Regaining Strength

[iamgmo]

Dear Jordan,

I've had a couple rough weeks with life and stressors getting in the way of being able to properly eat or be focused when training. Interestingly enough my squat is the only lift that has suffered a lot from this, the deadlift has minimal decrease while the press and chinups have improved in this time.

I would assume iam supposed to do advanced novice for the squat (dling only once every two weeks, keeping the press like it is right now at once per week) while it gets back to where it was before. What kind of macros would you recommend so i don't gain 20lbs in the 5 weeks things will hopefully go back to where they were? I assume a .5lb increase per week would be OK, but your advice on that area would also be appreciated.

Stats:
30 years old
5" 7
BW 189ish
squat was at 375x3, currently at 320x3.
dl 445x3, 450x2
press 165x1,155x3,145x5x3
chinups BW + 75x5

[Jordan Feigenbaum]

Any idea what you're eating now? Also, who told you to DL once every 2 weeks and only press 1x per week?

[iamgmo]

i don't really know what iam eating now. i've kept the same weight throughout this process, but again too much going on and lost count of what i eat, etc... for sure protein has been on the low end.

i deadlift only once every two weeks because it is so far ahead from my other lifts that it really takes a toll on me --thinking of perhaps alternating RackPulls and HaltingDls as per Rips other recommendation when the DL is too high. if i were to deadlift on Wednesday, i would for sure miss Friday. Press once a week because that has been working so far, keeping it on its own Wednesdays.

[Jordan Feigenbaum]

I'd have you DL on Mondays, as it's not really crazy far ahead of your squat. For reference, my best squat to date is 475x1 and pull is 600 x 1. Looks like we're pullers. Also, you're doing a lot of triples, which could be exposing you to too much intensity right now for what you can handle. Rack pulls and halting DL's might work, but I don't think you need them yet. I think you need to press more too on this style of program. It'd look something like:

Mon
Squat x 5 reps x 3 sets
A: Bench, B: Press x 5 reps x 3 sets
DL x 5 reps x 1 set

Weds:
Squat x 5 reps x 3 sets @ 80% of day 1's working set weight
A: Press B: Bench x 5 x 3
Power cleans or chins

Friday:
Squat x 5 x 3 (ramping up to a weight 5lbs heavier than your working set weight on Day 1, i.e. 90% of Day 1, 95% of Day 1, 105% of Day 1)
A) Bench B) Press x 5 x 3
Chins and back extensions

Weigh and measure 250g of protein/day. Eat starchy carbs pre and post workout (2 servings each). Each vegetables or fruit at all other meals. Add fat to a meal 1-2x a day. Stick to single ingredient foods.

[iamgmo]

would i add then 5lbs on Monday too? i can't BP much, broken arm surgery just won't allow me to; which is why i try to avoid it at all costs. Maybe i can do it once a week, i'll give it a shot.

i'll make sure protein goes back on the high end. and i typically eat whole single ingredient foods, so that is not a problem.

thank you!

[iamgmo]

Also, what do you think the projected weight gain will be on this?

[Jordan Feigenbaum]

would i add then 5lbs on Monday too? i can't BP much, broken arm surgery just won't allow me to; which is why i try to avoid it at all costs. Maybe i can do it once a week, i'll give it a shot.

i'll make sure protein goes back on the high end. and i typically eat whole single ingredient foods, so that is not a problem.

thank you!

Ah, I was under the impression you were benching 2x a week every week and only pressing 1x a week. In that case, I'd press 3x a week, 1 time heavy for sets of 5 across, 1 time light (80%) and 1 time for 3 sets of 8-10 on a 60s clock.

I'd probably add 5lbs to the squat and pulls, yes.

Also, what do you think the projected weight gain will be on this?

I'd aim to maintain weight the first week, then add 0.5-1lb/wk after that.