When to switch exercise order.

[strongnovice]

What I'm currently doing is:

Chinup - AMRAP
Squat 3 x 5
Chinup - AMRAP
Press 3 x 5
Power Clean 5 x 1

2 days rest between and repeat.

The Practical Programming book says it's ok to put power cleans before squats later on. My question is when it's appropriate for me to do so. I've been lifting somewhat consistently for 18 months but not eating the recommended way and only put on 25lbs-30lbs over this time frame and my squats weren't progressing. Oddly, I haven't changed my diet but now my squats are linearly progressing, the change is I stopped doing deadlifts. The relevance is, if I'm seeing linear progress on squats, should I keep prioritizing them and keeping them first?

I did 335 3 x 5 on the squats today and feel much more in tank still on progress. Most I power cleaned was a few months ago 255x1 but I did that at the start of a workout. I'm power cleaning at the end of the workout now and stalled today at 237.5 on set 3 when I wanted to do 5.

[Robert Santana]

Height & Weight? Are you planning to focus on Olympic Weightlifting? Lastly, define "eating the recommended way."

[strongnovice]

Height & Weight? Are you planning to focus on Olympic Weightlifting? Lastly, define "eating the recommended way."

6' 0.5" 207. My untrained starting weight is somewhere around 185.

Planning to focus on martial arts.

Recommended meaning something like 6000 calories a day and gaining 55lbs in a year. Maybe You Should GAIN Weight | Mark Rippetoe

[Robert Santana]

Go up to 220 and hang out there. I would change the order when you reach the advanced novice stage and I would only do this on the days that you squat lighter. This gives you an opportunity to perform an explosive movement while you are fresh. I would not do this on a day where you are performing limit squats though.