Could you have been carrying over fatigue from the prior day’s front rack hold? My front rack sucks, which might be part of my problem, but my horizontal pressing takes a hit after front squats. Killer movement for core and upper back, though.
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I don’t think there was a whole lot of fatigue carry-over tbh. It wasn’t too challenging for my upper back, but it did show me how de-conditioned my lower back has become.
Front squats are hard though, so I completely get that. I remember when I was really pushing them, and holy shit, they’re brutal but keep you honest at the same time. I never questioned what my rhomboids were after the first few heavy sessions lol
1 Like
Log Week 8
Wave 3 Week 2
Benchmark Lifts:
Overhead Press: 55kg x 3 reps (+5kg)
Chin-up: +20kg x 3 reps (+5kg)
----- Monday -----
Overhead Press (3 reps @ 55kg, 2 x 3 reps @ 50kg)
Chin-ups (3 reps @ +20kg, 2 x 3 reps @ +10kg)
Overhead Press (3 x 6 reps @ 47.5kg)
Chin-ups (3 x 6 reps @ +2.5kg)
Lateral Raise Machine (3 x 12 reps @ 46kg)
Deadhang (3 x 30 seconds @ +17.5kg)
(Different machine to normal)
Reverse Pec Deck (8 reps @ 39kg; 12, 10 reps @ 32/kg)
Pec Deck (10, 10, 8 reps @ 66kg)
The heavy triples are starting to feel easy. The last rep of the third triple went up so easily that I couldn’t help but laugh a little.This is the most confident I have been in this entire training block of hitting the next PR.
Finally got my 3x12 at this weight on the lateral raise machine, feels good. Gotta say though, I’ve noticed that I’ve got a better mind-muscle connection with the side delt on the left, and it’s also a bit bigger. Idk how that happened given almost all my side delt training has been with DBs or cables.
----- Tuesday -----
RDL (3 x 6 reps @ 102.5kg)
1/4 ROM Leg Press (3 x 12 reps @ 50kg)
Physio Side Plank
Glute Ham Raise (12, 8+, 7+)
Smith Machine Calf Raise (9, 9, 9 reps @ +70kg)
Dragon Flag (3 x 5 eccentrics)
At the moment, the heavy RDLs just feel like an exercise in bracing. It doesn’t even feel too much like a glute or hamstring exercise (I am feeling it in them, just not a crazy amount). My lower back has also got a little sore off them, so I think I’ve jumped to heavy weights too quickly, and my lower back hasn’t had time to adjust. I’m thinking about trying Kickstand/B-Stance RDLs next week instead.
Looks like my hamstrings are starting to remember how to do GHRs, feels good.
----- Wednesday -----
45° Incline Bench (5, 5, 4+ reps @ 72.5kg)
DB Curl (12, 12, 9 reps @ 10kg DBs)
Gonna go for a Bi/Tri superset next week. Supersetting curls with my Incline Bench has started to get annoying.
----- Thursday -----
No training today, but did some of my prescribed physio work on Friday
----- Friday -----
Overhead Press (3 x 7 reps @ 46.5kg)
Pull-ups (3 x 7 reps @ bodyweight)
Bench (3 x 5 reps @ 82.5kg)
Single Arm Barbell Row (4 x 10 reps @ 36.5kg)
Physio Step-ups
I thought the last rep of Overhead Presses was going to be an all-out grinder, so I put all my energy into throwing it up as quickly as I could, and it actually moved well. Could’ve got another if I wanted to
Better bar placement on my bench presses this week, but there is still room to improve. If my placement didn’t get better from last week, there’s no way I could’ve got the 3x5 today.
Thoughts:
My overhead pressing is feeling strong at the moment, I’m feeling ready to hit another PR next week. The question that’s been floating around my mind recently is do I extend this block out for another 3 week wave? If I do that, the big one plate press milestone will be waiting for me at the end.
Even though my bench progress is slowing, I think I might do it. In a fourth wave, I’d just up my bench presses by 1.5 or 2kg instead of 2.5. Mmm, it’s so tempting.
3 Likes
Same here. I blame an old tear in my right bicep and a freak surfing accident
Also Spanish squats (band behind the kneecaps, pulling them forward)
1 Like
Log Week 9
Wave 3 Week 3
Benchmark Lifts:
Overhead Press: 57.5kg x 3 reps (+7.5kg) PR
Chin-up: +22.5kg x 3 reps (+7.5kg) PR
----- Monday -----
Overhead Press (3 reps @ 57.5kg, 2 x 3 reps @ 52kg) PR
Chin-ups (3 reps @ +22.5kg, 2 x 3 reps @ +12.5kg) PR
Overhead Press (3 x 5 reps @ 50kg)
Chin-ups (3 x 5 reps @ +5kg)
Lateral Raise Machine (3 x 10 reps @ 46/kg)
Deadhang (3 x 30 seconds @ +20kg)
- My Overhead Press is starting to look like it has a little bit of weight on the bar now!
----- Tuesday -----
Kickstand RDL (6 reps @ 60, 65, 70kg, 3 x 6 reps @ 75kg)
Glute Ham Raise (10, 10, 4+ reps)
Turns out my RDLs were just an exercise in bracing after all! Definitely felt it more in the hamstrings this time, and the back feels great. Could’ve added a bit more weight to the bar, but this is a good place to start from for a new movement
No idea wtf happened on my last GHR set
----- Wednesday -----
45° Incline Bench (4, 4, 5 reps @ 75kg)
EZ Bar Preacher Curls (12, 12, 8 reps @ 20kg)
DB Skullcrushers (12 reps @ 10kg, 2 x 12 reps @ 12.5 kg)
Wrist Curl (3 x 12 reps @ 17.5kg)
Wrist Extension (10, 10, 5 reps @ 12.5kg)
I went from missing the last rep on incline bench the last two weeks, to adding one this week. Now that’s how I want the block to end!
Now that I’ve decided that I actually want to train arms a little bit, I’m slightly regretting not training them in the past. The weights I’m moving are so small
Probably going to try to use the EZ bar for curls and skullcrushers next time out; I’m finding it hard to keep form tight with DBs when I get close to failureGrip felt fried before I even got to where I’d normally do smooth barbell holds, so I thought it’d be a good idea to give my grip a bit of a break this week
Gonna use DBs for wrist extensions from here on. I’m feeling some crunching/clicking while doing it, and I don’t want that to get any worse
----- Thursday -----
Kickstand RDL (10 reps @ 60kg, 2 x 10 reps @ 65kg)
Deficit Hip Thrust (2 x 6 reps @ 130kg, 6 reps @ 135kg)
Physio Cable Lunge
Not liking how fatigued my hamstrings were during my hip thrusts. I’m thinking of doing something like this next week:
Hip Thrust > Hamstring Curl > RDL
Keep my glute strength up, but still fry my hamstringsI like this new exercise the physio has given me. It’s easy to adjust, and honestly, it just feels good to do. Hopefully this is what helps me make some actual progress
----- Friday -----
Overhead Press (1 rep @ 54kg, 3 x 6 reps @ 49kg)
Pull-ups (3 x 6 reps @ +2.5kg)
Bench (4, 4, 5 reps @ 85kg)
Single Arm Barbell Row (10, 10, 10, 7 reps @ 37.5kg)
Cable Lateral Raise (10 reps @ 3.75kg, 2 x 10 reps @ 3.75/kg)
Got an extra rep on flat bench too!
I tried doing cable laterals with the cable setting a bit off the ground so the cable is horizontal at the bottom. They’re so good this way. I took half a step out, moved my hips back a touch so my arm is straight up and down, and let my arm come across my body a bit. If you haven’t tried these yet, you’ve got to give them a go.
I’ve had a bit of shoulder discomfort with lateral raises recently. I found with this exercise that if I let the tension come off my shoulder at the bottom then yank it out, it felt worse, but if I didn’t let the weight settle on the stack it was better for me
Thoughts:
I never thought I would say this, and it pains to do so, but I’m going to be responsible and take a deload next week.
Everything is feeling heavy at this point, and I think extending this block out for a another wave (against recommendations) would just end up being greedy.
The plan for now is deload next week (and load creatine) then do a two week mini cut. I’ll do some AMRAP testing (and maybe have a go at that 60kg triple) to see where my strength is at so I can reset the RPE going into the next block.This has been an amazing block of training. I just need to remember that, and not be disappointed that I didn’t hit the big milestone this time around. It’s all about incremental progress and the milestones will come. Hell, I was 1kg away from using 50kg on all my volume work this week, that’s something to be proud of.
2 Likes
Log Week 10
Deload
----- Monday -----
Paused Overhead Press – 52.5kg (2 reps), 47.5kg (3 reps)
Chin-ups – +17.5kg (2 reps), +7.5kg (3 reps)
Paused Overhead Press – 45kg (5, 5 reps)
Chin-ups – bodyweight (5, 5 reps)
- My Overhead Presses have always been paused, just changing what I’m writing down to show that
----- Tuesday -----
Hand Supported SL DB RDL – 40kg (6, 4 reps)
Physio Cable Lunge
----- Wednesday -----
Paused 45° Incline Bench – 65kg (5, 4 reps)
- Same thing here. They were always paused
----- Thursday -----
Deficit Hip Thrust – 125kg (5, 5 reps)
----- Friday -----
No session
Thoughts:
Creatine: Loaded!..probably
Spent a bunch of time at my girlfriend’s place this week, and I’m pretty sure I got 20g of creatine in each day, but not 100% on thatDefinitely felt like I had to lower the weights more than I expected to get the RPEs I wanted. I didn’t have my head in the game when I came in; that’s probably why.
What do you guys think about the new way I’m laying this out? I was thinking the old way with all the ‘@’ and ‘3x10’ looked a bit too cluttered.
I’m also tossing up the idea of dropping the word ‘reps’ from it as well, so it’d look like:
Overhead Press – 50kg (5), 45kg (5, 5)
Instead of:
Overhead Press – 50kg (5 reps), 45kg (5, 5 reps)
2 Likes
Haha fair 
Did it always, or just this new way?
That’s actually what I was going for, so I’m glad it comes across like that.
I was looking at some of my entries and it just looked like a wall of text (especially when I’ve got different weights for the same exercise), so I was thinking of changing something up to help with look of it. Maybe just some italics or lines like – would help.
Maybe something like:
Paused Overhead Press (3 reps @ 50kg - 2 x 3 reps @ 45kg)
Paused Overhead Press (3 reps @ 50kg – 2 x 3 reps @ 45kg)
Paused Overhead Press (3 reps @ 50kg — 2 x 3 reps @ 45kg)
Paused Overhead Press (3 reps @ 50kg → 2 x 3 reps @ 45kg)
2 Likes
Perfect, that was my favorite too
Thanks for helping out
1 Like
Paused presses are the only presses (until you’re hitting a gym max). I actually notice more of a strength jump when I stop pausing OHP than when I go TNG on bench
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Absolutely, they keep you honest with where you’re at. It’s so much easier to let a bit of form slop creep in when you don’t pause
Exact same thing here for me too. I’m not actually sure why that is. Maybe there’s just so much elastic energy stored in your pecs that a 1 second pause doesn’t dissipate it too much
I started pausing them all because I was doing a Brian Alsruhe program that cycled between 1, 3, and 5 rep maxes each week and I didn’t like how hard it was to judge where my 1 rep max would be compared to 3 and 5, and it was hard to judge what weight the back-off work needed to be too.
1 Like
Log Week 11
Cut Week 1
----- Monday -----
Paused Overhead Press (4 reps @ 57.5kg – 4 reps @ 50kg)
Chin-ups (4 reps @ +22.5kg – 4 reps @ +10kg)
Paused Overhead Press (2 x 7 reps @ 45kg)
Chin-ups (7, 7)
Left Side Nautilus Pullover (1 set)
Lateral Raise Machine (2 x 10 reps @ 46/kg)
Deadhang (2 x 30 seconds @ +20kg)
The same different machine(I’m just going to call it the upstairs one from now on)
Pec Deck (12, 8+ reps @ 66kg)
Reverse Pec Deck (14, 12 reps @ 32/kg)
CoC #1 gripper (11, 14 reps) to parallel
Neither my overhead press nor my chin-ups have increased at all from the deload + creatine. Not what I was expecting. I got 3 reps @ RPE 9 last week of the block, and 4 reps @ RPE 10 this time…
Bodyweight chin-ups were also weaker than what I expected
At least the gripper is looking good
----- Tuesday -----
No session
----- Wednesday -----
Paused Overhead Press (8 reps @ 49kg – 8 reps @ 44kg)
Pull-ups (10, 7+ reps)
Paused Bench (4, 5 reps @ 85kg)
One Arm Barbell Row (2 x 10 reps @ 37.5kg)
Cable Lateral Raise (2 x 12 reps @ 3.75/kg)
Physio Cable Lunge
- Now THIS is what I’m talking about! Overhead press and pull-ups are up 2 reps each!
That’s more what I was hoping for. That’s also the first time I’ve done a set of 10 legitimate pull-ups. Full extension at the bottom, up as far as my body allows (that’s the bonus of not using a straight bar), controlled lowering, no bullshit knee-tuck kipping, no reaching with the neck and rounding the upper back.
An honest to god, clean, crisp set of 10
----- Thursday -----
Deficit Hip Thrust (7+, 5+ reps @ 140kg)
SL Lying Hamstring Curl (10, 8+ reps @ 25kg)
RDL (10 reps @ 60kg, 70kg, 80kg)
Physio Side Plank
Smith Machine Calf Raise (10, 9 reps @ +70kg)
Dragon Flag (6, 5 eccentrics)
Physio Cable Lunge
- I like this way of doing RDLs pre-fatigued. I’ve tried variations of them, but none of them feel as good as the classic. This time around it did feel more like a glute and hamstring exercise, and not a struggle to brace hard enough. I’m going to keep doing them this way.
- Also, my grip sucks. I had to chalk up for 70kg, and switch to mixed grip half-way through the set with 80kg. Got to hope these grip exercises I’m doing will pay off
----- Friday -----
Paused 45° Incline Bench (12+, 6+ reps @ 60kg)
Lat Pulldown (12+ reps @ 68kg – 9+ reps @ 61kg)
Left Side Nautilus Pullover (1 set)
Paused Ring Dips (9+ reps)
EZ Bar Preacher Curl (12, 7+ reps @ 20kg)
EZ Bar Skullcrusher (2 x 12 reps @ 25kg)
Wrist Curl (12, 15+ reps @ 17.5kg)
DB Wrist Extension (10, 6 reps @ 6kg)
Smooth Barbell Hold (2 x 20 seconds @ 85kg)
- Felt like I could’ve got another rep on the first set of incline bench, but I put the bar in the wrong spot on my chest…and of course it was the only time in the set I put the bar there…
Thoughts:
- Disappointing not to increase my heavy overhead pressing at all. I do find it weird that on Wednesday my overhead press improved, but on Monday it didn’t. I’m going to try another AMRAP test next Monday to see if I just had a bad day, or if that’s actually what the situation is
2 Likes
Both of these lifts progress painstakingly slowly for me
Yeah, they can be really frustrating.
I got more progress from the last 9 week specialisation block than I have in forever trying to up them as secondary exercises. It looks like for me, they just needed a bit more attention
Log Week 12
Cut Week 2
----- Monday -----
Paused Overhead Press (3+ reps @ 57.5kg – 9 reps @ 47.5kg)
Chin-ups (10, 9 reps @ bodyweight)
- Lost a rep on my heavy overhead press, but I did really, really well with the higher rep set
----- Tuesday -----
GHR (11, 11, 13+)
RDL (3 x 8 reps @ 80kg)
SL Lying Hamstring Curl (2 x 8 reps @ 25kg)
Physio Cable Lunge
Physio Side Plank
The RDL is starting to feel like a bracing exercise again.
I found with my RDL that I need to squeeze my glutes before I brace. I think I unintentionally over-arch my lower back a little bit otherwise
----- Wednesday -----
Paused Overhead Press (2 x 8 reps @ 46kg)
Pull-ups (8, 8 reps @ bodyweight)
Paused Bench (7+ reps @ 82.5kg – 6 reps @ 80kg)
One Arm Barbell Row (2 x 10 reps @ 37.5kg)
Cable Lateral Raise (2 x 12 reps @ 3.75/kg)
Physio Cable Lunge
----- Thursday -----
Deficit Hip Thrust (2 x 5 reps @ 140kg)
SL Lying Hamstring Curl (2 x 8 reps @ 25kg)
RDL (2 x 9 reps @ 80kg)
Seated Calf Raise (2 x 10 reps @ 32.5kg)
Dragon Flag Eccentrics (2 x 6 reps)
Physio Side Plank
Physio Cable Lunge
----- Friday -----
Paused 45° Incline Bench (2 x 12 reps @ 57.5kg)
EZ Bar Preacher Curl (2 x 12 reps @ 20kg)
EZ Bar Skullcrusher (2 x 12 reps @ 25kg)
- Forgot to do the pull-downs, whoops
Thoughts:
I don’t think the creatine has done anything for me. My top end strength hasn’t gone up at all since I started using it, and this week, it actually went backwards a little bit. My rep strength has gone up, but I think that’s more to do with the deload than the creatine.
I haven’t been weighing myself these last three weeks, so I don’t know if I’ve gained weight from the creatine at all. It would be a pretty big giveaway that it hasn’t worked if I haven’t gained weight from it either. We’ll have to see how much I weigh next week.I’ve definitely noticed the lost weight from the cut, and I’m happy that I’ve got my diet so dialed-in at this point that I can just do my thing and know that I’m on the right track.
Ideally, I’d like to have this level of leanness at the end of a bulk, rather than at the beginning, but it’s no biggie honestly. I’m thinking of doing a longer mini-cut at the end of the next block, maybe 3-4 weeks, just to help myself out when it comes time to do the bigger cut later in the year. I’m not a fan of longer cuts, so if I do a 4 week one next time, then maybe all I’ll need is 6 weeks to get down to the dream BF target I’ve been wanted for a while now.I used to drink a litre of milk on workout days to help me fill in the calories I need, but I got a bit sick of people looking at me like I was some kind of psycho, so I decided to stop in the last block. I was convinced that I’d find something new to meal prep to fill the gap, but I ended up just buying more food instead. I ended up eating more calories than I wanted to (which made me gain more than planned) and it also cost me a bunch more money. So it looks like I’m going back to full psycho mode again lol
Overall, I’m glad I did the deload, and that I did the mini-cut. I got what I wanted out of it, and I’m looking forward to the next block
2 Likes
Log Week 13
Wave 1 Week 1
Benchmark Lifts:
Paused Overhead Press: 57.5kg x 3 reps (+7.5kg)
Chin-up: +22.5kg x 3 reps (+7.5kg)
----- Monday -----
Paused Overhead Press (3 reps @ 57.5kg, 2 x 3 reps @ 52kg)
Chin-ups (3 reps @ +22.5kg, 2 x 3 reps @ +12.5kg)
Paused Overhead Press (7 reps @ 47.5kg – 2 x 7 reps @ 46.5kg)
Chin-ups (3 x 7 reps @ +2.5kg)
Deadhang (3 x 30 seconds @ +20kg)
Cable Lateral Raise (3 x 12 reps @ 3.75/kg)
- I tried to up the weight in line with what I would have done had I gone for a fourth wave last time. Turns out that wasn’t a good idea, Everything was very heavy. The top triple was nearly failed, so my strength is definitely down from where it was.
----- Tuesday -----
Glute Ham Raise (12, 12, 7+ reps)
RDL (3 x 8 reps @ 80kg)
Single Leg Lying Hamstring Curl (10, 7+ reps @ 20/kg – 8++ reps @ 20kg)
Physio Cable Lunge
Physio Side Plank
----- Wednesday -----
Paused Overhead Press (2 x 8 reps @ 45kg – 7+ reps @ 44kg)
Pull-ups (3 x 8 reps)
Paused Bench (6, 6, 5 reps @ 80kg)
Single Arm Barbell Row (3 x 10 reps @ 37.5kg)
Lateral Raise Machine (10, 9+, 5+ reps @ 46/kg)
Felt off today, and everything felt heavy
I was looking back at my overhead pressing performance the week after and I thought that given I did 49kg for 8 reps, 45kg for 3 x 8 would be a good place to start this block. As it turns out, nope.
----- Thursday -----
Defecti Hip Thrust (3 x 5 reps @ 140kg)
Single Leg Lyring Hamstring Curl (12 reps @ 31.5kg – 2 x12 reps @ 31.5//kg)
RDL (3 x 12 reps @ 67.5kg)
Physio Cable Lunge
- My lats started to give out before my hamstrings during my RDL. I think I’m going to try out a high reps snatch grip back extension next week.
----- Saturday -----
Paused 45° Incline Bench (12, 12, 9 reps @ 57.5kg)
Lat Pulldown (12, 12, 12++ reps @ 61/kg)
Paused Ring Dips (10 reps)
EZ Bar Preacher Curl (10, 8, 6+ reps @ 20kg)
EZ Bar Skullcrusher (12, 12, 9+ reps @ 25kg)
Wrist Flexion (3 x 12 reps @ 17.5kg)
DB Wrist Extension (12, 9+ reps @ 5kg – 12 reps @ 4kg)
Smooth Barbell Hold (3 x 20 seconds @ 85kg)
Thoughts:
I based a lot of the weights this off my performance following the deload week, but it looks like the two weeks in the cut have hurt my performance quite a lot. We’ll have to see how next week goes, but if my performance get hit this badly after a mini-cut then I might have to find a way to make longer-term cuts more bearable for me. Seeing the performance boost I got after the deload was really encouraging, and I’d really like to ride that into the next block
My average weight for the week is in and…it really doesn’t look like the creatine has done anything. No increase in top-end strength, and now, no increase in bodyweight. I don’t see a reason to continue taking it at this point
1 Like
Log Week 14
Wave 1 Week 2
Benchmark Lifts:
Paused Overhead Press: 57.5kg x 3 reps (+7.5kg)
Chin-up: +22.5kg x 3 reps (+7.5kg)
----- Monday -----
Paused Overhead Press (3 reps @ 57.5kg, 2 x 3 reps @ 52kg)
Chin-ups (3 reps @ +22.5kg, 2 x 3 reps @ +10kg)
Paused Overhead Press (3 x 6 reps @ 47.5kg)
Chin-ups (3 x 6 reps @ +5kg)
Deadhang (3 x 20 seconds @ +22.5kg)
Lateral Raise Machine (10, 9, 7+ reps @ 46/kg)
Pec Deck (3 x 10 reps @ 68kg)
Reverse Pec Deck (3 x 12 reps @ 32/kg)
- Couple of mistakes today with loading/planning. I did the back-off triples with 10, not 12.5kg, and did the deadhangs for 20 not 30 seconds (they did feel quite easy). Not a biggie, will fix it up next week.
----- Tuesday -----
SL Deficit Hip Thrust (2 x 10 reps @ 30kg)
SL Hip Thrust (6+ reps @ 30kg)
SL Lying Hamstring Curl (3 x 10 reps @ 20/kg)
Snatch Grip Back Extension (12, 12, 9+ reps @ 30, 35, 45kg)
Physio Lunge
Physio Side Plank
Smith Machine Calf Raise (11, 10, 10 reps @ +70kg)
Dragon Flag Eccentrics (3 x 6 reps)
Tried out something new instead of higher rep RDLs, and I’m liking what I found. Definitely got a few weird looks from other people in the gym, but I really felt these more in my hamstrings and less in my lats, so it’s a plus in my books. I’ll keep going with these for now, and see what I think of them in a couple of weeks
I’m also pushing my dragon flags again. I decided to stop progressing them because I was happy with where my abs where at, but c’mon man, full dragon flags are cool as hell, why wouldn’t I want to be able to crank them out?
----- Wednesday -----
Paused Overhead Press (7, 7, 6+ reps @ 46.5kg)
Pull-ups (3 x 7 reps @ +2.5kg)
Paused Bench (5, 5, 5 reps @ 82.5kg)
Single Arm Barbell Row (3 x 10 reps @ 37.5kg)
Cable Lateral Raise (13, 13, 10+ reps @ 3.75/kg)
----- Thursday -----
GHR (12, 12, 9+)
RDL (3 x 6 reps @ 82.5kg)
SL Lying Hamstring Curl (10, 10 reps @ 20/, 20kg)
Physio Lunge
Physio Side Plank
Dragon Flag Eccentrics (6, 5, 5 reps)
Seated Calf Raise (3 x 12 reps @ +32.5kg)
----- Saturday -----
Paused Incline Bench (*10, 10, 9 reps @ 60kg)
Slow Eccentric Pull-ups (8, 6, 5+ reps)
Went at a busy time today and it was goddam madness. There was a lady doing some dance with a dowel where she was holding it over her head then bent sideways to touch it with her foot, and there were two DIFFERENT guys curling in two DIFFERENT squat racks
. They were clearly friends too, so it just made it even more unnecessary.
The upshot of all that was that I did more of a 30 degree incline bench, and had to do pull-ups instead of lat pulldown. Definitely pushed the first set of pull-ups to hard though
Thoughts:
Getting kind of annoyed at how far behind I am compared to the end of last block, and especially compared to how I was after the deload. I feel like it’s time to change some things up. I had a good block with the last system, but I want to find something new. I’ve found some things that I’m putting together into a new system for me, but I’ll post that separately.
My diet in absolutely on point rn. The weekly average (5 weigh-ins) for my bodyweight went up by 130g last week, which is pretty much exaclty where I want it to be. Amazing what happens when you’re not buying food every single day.
1 Like
My new program
(I definitely used this as a brain dump, so if you just want to see what I’m changing, there’s another bold sub-heading further down)
Edit 3: This was definitely more brain dump than crystallised plan. I’ve decided to stick to my current plan for at least another week until I get things figured out
Since I decided earlier in the week to change my plan going forwards, I’ve been racking my brains on what to do. I’ve been reading a bunch of stuff by Mike Tuchscherer about RPE and his work on RTS, but I’ve not been able to find a comprehensive guide on incorporating RPE and different progression methods. I mean, if you’re having an off day and need to bring the weight down for that day, does that affect your progression to next week. Unless you’re talking about linear progression, I’m still struggling to understand how to mesh the two together. Doesn’t help that the most useful stuff he’s written is now locked behind a fairly expensive paywall…
I toyed with the thought of doing Smolov Jnr for my Overhead Press, but I’ve now put together some of the other stuff I was reading into a workable system. I’ll put some links here in case anyone has some time to kill:
Overview of RTS stuff:
https://powerliftingtowin.com/rts-generalized-intermediate-program/
Some writing on GZCL:
From these articles, there are enough links and ideas to start going down a rabbit hole. I’m using some of the following as inspiration:
One thought I had from the first image is “why not have back-to-back pressing days if the volume is low?” I mean, are three sets of overhead press on Monday really going to completely wipe you out for benching on Tuesday? So why not:
Monday: Overhead Press (3 sets)
Tuesday: Bench (3 sets) – DB Overhead Press (3 sets)
Wednesday: Off
Thursday: Overhead Press (3 sets)
Friday: 45 Incline Bench (3 sets)
15 pressing sets total per week, and you’re quite fresh for all of them
One of the reasons for this training is just as a brain dump for what’s been floating around inside my head, and I think that pretty apparent in this post lol. Anyway, enough fluff, now the actual program
Enough fluff, now the actual program
Early stages of planning at the moment, things will change.
4x per week - Full Body
3 week waves
Current thinking is 2 three week waves as an accumulation block, deload, one 3 week wave as an intensification block, test.
Weights for overhead pressing, benching, and weighted chin-ups for the week follow something like the following:
8, 6, 4
6, 4, 2 reps
or
80, 85, 90
85, 90, 95 %1RM
Hell, I’ve even got this other RTS-inspired idea floating around:
Week 1: 3 reps @ RPE 9 – 3 x 8 reps
Week 2 : 2 reps @ RPE 9 – 3 x 6 reps
Week 3 : 1 rep @ RPE 9 – 3 x 4 reps
Given my 2 Overhead Pressing sessions per week, I’ll go with a lighter one earlier in the week and heavier later on
Test 2 or 3RM at the end of week 6, or during week 7 after the kind of taper shown above.
Edit 1: Might swap around the GHR + RDL and the OHP+Chins on Monday
Edit 2: Looking at it now, I don’t think Pec Deck the day before benching is the greatest idea…maybe I’ll change it around, maybe I’ll just roll with it and see how it feels
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Okay, 1 day later.
I got myself in a complete twist over this. I was trying to reinvent the wheel instead of making a small change on what I had, but I think I’ve got something really workable now.
A training split I’ve been thinking about for a while now has been:
Full - Off - Upper - Lower - Upper
Now is the time to try this out.
Training days for the same muscle groups are spaced out by at least one day, and I still get my 3 pressing sessions per week
Monday and Friday will be Overhead Pressing focused, Wednesday will be Bench and Incline Bench.
I will also incorporate some RTS-style RPE heavy work at the beginning of my Overhead Pressing days. Bench work will move forwards using double progression.
I have a first draft training progression/periodisation layout below. The first 4 weeks is an accumulation block, the next 3 or 4 are an intensification block.
This is only for Overhead Pressing. The day starts off working up to a heavy triple at RPE 8 or 9, and from that, your max for the day is established. Then you use that for your other sets, with the goal being that the first set is RPE 8.
If you count the heavy initial sets, as well as the 6 sets of benching and incline benching on Wednesday, the first week of the accumulation block starts with a weekly volume of 14 and ends at 20 sets per week by week 4.
Not going to lie, I lost some sleep last night because I just couldn’t stop thinking about all this stuff, so I’m very happy I’ve got something together that looks workable.
As I am already two weeks into a higher volume phase, I’m going to start from week 3 on this plan. I’m looking forward to seeing how this turns out
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