Today I start the switching phase of the Smolov squat routine. In addition to the speed work that is suggested for these two weeks, I was thinking of incorporating into my workouts some exercises to develop strength out of the hole, which is where I struggle the most.
So far, box squats and pause squats have come to mind. Would appreciate hearing others’ thoughts as to what may be some helpful exercies to incorporate into my sessions.
In case it matters, I lift raw: no belt, suit, or power pants. Just a pair of Under Armor or Nike spandex shorts to keep my boys from bouncing around too much. My stance is moderately wide – about 8-10 inches from the outside of my shoulder to the outside of my foot.
The switching phase is supposed to consist of explosive work and give you a break from heavy squatting before the intense phase. I did standing broad jumps, light speed pulls for triples, and light jump squats for triples with like 185 lbs. during the switching phase, and this seemed to work well. I am not sure that pin squats or Anderson squats would be ideal for the switching phase (although they are otherwise a fine exercise). I just finished the intense phase two days ago, and I can assure you that, whatever you do, you do not want to walk into it all beat up or you will be in for a rude awakening.
[quote]jjackkrash wrote:
The switching phase is supposed to consist of explosive work and give you a break from heavy squatting before the intense phase. I did standing broad jumps, light speed pulls for triples, and light jump squats for triples with like 185 lbs. during the switching phase, and this seemed to work well. I am not sure that pin squats or Anderson squats would be ideal for the switching phase (although they are otherwise a fine exercise). I just finished the intense phase two days ago, and I can assure you that, whatever you do, you do not want to walk into it all beat up or you will be in for a rude awakening.
Hope this helps,
Jack[/quote]
It does. I sent you a PM about your switching phase routine.
[quote]jjackkrash wrote:
The switching phase is supposed to consist of explosive work and give you a break from heavy squatting before the intense phase. I did standing broad jumps, light speed pulls for triples, and light jump squats for triples with like 185 lbs. during the switching phase, and this seemed to work well. I am not sure that pin squats or Anderson squats would be ideal for the switching phase (although they are otherwise a fine exercise). I just finished the intense phase two days ago, and I can assure you that, whatever you do, you do not want to walk into it all beat up or you will be in for a rude awakening.
Hope this helps,
Jack[/quote]
Also – any other tips for the intense phase, other than the eat a lot, sleep a lot, and foam roll a lot? I’ve found contrast showers to be invaluable to recovery; I plan to continue to use those.
[quote]jjackkrash wrote:
The switching phase is supposed to consist of explosive work and give you a break from heavy squatting before the intense phase. I did standing broad jumps, light speed pulls for triples, and light jump squats for triples with like 185 lbs. during the switching phase, and this seemed to work well. I am not sure that pin squats or Anderson squats would be ideal for the switching phase (although they are otherwise a fine exercise). I just finished the intense phase two days ago, and I can assure you that, whatever you do, you do not want to walk into it all beat up or you will be in for a rude awakening.
Hope this helps,
Jack[/quote]
Also – any other tips for the intense phase, other than the eat a lot, sleep a lot, and foam roll a lot? I’ve found contrast showers to be invaluable to recovery; I plan to continue to use those.[/quote]
PM sent.
I spent a lot of time in a hot tub, and had the wife walk on my back almost every night. I don’t think I would have finished without the back walks because my lower back was in such distress. I walked slowly for an hour on the off days. If you have access to a pool, treading water helps with the hips. If you can get a message, I would do it as often as possible. I have heard–but not tried–that apple cider vinager in the tub helps with the lactic acid. And don’t forget the ice cream. Lots and lots of ice cream.
I thought that the intense phase was very hard, but it was not quite as taxing as the base phase. Frankly, the base phase hardens you and really does prepare you for the heavy work. But the intense phase is still a real grinder.
[quote]youngoldguy wrote:
Today I start the switching phase of the Smolov squat routine. In addition to the speed work that is suggested for these two weeks, I was thinking of incorporating into my workouts some exercises to develop strength out of the hole, which is where I struggle the most.
So far, box squats and pause squats have come to mind. Would appreciate hearing others’ thoughts as to what may be some helpful exercies to incorporate into my sessions.
In case it matters, I lift raw: no belt, suit, or power pants. Just a pair of Under Armor or Nike spandex shorts to keep my boys from bouncing around too much. My stance is moderately wide – about 8-10 inches from the outside of my shoulder to the outside of my foot.
Many thanks.[/quote]
Since you squat wide and RAW I’d suggest that you do LOW free squats against lots of band tension or do Reverse band squats. You’ll need to learn to better use your stretch reflex. If you’ve been doing a lot of box squats your stretch reflex is probably no existant or suffering, hence the struggle to get out of the hole. Since you squat wide you posterior chain will ned to be super strong work on that. Maybe try bringing in your stance to get more quad in the movement.
If you choose to stay wide, SUMO deads against bands (ie; toes almost touch the plates) have helped my out of the hole strength. Good luck.
[quote]youngoldguy wrote:
Today I start the switching phase of the Smolov squat routine. In addition to the speed work that is suggested for these two weeks, I was thinking of incorporating into my workouts some exercises to develop strength out of the hole, which is where I struggle the most.
So far, box squats and pause squats have come to mind. Would appreciate hearing others’ thoughts as to what may be some helpful exercies to incorporate into my sessions.
In case it matters, I lift raw: no belt, suit, or power pants. Just a pair of Under Armor or Nike spandex shorts to keep my boys from bouncing around too much. My stance is moderately wide – about 8-10 inches from the outside of my shoulder to the outside of my foot.
Many thanks.[/quote]
Since you squat wide and RAW I’d suggest that you do LOW free squats against lots of band tension or do Reverse band squats. You’ll need to learn to better use your stretch reflex. If you’ve been doing a lot of box squats your stretch reflex is probably no existant or suffering, hence the struggle to get out of the hole. Since you squat wide you posterior chain will ned to be super strong work on that. Maybe try bringing in your stance to get more quad in the movement.
If you choose to stay wide, SUMO deads against bands (ie; toes almost touch the plates) have helped my out of the hole strength. Good luck.[/quote]
[quote]jjackkrash wrote:
The switching phase is supposed to consist of explosive work and give you a break from heavy squatting before the intense phase. I did standing broad jumps, light speed pulls for triples, and light jump squats for triples with like 185 lbs. during the switching phase, and this seemed to work well. I am not sure that pin squats or Anderson squats would be ideal for the switching phase (although they are otherwise a fine exercise). I just finished the intense phase two days ago, and I can assure you that, whatever you do, you do not want to walk into it all beat up or you will be in for a rude awakening.
Hope this helps,
Jack[/quote]
Also – any other tips for the intense phase, other than the eat a lot, sleep a lot, and foam roll a lot? I’ve found contrast showers to be invaluable to recovery; I plan to continue to use those.[/quote]
PM sent.
I spent a lot of time in a hot tub, and had the wife walk on my back almost every night. I don’t think I would have finished without the back walks because my lower back was in such distress. I walked slowly for an hour on the off days. If you have access to a pool, treading water helps with the hips. If you can get a message, I would do it as often as possible. I have heard–but not tried–that apple cider vinager in the tub helps with the lactic acid. And don’t forget the ice cream. Lots and lots of ice cream.
I thought that the intense phase was very hard, but it was not quite as taxing as the base phase. Frankly, the base phase hardens you and really does prepare you for the heavy work. But the intense phase is still a real grinder.
Good luck with the rest of the program.
Jack[/quote]
thanks for the tips. Ice cream is taken care of. I now foam roll the hell out of my back, IT band, and hip flexor area, due to the lessons learned during the intense phase.
I read your trainging log the other day. You’ve made some awesome gains. Keep up the good work.