First impressions of this program are good. It was helpful for me as an inexperienced lifter to be able to focus entirely on one lift only. I could really concentrate on keeping my form tight and wasn’t worried about leaving something in the tank for the next exercise(s). So far so good.
Pretty cool to see someone taking this up. I have never actually run it myself, but I love Dan John’s philosophy and think it’s a fine idea. I am actually contemplating this myself with KB training plus some axle work later this summer (once I save for and buy my axle and plates).
Thanks for checking in AG. It’s bench tonight, so I’ll update on that later.
The one lift a day thing suits where I’m at with lifting as it gives me the opportunity to really focus on putting a good solid effort into just that day’s lift. We’ll see how it goes!
Thought I’d started out too light with this, but turns out it was plenty by the end of the workout. Having been used to mostly doing 5x5, the extra couple of sets is a good push. I find that the wave pattern Dan John describes in the program really works. Set 4 begins to feel heavy then you get a bit of a breather at set 5 before working your way back up to your max weight again in set 7. Only day two, but all seems good so far.
[quote]OldOgre wrote:
I am interested in this as well. I have done GVT and it looks pretty similar.[/quote]
Hey Ogre, glad to have you on board. To be honest, it was following your experience of GVT on your log that started me looking for something similar. I liked the idea of a short, focused workout that could get the job done without spending hours and hours doing a million different exercises.
This is one lift I’ve been wary of after hurting my left shoulder a while back doing OHP during Stronglifts 5x5. Turned out ok though. Set 6 was the hardest and I kind of lost power in my left shoulder (hard to describe). Set 7 with 30kg went up alright though. Could have been knowing it was my last set.
This is my first post in the Over 35 forum (I’m 34 but I guess that’s close enough). I haven’t done Dan John’s one lift a day actual program but my own training for the last 2 years has centred around something quite similar. It consists of the following:
Monday: OHP and chin-ups (variations, especially sternum chins)
Wednesday: weighted dips and Zercher squats
Saturday: deadlifts and chin-ups
No other lifts, that’s it. Reps for all movements range from 1-5, high volume per movement (approx 25-30 reps per lift). No other program has given me the results (strength and physique) that this one has in my 17 years of strength training. I think a lot of the time people are afraid of stripping down their training to something this basic but as Dan John says, something magical happens when you can go into the gym and focus all your intensity on hitting one (or in my case 2) movements and that’s it.
OP: if you hit this program hard with a ton of intensity and make sure your recovery is dialled in, I GUARANTEE you will make amazing gains. I can’t wait to see your numbers on your lifts skyrocket!
Thanks man. It’s really encouraging to hear something similar has worked for someone else. You’ve really fired me up to keep hitting this as hard as I can. Keep an eye on those numbers!
That’s the end of my first week on the One Lift A Day program, so here are my thoughts so far.
I love the simplicity of the program. Get out to the garage, hit one lift with intensity and that’s it.
Only doing one lift per workout gives me the opportunity to really focus on form and go hard without worrying about leaving enough energy for other lifts.
I liked the wave pattern where you ramp up to that workouts max weight on set 4 and again on set 7.
Some days it seemed a little bit easy compared to spending 45-60mins on three lifts as I had been on SL5x5. It didn’t feel too easy the following day though!
Looking forward to a couple of days recovery over the weekend and getting stuck into 6x3 on week two.
This week has a 6x3 set/rep pattern, so just about half the reps of week 1. Went heavier as recommended in the program and worked up to a max of 65kg as opposed to 60kg last week. All seemed good.
52.5kg is the heaviest I’ve ever gone with a bench press (hey I’m a noob!) and the last couple of reps in set 6 were tough to get up. This really is going to be a marathon and not a sprint!
Glad to see you being a guinea pig for this program. Congrats on the bench PR.
About how long do the sessions take you? I’m trying to figure out something for the really hot months in south Florida and a short but heavy workout may be just the thing.
Thanks. Next week is all about testing new PRs before starting the next cycle, so hopefully I’ll see some good results.
On week 1 (7x5), the workouts took around 30mins. So far this week (6x3), they’re taking about 20mins or so. If you’re used to longer sessions, it can be a bit of a shock to finish up so quickly. The upside is you’re always fresh and ready to go at the next day’s lift hard.
Thanks. Next week is all about testing new PRs before starting the next cycle, so hopefully I’ll see some good results.
On week 1 (7x5), the workouts took around 30mins. So far this week (6x3), they’re taking about 20mins or so. If you’re used to longer sessions, it can be a bit of a shock to finish up so quickly. The upside is you’re always fresh and ready to go at the next day’s lift hard.[/quote]
Yep, I’m sure PRs are on the way!
Thanks for the timing info. This sounds promising when it’s 95 and 99% humidity
Took a bit of time to work on my form and had some success by focusing on keeping my elbows in tight instead of allowing them to flare out. Had a lot less ‘clicking’ from my shoulders. Lifted 2.5kg more than in week 1. Happy with that.
