Reps with BW..

[Gillian Mounsey]

I could go for lots of reps then but was not very strong. Always had crazy muscular endurance and a high pain threshold but was terrified of heavy weights....

[Mac Ward]

I could go for lots of reps then but was not very strong. Always had crazy muscular endurance and a high pain threshold but was terrified of heavy weights....

Witness.

No longer the case.

[f4thpathway]

My girls can easily shame me with high reps. The percentage of 1rm being equal, they blast through 20s with no pause or slowing of pace. The jerks don't even take big breaths.

[Dastardly]

My girls can easily shame me with high reps. The percentage of 1rm being equal, they blast through 20s with no pause or slowing of pace. The jerks don't even take big breaths.

This thread has been enlightening, I am so god awful at reps. Anything more than 3 reps is cardio for me! I can barely do "fast squats" without breathing at top with even my warm ups. Ive been trying to improve this recently, my "best" PR at reps being 10xBW squats. I know, really pathetic.

I could probably do 20 for the deadlift, but havent tried. I think I will though.

[f4thpathway]

This thread has been enlightening, I am so god awful at reps. Anything more than 3 reps is cardio for me! I can barely do "fast squats" without breathing at top with even my warm ups. Ive been trying to improve this recently, my "best" PR at reps being 10xBW squats. I know, really pathetic.

I could probably do 20 for the deadlift, but havent tried. I think I will though.

There is strangeness within high reps. Conditioning is critical but so is the mindset. When I first decided to do villain challenge 2 I gave it a go right at the start. I got 35 and decided to call it a good start. Then I spent a couple of weeks specifically working on it before making a full attempt. I got it on my first official go but 35+ felt exactly the same as it did before prepping. I most likely could have gotten all 50 when I tested the waters, I just didn't think I could and didn't try. I probably could have kept going after 50 since 35-50 were pretty much the same monster. What really decided the matter was stopping. Stopping, thinking, pondering, wondering, debating...not good ideas during max effort high reps.

[medwards]

f4thpathway, I've seen your spreadsheet here, but I couldn't follow your description. If I wanted to get to where you described above how would you recommend I go about it? Before changing to your program, how far would you recommend I go in building a strength base?

[usafa407]

About a year ago I did a set of 50 squats at BW. I was wrecked for a good 2 weeks. I won't be doing that again... ever.

[f4thpathway]

The supermax? You don't need too much base for it. Its just a different form of LP and incorporates different types of strength. Initially there will be weak areas regardless of strength base. 12s are actually the most difficult by far at the percentage the program uses. And we use more squats to avoid losing certain key ingredients. If you're burnt on SS style, give it a shot.

[medwards]

If you're burnt on SS style, give it a shot.

I'm not burnt out, I was just thinking ahead. I'm one of those who only have a limited time to train, and life interrupts my schedule whenever it feels like it. I'm only now approaching my previous best on linear progression after my last month long unplanned layoff.

[f4thpathway]

I'm not burnt out, I was just thinking ahead. I'm one of those who only have a limited time to train, and life interrupts my schedule whenever it feels like it. I'm only now approaching my previous best on linear progression after my last month long unplanned layoff.

Burning out is just a good reason. There are many others that make it a good switch. Sometimes I just cant sustain pushing max 5s due to injuries. Its not even worth it most of the time. And I prefer to have lungs. Now, I believe and teach that improving strength does improve the ability to sustain activity by decreasing the overall percentage of maximal effort to perform tasks and lowering the perceived exertion, etc, etc, etc. But I am not a fan of having no endurance fuel in the tank on a general basis. So I keep 20RM at the same level of priority as 1RM or 5RM. That's the main focus of the supermax. Its worked very well for everyone that has used it and the only problem encountered was the need to do squats more than once a week in order to keep progressing 1RM. Everything else continues to go up. That's an issue with any program though. Heavy squats are a rather involved process.

The program also doesn't require a lot of time. Accessory work is just to supplement progress and avoid detraining. So most workouts can be done in under an hour if need be. And it isn't dependent on continual progression of 5RM so caloric intake, rest, and the lot don't have the same impact. Each workout has its own requirements but there is a greater degree of fluctuation allowed.

My newest client has specific timeframes for making certain progress so she ran SS for 2 weeks before switching. That ingrained form for the exercises, introduced linear progression stress to the body, allowed the alarm and resistance phases to occur, and set her up for continued adaptations to barbell training. And it now allows her to train for strength and endurance while taking body composition into consideration. It also implanted the get strong bug into her brain and helped eliminate preexisting unhealthy perspectives. Her last 1RM effort on squats was far above the projected number and she did it 6 times. Her volume squats the week prior were 5 sets of 8 at her last 5RM. She's pretty happy about that and is progressing above what I would have had her doing with general novice training. I was nervous about switching from basic novice training so quickly but her goals are the reason she is training so they take priority. I'm just getting them done via strength training. That's the most extreme example I can give for when to switch.