Texas method+conditioning?

[shayankhan]

I currently do a limited variation of texas method, i.e excluding deadlifts intensity and press volume, here's how it looks:
Mon: squats 5x5, press (singles at 80%)
Wed: light squats 2x5@70-80% Monday, light pressing
Friday: go for a RM, heavy pressing (high intensity)

The question I have is if I can fit in conditioning work into this template? I've searched extensively regarding this question, and all answers seemed to advocate the avoidance of any conditioning work/cardio, since there was no room for any additional work other than squatting, pressing and deadlifting for adequate recovery.
However, given my limited template, do you think it's possible if I can add in farmers walks on Wednesday and Friday? I'm just looking to not get winded when I have to say, climb a flight of stairs.

If adding in farmers is okay, do you think doing them timed on Wednesday (3 one minute rounds for max distance) and intense on Friday (max distance) is good? What other alternatives are there?

Help will be greatly appreciated

[John Hanley]

Tues & Fri.

Farmer's Walks aren't a great conditioning choice. If they're heavy enough to tax your bioenergetic systems, they'll fuck up squat/dl recovery.

Bikes, ropes, rowing machines are good.

[Tom Campitelli]

Why no deads, or volume for pressing, or bench for that matter? You've left out a fair amount of the work in the TM, so you can certainly do other stuff. However, why leave out some important exercises?

[shayankhan]

I found that squats alone were taxing my lower back so much that I usually didn't have enough strength left for a deadlift RM attempt. As for volume pressing, I tried that and it didn't work for me, so I moved on to a different scheme for pressing. No bench because I do dumbbell pressing on volume day, but that's usually just pyramiding up for a heavy set of 5
I've asked this question on other places as well, and they recommended doing loaded carrying such as sandbag carrying since its more taxing on the cardiovascular system. Like getting a large duffel bag and stuffing in bags of sand in there or plates. I found that suggestion to be quite interesting, however they don't know much about the mechanism of texas method and its recovery. I think if i'm not doing deads and volume pressing, I could add loaded carries in? What do you guys think?

[Tom Campitelli]

Can you provide some information on your numbers such as sex, height, weight, squat, bench, press, and dead poundages and reps? If your low back is getting badly beaten up by squats, there may be a problem with how you are squatting. Also, when you say volume pressing did not work for you, what does that mean?

Loaded carrying is not necessarily more taxing on the cardiovascular system than sprinting or prowler pushes. It is hard in its own special way.

[shayankhan]

I guess I was not recovering enough from volume pressing, considering I also did heavy benches on Wednesday (100kg 3rm) , so I suppose that would have gotten in the way of Friday pressing. So I decided to cut the volume out so as to put attention more on the squat and switched to a different press scheme. I don't do powerlifting, rather Olympic weightlifting, and I moved to TM to increase squatting strength. I'm not doing the Olympic lifts right now though. I guess my low back is fatigued most on Monday, where I usually do pause squats (I feel they give me more volume since I was previously accustomed to higher volumes), Friday is the standard oly squat (150kg 1rm), without the pause, I decided not to go for rm's on the deadlift since that might make it harder on monday, since the low back takes a ton of load from those. You think it will be okay to deadlift and recover by Monday? I thought deadlifts really tax the CNS so thought it would be best to remove them to keep the back fresh.

I thought loaded carries would be better since they work on core strength and athleticism, rather than just sprinting. Might even act as an assistance for the upper back, lower back and relating musculature. I just don't know where to place them if I should. Perhaps tuesday light endurance based and Saturday a bit heavier? i'm stumped. I could maybe also do prowler pushes if that will help.

[Tom Campitelli]

I think that all of your changes to the Texas Method are making it less effective. Also, you say you are an Olympic lifter, who isn't doing the Olympic lifts. This confuses me. The Texas Method is structured as it is because it works for its stated purpose – to make intermediate trainees stronger on the lifts. While tweaks can be made depending on the trainee, they should make sense in context of that trainee's goals. Honestly, assuming an intermediate program is appropriate for you, you should probably do the Texas Method as written, including the low bar back squat, using appropriate poundages for a few months. That includes deadlifting and bench pressing alternating with normal pressing. Once you have some success with it, you will also get a feel for what, if anything, might need to change as you go along. Singles at 80% of your 1 RM make very little sense for driving your press up. Not deadlifting is a bad idea. Pause squatting is not necessary for most people and does not give your more volume. It does require lighter weights, however.

[shayankhan]

I'm not currently doing the Olympic lifts because my base strength is nowhere near the level that it should be. Practicing the lifts for the sake of technique cuts into my work schedule, so I decided to focus solely on strength.
I'll add deadlifts as I do agree now with you that it may be a bad idea to leave them out. The only reason I left them out was because of the pause squatting, as I feel it works the lower back much harder than if I do the squat with a bounce, with an added bonus that it doesn't place much stress on my knees. As for the singles, a good friend of mine recommended the system who saw good results with it for his press, so I decided i'd give it a go. It's also a heavy/medium/light system.
One other thing i'd like to ask you is if sprinting is okay in the Texas Method? I didn't find much information on this matter. You did mention sprinting in your earlier replies, but is it suitable to do it on Tuesdays and Saturdays?
Thanks again for your help

[Tom Campitelli]

Even the default version of the Texas Method has power cleans in them. You are not well served by omitting the Olympic lifts, especially if you consider yourself an Olympic lifter. I would at least do power cleans, or alternate power cleans and power snatches. I would, at risk of being repetitive, not make a bunch of alterations to the Texas Method that do not serve the goal of getting stronger. Haphazardly combining HLM with the Texas Method is not going to bring you even better results than one or the other alone. If squatting is hurting your knees, then chances are good that you are doing something unusual. If only there were a squat style that puts less moment force across the knee joint... If you want to sprint, Saturday is a better day for it, although Tuesday can work, too. Go easy to start.

[shayankhan]

Thanks for the input knees aren't problematic, just read that pause squats put less force on the knees so I thought they'd be useful in that regard as well. I'm also planning to reintroduce volume pressing into the routine, as well as power cleans, snatches and/or block work, pulls. Can they be done on both Monday and Friday? Second question is that, I checked up Charles poliquins website for recommendations on Sprint programming. He recommends 35 meter sprints for 6-10 sets with 10 seconds rest, for strength athletes. Do you this will be okay for both Tuesday and Saturday? If not, what variations do you recommend. Also if hill sprinting right after vd and Id is oka? I have access to an uphill road (about 35 degrees) which is near the gym, so that's why ask if I can do them on lifting days, since I won't have to drive that far to get to that inclined road. But its just an option. Looking g forward to what you have to say.
Thanks