I believe some people use Smolov Jr for that.
^^ negative, people use smolov jr to cut the volume down. Which is weak sauce.
The intro phase is for people like the above poster. Its made to introduce you to the volume thst follows with Smolov.
Do the intro. Then do Smolov. You squat 4 days a week in Smolovā¦
[quote]pete458 wrote:
If I squat once a week, is there an intermediate program that may help condition me to Smolov?[/quote]
I second what Achilles said. Do the intro (while establishing a stretching and foam rolling routine/habit) and start squatting. Smolov is hard, but I think it looks more daunting than it really is. Ever been in a fight? Whatās worse, the nervous, hesitant anticipation beforehand or the fight itself?
Donāt be intimidated.
FWIW, I was using 531 for several months before Smolov, squatting only once a week. After the first 2-3 Smolov days, your body will adjust.
jajaja I was doing a form of 5/3/1 before I start Smolov. I did not do the intro phase. It sucked yet was awesome because my squat went up a lot a lot.
Stretch, eat, sleep. These are the most important factors of Smolov.
Also many people on here talk smack about doing JR for bench simultaneously.
These people have sandy vaginas.
I did Smolov Base-meso for squat, and then Smolov JR for bench simultaneously and saw tremendous gains. IMO JR is for bench, if you use it for squat or dl you are weak sauce <3333
Last day of Smolov Base Mesocycle is tomorrow. Just finished up doing 7x5. Then 7 days until I test my max. Better get 405+.
some tell me about warm-up workout before somolov squat program
Do Agile 8. Best thing I have found to do before DL and Squat days
All Iāve ever done is ramp up with to my working set.
45x10
135x8
225x3
Iām currently on my third run through the base mesocycle, and this time I plan on doing the whole rest of the program. I skipped the intro as the weeks prior Iād been on a squat/press/pull 3xwk routine, and the week prior I had taken a break after my second failure with 235lb on my fourth working set. The first time I tried Smolov almost a year ago I squatted low-bar, wide stance; the second time was after I made the switch to olympic style last December and saw my max plunge to 215lb to ensure I learned the new movement and to try and regain some strength quickly.
This time was the result of being told I could not deadlift at my gym on base, although I wonāt go into that here. Iām on the third week and thought I would post to show how a person at a beginner-intermediate level can utilize smolov and what kinds of assistance work Iāve been using. reps x sets, real max ~270, programmed max 265
M1:
Sq:185x9x4
Dumbbell Bench: 50s 13,10,8
Push-ups
50 face pulls
W1:
Sq:200x7x5
Dynamic CG Bench @ 95lbs
Pull-ups, 50 total
F1:
Sq:210x5x7
Shoulders, Triceps
S1:
Skipped to spend time with family
M2: reduced weights this week due to missed workout
Sq:205x9x4
Neutral Grip Chins 5x5
W2:
Sq:210x7x5
Bench:light working sets, 5-3 reps
F2:
Sq:225x5x7
CG Bench:145x7x3,135x8
Chins 10,4,3
Triceps, Biceps
Push-ups, one set to failure
S2:
Sq:240x3x10
Shoulder/Rotator mobility (very light)
T3:
Sq:215x9x4
Chins 7x3
OHP:115x1x3,95x5x3
Push-ups
Neutral Grip Pulldowns
There are many factors working against me. Being in a military student status mandatory runs and physical fitness assessments are a part of almost every week. Little sleep, high stress, poor diet, loss of prior strength due to time away from weight trainingā¦ all I had to do was not be afraid to drop the weight down 5-10lb when necessary and my legs feel great. The assistance work is more stress relief than anything, just doing what I feel like instead of programming to maintain strength but not take away from focus on the squat.
Finished the base mesocycle a week ago, tested my new max today and got 405 Olympic style ATG. Got pinned trying 415. 40lb increase from the base mesocycle.
For the intense mesocycle should I cut 10-20lbs off of that 405?
^^^ Awesome work, congrats. I wouldnāt advise selling yourself short on the max number for the intense phase unless you have a specific reason to. You have two weeks to recover during the switching phase and the intense phase is designed to run off of your tested max after the base.
Finished the 13 weeks of smolov for my bench. Maxing at the end of the week. Starting 1rm 280, hit 300 after the base meso. Training max set to 290 for the intense phase. looking to hit 315-320, I probably had a few more pounds in me when i tested after the base.
Smolov junior for bench completed, went from 160X3 to 175X1 used an estimated max of 170
smolov base cycle failed on the third day of the third week, no difference in max when attempting to max today.
I was sick while maxing out so I likely could lift more when I am better. Weight went from 133 to 134-135 and I feel stronger. Unfortunately I had gotten sick directly after finishing smolov junior.
[quote]amayakyrol wrote:
Finished the base mesocycle a week ago, tested my new max today and got 405 Olympic style ATG. Got pinned trying 415. 40lb increase from the base mesocycle.
For the intense mesocycle should I cut 10-20lbs off of that 405? [/quote]
Donāt know how youāre planning the switching cycle, but I would add some light (50-60%) full ROM speed squats once or twice a week. Helps keep form/tightness/cues ingrained. If not, see how you feel after the switching cycle. You may be able to use your new 1RM, or you may want to cut 10 lbs off and begin Intense.
I just finished the first Smolov Intense workout and missed two reps. First misses in the program. Felt strong enough, but off balance and awkward. Lost the weight forward on last set.
Iām doing the switching cycle the way it is on the Stronglifts Smolov Spreadsheet. I warmed up to the negatives with squats and I will warm up on the box squat days with olympic squats as well.
20-Sep-2012 22-Sep-2012 24-Sep-2012
Squat Negative Power Clean Box Squat
1x 415 8x3 135 12x2 285
27-Sep-2012 29-Sep-2012 1-Oct-2012
Squat Negative Power Clean Box Squat
1x 425 8x3 135 12x2 305
[quote]amayakyrol wrote:
Iām doing the switching cycle the way it is on the Stronglifts Smolov Spreadsheet. I warmed up to the negatives with squats and I will warm up on the box squat days with olympic squats as well.
20-Sep-2012 22-Sep-2012 24-Sep-2012
Squat Negative Power Clean Box Squat
1x 415 8x3 135 12x2 285
27-Sep-2012 29-Sep-2012 1-Oct-2012
Squat Negative Power Clean Box Squat
1x 425 8x3 135 12x2 305
[/quote]
Yeah, this is the format I followed from Stronglifts as well. I donāt think I lost strength during the switching cycle, just form/focus and tightness for full ROM squats.
Keep your nutrition up during the two week ābreakā and see how you feel going into Intense workout #1. Itās a bastard!
Excellent progress, BTW. 40 lbs in three weeks is no joke. Keep kickinā that Smolov ass!
Here is how my Smolov cycle went:
-
Intro, Base, Switching, and Intense cycle
-
Completed, 0 reps missed
-
Iām 6ā1 started 192lbs
ended around 200lbs
started at a 10% reduced 1RM of 360lbs, actual max 400lbs
Completed base cycle with a 425lb 1RM
Completed Intense cycle with a 480lb 1RM
Overall an 80lb increase -
Upon completing Smolov I will definitely say I was very satisfied with the results and the program as a whole was a ton of fun. This was my first attempt at an intense squatting program, going in I expected it to be something that I would have a hard time completing with internet rumors that it was near impossible to complete without PEDās but this thread gave me new found confidence. The hardest days in my opinion were the 4x9ās, all four days the last few reps made me feel pretty wobbly. I completed the base cycle raw no wraps or belt and wore wraps and a belt during all sets in the intense cycle over 85%. I put a lot of focus on stretching, mobility, and rolling out with a tennis ball which in my opinion made all the difference. There were many times where i did not think I would be able to do any more reps but you will find yourself pushing your body farther than you thought you could. My apetite majorly increased during the base cycle but did decrease during the intense cyclesomewhat.
The only thing that suffered for me was my upper body. I did not do too much work throughout the cycle, really just maintenance work but my bench did decrease 15lbs or so but I expect it to come back quickly
Overall Smolov is extremely effective if you respond well to high volume and definitely worth a shot, I will highly recommend to anyone interested in the future
- Full 13 weeks
- Completed
- Iām 6ā2", started at 225 lbs,
ended at around 228
Started at a 1RM of 425 lbs.
Completed Base with a 450 lbs 1RM.
Completed Intense cycle with 475 Lbs max.
Overall 50 pound gain.
I actually didnāt hit 475, I posted of my attempt. But I know Iāve got it. I didnāt rest long enough from smolov and I did 455 before that which I probably shouldnāt have. I do all my lifts raw.
November of 2011
Weight:185-190
Bench:185
Squat:225
Deadlift:250
Total:660
February 2013
Weight:228
Bench:305
Squat:475
Deadlift:515
Total:1295
Almost doubled my total in a little over a year. Pretty exciting.
Here is my failed lift. Any tips on how to stick this bad boy next week?
Also, this song has coincidently been on at least twice when I have maxed.
A bit late, but I forgot to post it before. My 3rd full run of Smolov finished on Oct 2012.
Base: from 405 to 435(belt+wraps)
No wraps or belt on the workouts. Not too much gains because I skipped last 2 workouts of the base cycle, since I developed patellar tendonitis on my left knee, the pain started to become unbereable. What I think couldāve caused this: I skipped the intro phase. Going from not squatting frequently to suddendly squatting 4 times a week, was too much of a shock to my knees.
There was a meet after completing the base cycle, I ended up doing 460 suited at the meet, Iām still trying to get the hang of using a suit.
Intense: from 435 to 460 (belt+wraps)
Wore wraps and belt on most sets, which helped with the tendonitis pain. However on the very last workout of the intense cycle, a friend offered to tighten my wraps, but he actually tightened them too much and I couldnāt go below parallel, when I removed the wraps my blood pressure dropped and I got really dizzy, so I couldnāt complete intenseās last workout.
At the test day, I did 460 belt+wraps only, which was my previous suited max.
There was another meet after the intense cycle, I ended up doing 495 (suited).
So I actually got my goal of squatting 5 plates
Overall gains:
405 to 460 = 55 lbs (belt+wraps)
or
405 to 495 =90 lbs (suited)
Bodyweight before base cycle was 192 and ended at 198 after the intense cycle
As of today, I still have tendonitis on the left knee, even tough I havenāt squatted heavy since november, it doesnāt want to go away! Lesson learned: donāt skip the intro cycle!
I donāt know what to do to heal the knee, Iām afraid if I do another Smolov run it might bust it!
Hi
Just finished the full Smolov cycle minus the two-week preparation phase, and very pleased with results (all with belt + wraps on squat for testing, and belt for DLs):
Start:
S-140kg
B-105kg
D-150kg
After Base:
S-170kg
B-110kg
D-162.5kg
After Intense:
S-185kg
B-Not yet tested, but has felt good recently.
D-Easy 170kg, going for more this week.
Overall Iām extremely pleased with the results, and would certainly recommend the program. All sets in the base mesocyle were without belt or wraps, and all heavy sets in the intense were with belt and wraps (build up without either). I also ran Smolov Jr. for bench with the base, and designed my own bench progression for the intense, with deadlifts 5x3 at 60-70% throughout.