Yeah I’ve used straps for front squats before, didn’t really like how it felt personally (a little wobbly for lack of a better word) but it may be worth another shot. Between cleans and grappling and calisthenics my wrists are getting pretty beat up, so I think, at least for the duration of the power look program, I’ll stay away from the clean grip and work the mummy and Frankenstein grip so I can grease the groove for getting my upper back more involved with the lift. As always, thanks for the input my dudes, is much appreciated!
This routine saved my wrists after years and years of getting my wrists destroyed daily practicing Hapkido:
I practiced it veeeeery lightly everyday for a week, then with a little more intensity every other day, and now I do it a few times a week to keep my wrists supple and conditioned.
Ah sweet! That’s just what I needed man thank you! It’s worked out well for you?
15 Nov 18
Push press
5x3@165
Strict press
4x8@115
DB high incline bench
4x8@40s
Facepull 2x10
It worked beauuutifully for me. And if you take your time with it, it only takes about 4-5 minutes (the article says 1-2 minutes but there’s no way you can do it that quickly unless you race through it). I’ll probably go back to doing it daily, now that I think about it. After a few weeks my wrists just felt so good.
Ok awesome, I’ll definitely incorporate it going forward then! Cheers!
Thought I’d pencil in some goals for when it comes time to test my 1RMs after the power look program is done in January:
Front squat 295
Push press 235
Power clean from floor 235
Bench press 245
Deadlift 405
Zercher full cycle 275
19 Nov 18
Power clean from floor
5x4@120
Hang mid pull
2x8@135, 2x6@185
Pendlay Row
2x8@185, 2x6@205
Reverse hyper
3x10@50
Pulldown
2x8
Planning on going to Muay Thai later so I’ll edit to cover what we did in class.
20 Nov 18
Warm up
Shadow boxing+ kicks, knees, elbows
Bench Press
5x4@185
DB full ROM bench press
2x8@50,2x6@60
Couldn’t floor press because someone else took over the rack lol, so I did a concoction of triceps assistance for low volume (KB skullcrusher, DB rolling triceps extensions and rope push down)
Finished with a bit more shadow boxing.
21 Nov 18
Front squat
5x4@200
Paused front squat
2x8@135
Split squat
2x8@135
Front rack hold
2x10sec @255, 1x5 sec @315
Started feeling really drained after the first set of pause squats so I cut the volume in half for the assistance work (was supposed to do 2x6 after 2x8) got home from work after midnight last night and only got maybe 5 hours of sleep. This man needs a nap lol.
This made me laugh; I felt the exact same way when I ran this program. Paused squats just… destroy you. I cut volume by reducing weight, being mindful of the eccentric and focused on exploding out of the pause. Helped reduce the feeling of fatigue, for me at least.
I like that you did front rack holds. I started adding those in after a few weeks and it really helped prepare me mentally for the bigger weights later on.
@kdjohn
I’ll have to do that next week for sure. I’ll probably keep the weight at 135 for 4x6 and just focus on exploding up from the pause. Yeah man I love front rack holds, it’s basically just and standing plank and like you said helps get you ready for bigger weights!
By the way I’ve been incorporating that wrist mobility you recommended and it’s definitely helping already! Did the front squats with a clean grip and didn’t have any wrist pain so thanks again!
22 Nov 18
0700hrs
Push Press
5x4@165
Strict press
2x8@115, 2x6@135
High incline DB Bench
2x8@40s, 2x6@60s
Facepull
2x10
BJJ later tonight!
23 Nov 18
Zercher full cycle 4x1@225
+plate waiter walk 4x20m@45
Trap Bar farmers walk 4x20m@240
Prowler high handles 2x20m@2 plates
My school gym just installed turf and bought a prowler! Pretty sure I was the first one to use it this morning lol
Prowlers are the best.
Absolutely! It was my first time using one. I’ve got a sled I built out of an old tire, an eyebolt and some nylon straps that I’ve been using for awhile. I didn’t think a prowler would be that different but the torso angle just absolutely gasses you. I love it.
26 Nov 18
Power clean from floor
5x5@120
Hang mid pull
4x6@185
Pendlay Row
4x6@185
Reverse hyper
1x10@50, 2x10 unweighted
Lat pulldown
3x8
27 Nov 18
Bench Press
5x5 @185
DB full ROM bench press
4x6 @80s
CG Floor Press
3x6 @165, 1x6@135
DB French press, incline DB curl and DB hammer curl x2 sets each
28 Nov 18
Front Squat
5x5@200
Paused Frankenstein squat
4x6@135
Split squat
2x6 @ 135
Front rack hold
3x10sec @275
Overall update here:
Power look program is going great, I’m feeling strong and seeing improvements across the board in numbers and muscle mass, especially around my shoulder girdle and QUADZ. About a month and a half ago I couldn’t even hit 185x3 on the bench and now I’m doing it for 5x5. A little worried about the 5x6 sets next week but it should be fun.
I want to compete in something. Oly, Strongman, Powetlifting, BJJ. I hope to do at least one meet/tournament in all of them, but obviously not all at the same time. I think if I’m going to compete in anything I’ll need to do a pretty serious cut down to around 205. My school has a registered Oly Club so I might sign up in September 2019. In the mean time I’m going to start CT’s high performance fat loss program after the power look program is done (Jan 28, 2019) and focus on staying strong at a lower weight. This will also coincide nicely with the 2019 T-ransformation challenge I’m on board for.
Cheers!