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Calibrating expectations for a shorter guy
First, my stats:
Time in training: 7 months (subtract about 1 month due to injuries)
Sex: Male
Age: 28
Height: 5'4 - 5'5"
Changes (from beginning to now)
Bodyweight: 150 to 180 lb
Squat: 95 to 255 lb
Deadlift: 135 to 310 lb
Bench Press: 85 to 165 lb
Press: 45 (empty bar) to 112.5 lb
The Three Questions:
Rest between sets: 6 minutes
Jumps: 2.5 lb for bench press and press, 5 lb for squat and deadlift
Recovery: ~3500 calories/day, ~7:30 hr sleep per day
My Program:
Novice linear progression with light squat day, deadlifting 1x/week. I have just dropped to 3's on the press, as recommended by PPST.
I do pull-ups on days I don't deadlift, but the numbers vary a lot. I'm mostly stuck on 3x5 pull-ups right now.
Now, the (related) questions:
- Am I approaching a reasonable target weight? Extrapolating downward from what I've found elsewhere on the forum, it seems like 180 lb might a reasonable range for someone of my height, but I'm not sure how well that holds up, since it seems most people here are a lot taller than me. I'd like to have some sort of range to reach for, and because my belly is rapidly growing.
- Am I at a reasonable point in training? I feel like I'm on the cusp of being an intermediate: while I feel like I have a few increases left in me, especially with the PPST advanced novice modifications, everything is quite difficult. For everything but deadlift, instead of true sets of 5, all my sets are more like sets of 3, 15-20 seconds of recovery, and then a set of 2. If I try to push forward without that short break, I usually end up grinding until failure. Also, I have reset each lift several times, and I gain less ground every time. However, here too, my lifts are somewhat below the usual range that I've seen in other posts. Is this to be expected because I'm simply smaller, or do these numbers suggest that something is wrong?
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I’m your height and a little less than your reported weight.
Current Lifts: 38.5 years old
Squat: 475 x 1, 415 x 5
Deadlift: 490 x 1, 460 x 3, 445 x 5
Bench: 390 x 1, 355 x 4, 340 x 5
Press: 195 x 1, 165 x 5
Of course, I’ve been training for a long time. But, it has nothing to do with your height.
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Thanks for the input, Will--I hope to approach those numbers someday!
The message I'm getting is that my weight is within an ok range (you didn't call me skinny), and I have a long way to go. However, I'm not looking for an eventual upper limit, but rather the point at which I should switch over to intermediate programming. Do my numbers suggest that something is wrong, or is it simply too variable to tell just from the numbers?
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Also, check out SSC Adam Skillin. Short dude, light, very strong. Set a NJ state record with a 525 deadlift a couple of years ago.
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I'm about your height as well. 5'5"... maybe 5' 6" on a tall day, and 200lbs. You would almost certainly benefit from gaining another 20-30lbs.
Keep in mind, that you can incrementally progress your lifts from LP to HLM or Texas Method by just changing a couple of variables at a time. You don't need to switch every lift over to intermediate training all at once. If your deadlift is still progressing on LP, that's cool, keep doing it. In the meantime, you could always start HLM on your squat, bench, and press.
Your Late-LP / Early-Intermediate training could look something like this:
Monday: Squat Heavy / Bench Heavy / Deadlift LP + 5-15lbs from the last session.
Wednesday: Squat Light / Press / Weighted Chins
Friday: Squat Medium / Bench Medium / Power Clean
Last edited by Cody Annino; 01-17-2020 at 11:46 AM.
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