FAO Mac: follow-up about wife's training

[wk105]

This is a follow-up to this thread.

Her strength has improved slowly but surely, except on the deadlift:

Squat 160lb x 3 x 5
Bench 95lb x 3 x 5
Press 70lb x 3 x 5
Chins 7 reps

Judged by bar speed, all of the above look easy, and I'm sure she'll squat 200lb x 3 x 5 in two months.

But the deadlift is still stuck at 200lb x 5. She's exhausted after squats and bench/OP (still getting poor sleep).

Questions:

1. Would you recommend deadlifting roughly 8 hours later in the day as a separate workout, perhaps after a nap?
2. Should she switch to triples on the deadlift?
3. She wants to add a little cardio because she misses the Prowler. Would 20-40 minutes of fasted cycling on her off-day mornings be OK?

Thanks.

[Tom Campitelli]

I'm not Mac, nor am I a nursing woman, nor do I have any children myself. However, I have known women that nursed babies at one time or another, so I feel that I am something of an expert on the situation. I am, of course, kidding. However, I have a suggestion for you. Since recovery is an issue and squats are interfering with deadlifts on the deadlift day, ditch the squats on the deadlift day altogether. Instead, just do bench or presses and deads. See if that gets things going in the right direction.

[wk105]

Thanks. How about reducing it even further?

Tuesday: squat, bench.
Thursday: squat, press.
Saturday: deadlift, chin.

[Tom Campitelli]

You can cut it down to whatever works, but I would divide up the squat sessions with the deadlift session. Also, I would have her do some work on chins every workout. Don't have her go to failure on the chins, especially on deadlift days. Keep a rep in the tank on every set. If she can only do negatives, or flexed arm hangs, start off easy.

T: Squat, Bench (or Press), Chin
R: Press (or Bench), Deadlift, Chin
S: Squat, Bench (or Press), Chin

If recovery is still an issue, make one of those squat days lighter. Bench and press are unlikely to be terribly taxing. Load them a pound at a time and work them as often as she can. A reduced schedule like that should also allow for a little prowler work, too. Here's the key for the prowler - don't work it so hard that it leaves her a smouldering wreck. Start off lightly. Putt little or no weight on it and just do a few running trips - maybe 3. Don't time her rest. Allow her to recover between pushes. Get out of breath and hot and sweaty, but don't go so hard that she falls over. If the first prowler workout feels like it wasn't enough, good. Very gradually ramp things up. Power cleans are fun and shouldn't be overlooked when your wife starts sleeping more provided they are not contraindicated due to injury.

[wk105]

Thanks for the detailed reply, Tom. My wife and I appreciate it.

She can usually do about 5 full chins, 7-8 if she touches the ground briefly between reps. I'll get her to do 3 sets of max reps minus one at each workout.

[Tom Campitelli]

Yeah, train chins regularly, but avoiding grinding out failed reps will help with recovery and avoid bothering elbows. Try to add one rep to one set a week. Slow and steady.