wave on the second day. My “work sets” are the last three - 225x3, 255x1-3, 285x1-3 depending on how I feel. SGSS adds volume on the second workout of the week so I thought I’d repeat the last three sets on day two. So far, so good.
If you read the Training maximally you’ll see that Jim says to do jokers after the last set (PR set with TM) then after the jokers you perform 5 sets of 5-8 reps with 70-75% of TM.
However I like your approach only doing the build up to a TM for reps depending on how you feel.
I could easily try to find a way to do that, after my current bout of cycles… ending past summer.
I did Training maximally a couple of years ago but crashed and burned because I was doing way to much back then.
Now I’d do something like
Squat work up to the TM for 1-3 reps then DL 2 - 3 sets at 70% last set to RPE 8-9 finishing with single leg work. The other day DL for TM squat for 70% ending with wendler row or maybe KB swings.
Similar for upper body.
That’s the beauty of making my own rules. I pick my own supplemental work.
And I know there are a few options for finishing the session with Training Maximally. I think my top weight of 285 is higher than my TM would be if I actually figured it out so one could say I’m doing one Joker set every session.
Two more sessions and I’ll increase my weight by 5-10 lbs.
Yeah that’s what I thought you did, looked like your topset is heavier than a double with an official Wendler TM.
I like your approach it looks really cool.
So finally caught up on your marathon log and found myself liking nearly every post.
Some good work going on here J, in the gym and out.
If it were me, I wouldn’t haha. I’ve only ever used it with 1x/week frequency so that’s all I could comment on. Didn’t realize you were squatting 2x/week.
If what you’re doing now is working, definitely no reason to change anyway.
I’m squatting twice a week but my supplemental/assistance work is minimal. I do 3x5 ea leg on RFESS twice a week and that’s it. My leg training volume is pretty low.
Woke at 230 and change today. I think yesterday’s diet of pizza, cake and ice cream played a part in that.
I had my physical therapy check-in today. My horizontal abduction strength is almost equal between arms (arm parallel to the ground, push up isometrically). My external rotation has improved but it’s still weak. It’s like 34 lbs. My internal rotation has improved ridiculously. It was up nine pounds to like 61 lbs. Unfortunately, it doesn’t need to improve and I haven’t been working on it directly.
Goals moving forward are to improve my external rotation and get it closer to my internal rotation strength. I think my chest and shoulder work has improved my internal rotation strength. It’s too bad my back work doesn’t improve my external rotation strength. I’m done with PT unless I just want to check in and measure my progress.