2019 Testify Barbell MAYhem Weightlifting Meet - May 11, Omaha, NE
First off, let me say that I am a long time lurker, first time poster. I've been toying with Novice Linear Progressionn (NLP) for the better part of 3 years. Unsuccessfully, due to my lack of consistency. Since January, I have stuck with the program and made the following gains:
I don't have a goal other than to have a "respectable" level of strength relative to my bodyweight. I am enjoying the gains that I have made but I have a few questions:
You have obviously progressed but you have not been doing the NLP. I would reset and start over. Make sure you are micro-loading on your BP/Press. Keep a log. Follow the programming in PPST3. After 3 months lets see how far you have progressed. Pain is not good, but its normal unfortunately because we are old. Figure out a way to train through it.
What I meant was: After a bunch of false starts, I finally worked up the mental fortitude to stick with a single plan consistently. I have been training 3 times a week since January 27th. I have kept a log on the Starting Strength app. Minus a week layoff due to a work related trip, and 2 weeks where I only did 2 workouts instead of 3, I have been consistently training. I read SS3 a year ago, and just finished my first read through of PPST3 last week. The intermediate programs seemed great, but I want to make sure I am not being lazy and cheating myself before I switch (as I have been known to do in the past).
Assuming your numbers are for work sets and not E1RMs, I don’t think this is a bad result for an LP - your numbers have definitely gone up a lot. But have you read Wolf’s post on running out LP? And have you started including a light day squat? If not, there’s probably enough room left for progress that you can get to a stronger result.
And 225 at 6’3” isn’t much for a big strong guy. So that’s another lever to play with.
Understood. My bad. Looks like you are on point. Reset where you are stuck. Micro-load. Longer rests / more food. Move onto advanced novice programming as outlined in PPT3. You can usually stretch out a couple of more months on the NLP this way....effectively resulting in faster gains. Intermediate programming means slower gains. So don't rush the switch. After you exhausted all the advanced novice programming options Andy lays out, you move onto Intermediate Programming. Keep your head in the game. You are progressing this time around. Whatever you do, don't fall for the snake oil RPE bullshit. Hold the line. You'll be squatting 405 by the end of the year.
Do you think acclimation is a better way to describe what happens when we train? I've always understood adaptation as being a more permanent change in a species due to natural selection whereas acclimation is a temporary change that persists so long as a certain stress is present.
If you prefer to think of it that way, you may. But perhaps your understanding is wrong. Adaptation can have several inflections, and our use of the term is one of them.
The problem is that Rip references the important work done by Hans Selye, who refers to it as Adaptation. The Stress-Adaptation-Recovery (S-R-A) cycle put forth by Selye is the basis for what Rip refers to, the "adaptation" term is widely used and generally accepted.
Not using Selye's terms and what is found in biology may have unintended consequences, it could prevent some newcomers to the program to not realize the connection to Selye's work despite it clearly being spelled out in PP 3rd Ed. Forgive me for wanting to be precise in out vocabulary, but being consistent has benefits.
Words have multiple meanings. The point of the semantics is to make sure we're all on the same page. When Rip says "adaptation" or "strength" on this board, no one is confused by what he means, but at the seminar, the word "strength" is defined as the ability to force against an external resistance, so that anyone that might be confused about the meaning of "strength" is not confused when Rip later refers to it.
I personally think "bench press" is a poor phrase to describe laying supine on a flat bench and pressing the bar off of the chest. "Supine press" or even "horizontal press" I believe would be better, but it doesn't matter at this point, because when someone asks me to teach them how to "bench press," I know what they're asking for.
Probably because it's descriptive of the equipment, not the movement. But it doesn't matter as long as we all understand what the term describes, and we all agree to use the term. Language works like this, as I know you know.
The Importance of What We Do –Jonathon Sullivan
Pulling from the Floor: A Reminder –Mark Rippetoe
Highlights from the StartingStrength Community. Browse archives.
