Do you add 2.5lbs per week on volume and intensity?
Do you add 2.5lbs per week on volume and intensity?
Hey, Nick! Georgi here. Thanks for a great article! I am 32yo, 5.8, 172 lbs.
Over the last 2 months I have only been pressing due to lock down. Last time I benched I did 160x5x3 (poor, I know). My press now is 135x3x5 and it's been on intermediate programming for a while, while my BP will clearly on NLP for some time.
If I understand the article correctly,:
'Monday: 5x5 Bench Press @ 90% of Friday’s planned intensity day weight.
Wednesday: 5x5 Strict Press @ 90-95% of your last completed set of 5 at the end of your LP.
Friday: 5-7 Press Singles @ 2-5 lbs more than your last “heavy” press workout AND 1x5 Bench.'
only applies if both lifts are on intermediate programming.
How would you recommend I program my NLP BP with my intermediate Press now that I am heading back to the gym?
Thanks in advance!
Posting this here for reference and so it's all together:
https://youtu.be/byPW7c6NPFM
Appreciate that, thank you! I am on it!
Thanks for the article and the YouTube video on the Compressed Texas Method for the Bench and Press. I have a couple of questions. Maybe I missed this, but after watching the video, reading this thread and reading the article all a couple times, I didn't see these things discussed.
It seems like we have three options for the template.
1. We stick with the template exactly each week
Mon - Bench 5x5, Wed - Press 5x5, Friday, Bench 1x5, then Press heavy singles (5 to 10 of them)
2. We alternate back and forth between what was just written and this:
Mon - Press 5x5, Wed - Bench 5x5, Friday, Press heavy singles (5 to 10 of them), then bench 1x5.
3. Maybe a couple of months we have the press be first on intensity day and then for a couple of months we allow for the bench to take the priority on intensity day. Or if one of the two pressing movements is behind then that is the one that always comes first on intensity day to get it caught up.
It seems like whatever is second on intensity day will be more difficult and more likely to stall. Part of this can be mitigated by having the first pressing movement on intensity day as the first lift, then squat and do a pull and then do the second pressing movement, to give as much rest as possible between the two pressing movements.
Second question. You said that we only need to rest about 2 minutes between sets on the press on 5x5 volume day. On intensity day 30 to 60 seconds to start, but after doing this for a while we might need to rest as much as 3 minutes or so. When pressing singles, since I am using a leather belt with a single prong rolling buckle, rather than a lever belt, would I just leave the belt on the entire time I am pressing the heavy singles. It doesn't make much sense to take the belt off, then 10 to 20 seconds later put the belt back on. On other hand if I am pressing 10 singles and I feel like I need more like 60 seconds rest between the singles, that means I am wearing the belt for around 10 minutes. What are your thoughts on this?
I have been looking for a way to keep the volume up for presses for a little bit now. It never occurred to me to just do presses and benches on the same days. This was a good kick in duff for me. Great article.
I typically have people press first because 1.) Who gives a shit about the bench? Every male who's ever been in a gym has benched and it's just not very interesting, and 2.) Fatigue is more likely to fuck up a press than a bench.
The short rest periods are just for starting out and for when you're still squatting and deadlifting the same day as your pressing stuff. Once you go to a 4 day split and your press/bench are getting heavy, you can and should rest longer. And yeah, just leave the belt on for all the singles.
My spotter and I could not agree more. Yesterday he went out of his ways to convey how unimpressed he was with my last PR.
Worst spotter in NATO