I got so desperate that I started following the program (mostly)

[Gnugnug]

I am not the strongest, and lord knows not the most intelligent, but I did recently finish re-reading the four books of the Aasgaard oeuvre and some important concepts sank in, translating to some linear progress under the bar.

You all are waaaay ahead of me but I think we can all relate to being so desperate for progress that we will take extreme measures, like mostly following the program, or resorting to buying a... oh god I can't say it...

https://youtu.be/7xX6UE2WLB4

Any tips on my squat form will be gratefully treasured. Tips on my clean and press form will be totally ignored; it's a baroreflex-catecholamine-familial hypotension thing; I don't expect anyone this century to understand.

[Jacobnorton]

you want to squat 315? Just do the program exactly as it's laid out. There is nothing desperate or extreme about that. Keep adding 5 lbs. When you fail to do that 3 times, throw a light day in the middle of the week. When that runs out, switch to intermediate programming. Your squats look good. A little bit of knee slide going on at the bottom, you push your hip forward at the beginning of each rep which is unnecessary, and you're hyperventilating before each rep. Focus on keeping your knees pushed out hard stopping them from that LITTLE bit of slide you get in the bottom and your form will be there. Also, squat shoes would probably help.

Also, what is wrong with you? Are you actually crazy or just playing a character for youtube videos? Seriously, smoke some weed or something. Calm down.

Edit: What the hell does a baroreflex, amino acids, or genetic hypotension have to do with your clean and press? I'm failing to see a connection with your poor form.

[Kyle Schuant]

It looks like we have a replacement for DiddlySquat.

[Gnugnug]

Jacob, thanks! By knee slide I'm not sure what you mean. Bar path looks plumb over mid foot so do you mean knees are coming in a bit? This is definitely true on the right, I've had all kinds of mobility problems there related to sedentarism before lifting. Mostly fixed now by the structural changes from squatting. I will continue to shove knees out.

Hyperventilating seems to help me sustain the valsalva and leading with hip thrust seems to help cue the drop by shooting hips back instead of bending knees. Is there anything actually counterproductive about these?

For programming I'm a bit unsure. Did not know whether to switch to TM or deload linear after the recent fail (my first on the program), so I deloaded linear. I know we don't go by absolute numbers but it just seems for my general level of health, nutrition and rest that novice progression on squat couldn't possibly be exhausted by 250 at 186. What do you think? A couple of linear deloads advisable before taking the (drastic!) step of replacing a heavy with a light day?

I will try to explain my C&P method. By doing a sort of muscle clean and press I am raising the bar at a heavy single through its maximum range of motion, all on one breath and in a single fluid motion, contributing to the strongest possible orthostatic hypotension when I release the bar. This produces a massive blood pressure drop which generates an immediate, enormous catecholamine cascade via baroreflex. Enhanced further because of familial exercise induced hypotension in my family -- I used to pass out and get brief seizures from these until I trained through it. I do these between squat warmup sets and the result is to raise my dopamine/noradrenaline levels so high that I look like I'm on meth and I don't blame you for wondering what the hell is wrong with me. It helps with my work sets, so I am keeping it. I once did a muscle up from the adrenaline response alone and as you know, I am not strong. And yes, that is my natural state in the gym and I am not playing it up. I assure you that outside the gym, I am completely nondescript.

Needless to add I am a serious trainer wishing to exchange information, I did not come here to troll you.

I don't know Diddlysquat but I am sure he is tragically misunderstood and working hard right now.

Thanks again!

[Jacobnorton]

Jacob, thanks! By knee slide I'm not sure what you mean. Bar path looks plumb over mid foot so do you mean knees are coming in a bit? This is definitely true on the right, I've had all kinds of mobility problems there related to sedentarism before lifting. Mostly fixed now by the structural changes from squatting. I will continue to shove knees out.

Hyperventilating seems to help me sustain the valsalva and leading with hip thrust seems to help cue the drop by shooting hips back instead of bending knees. Is there anything actually counterproductive about these?

For programming I'm a bit unsure. Did not know whether to switch to TM or deload linear after the recent fail (my first on the program), so I deloaded linear. I know we don't go by absolute numbers but it just seems for my general level of health, nutrition and rest that novice progression on squat couldn't possibly be exhausted by 250 at 186. What do you think? A couple of linear deloads advisable before taking the (drastic!) step of replacing a heavy with a light day?

I will try to explain my C&P method. By doing a sort of muscle clean and press I am raising the bar at a heavy single through its maximum range of motion, all on one breath and in a single fluid motion, contributing to the strongest possible orthostatic hypotension when I release the bar. This produces a massive blood pressure drop which generates an immediate, enormous catecholamine cascade via baroreflex. Enhanced further because of familial exercise induced hypotension in my family -- I used to pass out and get brief seizures from these until I trained through it. I do these between squat warmup sets and the result is to raise my dopamine/noradrenaline levels so high that I look like I'm on meth and I don't blame you for wondering what the hell is wrong with me. It helps with my work sets, so I am keeping it. I once did a muscle up from the adrenaline response alone and as you know, I am not strong. And yes, that is my natural state in the gym and I am not playing it up. I assure you that outside the gym, I am completely nondescript.

Needless to add I am a serious trainer wishing to exchange information, I did not come here to troll you.

I don't know Diddlysquat but I am sure he is tragically misunderstood and working hard right now.

Thanks again!

Knee slide is when at the bottom of the squat, the knees come forward a bit, not caving in. Usually, the knees reach their final spot forward about 1/2 way down on the squat. They should not move after that. Typically cueing knees out HARD stops this from happening.

The only downside you could get from hyperventilating is a feeling of about to pass out, or actually passing out at the top of the rep. This could be bad. I'm not sure what you mean by maintain valsalva. At the top of each rep, I let my valsalva go with each breath. A valsalva is only happening when the breath is held. If you're not passing out or feeling like you are about to, then I don't see a problem with it. The hips forward thing is just unnecessary. Tilting the pelvis under load like that could lead to some problems, but once again, if you feel it's absolutely necessary then whatever.

I don't understand any of that mumbo jumbo about the c&p but you're essentially doing a thruster without the front squat. Why not learn the proper form? That is, a proper clean with a proper rack on the shoulders, followed by a proper press. Something like these: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_qBDYOxvsk It would be the same thing you're doing, only with proper form. I'm not here to debate you on your reasons, I just think you should get your form in order to avoid hurting yourself.

If you are truly here for help and not to troll, you will find a very welcoming community with a lot to offer. Also, DiddlySquat is not misunderstood, nor working hard. He is a lying troll who never learn to finish what he started.

[Músculo-Tonto]

I will try to explain my C&P method. By doing a sort of muscle clean and press I am raising the bar at a heavy single through its maximum range of motion, all on one breath and in a single fluid motion, contributing to the strongest possible orthostatic hypotension when I release the bar. . .

It looked like what happens when I botch a Power-snatch attempt.

---

Also, what is wrong with you? Are you actually crazy or just playing a character for youtube videos? Seriously, smoke some weed or something. Calm down.

Edit: What the hell does a baroreflex, amino acids, or genetic hypotension have to do with your clean and press? I'm failing to see a connection with your poor form.

From a background check of the Google+ page, and the website "urbanprimalist.com", the gentlemen is a YouTube entertainer and consultant-lifter of some kind. However, whether "Grugnug" is actually the "Timothy" who owns the channel is not distinguishable at this time.

-Jeremy

[Hiphopapotamus]

I think he sounds like Algernot Krieger from Archer.

[Gnugnug]

Jacob, thanks for clarifying the knee slide which I will keep an eye on in today's progression sets. As for lightheadedness, that doesn't affect me from hyperventilating any more. I started it originally so that I could complete five bench reps on a single valsalva as Rip suggests and it turned out to be very trainable.

The reason I don't do thrusters instead, and do let me know if this sounds bogus, is not to interfere with the the linear upward momentum of the bar by breaking it into a rack and press, and to use the stomp to translate into an explosive strict press instead of an explosive rack and push press. This was well expressed in the pr in the video. I'm quite sure the movement is safe as I've done it over a thousand times now, often with limit weights. Failure only occurs if the bar doesn't explode high enough for me to get under it in the press, in which case I just lower it down, or if I can't extend the elbows fully. I have dropped the bar exactly twice. I've found my fumbling attempts to learn the snatch with an empty bar to be more dangerous...

Jeremy is right; I am sometimes a paid consultant (getting ripped; I know that's not popular around here but it's a legit hobby) but my primary goal is free infotainment, not clowning around. If you've read my background, you know why I am rabidly devoted to strength training and determined to bring it to some very underserved populations, which has been surprisingly successful so far, although hopefully that is just getting started.

Hence why I am grateful to you kind gentlemen for taking my questions mostly seriously. If anybody has any opinions on deciding between a linear progression deload and starting weekly periodization, I'd love to hear it as there seems to be no widely accepted view on this.

[Chebass88]

A couple thoughts:

1. Hyperventilating before the lift to reinforce the valsalva - it sounds like you are trying to get as deep of a breath as possible. Take a few DEEP breaths, hold it, and squat. Don't hyperventilate - it is wasted energy. Breathe in (forcefully), out (forcefully), in, out, in, and squat.

2. Pushing the hips forward with partial knee bend. You are strong enough to hold onto the weights you are squatting now. What do you think will happen when you add a couple hundred pounds to your squat? Having a heavy weight on your back is not the time to even come CLOSE to getting off-balance. Learn proper technique now, and when the time comes for heavy weights, you will be able to handle them. This is even more questionable without the use of safeties.

3. Regarding the clean & press. Good for you for getting PRs and lifting heavier. It is just a suggestion, but maybe just maybe, if you clean up your style, you can get even heavier weight. It is safe for now, because it is still relatively light, and you are strong enough to throw it around nicely.

4. Linear progression deload & weekly periodization. There IS quite a bit of information on this, especially in the texts. In the linear progression, you progress in weight every session, or at most every other session. With the weekly periodization, you progress every week. It isn't a question of a deload vs. weekly periodization yet - it WILL BE, just not yet. I think you have some form issues to hammer out (hyperventilating, hip & knee movement prior to squatting, etc.). If I were in your shoes, I would drop the weight and do a linear progression, with multiple sets of fives, with **PERFECT** form. I recommend selecting a weight you KNOW you can get 15 TEXTBOOK-QUALITY reps. Increase from there. When you NEED to, either deload or think about more complex (i.e., weekly) programming. Don't worry about reducing the weight temporarily. Even if you took off 50lbs, you'll be right back where you are now in four weeks (assuming 3X/week, 5lbs/session), but with solid form.

If you REALLY have your mind set on moving to weekly programming, do it. Weekly periodization will work, as long as you focus on progression. A lot of people get hung up on the use of a specific program, when the key is understanding stress & adaptation. If you can recover from linear programming, while still making increases every session, do it. If you are not recovered sufficiently, make increases every other session, or once per week.

5. I don't have the Rippetoe texts in front of me, but I'm fairly certain he doesn't recommend five bench reps on a single valsalva. One breath, one lift. Reset and repeat.

BTW, interesting hammer work. How much can you lever, ala Slim the Hammerman?

[Gnugnug]

Chebass, many thanks for a very thoughtful and helpful analysis!

1) This kind of breathing developed unconsciously for me, but I see the merits of your suggestion. I will try a few deep breaths as you suggest instead of lots of little ones.

2) That is a very good point about keeping careful balance under truly heavy weight. And if it is true for heavy weight then it's still true for lighter weights, and probably a waste of useful energy even though it doesn't feel that way. The hip thrust was only a beginner's cue to learn to lead with hip flexion instead of knee flexion on the way down so I will work to eliminate it.

3) I am sure the conventional C&P form would ultimately lead to heavier weight overhead -- after all, it is not the conventional form for nothing. But my purpose with this form is primarily for the warm-up effect it produces, which is different for me than thrusters, power cleans, or power clean and presses. I do intend to eventually move on to olympic lifts that are more technically demanding, but for now I am just using this to support my slow lifts.

4) This one is really a conundrum for me. I don't mind being patient but I don't want to deload so much that I start to detrain. After all, "perfect" form is not literally possible -- there is always going to be some slight inconsistency, and taken to an extreme I would never get past the empty bar. But obviously I don't want to train wrong form either. This last workout was an interesting example: everything looked good to me (excepting 1 and 2 above) except that on one rep of the fifteen, I double-bounced and had to grind it back up. Does that mean I have to stick with 245 for another workout when I should certainly be able to manage 250 next time? Understanding what precisely is good enough seems like a difficult judgment call.

A major reason I am trying to stick with linear progression is that I've never tried it on very high calories like I'm doing now. Usually I was around 3000-4000 on a bulk; now I'm more like 5000-6000. So I want to be absolutely sure that I exhaust linear gains before dropping down to weekly programming. And gains so far remain strongly linear on bench and dead, it's only on squat that I somehow overreached recently.

5. I am pretty sure Rip recommends five bench reps on a single breath in Starting Strength but I don't have it in front of me now, either. In any case I do find that to be much more stable than one per breath. Will have to look up the citation when I get the chance.

As for the hammers, I'm not sure what you mean by lever. My heaviest hammer is 21.6 pounds, but I use them like kettlebells, and due to the handles they can be "heavier" or "lighter" depending on grip so they don't need to weigh much. Originally I used them for strength and conditioning, and they did work (due to novice effect) but now I find them most useful for recovery. There's something about weights swung in curved patterns that is a really nice counterpart to linear lifting, and the traction on the joints and the muscles feels amazing after a workout. This might be part of the reason I don't have any injuries or joint problems even after five years of max-effort lifting with, uh, evolving form.