Slight Incline Bench from Pins, Training 1RM of 155 @ BW 150.
HOLY FUCK REED !!!
I can’t think of anything else apropriate to say
[quote]AnytimeJake wrote:
HOLY FUCK REED !!!
I can’t think of anything else apropriate to say[/quote]
X2. Maybe I need to start training with Sam Byrd lol.
My PRs:
-Leg press: Dropsetted 5 x 8 plates, 7 x 7 plates, 6 x 6 plates
-High bar good mornings: 10 x 205lbs. Yeah, I’m probably the only guy around who tracks good morning PRs, but I just really love them for some reason.
Deadlift 340x8
Front squat 295x1
Front Squat 145 for 3x8 - default PR since I’ve never worked on front squats. These were VERY easy (obviously) but I need to work on my form… I’m so used to driving with my hips 
which probably means that front squatting for a while will be a good thing.
Volume PR. Been playing around with 20 minutes of EDT on Saturdays, alternating weighted dips (bw+20kg) and weighted pull-ups/chins (bw+10kg) every minute on the minute.
Got 40 dips and 35 pull-ups. 10 and 5 more than last week, respectively. BW at 107-110kg.
[quote]nighthawkz wrote:
Front Squat 145 for 3x8 - default PR since I’ve never worked on front squats. These were VERY easy (obviously) but I need to work on my form… I’m so used to driving with my hips which probably means that front squatting for a while will be a good thing.[/quote]
Why did you decide to start doing front squats?
I was thinking about adding them in too, for posture reasons mostly, and then it quickly became a “thing”, with this Jake/Chobbs competition and a few other mentions elsewhere on here.
^^ You would think they’re similar lift’s, but I don’t get much carry over from years of heavy back squats, it’s almost like a new lift to me, with different muscle’s being stressed.
Both with myself, and my clients, I plan to include front squats in the future as not only an asistance lift, but another lynch pin exercises to gain on. Lorez since you read ‘‘Brawn’’ you know I’m a minimulist trainer, and have spent my career preaching for people to focus on the basic’s, but this competition has forced me to both train hard on the front squat, and also to realize how important a lift it is. For guys outside of PLing, I may have to even say more important than back squats. Hard to bring myself to say that, LOL, I never stop learning, the beauty of weight training, haha, and I’m probably going to be taught another lesson by Chobbs as well ‘‘Youth’’ prevails. 2cents
[quote]AnytimeJake wrote:
^^ You would think they’re similar lift’s, but I don’t get much carry over from years of heavy back squats, it’s almost like a new lift to me, with different muscle’s being stressed.
Both with myself, and my clients, I plan to include front squats in the future as not only an asistance lift, but another lynch pin exercises to gain on. Lorez since you read ‘‘Brawn’’ you know I’m a minimulist trainer, and have spent my career preaching for people to focus on the basic’s, but this competition has forced me to both train hard on the front squat, and also to realize how important a lift it is. For guys outside of PLing, I may have to even say more important than back squats. Hard to bring myself to say that, LOL, I never stop learning, the beauty of weight training, haha, and I’m probably going to be taught another lesson by Chobbs as well ‘‘Youth’’ prevails. 2cents[/quote]
I’ll say it for you then Anytime. The Front Squat is more important of move for anyone and ill even include the Powerlifter in this. Especially to the raw powerlifter. I accredit 90% of my back squat PRs are from hammering heavy fronts.
I can’t believe I spent 20yrs of hard PLing type training, without giving front squats much of a second thought. I thought people spending time on them, were just using them as an excuse to not back squat heavy. Although over the years I’ve gotten my back squat quite heavy, and I’m back knocking at 500 again, I’m basicaly a beginer at front sqautting, and I’m imbarrased at how little carry over I’m getting, but I get the feeling that getting stronger at front squats, will give me big carry over to both back squats and deads.
Basicaly what your saying Reed, I can feel it, and I guees I’m making up for lost time. They just weren’t somthing I remember seeing 20yrs ago when I started lifting, then I got hooked on back squats and dismissed them. Lessons to be learned, even for an old timer 
[quote]Reed wrote:
[quote]AnytimeJake wrote:
^^ You would think they’re similar lift’s, but I don’t get much carry over from years of heavy back squats, it’s almost like a new lift to me, with different muscle’s being stressed.
Both with myself, and my clients, I plan to include front squats in the future as not only an asistance lift, but another lynch pin exercises to gain on. Lorez since you read ‘‘Brawn’’ you know I’m a minimulist trainer, and have spent my career preaching for people to focus on the basic’s, but this competition has forced me to both train hard on the front squat, and also to realize how important a lift it is. For guys outside of PLing, I may have to even say more important than back squats. Hard to bring myself to say that, LOL, I never stop learning, the beauty of weight training, haha, and I’m probably going to be taught another lesson by Chobbs as well ‘‘Youth’’ prevails. 2cents[/quote]
I’ll say it for you then Anytime. The Front Squat is more important of move for anyone and ill even include the Powerlifter in this. Especially to the raw powerlifter. I accredit 90% of my back squat PRs are from hammering heavy fronts.[/quote]
Damnit Reed…SHARE THE WEALTH OF INFORMATION SOONER
[quote]AnytimeJake wrote:
^^ You would think they’re similar lift’s, but I don’t get much carry over from years of heavy back squats, it’s almost like a new lift to me, with different muscle’s being stressed.
Both with myself, and my clients, I plan to include front squats in the future as not only an asistance lift, but another lynch pin exercises to gain on. Lorez since you read ‘‘Brawn’’ you know I’m a minimulist trainer, and have spent my career preaching for people to focus on the basic’s, but this competition has forced me to both train hard on the front squat, and also to realize how important a lift it is. For guys outside of PLing, I may have to even say more important than back squats. Hard to bring myself to say that, LOL, I never stop learning, the beauty of weight training, haha, and I’m probably going to be taught another lesson by Chobbs as well ‘‘Youth’’ prevails. 2cents[/quote]
Is your back squatting primarily low bar? If so, I would definitely agree that there doesn’t seem to be much carryover. I suspect Olympic squats may have some more carryover though. A guy I train with who Oly squats almost 3x BW was able to front squat well over 2x BW the first time he ever tried it.
PR of the day:
Standing press: 2 x 4 x 65kg
In the middle I’d say, I’m not a guy who set out to low bar squat to move bigger weight. The bar always felt right, when it was sitting on my rear delts, like there’s a groove there for the bar, and I’ve never seen a reason to play with what worked. I’m that way, I don’t go out to fix whats broken, so I’ve been squatting the exact same way for 20yrs.
Moving things around every other workout is a realitivly new concept, low bar - high bar - I’m still not really sold on this concept, but I am sold on front squats, and I guess we should get back to setting some PRs with them, rather than babbling about them. Later
[quote]LoRez wrote:
Slight Incline Bench from Pins, Training 1RM of 155 @ BW 150.[/quote]
And now it’s 160, 2 days later.
[quote]Reed wrote:
[quote]AnytimeJake wrote:
^^ You would think they’re similar lift’s, but I don’t get much carry over from years of heavy back squats, it’s almost like a new lift to me, with different muscle’s being stressed.
Both with myself, and my clients, I plan to include front squats in the future as not only an asistance lift, but another lynch pin exercises to gain on. Lorez since you read ‘‘Brawn’’ you know I’m a minimulist trainer, and have spent my career preaching for people to focus on the basic’s, but this competition has forced me to both train hard on the front squat, and also to realize how important a lift it is. For guys outside of PLing, I may have to even say more important than back squats. Hard to bring myself to say that, LOL, I never stop learning, the beauty of weight training, haha, and I’m probably going to be taught another lesson by Chobbs as well ‘‘Youth’’ prevails. 2cents[/quote]
I’ll say it for you then Anytime. The Front Squat is more important of move for anyone and ill even include the Powerlifter in this. Especially to the raw powerlifter. I accredit 90% of my back squat PRs are from hammering heavy fronts.[/quote]
Ok. I’ll start doing them. Those are two pretty strong endorsements.
So how do you program them in with your back squats?
I’ve been training back squats every other training day for a few weeks now. If I were to work front squats in, what would make sense?
For the next three weeks I’m going to specialize on my back squats (I’m more than a little annoyed at where they are right now)… but after that I’ll get back to the every-other-day schedule.
I can only tell you what I’m doing, and I just started smolov for back squats, when Chobbs and I started this front squat thing. I’m just using front squats as a warm-up to back squats, so I ramp up in what ever number I’m using for the day, and when I hit my limit with front squats, I then switch over to ramping up for back squats. This happens to be somthing I picked up from reading Jay Nera’s log, so it can’t be all bad, he’s kinda good at squatting. Reed might have a better solution for you personaly. 2cents
Sam Byrd has said it best to me and it works. Get your Front Squat to 80% of your Back Squat 1rm and I promise your Back Squat will have improved tremendously no matter high bar, low bar, Flats or Oly shoes. Its worked for me seriously well. Last November my best Back Squat was 525. My best Front Squat was 385 for a single. I have spent 12 weeks killing my FS and its now 405 for 4 and I’m looking at a 600 pound BS in a few weeks.
Then after that I’m going to go on a all out FS assault and do everything I can to FS 500 by the end of the year and that’ll have me looking at a 650-670 Squat by end of the year. Look at the video of Derek Kendalls 800lbs front Squat. He is looking at a 1000lbs Squat easy and that just happens to be 80% of his BS which is the magic number haha. I’ll basically only BS once every 3-4 weeks the rest will be CAT and tech work.
The theory behind it is if you can FS a weight then you know when you slightly widen your hips, get more hip and hams into the movement, change to a better leverage, and can kinda muscle through some upper back rounding then your going to absolutely rape it on a BS.
Here is a seminar in which Dan Green himself gives credit to Sam talking him into introducing very heavy and hard Front Squats into his training and how it has helped his Squat and Deadlift for that matter tremendously.
As for you Chobbs you really only have 2 options if wanting to Squat that frequently but introduce FS into your routine.
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Is exactly what Anytime suggested and its not a bad way to go at all IF your FS and BS are somewhat similar in application. Everytime I try this it works pretty well but my feet are in exactly the same position in both variations. How ever if your feet and hips move 2 completely patterns between the movement it can be a huge throw off when say you work up to 300lbs in the Front Squat and then move right on to Back Squats without readjusting the movements. But, give it a shot.
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Is pretty logical Back Squat one session and the next Front Squat. Oly guys have been using this exact method for YEARS and its pretty hard to argue their success.
[quote]Apoklyps wrote:
[quote]AnytimeJake wrote:
HOLY FUCK REED !!!
I can’t think of anything else apropriate to say[/quote]
X2. Maybe I need to start training with Sam Byrd lol.
My PRs:
-Leg press: Dropsetted 5 x 8 plates, 7 x 7 plates, 6 x 6 plates[/quote]
Bet that was a fuckin blast. Bench 215x3 2sets
Dips BW+90x5
Deads 305x3 2 sets
[quote]Andrewdwatters1 wrote:
[quote]Apoklyps wrote:
[quote]AnytimeJake wrote:
HOLY FUCK REED !!!
I can’t think of anything else apropriate to say[/quote]
X2. Maybe I need to start training with Sam Byrd lol.
My PRs:
-Leg press: Dropsetted 5 x 8 plates, 7 x 7 plates, 6 x 6 plates[/quote]
Bet that was a fuckin blast. Bench 215x3 2sets
Dips BW+90x5
Deads 305x3 2 sets
[/quote]
Oh hell yes. This was my first time using 8 plates ever too, after barely hitting 7 plates for 6 reps last week (I have horribly weak quads that I am trying to fix). Couldn’t stand straight up afterwards.
Thanks for the great front squat explanations Jake and Reed.