wk105's Log

[DeriHughes]

22/7

Squat - 237.5x (misgrooved), 237.5 (slow but smooth), 252.5 (limit grind). 7.5kg under comp PR.
Bench - 165 easy, up to 167.5 automatically because I forgot to give my 2nd attempt so skipped it, 182.5 pretty comfortable.
Deadlift – back totally smoked by 252.5 squat grind, missed 220 warmup - 245 opener pretty tough, 260x, 260x.

Should have pulled 247.5 for the win, but I wanted to see if I could get 260 then go to 262.5 for a total PR.

Happy I went through with this meet despite the bad training leading into it. I think I did an OK job of taking what was there. 252.5 was 100% on squats. 182.5 was maybe 2.5kg-5kg under on bench. 245 was 2.5-5kg under on deadlift.

Tough day at the office Will (I know that feeling!) but good work on the bench. Any idea why Mark's prediction was so far off? Was he expecting you to bounce back more than you did?

Trying to get strong with real life to deal with is a pain..

[wk105]

Thanks mate. Yeah, probably expecting more of a bounce back. My squat and deadlift e1rm has spiked by 5-10% before, but it didn't happen this time. Reduced volume due to injury throughout the developmental block leading into the meet was probably a factor.

My e1rm total has dropped by about 70kg over the last couple of months...SI joint flare up...hurt rib...tough spell at work. But strength doesn't care. And at least Mean Ol' Mr Gravity got a bloody nose from the bench.

The programming strategy is being changed now. In the developmental blocks, each training week will look very much like (or even identical to) the other training weeks in terms of exercises, volumes, andintensities. This is to create a highly focused dose of a stimulus for adaptation. How long it takes for the improvements to slow/stop will determine my time to peak (usually 3-8 weeks).

A restoration block of about 2 weeks will then be used to prepare for the next developmental cycle. The intensity of the development blocks will vary quite a bit, but the volume is always going to be high. 3 x week squats and deadlifts, 6 x week bench.

Because the time to peak can be predicted reliably, there'll be a more muted taper - just 1-2 days of rest before a meet. I think this will suit me well. I've always hit my biggest lifts riding a wave of pretty recent volume at moderate intensity. Sport form blocks of high intensity seem to just fatigue me, annoy my lower back, and use up the strength that should be left for the platform.

It sounds good, but I'm sure 3 x week deadlifting is going to be horrible, and I might have to use flats for squats to tolerate long doses of 3 x week squats.

[manveer]

At least there is learning that you can carry forward from the meet even if squat and deadlift didn't go as planned. A 10kg competition PR for bench is pretty sweet!

Your upcoming training sounds really tough! Not sure I could tolerate that frequency for very long.

[wk105]

Definitely. I'm very happy with the bench. My next meet is October 28th, so I'll probably just take a run at the same squat and deadlift weights but increase the bench by at least 5kg.

[DeriHughes]

Thanks mate. Yeah, probably expecting more of a bounce back. My squat and deadlift e1rm has spiked by 5-10% before, but it didn't happen this time. Reduced volume due to injury throughout the developmental block leading into the meet was probably a factor.

My e1rm total has dropped by about 70kg over the last couple of months...SI joint flare up...hurt rib...tough spell at work. But strength doesn't care. And at least Mean Ol' Mr Gravity got a bloody nose from the bench.

The programming strategy is being changed now. In the developmental blocks, each training week will look very much like (or even identical to) the other training weeks in terms of exercises, volumes, andintensities. This is to create a highly focused dose of a stimulus for adaptation. How long it takes for the improvements to slow/stop will determine my time to peak (usually 3-8 weeks).

A restoration block of about 2 weeks will then be used to prepare for the next developmental cycle. The intensity of the development blocks will vary quite a bit, but the volume is always going to be high. 3 x week squats and deadlifts, 6 x week bench.

Because the time to peak can be predicted reliably, there'll be a more muted taper - just 1-2 days of rest before a meet. I think this will suit me well. I've always hit my biggest lifts riding a wave of pretty recent volume at moderate intensity. Sport form blocks of high intensity seem to just fatigue me, annoy my lower back, and use up the strength that should be left for the platform.

It sounds good, but I'm sure 3 x week deadlifting is going to be horrible, and I might have to use flats for squats to tolerate long doses of 3 x week squats.

That sounds brutal, pretty sure it would crush me in no time unless the intensity was very low

If I read that correctly, they're going with variable length blocks that will be stopped at the point e1RM is no longer improving. Will be interesting to see how that works in practice.

[wk105]

Yeah, I'm intrigued to see how my body will respond. I'm going to have to be very cautious with RPE, though. If I rate something @8 when it's really 8.5-9, then this volume will overtrain me really fast.

Lots of good advice here, with a memorable metaphor for thinking about entire cycles:

[Chris McCarthy]

Good Job, Will - you took what was there (Bench PR) and gutted through the rest.

Putting the 6 "standing up" lifts together is going to be exponentially more difficult as you progress through your Career.

[wk105]

Thanks, Chris. It was pretty frustrating when I unracked 252.5 and it felt heavier than 272.5 a few weeks ago, but there wasn't a lot I could do about it.

I'll log my training weekly now all in one post so it's easier for everyone to track.

[wk105]

Training for the week 23/7/2017. Bench feeling decent. Squat and deadlift should come back around quickly now.

MON
Squat w/belt 187.5x6 @6, 192.5x6 @7, 197.5x6 @8 plus 3 down sets (repeat) 197.5x6x3@8, 8, 8
TUES
Competition Raw Bench 140x6 @6, 145x6 @7, 152.5x6x3 @8-10, 145x6@10
Military 72.5x12@8.5, 72.5 x 38 myoreps
WED
Deadlift w/belt 187.5x6 @6.5, 197.5x6 @6.5, 207.5x6x3@7.5-8.5
SSB 107.5x10 @7, 117.5x10 @7.5, 127.5x10x2 @7.5 (cardio 9)
THU
Pin Press (5cm off chest) 160x4x3@8-9, 152.5x4x3@7.5-8
31 chins in 10 mins
FRI
SSB Squat 157.5x5 @6, 167.5x5 @6.5, 177.5x5x2 @7.5-8.5, 167.5x5@8
2Board Press 162.5x4 @7, 172.5x4 @8.5, 177.5x3 @10 plus 1 down set (load drop), 160x4@8. Need to watch fatigue creeping in from set 2 to set 3 on these due to the heavier load.
SAT
2ct Pause Deadlift 182.5x4 @6, 192.5x4 @7, 202.5x4 @8 plus 2 down sets (repeat) 202.5x4x2@8
Bench (touch and go) 127.5x10 @8, 132.5x10 @10, 120x10x3 @8-9
SUN
Supposed to do Wide Grip Bench x10 @7, x10 @8, x10 @9 plus 1 down set (load drop). Stuck in a hotel with no barbells and dumbbells only going up to 25kg. Did wide grip pushups AMRAP in 10 mins. Lost count.

[wk105]

Week 30/7/2017. Training ended up being spread over 2 weeks due to holiday/family stuff.

TUES
Squat w/belt 187.5x6 @6, 197.5x6 @7, 207.5x6x3 @7.5-8
Competition Raw Bench 140x6 @6, 147.5x6 @7, 155x5 @10, 142.5x6x3@8-9. Strength down vs. last week because of benching straight after squatting.
THU
Deadlift w/belt 197.5x6 @6, 207.5x6 @6.5, 217.5x6x3@7-8
SSB 127.5x10 @7, 137.5x10 @8, 142.5x10x2 @8-8.5
FRI
Pin Press (5cm off chest) 150x4 @6, 157.5x4 @7, 165x4 @7.5-8. 165x3@9.5, 152.5x4x2@8-8.5
Military 77.5 x 50 myoreps
20 chins in 5 mins
SAT
2Board Press 162.5x4 @7, 167.5x4 @8, 172.5x4 @9, 165x4@8
SUN
Bench (touch and go) 127.5x10 @7.5, 132.5x10 @9.5, 120x10@9, 115x10x2@8.5-9
MON
Squat +chains 142.5x5 @6, 152.5x5 @7, 162.5x5x3 @7.5, 7.5, 8
TUES-THURS camping holiday with kids. Not allowed to ride a horse due to being over the weight limit.
FRI
Wide Grip Bench 132.5x10 @7, 137.5x10 @8, 145x10 @9, 135x10@9
SAT
2ct Pause Deadlift 192.5x4 @6, 202.5x4 @6.5, 212.5x4x3 @7.5-8
Rows 122.5 x 20 in 7mins

Feeling OK. Should be back to decent weights in 2 weeks or so.