Smolov Minus One

[Gary Gibson]

A reply in my training log by coldfire got me thinking.

If you minus one from all the numbers in the Smolov reps and sets protocol, you go from this:

70%x9x4, 36 total reps
75%x7x5, 35 total reps
80%x5x7, 35 total reps
85%x3x10, 30 total reps

to this:

70%x8x3, 24 total reps
75%x6x4, 24 total reps
80%x4x6, 24 total reps
85%x2x9, 18 total reps

Coldfire reported similar gains to the full version on a similarly modified version of Smolov. Obviously, volume on the Smolov Minus One (SMO) is about 66% (the x2x9 could be x2x10 to make this exactly true) of the regular version. I doubt there is a linear correlation to how much less the gains would be. 75%? 66%? 50%?? But I'd bet that Smolov's promised 40-60 lbs of gain would only get reduced to 30-45 lbs on something like this (yes, that's 75%). I aim to find out when I train for the Navy Open in February.

If anyone else wants to try the SMO in the meantime, please let me know how it works for you. Don't forget to take off 5-6 days before the test for a new max!

Coldfire, I believe you said you've done this. Would you mind sharing your results?

[coldfire]

Gary, I think you misunderstood a little. The modified version goes like this:

Week 1:
70% x 9 x 3
75% x 7 x 4
80% x 5 x 5
85% x 3 x 6

Week 2:
75% x 9 x 3
80% x 7 x 4
85% x 5 x 5
90% x 3 x 6

Week 3:
77.5% x 9 x 3
82.5% x 7 x 4
87.5% x 5 x 5
92.5% x 3 x 6

I've done this twice. First time I got my squat from 160kg to an easy 170kg and a doubtful 180kg.
Second time I fucked up, splitted the cycle to 4 weeks, added other lifts, and didn't test the results as I should have.

I know a few people who did the same cycle and really liked the results as well. I haven't done the full version, so can't really compare the results.

[Gary Gibson]

Thanks. I was unclear. The SMO was my own twist, not what you wrote. I fixed this in the original post.

[Gary Gibson]

And those are really good gains. Same as I've ever gotten on the original version: about 30 easy lbs and 40-50 questionable pounds.

[coldfire]

I believe you will gain more now, as you are stronger. I read somewhere that the full Smolov version was supposed to add around 40kg to 200kg squatters.

[Gary Gibson]

In the original article by Pavel Tsatsouline, the Smolov base phase was supposed to add around 20 lbs for lighter lifters and 40-60 for bigger lifters. The Feduleyev peaking phase was supposed to add another 30-50 lbs. The article gives a best case scenario of the full 13-week prep-Smolov-switching-Feduleyev adding 110 lbs.

Note that the Feduleyev peak is optional. The Smolov base phase is supposed to provide the volume and intensity that drives the bulk of the improvement. Peaking is an individual matter and the Feduleyev "intensive phase" is just one option.

[h k]

Interesting coincidence because I've been wondering about this thing myself too. I was thinking pretty much exactly -1 or -2 and just doing it like that, but -1 might be enough. Gotta start it in about 2 weeks when I finish my current program.
Anyone figured a way to implement presses, deadlift and power snatch/clean into the program? I reckon mucking about with the original program might not be a good idea but perhaps they'll fit in -2.

[Gary Gibson]

Don't program the quick lifts like the slow ones. The quick lifts rely too heavily on technique and speed to muck around with high-rep sets.

[h k]

Heheh I wasn't thinking about doing the same rep scheme for the quick lifts, that would be pretty crazy considering doing 3s in snatch and c&j is hard for me. My concern is the overall work if you squat 4 times in a training week and do the other work hard. If if remember right, didn't the original article by Pavel recommend not doing the deadlift at all during the cycle?
I reckon just doing one of the quick lifts in the beginning of all the sessions is enough work for them.
Have you guys tried Smolov for presses? From what I understood a lot of people have been running the so called Smolov jr. program alongside the real program for bench press.

[Gary Gibson]

I am not the first to have posted this in a forum...

The Smolov is a squat specialization program and you're simply not going to have any metabolic resources left to do ANYTHING ELSE--ESPECIALLY DEADLIFTS--effectively while you're on it.

You will get slower with all the volume and fatigue so quick lifts are going to suffer...but you will be able to use more weight once you've recovered and your new squat strength has manifested.

The mere thought of deadlifting during this program is a joke. The boys on Dragondoor proved this back in 2001-2003 when several of them tried to run some kind of deadlift training along with Smolov squats. It never went well.

Overhead pressing will suffer because your midsection takes a beating while squatting Smolov volume, frequency and intensity. The press is as much or more a midsection lift than it is a shoulder-arm lift. You will realize this if you try to press in the middle of a Smolov squat cycle.

The bench is one of the only lifts that can be trained along with the Smolov squat. This is because it doesn't use the legs or midsection as much as the deadlift and overhead press do. Be ye warned, however: I tried to run a Smolov Jr bench along with a Smolov just one time and quickly learned that the body can only see drastic improvement in one quality or one lift at a time. 50 lbs on the squat PLUS 25 lbs on the bench?? That's asking a bit much. You will discover this if you try it.

Smolov to improve your squat because the squat is the most important lift. Get faster later and up your clean and snatch or your vertical or shorten your 40 time. Push your bench or deadlift up later too. When I Smolov squat now, I just do a couple sets of bench presses ala Power to the People and am happy just to maintain bench form and strength. No presses, deadlifts or quick lifts. No running or jumping (as if I could while on Smolov). Just a couple sets of benches. It's that hard and takes that much of a toll.