Help rebuilding my training! (and me)

[EHCAT4]

Hello all!

I am in a bit of a predicament and need some help. Just some background, I am a former athlete (football/basketball/track) and consistently trained after those ended for two years (up to 2017). Besides the structured training as an athlete, my training has been full of program hopping and inconsistent strength/performance gains. This past year has been especially bad as my gym closed down and it has been a struggle to get to the next closest one to train. I am now 22 and now looking to get serious about my training. My best all time lifts came in 2016 and were a 230 lb bench, 350 lb squat, and 405 lb deadlift-nothing impressive I know. I am sure I could not hit those numbers now. I started back in the gym two weeks ago and am struggling. My squat is uncomfortable and slightly painful in one hip (feels like FAI). I am looking to back off to goblet squats while I work on mobility.

My biggest question comes from programming. My goals right now are not chasing numbers or a body, but rather for all-around performance. I want to be strong and efficient and am looking for a good program that I can work on my strength, power, metabolic conditioning, stability, etc. I know you're not supposed to chase multiple things at once, but I want to be practical with my training to become a solid athlete again. Is there a program that I could follow with these goals? I love loaded carries and things such as that, and my ultimate goal is to work on Olympic lifts as well once my mobility and squatting seem sufficient.

Again, my goal is all around athleticism at this point. Any and all advice is appreciated!

[wsmoran]

Either a 4 day split or an HLM based program will have lots of opportunities to incorporate conditioning and/or Olympic lifts in addition to the standard squat/bench/press/deadlift. I'd start there and move on as you progress.

If it's been a while since you've been in a gym (no idea how long it's been since that gym closed) maybe start with a brief linear progression then move into one of the previously mentioned options.

[Brodie Butland]

All-around performance benefits from a solid strength base, and since you're a young guy you can build such a base fairly quickly.

Begin with a linear progression run. You should be able to put up some pretty decent numbers when it runs out. After that, consider HLM with Olympic lifting and conditioning components, and slowly ease in metabolic training like prowler sessions. Assuming you are sufficiently attentive to your recovery, I don't see why you couldn't be doing something active five or even six days a week without compromising strength gains.

You also should get a form check on your squat pronto. Your pain is almost certainly due to improper form, and in any event "mobility" work will provide you with no real benefit if you are physically capable of getting into the bottom of a squat position as is (which, given your age and history, is about a 99.99999999999% certainty).