Progression rate

[waterboys]

Rip,

How do you generally decide when someone needs to move from, say, 5lb increases on the squat down to 2.5 lb increases? Or from 2.5 lb increases on the bench press down to 1 lb increases? Do you wait until they miss reps on the 3rd set, or do you go ahead and make the change when they almost miss the last rep of the 3rd set?

Thanks

[Mark Rippetoe]

Males really never drop to 2.5 lb increases on the squat, and 1.5 lb increases on press and bench press are about the smallest practical jumps. If progress has slowed this much, intermediate programming is necessary.

[waterboys]

What is the lowest weight on the bar (for the squat) that you've seen when you had to move a male to an intermediate program?

[Mark Rippetoe]

Generally 5 lbs. on the squat.

[mlentzner]

I think he was asking what the total weight was.

The guy who trains with me with the double hip replacement went to intermediate programming with just 135 on the bar for his squat sets. It was a combination of the disability, him getting bored after over a year on SS, and his crappy eating (often on a shake diet). He wasn't making progress anymore and his other lifts had more or less topped out as well - 295 dead, 240 bench, 125 press.

Pretty weird numbers, but you work with what you got.

[waterboys]

I was actually asking about total weight, not increases per workout. I meant what total weight on the bar is the least you've seen when someone required novice programming for the squat.

[Mark Rippetoe]

I don't remember. Sorry.

[Clay84]

I don't remember. Sorry.

Reading between the lines...

I'm not going to say a number because then every kid that comes to this forum and reads it is going to say "oh, I hit XXXlbs on my squat and it was a really tough session. Time for me to move to intermediate programming!!!".

I learnt my lesson after publishing those tables in PPST1.

[RobCor]

Waterboys, what are you lifts at? How much do you weigh? How tall are you? How old are you?

[Antz]

I was actually asking about total weight, not increases per workout. I meant what total weight on the bar is the least you've seen when someone required novice programming for the squat.

The weight is relative to your weight/height/bf % and rate of progression in the last month.