Military Press:
6x6x155 @ 8-9 (Failed very last rep and push pressed it) 16 minutes
Accessory:
Reverse DB Fly - 2x20 @ 20s
I didnāt get as much volume in as last week rep-wise, but the banded squats were much heavier and harder than the cambered squats from last week, so Iām happy with this. This is the first time Iāve ever done squats against bands for anything other than speed squats, so it was interesting doing double or triple the reps with more weight. Thatās why I only got 3 sets in at the top weight compared to 5 sets last week. Also using the Oly shoes to keep practicing with them. Depth was good and my knees felt fine.
Bench felt okay. I was going to do Spoto press, and I did for a couple of sets of 135 and 225 each, but felt some pec pulling and decided to go with pin presses instead to make sure. They were easy.
SG DL was rough today. I donāt know if it was because of the squats before it or from Monday, but damn, it was all back this time. I got almost the same amount of sets as last week though.
MP went well. 20 lbs over last week and same amount of sets.
Deadlift (Spud Belt):
4x405 @ 7.5
4x435 @ 8
4x465 @ 8.5
4x485 @ 9 (RPE PR. 10 lbs. over last week) Fatigue Drop
4x455 @ 9 e1RM: 566
Breathing Paused Squat (Oly Shoes)(Beltless):
5x275 @ 8
5x295 @ 8
5x315 @ 9 Fatigue Drop
5x295 @ 8
5x295 @ 8.5 (Could have done a few more sets technically the same RPE, but it felt pretty terrible so I cut it here)
Happy with the number I got on deadlift, but my form was pretty ugly. My back was rounding from the get-go, but somehow I was actually able to get my glutes to fire and pull my hips through better than usual. The top set was pretty fast and I think I could have gotten 495 for the same RPE if I had done it instead of 485. Definitely not after though considering my fatigue set.
Breathing paused squats moved well but felt like death. I donāt know what it was, but it just all felt heavy. Oh well, next squat day isnāt til Monday.
Iām not sure if I should call my rows Pendlay rows, it feels blasphemous. Theyāre somewhere in between Pendlay rows and Rubbish rows. Either way, Iām not doing this shit strict is what Iām saying. I want it to be heavy so itās a deadlift movement, not a muscle movement. Maybe Iāll just start calling them cheat Pendlay rows.
Accessories:
Band Triceps Pushdown: 3x15 @ Light Band
GHR: 3x10 @ BW
Only minor pec pain during this workout, so Iām very happy about that. Instead of stretching it a lot, I did light band flies between sets to keep it warm and feel if I needed to stop. I only made it to 335 again, which Iāve hit several times over the past few weeks. I think if I was less tentative about my pec I could have done more, but itāll come with time.
SlingShot bench went well other than overshooting and hitting an RPE 10 instead of a 9. Iām still getting used to the SS and how the strength curve works.
I was very surprised about the deadlifts since I had just pulled the night before, but maybe Iām adapting to the frequency. I hate that I tore my callous, itās the first time I ever did it and it stings like a bitch. Iām not even sure you call this tearing a callous, because it tore above the actual callous where live skin is. Oh well, I donāt pull again til Wednesday.
Buffalo Bar Squat (Oly Shoes)(Spud Belt):
2x4x385 @ 8 (Repeated due to form issues)
4x405 @ 8.5
4x425 @ 8.5
4x445 @ 9 Fatigue Drop
4x405 @ 8.5
4x405 @ 9 e1RM: 509
3 ct. Paused Floor Press w/ Chains(+40) (Wraps):
5x225+40 @ 8
5x245+40 @ 8.5
5x265+40 @ 9 15% Drop - Rep-Out
13x225+40 @ 9.5 (First 5 were paused as before, last 8 were TnG)(PR) e1RM: 316+40
Front Squat (Beltless)(Oly Shoes):
4x6x225 @ 8ās
Accessory:
Band Face Pull: 2x30 @ Light Band
Using the buffalo bar with the Oly shoes for the first time was interesting. Iām not sure if it was pitching me forward or if I just wasnāt as strong today, but it was very rough. I did beat last week by 20 lbs. but it as a much more difficult than that jump should have been. Either way, still working on using the Oly shoes. I warmed up with the mirror blocked and I really really need to get used to that, because I was thrown way off and had to remove the covering to do my work sets.
Floor press went well. I donāt think Iāve ever done a 3 count pause on those and it was tough, lots of pressure on the forearm bones at the bottom. Iām happy with how heavy I got with them, but I wasnāt sure what to expect. No pec pain on these either, some shoulder pain though.
Front squats felt terrible after all the other squatting. I havenāt done this in a couple of months though, so Iām not surprised. I moved fast enough, it just was difficult stability and quad strength-wise.
Volume - Week 3 - Day 2 Density Day - Squat/Bench/Deadlift/Dips
Squat with Chains(+90) (Spud Belt)(Chucks):
6x275+90 @ 7.5
6x315+90 @ 8
6x315+90 @ 8
6x315+90 @ 8 Done in 20 minutes including warm-ups
Close Grip Bench (TnG)(Wraps):
5x275 @ 7
5x275 @ 7
5x275 @ 7 (These moved okay, but my elbows and forearms felt shitty, so I kept them light) 18 Minutes
Sumo Deadlift (Beltless)(Straps due to torn hand):
4x365 @ 7.5
4x365 @ 7.5
4x365 @ 7
4x365 @ 8 23 Minutes
This was a bit of an unplanned deload. The squats moved well but felt very heavy. My back and hips were killing me as usual on this day, by getting pumped as hell. Iām not sure what causes it, may be the reps, the rest periods, or the fact that I squat heavy the workout before, or some combination of those.
At this point when I started benching and it didnāt feel great, I decided to keep the rest of the workout low volume and lighter. Itās hard to call this a density day because of that, but Iām just being consistent with naming.
Dips felt pretty good surprisingly, maybe Iāll alternate those with military press.
Deadlift (Spud Belt)(Straps due to torn callous):
4x405 @ 7
4x445 @ 7
4x475 @ 8
4x495 @ 8.5 (PR! Match PR on reps, but previous was at an RPE 10)
4x505 @ 9 (PR!) Fatigue Drop
4x475 @ 9 e1RM: 589
RDL (Beltless)(Oly Shoes):
6x275 @ 7
6x315 @ 7.5
6x365 @ 8 (Will beat this next time. Just ruined for pulling at this point)
Top set of deadlift wasnāt that bad looking at the video, I kind of wish I had gone for more. The straps threw me off though, since I had to stay crouched and bent over and all that, so I definitely donāt think those gave me any advantage. Went back to check how long ago I hit my now previous PR of 4x495 and it was on July 21, 2013. Took me essentially a year to put 10 lbs. on that shit. Jesus. Thankfully Iām feeling healthy and Iām riding the momentum for deadlifting. If I had gone for 515 and gotten it at a 9 RPE, my e1RM would be 600, but Iām very happy with having a e1RM of above 6 plates. Just gotta actually pull it.
Paused squats felt pretty terrible. I just got the work in and dealt with it. My upper/mid back was giving up on me at this point.
RDLs were an afterthought. I think I could have gotten 405 for 6 pretty easily otherwise.
Fucking killed this one. Very happy with finally getting past 4x335@9 that Iāve been hitting for the past few weeks and the e1RM being my all time PR. No pec pain whatsoever and just a bit of elbow pain. The pauses were pretty legit too.
SlingShot bench was awesome. I feel like it is so much better touch-and-go compared to paused. Paused is just too rough on the shoulders for now. So the 30 lb. PR was 30 lbs. over last weekās paused version, but Iām still calling it that. 405 actually didnāt feel that heavy in my hands, so thatās great. I have no idea if that e1RM of 456 is realistic because the strength curve is different, but maybe.
Deadlifts were pointless really. I started out with deficits, but it felt bad on my back, so I switched to paused. It was better but still wanted to just be careful since Iām going into the intensity phase on Monday.
Squat (Oly Shoes)(Single Prong):
2x405 @ 8.5 (All of this felt terrible, read more in notes)
2x425 @ 8.5
2x445 @ 8.5
2x465 @ 9 No Fatigue Drop e1RM: 498
3 ct. Paused Bench (Wraps):
2x4x275 @ 8
4x315 @ 9 No Fatigue Drop e1RM: 365
Paused Front Squat:
5x225 @ Who cares
1x275 @ lol (I did one and my upper back caved basically, cut my losses)
I havenāt felt this bad squatting in a long time, not including joint pain things. My form held up very well, but every rep from 365 up was slow as hell and I just felt weak. The only thing I can attribute it to was my diet from yesterday, which was pretty shitty and gave me stomach issues for a lot of today. I was hoping to get 475 today, so Iām glad I was able to grind out 465 and get somewhat close.
Benching felt similar to squatting and I started to just do repeats at 275, but the second set felt good enough to just hit 315 and move on. Iām pretty happy with a 365 e1RM for a long pause.
Front squatting is barely worth mentioning, but itās important to note how awful I did. My upper back just gave up on the first rep of 275, which is a weight Iāve hit for 12 a couple months ago.
Hopefully I can chalk this up to dieting mistakes yesterday and consider it a fluke basically.
Squatting felt much better today than the other day. Obviously itās much lighter weight, but I still PRād in volume. I brought my stance in closer so that I could stay more upright and it seemed to help. I switched my squat primary assistance to today and my primary supplement to Fridays. I feel like Iāll get more out of each that way. Also, this wasnāt really a density day as Iāve done so far, as I didnāt time this. Iām just still not sure how I want these days to go.
Bench felt alright, I had started out with close grip but my shoulders were tight, so I switch to competition grip and it felt better. TnG is actually harder at the moment than paused form-wise.
Sumo was all over the place. Some reps were good and some were bad. Iām just not used to the movement right now, but all the reps did move quickly regardless.
My back started cramping during MP and I had to drop the weight. No big deal though.
Accessories:
Barbell Curls (21ās): 3x21 @ Bar
Cable Ab Strap Pulldown: 3x15 @ ā120ā
Heading out the door for my bench/deadlift workout so Iām keeping this short. Deadlift felt alright strength-wise but my form was way off. I kept my hips too high I think and it caused the bar to move horizontally first instead of vertically. Still a good e1RM though.
Squats felt awful again. Iām hoping it was a result of doing them in a fatigue state and supersetting them with RDL. I basically just couldnāt control the weight.
RDLās went well, I could control the weight well and I donāt think my form broke down too much. Still need to work on it though.
Comp. Bench (Short Pause)(Wraps):
2x355 @ 8
2x365 @ 9.5 (Back cramping threw me way off)
2x385 @ 11 (Failed the 2nd rep due to a mis-groove I think. 1st rep is a 10 lb. gym PR for paused bench)
2x365 @ 9 (Much better this time around)
Bench w/ Chians(+90) (Wraps):
4x275+50 @ 7
4x275+90 @ 8.5
2x295+90 @ 8.5 (I wanted to get 4 here at 10 but I could feel in the first reps I was going to miss again. Cut it here since I shouldnāt be missing reps)
2" Deficit Deadlift (Beltless)(Superset with bench and accessories):
5x4x405 @ 8
This was a confusing session. I felt decent on bench leading up to where I cramped up on 365, but then I foam rolled a bit and wanted to hit 2x385 for a pretty damn big PR (my previous 2RM PR is 375 and thatās touch-and-go). When I took the weight out it felt light and it even felt light at the top of the second rep and all the way down to my chest. But I pressed too much straight upward instead of arching back and I lost it. So I think I have the strength for it, today just wasnāt the day, as illustrated by the remaining bench sets.
Deadlift felt surprisingly good despite the difficulty of last nights workout and it being about 13 hours after.
Accessories:
Single Leg Curl: 3x12/12 @ ā70ā
Seated Calf Raise: 3x15 @ 45, 90, 90
Adductor Machine: 3x15 @ ā130ā
Fuck it, rewriting the program to accommodate the fact that I canāt squat 3 times per week. My knees canāt handle it at all and I have no control at the bottom of the movement. This started out well, and benching and deadlifting are still moving, so overall Iām happy. Just gotta find out how to move forward on squats finally, but Iām going to get injured if I donāt change this.
Floor press felt pretty good despite my pecs being pretty tight. Happy with that.
I think Iām going to venture into wrapping my knees as an overload method every other week for squats. Somethings gotta give at some point. Iāve pretty much been stuck at my 1RM for 3 years.
Superset:
B1 | Band Triceps Pushdown:
3x20 @ Doubled Mini
B2 | DB Curls:
3x10/10 @ 45s
This was a great workout, Iām very glad that I didnāt squat today. Iām actually not going to until Monday and Iāll be hitting 2 squat variations then and then another one on Fridays. I think Iāll be able to actually recover from that.
Benching went very well despite some pec tightness. Just 2 Saturdays ago I hit 345x4 with a short pause, so being able to do just one rep less with triple the pause length is really damn good. If that e1RM is accurate at 389, Iād be absolutely thrilled to hit that with a long pause. Spoto press moved so well it almost felt like I was using a SlingShot on most of the sets. Iām getting my groove going with arching back over my face and I think it will pay off.
Block pulls were miserable, so it may be one of those things I really need to work on. That position must be terrible for me, since it was only 485 at the top.
Iām trying to set up my workouts like I did today. First two exercises are done by themselves, then the 3rd is superset with a back accessory, then two isolation exercises. This is both a work capacity thing and me trying to fit everything in so that I stay healthy (back and iso exercises) and not stay too long in the gym (these workouts already take 2 hours).
Deadlift (Spud Belt):
3x455 @ 7.5
3x495 @ 9 (Definitely shouldnāt have hit at 9 so soon)
4x515 @ 10 (Kind ofā¦Canāt count this as a PR really. Read below)
RDL (Straps)(Beltless):
5x5x365 @ 8
Pull-Ups:
8, 8, 6 (Oof, terrible)
KB Swing:
4x10 @ 80
Cable Ab Strap Pulldown:
4x15 @ ā120ā
Well Iām not sure how to describe this workout. My top set of deadlift was supposed to be x3 @ 9. I hit 505x4 @ 9 and 525x2 @ 9 recently, so I figured 515 would be reasonable, if not 525 for a PR. Well I got to 495 and it felt like shit, I couldnāt get tight or focus. I decided, fuck it, Iāll try 515 anyway. Well I pull the first two and then on the third one the bar started slipping like 2 cm from lockoutā¦pissed off, I took 5 seconds and re-chalked my hands and pulled another one, because again, fuck it, but the same thing happened. The work had been done other than the bar slipping, but I was absolutely raging, so I canāt consider this a 4RM PR since I basically created a meet environment internally.
Anyway, no fatigue sets were done because I wanted the workout to just go well from there. The RDLs felt decent for being beltless. I think thatās a volume PR for those too.
Another awesome bench workout in the books! Iāve hit my stride with my form change (arching back over my face) and it feels pretty great. Iāve never moved 365 as fast as I did today. Hitting 365 for a 3 is pretty huge, as it matches my all time bench PR in reps and weight, but add in the competition pause on each rep and its ease, and it demolishes the PR. The e1RM is higher than itās ever been.
SlingShot bench was another big PR. I killed the first two reps and then locking out the third was extremely difficult. It took about 5 seconds to break through it. 425 didnāt feel impossibly heavy in my hands, just like 405 two weeks ago, so thatās an awesome sign for my nervous system and confidence. I have no idea if the 466 e1RM is realistic, but thatād be cool to lockout.
Deadlift was difficult after last nightās workout, but I got through it.
Squat w/ Wraps (First time with these):
3x405 @ ?
2x2x405 @ ?
(Not sure of the RPE on these. Wraps were unsurprisingly very uncomfortable)
Superset:
A1 | Military Press:
10x95
4x10x135
A2 | Paused Lat Pulldown (Wide Neutral):
4x10x"150"
Seated Band Leg Curls:
3x20 @ Avg.
First day back squatting after a week. Knees didnāt feel much better, but the weight moved better than last week. The idea currently is to run a basic template working between 405-475 for 10-15 reps and then overload. The problem is Iām not sure I can overload with the wraps very efficiently. I was fully expecting to get at least 475 for 4x2 with the wraps, but the wraps didnāt actually help that much. I think my form was fine and my wrap was decent, so maybe I just need to figure out how to sit into them correctly.
Also, the wraps hurt the shit out of my calves. Not sure if thatās normal.
MP felt much better than normal today. Happy with the volume there.
Man it seems like your putting in some good work and hitting great numbers! Itās funny you started this type of training because Iāve been trying to figure out a way to schedule something similar for myself. For the past few months Iāve been trying to get myself accustomed to higher frequency since it seems like alot of the best raw lifters train that way, but its been a bit rocky. My bench really seems to really like two heavy(ish) sessions. Iāve finally gotten back to back squatting after a long layoff due to a herniated disk, so Iām going slow with that. However, Iāve hit PRās on deadlifts and benches.
How have you set up the weekly program? Iāve tried doing the squat 3x a week but didnāt even come close to making it work. Maybe I need to take more time to work up to that. It almost seems like youāre following a block periodization model (accumulation, intensification/transmutation, realization). This whole idea makes alot of sense to me conceptually. Is this sort of how RTS sets things up?
Iām pretty happy with this performance. At first floor press wasnāt going very well, but once I hit 315 with a hand-off it got a lot better. Iām not sure if 345 would have been a 9 or 9.5, either way I was saving myself for this Saturday where I hit a max single on bench. Same goes for the Spoto presses being cut short.
SG deadlift felt better than it has before, although I only did it previously on my density days, which meant I was fatigued by that point. But Iām happy with being able to hit 425 for an easy 4. My arms are already somewhat short I think, so these put me in a pretty terrible position. Weāll see if they help. Didnāt do fatigue sets because T-Bar rows are similar enough in what they hit to be sufficient volume. Also, going for a max deadlift single on Friday.
Iron: So Iām basically doing 5 bench variations a week, if you count military press, in 3 days (Monday, Wednesday, Saturday (main)). Iām deadlifting 4 variations in 3 days (Wednesday, Friday (main), Saturday), and Iām now squatting 3 variations in two days (Monday (main), Friday). My main day on each lift has 2 variations of that lift. The first lift of the main day is the competition lift in competition form exactly (paused bench, deadlift/squat with belt).
I started out squatting with the 4 variations just like deadlift, but Iāve pretty much lost all of my strength and killed my kness. Iām still trying to work out the programming though. I think the 2 days a week should work alright if the second day is lighter due to harder exercises (front squat, bottom-up SSB squat). I honestly am thinking of doing something different each time I think of squats, so I canāt nail down what Iām doing for it yet. I tried wraps for the first time the other day to try overloading and they sucked. Still thinking about whether or not theyāre worth it.
Deadlift and bench are both feeling like theyāre increasing and responding well with the frequency though. You may be like me in that regard. I have some exercise selection notes on the second post of this page of the log, just donāt pay attention to the squat stuff.
Itās a really simple block style, itās just 3 weeks of volume and then 3 weeks of intensity and repeat. I havenāt decided how to work transition weeks in, which Mike T at RTS describes as anything you need it to be, whether it be deload or whatever. From what Iāve gathered from reading on the RTS site/forum, this is at least how Mike used to set people up. Iām not sure if itās exactly like that now.
Not sure if that helps or not, let me know if you have any other questions!
FUCK YES. Huge PR attained, skipped right over 6 plates for 590 and it wasnāt the hardest pull ever. In fact, 575 was considered my slowest pull ever when I PRād with it in November, but I smoked it today as you can see on the video. Definitely think I have 600 in me soon.
Bottom-up SSB squat continues to be the hardest god damn exercise ever. Going to keep at it.
