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Thread: When to add accessory exercises

  1. #1
    Join Date
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    Default When to add accessory exercises

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    Hey Coach,

    Iv been following your SS workout and im really enjoying it(yes even the power cleans). Its been over a month now and I havent stalled yet, so I guess im still making progress, is now a good time to add some accessory exercises ?

    In your book you recommend some good exercises to add on to the workout, the problem is I dont know which ones to add and how to add them for the best results.

    Thanks for you time,

  2. #2
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    If you are making progress, don't change anything. There'll be plenty of time for assistance and ancillary exercises later. Plenty of time.

  3. #3
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    Apr 2008
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    Hi Mark,
    my question is somewhat related - today I just didn't have the energy left to do dips after my workout (I tried and failed to advance in the progression I had been making on weighted dips).

    As I have been feeling on the verge of overtraining lately I just decided to forget about them for today - is this an acceptable attitude towards ancillary exercises?

  4. #4
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mark Rippetoe View Post
    If you are making progress, don't change anything. There'll be plenty of time for assistance and ancillary exercises later. Plenty of time.
    How do I know when to add these assistance/ancillary exercises? You say (in PP I think) that they are good for getting extra work in, but how do I know if I need this extra work?

  5. #5
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    Assistance exercises are always the first thing you drop from a workout (like when you're tired or overtrained) and the last thing you add to a workout (like when you perceive that you need more exercises when in fact you just need to work harder or more productively on the exercises you're already doing.

  6. #6
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    starting strength coach development program
    Quote Originally Posted by Robert Beckett View Post
    How do I know when to add these assistance/ancillary exercises? You say (in PP I think) that they are good for getting extra work in, but how do I know if I need this extra work?

    Sometimes this type of confusion stems from not having any specific goals in mind. i.e. "I want to get bigger and stronger" is not really what I would call a goal. "By the end of next year i want to squat 400, bench 300, and Deadlift 450" is more precise and gives you a basis in which to arrange your program. And you don't have to be a competitive lifter to arrange your training this way.

    Knowing where you stand in relation to these goals will determine what type of program you will be on and what exercises you should be doing. I'll use a powerlifter as an example:

    Squat - "when squattting I feel as if I can squat the weight up with my legs but can't support it on my shoulders and I miss the lift. "

    Possible Assistance exercises - weighted sit ups, weighted back raises

    Bench - "I can get the target weight about halfway to 3/4 of the way up but I can never lock it out"

    Possible Assistance exercises - rack lockouts or board presses

    This was just a basic example of how your thinking should be when trying to set up a program that includes assistance stuff. Anything you do should only be there to help aid an increase in the big lifts. It is a means to and end, not an end in itself. If lockout is not a problem on the bench, then there is no reason to really do rack lockouts or board presses. I think I have said this before, but you should be able to justify everything that is in your program. You should be able to express why you are doing a certain exercises, why you are doing a particular set and rep range, etc, etc.

    One other thing though, you need to know the difference between when you are missing a lift because of a specific weakness that can be addressed with an assistance exercise and when you are missing lifts because of poor programming. They are two different problems with different solutions.

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