Recommended Intermediate Program (for normal humans)

[Mike C]

You have 1 hour for gym time, 3-4 days/week. You are a general strength/power trainee who can perform all the lifts, olympic and otherwise. You've just moved on from novice LP.

Which program are you using?

Standard TM is out. Volume day is far too long.
HLM seems to be out, as heavy day is long, too.
One Lift/Day seems to be best suited here, but is a tri-weekly progression, which seems slowish for a starting intermediate.

Do you just use the ramped 5x5 that you mentioned in the "Day at KSC" thread? Is there a variant of one of the above programs that works best/better for that time allotment?

[Andy Baker (KSC)]

A four day TM split would be best for an early intermediate. It's a little easier time wise. Late stage intermediates might focus more on a "one lift per day" type model

[I_iz_a_fatass]

For what it's worth when I started on the TM four-day and the longest volume day session was under an hour.

[mgage]

Late stage intermediates might focus more on a "one lift per day" type model

Is that because they are lifting more weight and so can accumulate much more stress/tonnage/etc. with just one day of squatting? I've never quite understood why someone would choose that over higher frequency unless time was just an issue. That being said, I'm not a late stage intermediate so perhaps it's just for reasons I haven't experienced yet.

[Sean Stangl]

[QUOTE=mgage;1050417I've never quite understood why someone would choose that over higher frequency unless time was just an issue.[/QUOTE]

I've done TM with one-main-lift-per-day up to 495x5x5 squat. The problem is the thorough exhaustion. There is no way I would be able to put up meaningful 5x5 bench volume immediately after that squat session.

This seems to be more a factor of the weight used than of the volume, and was not a problem when I was squatting 365 and benching 245. You don't need to change to a split routine until you observe it being necessary.

[Mike C]

Is that because they are lifting more weight and so can accumulate much more stress/tonnage/etc. with just one day of squatting? I've never quite understood why someone would choose that over higher frequency unless time was just an issue. That being said, I'm not a late stage intermediate so perhaps it's just for reasons I haven't experienced yet.

Lifting for volume and intensity in the same week becomes pretty damn hard on the body - especially if you have 20+ years of sports on that body (i.e. you're in your 30s). Personally my shoulders can only press once a week (I have a slap tear, calcific supraspinatus tendinopathy, and AC joint arthritis). My back can only go HAM for so long - I have stenosis and a slight bulge down in L5-S1.

One a day works great for someone like me over the long term.

But this thread was more about the general recommended intermediate program from the SS crew. Most humans don't have 2.5 hrs to spend in the gym on volume day. Texas method as written is more for a very specific type of person. Usually young, with a ton of time and recovery capabilities, and dedicated to strength training. TM four a day makes a lot more sense for general intermediates.

[Nermin]

There is no way I would be able to put up meaningful 5x5 bench volume immediately after that squat session.

This seems to be more a factor of the weight used than of the volume, and was not a problem when I was squatting 365 and benching 245. You don't need to change to a split routine until you observe it being necessary.

I'm using this approach right now, because I have the time on Mondays and Fridays. I intend to move to a 4-day split when intra-workout recovery between the lower and upper-body lifts becomes unbearable. (squat 300 vd / 330 id; bench 215 vd / 235 id)

[Kyle Schuant]

On the HLM model, two ways we've saved time (and sanity) are,

Firstly, each lift is heavy on a different day, eg

Sunday is squats-heavy and bench-light,
Tuesday is squats-light and bench-medium and
Thursday is squats-medium and bench-heavy.

Bear in mind also that the heavy upper body lifts don't take as long to recover from as the heavy lower body lifts; you can do 3 heavy sets of bench in a shorter time than 3 heavy sets of squats. This is both physically and mentally easier.

Secondly, pick two "bang" lifts for a cycle of 4-8 weeks, lifts which carry over to other lifts well (eg squats), or which you want to focus on for some reason (eg your press is weak relative to the other lifts, or you'd like to get better at snatching). You still do other lifts but only those two lifts are ever heavy. After that 4-8 week cycle you switch the two up.