Strength Training for Singles 2014: Eight-Week Workout Cycle II

--------------Statement of goals---------------

For the first two weeks at least, I'm going to try doing all six of my main lifts--Deadlift, Low-bar Squat, Bench Press, OH Press, 1-DB Row, and Neutral Pulldown each workout, three times per week. I will either continue doing that for the entire eight-week cycle if my body seems to be able to recover well, and I don't mind the monotony of doing the same thing every time, or alternate it with my 1/3/5 program if it's too much, physically or mentally. In effect, I'll be switching from or alternating an intensity approach with more of a volume and frequency approach. Set/rep scheme yet to be determined but I think I'll start with three sets of each lift, either
2x5/1x3,
1x5/2x3, or
3x5.

I may allow for a heavy day for each of the main lifts with perhaps 1-3 corresponding assistance lifts at the end. A heavy day would mean either adding in some singles or else just doing more sets of triples and quintuples. I'll use this chart for exercise and weight selection, but always with room to change, depending on time, energy, and motivation:



Running-wise, I'll try to establish the daily 5K first thing in the morning, starting with distances of 1-2 miles.


---------------Week 1: Cycle 2---------------
14.10.05-11

Monday
Running
AM: 1-mile run-commute. 38F/36F WC. Both knees felt fine.
PM: 1-mile run-commute.

Strength Training
DL: 2 x 5 x 225 (102kg)
DB Row: 2 x 5 x 105 (48kg)
OH Press: 2 x 5 x 95 (43kg)
SQ: 2 x 5 x 135 (61kg)
B Press: 2 x 5 x 185 (84kg)
N Pulldown: 2 x 5 x 150 (68kg)

Did the big lifts light, and the three lesser lifts normal five-rep weight. Could probably up the OH Press by 10 pounds next time.

My knees felt fine for both the deadlift and squat, so I'll raise the weight on Wednesday and then, if everything still feels good, approach a normal quintuple weight for both on Friday, and maybe try some heavier triples for the squats.

The whole workout took a little more than 30 minutes. So that gives me room to raise the rep count on the lesser lifts, and do one of the big lifts heavy, with optional assistance. So a weekly routine might look something like this:

MON
DL*: 2 x 5 x 275, 2 x 3 x 315, 2 x 1 x 345
DB Row: 3 x 5 x 105
OH Press: 3 x 5 x 105
SQ: 2 x 5 x 225
B Press: 2 x 5 x 195
N Pulldown: 3 x 5 x 150

Russian Twist: 2 x 5 x 100
Hyperextensions: 2 x 8 x 50
Loaded Carry: 2 x 200 ft x 60

WED
DL: 2 x 5 x 275
DB Row: 3 x 5 x 105
OH Press: 3 x 5 x 105
SQ: 2 x 5 x 225
B Press*: 2 x 5 x 195, 2 x 3 x 215, 2 x 1 x 235
N Pulldown: 3 x 5 x 150

Pullover: 2 x 5 x 85
Dips: 2 x 5 x BW
DB OH Press: 2 x 5 x 45

FRI
DL: 2 x 5 x 275
DB Row: 3 x 5 x 105
OH Press: 3 x 5 x 105
SQ*: 2 x 5 x 205, 2 x 3 x 235, 2 x 1 x 265
B Press: 2 x 5 x 195
N Pulldown: 3 x 5 x 150

OH Squat: 2 x 5 x 95
Front Squat: 2 x 5 x 135
Shrug: 2 x 5 x ?

This week, and possibly into next, I'll gradually ratchet up to this kind of scheme and see if it's doable. The main goal this week is to re-establish my running.

Tuesday
Zilch

Wednesday
Running
AM: 2 miles slow run
PM: 1 mile walk

Strength Training
Bench Press: 5 x x2 x 220 (100kg)

Spent time drilling holes in and attaching pipe to my rack to serve as holders for my grip plates. So only had time for the bench press. Tried Abide's idea of using Dan John's Realistic Reps concept. Worked really well. And this was the first time I've done doubles like that. So I guess I can just freely vary the three basic set permutations of the 10-rep-count: 5 x 2, 3 x 3, 5 x 2. This automatically renders hard, medium, and easy days, respectively. I could try the 5/3/2 too, but it would involve more plate changes. A 5-6 x 1 set/rep protocol might also be interesting, but it would take longer to complete.

Thursday
Running
AM: 2 miles slow run, 35F
PM: 1 mile walk, carrying my new bar holder--a lite loaded carry.

Friday
Running
AM: 2 miles slow run, 37F
PM: 1 mile walk.

Lifting
Lifted my dad's motorized theater chair up a flight a stairs with my younger brother and moved a treadmill in for him, in anticipation of winter. He goes on daily walks but can't deal with really cold temps anymore.

Then I moved all my weights and put down the 3x3' rubber mates I got on craigslist Wednesday. Looks good, but ran out of time, so no workout. So that's another week of unintended deloading. Oh well, should have everything set for my new set up by Monday's workout. The dumbbell rack should arrive during the day on Monday.

Saturday
Running
AM: 1 mile walk, 32F.
PM: 1 mile run, got car, then 3.5-mile run with Minnesota BRS Chapter. Pace was a little faster than I'm used to, and Kyrrinstoch had slowed down for me, but my knees and hammies held up OK.

Week 1 totals
2 light lifting sessions
16.5 miles running.

---------------Week 2: Cycle 2---------------
14.10.12-18


Sunday
Running
AM: 2miles, then 1mile. 38F/31F wc

Monday
Running
AM: 2miles, then 1mile. 49F/47F wc

Tuesday
Running
AM two miles 50F/44F wc
PM one mile 59F/55F wc

Wednesday
Running
AM two miles, then one mile. 43F/41F wc

Thursday
Running
AM two miles. 40F/38F wc
PM one mile, half walked, 72F!

Strength Training
Bench Press: 3/3/4 x 210 (95kg)
DB Row: 2 x 5 x 110 (50kg)
OH Press: 2 x 5 x 100 (45kg), 1 x 2 x 110 (50kg).
Neut. Pulldown: 2 x 5 x 150 (68)
Russian Twist: 2 x 5 x 75 (34)

Still getting used to the new weight increments, five pounds less than when I was using the 7' Oly bar. I should weigh my new shorty bar though, just to make sure it's 40lbs. I like thinking exclusively in integers of ten.

On the bench, I had another rep in me on the third set, so I did four to make it an even ten reps. I may have to do this regularly.
I added five pounds to my Dumbbell to bring it up to an even 110 too. The handle is a little less than five pounds I think.

On the OH Press, 100 lbs felt a little light for five reps, so I added 10 pounds and tried a third set, but that felt too heavy. So maybe try 105 next time? I think may it would be better to stick to 100 and add a third set.

I got in some Russian Twists too. I just did 75lbs, instead of the usual 100lbs, but it felt a little too easy. However, if I do this more frequently, as a finisher, it might be good to keep it light. I could almost see ending every ST session with Russian Twists, Hyperextensions, and Loaded Carries. I didn't do the latter two because I'm still going easy on my right hamstring and knee.

Felt good to lift after a whole week off. Lifting and running, gotta have it. And the new set-up is definitely more efficient. Still, felt odd not to do any squats and deadlifts. It's hard being patient with this rehab, but it's great feeling niggleless--don't want to blow it.

Friday
Running
Late AM: 3.5 miles around Marshall and Franklin Bridges on the Mississippi.
51F/40Fwc

Saturday
Running
AM: 2 miles, 44F/37Fwc
Noon: 1 mile, 39F

Strength Training
DB Bench Press 3/3/4 x 50 (23kg)
DB OH Press 2 x 5 x 30 (14kg)
Pulldowns 2 x 5 x 150 (68kg)
DB Row 3/3/4 x 130 (59kg)
Hyperextensions: 2 x 10 x BW

Tried my new power hooks with both the DB Bench Press and the DB OH Press. I did them both light in order to get a good feel for how the hooks would work and not get into any trouble. I liked them a lot. Now I need to decide whether the DB Presses will be assistance to the BB Presses or occasional subs for them. I like the greater ROM of the DB Bench Press, and it isolates the pecs a bit better. The DB OH Presses seem to work the top of the delts more.

Did the DB Rows heavy. It was nice to have the rubber mats for the eccentric phases and drop them a bit. 130 is heavy. I added five pounds to both of my heavy dumbbells, from 105 to 110, and 125 to 130, in order to have everything end in zeros and jibe with my 40-pound shorty bar.

Did the hyperextensions without weight. I like doing them higher rep sometimes. Feels more like a reverse sit-up that way. I also wanted to make sure I wasn't straining the hammie at all.

Anyway, the new set-up is set-up, looking forward to a good workout week this coming week. Still haven't decided whether to wait another week for the squats and deadlifts, or start trying them light. The workouts feel very incomplete without them. I don't feel nearly as spent and don't get nearly as hungry the next day.

Week 2 totals
2 lifting session
21.5 miles running.

---------------Week 3: Cycle 2---------------
14.10.19-25

Sunday
Running
AM: 3.1 mi/ 5K, 41F/34F wc
Late AM: 1 mi, 53F/48F wc

The runs are starting to feel easier. I think a daily 5K should be possible sometime in November.

However, later at neighbor kids' birthday party, my right knee locked up painfully while trying to unbend it from a sitting position. Massaging around the quad-upper knee area unlocked it. Strange.

Monday
Running
AM: 2 mi, 44F

Later: Knee still locking up when sitting, painful to unbend it getting up. I have to sit back down and massage it until it unlocks. Still, I take it as a good sign that massaging it takes care of it. Hopefully the clicking sound is caused by the same tightness, and isn't something that's been damaged.

PM: 1 mile

Strength Training
Bench Press: 5 x 2 x 220
Neut. Pulldown: 2 x 5 x 150
Seated OH Press: 5 x 90/100/100
Cable Row: 2 x 5 x 170
Russian Twist: 5 x 75/100
DB Bench Press: 2 x 5 x 60
DB Farmer's Walk: 60 x 80ft
2-DB Bentover Row: 2 x 5 x 60
Hyperextensions: 2x10xBW

Nice fluid workout. Most lifts were just two sets, some three and the bench press five doubles. I raised the weight of the Russian Twists back up to 100. 75 felt too light. The DB Bench Press feels pretty good as an assistance lift, for greater ROM and isolation of the pecs. I'm doing them with a neutral grip, with the dumbbells parallel to my spine. It'll be interesting to see how these compare to t-grip bench press when my t-grip bar with a neutral grip arrives, hopefully sometime next month. The Power Hooks worked great. Dumbbell presses are a nice supplement to the barbell presses, working the stabilizers better as well, and the Power Hooks take out all the hassle.

I kept the 60-pound dumbbells out for the one set of Farmer's walks, and then finished with two-handed bentover dumbbell rows, something I've never tried before. I was too lazy to roll out the 110 dumbbell. The two handed dumbbell rows put me in a more upright position, which really worked the upper back and traps well. Kind of like a Yates Row. I was going to do pullovers as well, but I didn't have time to monkey with my new Olympic sleeve adapters on the EZ Bar. Once my t-grip bar arrives I'll do pullovers with those.

Pretty good upper body workout overall. I like keeping things to two sets and moving along quickly.


Tuesday
Running
AM: 3.5 mi, 38F/32F wc. Marshall-Franklin Bridge loop

Getting bored of the short runs through the neighborhood, so drove down to the river for early morning bridge circuit.

Wednesday
Running
AM: 3.5 mi, 41F/29F wc. Marshall-Franklin Bridge loop.

PM:
Strength Training
Cable Row: 2 x 1 0 x 150
Deadlift: 2 x 5 x 130
Bench Press 3/3/4 x 220
Neut. Pulldown 5 x 150/150/160
Seated OH Press: 3 x 3 x 110
Squat: 2 x 5 x 90
1-DB Row: 2 x 5 x 110
Band Dips: 2 x 5 x Green
Band Face Pulls: 2 x 5 x Green
DB Bench Press 1 x 5 x 60, 1 x 2 x 60 (failed 2nd rep)
Inverted Row 45°: 2 x 5 x BW
Suspension Strap Pike: 2 x 5 x BW
DB Farmer's Walk: 80ft x 60
Hanging Knee Tuck: 2 x 5 x BW

With the idea of getting in 2:1 back-to-front upper body work, I began the workout with light cable rows, which, at 2x10, also served as a good warm-up. Then, as the right knee & hamstring had been feeling 90% OK throughout the day, I decided to try some light deadlifts. That went fine. I also got a chance to try my new deadlift jack, made out of 1/2" pipe. Works better than the wedges.

I was going to do 5 x 2 x 220 on the bench, but after the second rep of the first set I knew I had another in me, so I went for it, then surprised myself by doing four reps on the third set. So my bench continues to improve steadily without even trying. Strange. This might indicate that my squat and deadlift would improve better if I backed off a bit on those lifts too. I dunno.

I wanted to get in a fourth rep on the third set of the 3x3 Seated OH Press too, but I couldn't manage it. In general though, I'm really liking the 3/3/4 rep scheme. It's ten reps and nearly as intense as the 5x2 scheme, but two sets less, so saves time. Getting in that fourth rep on the last set is a good burn. I guess it could even become a 3/3/3+ sort of set, but more than four reps would be hard if the weight is set right for three-rep sets.

The 150-pound pulldowns are starting to feel easy, so I added 10 pounds to the third set. Ah, better. Haven't felt any progress on those in a long time.

Emboldened by the problem-free deadlifts, I got brave and tried squats, at only 90 pounds and stopping just before parallel. Instead of aggravating my knee, it actually felt therapeutic. My knee felt better afterwards. Still, I'm going to proceed very slowly with these. First I'll try to get a full ROM back, and then begin to add more weight. If nothing else, the squats are good for shoulder mobility. After just a few weeks off, it was noticeably harder to get my traps and delts scrunched up.

I'm liking doing the heavy 1-DB Rows at the end of the six-lift workout, after starting it all with light Cable Rows. Nice bookends.

Then I experimented with a bunch of assistance lifts. In that article I linked to yesterday, Bret Contreras suggested doing band dips for those of us with shoulder issues. It seems like a good way to re-establish my dip's ROM without the weight. I would like to eventually work back into doing full dips though. I was able to do them 6-12 months ago no problem. So I don't think they're inherently bad for my shoulder.

I failed the second rep of the second set of DB Bench Press. I think it was more neural than muscular. My mind was drifting by that time, and I hadn't tensed up properly before initiating the set. Still like the Power Hooks quite a bit. At first I didn't know if it was a gear-whore purchase, but I think they will be a very useful addition to the arsenal.

Inverted rows I could only do at a 45-degree angle. A good longterm goal will be to do 10 BW reps parallel to the floor.

I re-introduced pikes with the suspension straps. That's a nice sub for the hyperextensions. The Farmer's walk was brutal. My grip gave out before I could complete 100 feet.

Finished with hanging knee tucks. Oh yes.

So I guess the idea is to work more assistance work back in, but always make sure to get in the six primary lifts first. Feeling really good that the deadlifts and squats are back on board. I guess the scare that I might have done some permanent damage is over. Now I just have to continue rehabbing slowly until the knee is 100% again.

Thursday
Running
AM: 3.5 mi, 50F/46F wc. Marshall-Franklin Bridge loop, pavement refreshingly wet after rain. Walked about a mile of it. I'm allowing myself to walk whenever I want. The idea is to establish the daily 5K without regard to performance, knowing that that will come later if I can finally become ultra consistent.

Friday
AM:
Running
3.5 mi, 46F/43F wc. Marshall-Franklin Bridge loop. Stretched on the Franklin bridge at midpoint, as is my custom, and then found myself picking up the pace for about a mile. Felt great. The adaptation is taking place apparently. Walked about a 1/2 mile total, mostly up to the stretching point, and then the last bit before reaching the car. I love the way other runners just suddenly appear out of the dark 30-40 feet away.

PM:
Strength Training
C Row: 6/10/10 x 150
Deadlift: 5 x 130/180/180
B Press: 5 x 90/130, 2 x 180, 5 x 200/200
Neut. PD: 5 x 150/160/160
NG Supine PD: 3/5 x 160
Squat: 5 x 90/130/130
1-DB Row: 2 x 5 x 90
OH Press: 5 x 90/110/110

Good workout, despite being low energy. Added a pair of plates to the deadlift and squat. My right knee still clicks a bit on the squat though, so I lowered to just before parallel. I don't think I will break parallel until the clicking is gone. Until I can get the loads back up on the DL and squat, I feel like I'm not hitting my midsection adequately. The running gets the legs no matter what, but my lower back and 'core' are missed.

I emphasized the Pulldowns and OH Press a bit, otherwise a very workaday, going-through-the-motions workout. I love the flexibility of the 6x10 scheme. All that is required is to do at least 10 reps of the six main lifts. Anything on top of that is gravy.

Realizing that I would never adhere to my chart exactly, I picked up a little workout log on Amazon for 9 bucks: http://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/0968707505/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Now I use the chart taped on my garage door as a guide, and then write the actual sets and reps of each workout in the log and bring it in to type up here.

So it's a nice mix of programming with leeway for autoregulation.

Saturday
Running
AM: 6 mi, 55F/47F wc. Marshall-Ford Parkway Bridge loop. This will count as my "weekend long run."

Week 2 totals
3 lifting session
26.1 miles running.

Looks like I've established the daily 5K without really even trying.


---------------Week 4: Cycle 2---------------
14.10.26-11.01

Sunday
AM
Running
3.5 mi, 35F, no windchill, Franklin-Marshall Bridge loop. Feet felt a little numb, slept in a bit, so got to see the sunrise for a change.

Monday
AM
Running
3.5 mi, 47F, no windchill, Franklin-Marshall Bridge loop. Legs felt a little stiff and the calves tight, so I took a couple of walking breaks. Knees seem to be holding up well though, with the daily running, so I'm pleased. Slept in again, so got to see another sunrise and the awakening world of work. Lots of cyclist commuters with their bright lights at that hour.

Tuesday
AM
Running
3.5 mi, 44F, 37F wc, Franklin-Marshall Bridge loop.

PM:
Lifting
Cable Row: 2 x 10 x 150
Deadlift: 5 x 130/220/220
1-DB Row 5 x 90/90/110/110
OH Press: 5 x 90/110/110/110
1-DB OH Press: 3 x 40, 5 x 30
2-DB OH Press: 5 x 30
2-DB Bench Press: 5 x 30/50/50
Squat: 5 x 40/90/90
Neut. Pulldown: 2 x 5 x 170

Emphasized the Overhead Press a bit, 3 x 5 x 110 probably represents some kind of PR. Really enjoying pushing the OH Press now. I'm feeling more confident on the form and balance. I did my first full ROM (breaking parallel) squats since the strain almost three weeks ago. Knee clicked once or twice, but otherwise felt fine. The clicking is actually a good form cue--when I get the stance width, toe angle, and knees aligned just right, the click goes away. Added another plate increment to the deadlifts, felt good to prime the back this way again. Did some rolling and stretching 'fillers' before and in between the sets, seems to help. I did light 2-DB Bench Presses mostly for the ROM, and paused at the bottom with the dumbbells just touching my shoulders and torso. Added ten more pounds to the pulldowns. When I get up to 200 I might try chinups again.

Wednesday
AM
Running
3.5 mi, 37F, 23F wc, Franklin-Marshall Bridge loop. Toes got a little numb, but the runs are starting to feel a bit easier--no walking. Listened to music with my new Miikey MiiSport headphones. Great sound.

PM
Lifting
Cable Row: 10 x 100/150/150
Sweeping Deadlift (Green Band): 5 x 130/220/270/270
Bench Press 5 x 2 x 220
Supine Pulldown: 2 x 180, 3 x 170, 5 x 160
Neut. Pulldown: 2 x 5 x 150
Squat: 5 x 40/90/90/130/130
OH Press: 2 x 5 x 90
2-DB Row: 3 x 5 x 60

Tried Sweeping Deadlifts for the first time, as a way to get in a little more lat stimulation while I continue to build back up to my deadlift RMs. I liked it. Added another plate, so I'm close to my old 5RM already. May try triples next time.

Added another weight increment to my squats too. My right knee tolerated it fine, but there's still some tightness in the surrounding muscles, so I'll continue to take it slow.

Thursday
AM
Running
3.5 mi, 38F, 31F wc, Franklin-Marshall Bridge loop.

Friday
AM
Running
3.5 mi, 28F, 12F wc, Franklin-Marshall Bridge loop. Feet got fairly numb, but all was tolerable. The worst was on the bridges, where the wind blew fiercely at times. I'm glad I'm fit enough now to run continuously because walking would've been hard today with the windchill at 12F. I knew a few weeks ago that time was running out to get back into running shape, but looks like I made it.

PM
Lifting
Cable Row: 2 x 10 x 150
Deadlift: 2 x 5 x 270
Back Squat: 5 x 40/90/130/130/130
OH Press: 5 x 40/90, 2 x 120, 1 x 120, 2 x 3 x 115, 1 x 5 x 115
Bench Press 2 x 4 x 200
Cable Row: 5 x 190/200
N. Pulldown: 2 x 5 x 150

Deadlift felt good but heavy. I've probably lost some conditioning during this layoff and rehab. On the last set of the Squats I think I came close to a full ROM, so that's coming along. When I can consistently get a good depth, I'll start adding weight again, but right now 130 feels about right while the knee is still a little stiff. The last two workouts I've widened my stance a bit, and this feels good. The clicking or stiffness in the right knee has been a good form cue, so another blessing in disguise with respect to the DL strain, in addition to motivating me to finally do the daily 5K when I stopped deadlifts and squats while waiting for the strain to lessen.

OH Press was funny, I got stronger as I went on, and just a five-pound reduction allowed me to go from one rep to five. So finally got to use the 2.5-pound Oly plates I bought a month ago. Bench felt a little heavy, didn't attempt the last rep of both sets. Tried Cable Rows heavy, felt like a nice alternative to the 1-DB Rows.

Saturday
AM
Running
3.5 mi, 23F, 19F wc, Franklin-Marshall Bridge loop.

---------------Week 5: Cycle 2---------------
14.11.02-11.08

Sunday
AM
Running
3.5 mi, 34F, 22F wc, Franklin-Marshall Bridge loop. ITB and piri formis felt tight, so stopped to stretch on Franklin Bridge, but windchill there was harsh. With the clock change, got to see a new day dawning on Marshall bridge towards the end. Getting used to having numb feet again, and gaining confidence.

Monday
AM
Running
3.5 mi, 40F, 35F wc, Franklin-Marshall Bridge loop.

PM
Lifting
Squat: 3 x 5 x 180 (82kg)
OH Press: 3 x 5 x 115 (52kg)
1-DB Row: 2 x 5 x 110 (50kg)
B Press: 2 x 5 x 200 (91kg)
N Pulldown: 2 x 5 x 170 (77kg)
Deadlift: 3/3/4 x 290 (132kg)

Was going to take some pics, but my wife decided to watch my workout, and then she discovered the video of my squats in the point-n-shot camera and became suspicious. I explained that it was to check my form, but she thinks I'm showing off to some online lover. So I'll try to take some pics today.

The set-up and the lifting order worked perfect. I now have my two weakest lifts first, and I did three sets of five instead of two. I was going to do three sets for all the lifts, but I was rapidly getting fatigued, so I cut everything back to two, except for the deadlifts, because my 80% weight there, 290, felt a little heavy for my grip. I guess my grip has atrophied a bit since the strain. Might've also have been fatigue from doing the other five lifts first for a change.

I added another weight increment to my squats, going from 130 to 180, with pretty full ROM I think, and my knee felt fine. That's still only 65% 1RM, but I'm getting my confidence in the knee back. Otherwise, doing everything 80% x five reps across the board felt great, challenging, yet doable. I could see doing everything at 75% once in a while too though. My CNS felt a bit fried towards the end, but that's probably more due to having a low-level head cold and feeling a bit wiped by that. No desire or time for assistance afterwards, but I would like to get in the Hyperextensions/Pikes, Russian Twists, and Loaded Carries fairly often.

Tuesday
AM
Running
3.5 mi, 39F, 29F wc, Franklin-Marshall Bridge loop. Some definite interference from the squats and deadlifts. Had to stop twice to stretch on the bridges' handrails, but as long as I don't care about pace, I think the running and lifting with work themselves out.

Wednesday
AM
Running
3.5 mi, 35F, 32F wc, Franklin-Marshall Bridge loop. Felt like there was more windchill than the official version on Accuweather. Took a few walking breaks, feet were comfortably numb.

PM
Lifting
Squat: 4/3/3 x 180
OH Press: 2 x 5 x 90
N. Pulldown: 2 x 5 x 150
Bench Press: 2 x 5 x 180
Cable Row: 2 x 5 x 150
Deadlift: 2 x 5 x 220

Felt really beat and only had 30 minutes, so I did everything light, in the 60-75% range. Still, got a little bit of a pump.

Thursday
PM
Running
6 mi. 40F/32F wc. Ford Parkway-Marshall Bridge. Was good to vary the route and run in the daylight, but six miles felt a bit too far.

Friday
AM
Running
No run. Had to take the kids to school this morning, so slept in.

PM
Lifting
Squat: 3 x 5 x 180 (82kg)
OH Press: 3 x 5 x 110 (50kg)
1-DB Row: 2 x 5 x 110 (50kg)
2-DB B Press: 2 x 5 x 40 (18kg)

I spent some time messing with my new lifting belt before I found a good position, plus it was a bit of a struggle just to tighten the damn thing. It'll be nice when it's more broken in. I started out too low, but once I got the belt position more or less right, I did notice a difference right away on the squats. My trunk felt more solid and stable, and the power transfer more efficient. I think it might add 10-20 pounds.

It occurred to me to try the belt on the last set of my seated overhead presses too, and it helped there as well.

Spent too much time adjusting the j-hooks for my 2-handed dumbbell bench presses, and figuring out if they will work for squats, while moving the carriage bold plate holders around to accommodate these positions. I decided even if I don't get the Rogue shorty bar, the carriage bolts will work better than the j-hooks for racking the bar for squats, as it will allow my grip to come in closer and at a better angle. So I'll just need to move the j-hooks between three positions, one for the bench and seated press, one for the power hooks above, and one just below for my dip station if I ever get around to using it.

With all the messing around with the belt and rack hooks and bolts, I ran out of time before the family came home clamoring for steaks, so I didn't get around to my pulldowns or deadlifts.

Still, this week of mild experimentation has me thinking that next week I'm going to try to do three lifts per workout relatively heavy, and three relatively light, rather than some mix of heavy days and light days. As in the attached chart.

Saturday
AM
Running
Woke up at 2am, but couldn't motivate to run. Should've.

PM
Lifting
Deadlift: 300 x 1/1/2/3/3
Cable Row: 5 x 170, 2 x 3 x 200, 10 x 170
Neut. Pulldown: 170 x 3/5
Supine Pulldown: 2 x 3 x 170, 5 x 150

Spent some time photographing my garage gym setup, then finished the exercises I missed on Friday. Got the Deadlift up to 300 for the first time since the strain. I went slow, just single reps at first, then a double, everything felt OK so then two sets of triples to bring it up to 10 reps. The triples were hard but were just five pounds off where the percentages say they should be, so I guess I'm back in the game on those. Just have to get the squats up now. Should be able to this coming week.

Cable Rows were hard to do with good form at 200. I think I was still recovering from Friday's rows. But 10 reps felt pretty good at 170. Pulldowns were also a little heavy. Like Abide has said, upper body pulls might be best done higher rep with strict form.

So, I'm feeling good about the knee. It still clicks, but I don't have to test it when getting up from a sitting position, and it's just slightly painful when I massage it.

---------------Week 6: Cycle 2---------------
14.11.09-11.15

Sunday
early PM
3.5 mi, Franklin-Marshall Bridge circuit. After two days off, felt great to be running again. May have to switch to a 3-4 times per week schedule for a little variety.

Monday
PM
Lifting

Squat: 3 x 3 x 200 (91kg)
OH Press: 2 x 5 x 90 (41kg)
1-DB Row: 2 x 5 x 90 (41kg)
B Press: 2 x 5 x 200 (91kg)
N Pulldown: 2 x 5 x 150 (68kg)
Deadlift: 2 x 5 x 270 (122kg)

Had to shovel and put on snow tires. Luckily Mommy picked up the kids early so I still had time for a quick workout before dinner. Did everything fairly light, although I added 20 pounds to my squat, but ended up doing 3 x 3 instead of 2 x 5, I didn't feel confident enough to get in the last two reps. I felt a little buckling in the right knee. I tried bringing in the stance a bit, but that made me a little unstable and I almost fell forward on the last rep as I wasn't concentrating. I felt strong enough to do more weight, and I think my depth was pretty good, but I'll stay at this weight for a while I think until full confidence has returned. The knee felt great on the deadlift though. This morning (Tuesday), minimal soreness, so that's nice--should be good for a good run later.

Tuesday
AM
Running
I don't know why, but I blew off the run.

Wednesday
AM
Running
Blew off the run again

PM
Lifting
Cable Row: 2 x 10 x 150 (68kg)
Squat: 3 x 5 x 180 (82kg)
OH Press: 5 x 115 (52kg), 5/4 x 120 (54kg)
Cable Row: 5/5/8 x 200 (91kg)
Bench Press: 2 x 5 x 200 (91kg)
Neutral Pulldown: 2 x 5 x 170 (77kg), 2 x 5 x 190 (86kg)
Deadlift: 2 x 5 x 270 (122kg)
Russian Twist: 2 x 5 x 100 (45kg)

Pretty good workout. The squat felt really solid. I went back to a thumbless grip, and was able to squeeze my hands closer on the last set to the inter-sleeve width of the Rogue bar (43"), so that helped convince me to get it when it becomes available in a few weeks. Just narrowing the grip three inches (the Body Solid bar's inter-sleeve width is 46") really helped scrunch up my traps and delts and create a good and clear shelf for the low-bar position. With the 46" width, it sometimes takes me a bit to find the sweet spot. My stance was just a little wider than shoulder-width. I didn't feel any inward movement on the knee, and I felt pretty smooth coming out of the hole. So I guess I'll keep it at this relatively light weight of 180 until everything feels automatic and easy, then begin increasing weight in 10-pound increments, as Abide has said he would do. It would be nice to get back up to last cycle's five-rep weight of 205 by the end of this cycle, but I'm not going to rush it.

More and more, I really like the 5RM scheme and the simple protocol of adding weight when it starts to feel easy. A very good regulator; hard to overtrain yet easy to make progress. I'll continue to do three sets of five for the Squats, OH Press, and Rows as I continue to bring those up.

The OH Press has progressed already. 115 felt a little light, so I bumped it up to 120, but missed the last rep of the third set. I could've tried it, but I kinda knew it wasn't going up, at least not with good form. I'll start with 120 next time.

The Cable Rows also felt a little easier than last time, and I ended up doing eight reps on the last set. I had called T-Grip Co earlier and they said the five-foot bar should be ready in 10 days. I can hardly wait to do some neutral-grip barbell rows.

The Bench felt really solid, and almost no complaints from my left shoulder. I'll keep it at 200 while everything else seems to be progressing, then test a single again in a month or two.

The Pulldowns also felt easier, so I bumped them up to 190. So I'm approaching my lean bodyweight. I'll guess it at 210, so when I can do five reps at 210, I'll start doing neutral grip BW Pullups.

So both the Cable Rows and Cable Pulldowns are approaching my Bench Press at the five-rep level. That's the 1:1:1 ratio I'm shooting for, but the true test will be when my BB Rows and Pullups are equivalent to my Bench Press.

The deadlift I kept relatively light at 270, but it's still a challenge to maintain my grip for five reps. Probably be another week or so before I regain my grip strength. Still, it might be best to keep the deadlifts 20 lbs light for two out of the three weekly workouts anyway.

Finished with Russian Twists, they also felt easier than the last time I did them a month or two ago, so there has been some real gains in the meantime. I think the full body routine is working.

Thursday
Felt like running in the morning, but thought I might have a chance to run barefoot if I waited until the afternoon, then I got caught up in work, and didn't run at all.

Friday
PM
Lifting
Cable Row: 150 (68kg) x 10/10
Squat: 180 (82kg) x 5/5
1-DB Row: 100 (45kg) x 5/5
OH Press: 120 (54kg) x 5/3/2
N Pulldown: 200 (91kg) x 3/3/3
Deadlift: 300 (136kg) x 3/3/2

Took time to weigh my 14", 16", and 18" dumbbell handles, so that ate into the workout time a bit. The 18" with starlock collars is 4.77lbs, the 16" with starlock collars is 4.91lbs, and the 14" with starlock collars is 3.84 lbs. So basically 5, 5, and 4 pounds. I reduced the weight on the 18" to 120 total, the 16" to 100 even, and then with the two 14" I have a 90(89)-pound dumbbell and an 80(79)-pound dumbbell. 100 pounds feels pretty good for a strict bentover row, and 120 for the cheating bentover rows. I can use the 90-pound dumbbell for easy days or maybe higher reps. Not sure what to do with the 80-pound dumbbell.

Squat continues to feel really solid, so next week I'll increase by 5 or 10 pounds.

I officially bumped up the OH Press weight to 120, but hadn't recovered completely from Wednesday's workout, so it took me two sets to finish the last five reps.

I also bumped up the pulldowns, to 200, but found out that was no longer my quintuple weight, so I did triples. Next time I'll take it back down to 190 for five reps.

I did deadlifts at 300 for the second time since the strain, but on the third set I felt a little something in the lower hammie before the third rep, so I shut it down. I'll probably go back down to 290 for five reps next week on my heavy deadlift day.

I skipped the bench press as I was short on time.

Overall, solid workout. I'm settling into a good rhythm with the six main lifts. I switched the OH Press and Row around, cuz the rows, together with the squats, are good for priming everything. It's also nice now because everthing follows a push-pull alternation, if we count the squat as a push.

Push: Squat
Pull: Row
Push: OH Press
Pull: Pulldown
Push: B Press
Pull: Deadlift

It also seems to feel good to alternate between a heavier workout, like Wednesday's, and a lighter workout, like on Monday and Friday. Maybe next week I'll try going heavy on Monday and Friday and keep Wednesday light.

---------------Week 7: Cycle 2---------------
14.11.16-11.22

Monday
PM
Lifting

Cable Row: 2 x 10 x 150 (68kg)
Squat: 2 x 5 x 190 (86kg)
OH Press: 5 x 120/110 (54/50kg)
B Press: 2 x 5 x 180 (82kg)
Deadlift: 2 x 5 x 280 (127kg)
N Pulldown: 2 x 5 x 150 (68kg)

I forgot I had to take my daughter to a birthday party at 6pm, so I had to hurry through the workout. It's too bad, because I was really psyched for an intense session. Since I've been getting into Cable Rows a lot lately, I decided to upgrade the handle and got a 14" stirrup handle


to replace the old jetfighter-style handle.

The latter always tilts a bit, whereas with the former, it's easy to keep the wrists straight. Unfortunately, I only did Cable Rows for warm-up, I didn't have time to do them heavy in the middle of the session.

I bumped up the Squat by 10 pounds, as planned, and those felt solid. For the OH Press I didn't have time to set up mentally, so I took it down 10 pounds for the second set. The goal is to get them up to 2 x 5 x 135, which would be the 2:3 ratio I want in relation to my 2 x 5 x 200 Bench Press, and, theoretically at least, give me a OH Press 1RM of 170, or a 2:3 ratio to my Bench Press 1RM of 250. Once I achieve this ratio, I may start pushing the Bench Press again, or I may wait for the squat and deadlift to catch up too.

For the Bench Press I took it easy, as I did with the Pulldowns. I took 10 pounds off my five-rep Deadlifts, from 290 to 280, as precaution after feeling a slight strain last Friday on the 300-pound triples. Everything felt fine though, so I guess I'll go back to 290 for my quintuples on Wednesday. The trick I'm finding for higher reps on the Deadlift is to finger-grip, so that my calluses don't get pinched by the bar in between my fingers and palms.

Overall, a pretty unsatisfying workout, but I'm glad I got it in. The 6/10 protocol really works great on days like these, when you're pressed for time but want to get a little of everything in.

Wednesday
PM
Lifting

Cable Row: 2 x 10 x 150 (68kg)
Squat: 3 x 5 x 200 (91kg)
OH Press: 5 x 120/115/115 (54/52/52kg)
1-DB Row: 2 x 5 x 100 (45kg)
B Press: 2 x 5 x 200 (91kg)
N Pulldown: 2 x 5 x 190 (86kg)
Deadlift: 3/5 x 290 (132kg)

I had planned on doing my squats at 190 all this week, but Monday they felt really solid, so I bumped it up to 200. Still felt really solid--the form and depth is pretty automatic now with no chance of failure--so I guess I'll take it up ten more pounds on Friday, and keep increasing until it gets iffy. Based on my 1RM PR of 275 last summer, my 5RM at 80% should be 220. It will be cool when I can go beyond that.

OHP is still a little iffy at 120. As with the Squats, I consider the OHP one of my weakest lifts, so I like to do three sets instead of two. So I took it down to 115 and that felt just right on sets 2 and 3. Funny how five pounds can make a difference.

I experimented a bit with my bench press grip width. I read up a bit on bench press form over lunch and saw that Mark Rippetoe recommends that the forearms are perfectly vertical when in the descended position, so I brought my hands back out to the rack posts, which is where they had felt good before. I had brought them in closer because I read somewhere it helps tuck in the elbows, which helps the shoulders, but I think I can still do that with a slightly wider grip. I also read to try to keep the bar as close to the heel of the hand as possible, to minimize the moment arm between the bar and the forearm. I did it a little, but I didn't have the confidence to bring it out as much as I could. I'll try to practice a bit more with littler weights when I have more time. It feels a little unsafe when the bar's not snug in the middle of the palm. I also made an effort to retract the shoulder blades, make sure everything is tight, and arch my back a bit, but not in an exaggerated powerlifter manner. Seems to help. I don't think I'll increase weight or test my 1RM until I'm done experimenting with these parameters. I had always taken the bench press as a given, but I guess it behooves me to work on form there too.

As with the Squat, I also took the Deadlift up 10 pounds. I had only slept four hours and had a queasy gut during the day, so I hadn't eaten as much as I usually do. After the third rep of the first set I felt a sort of wave of hypoglycemic weakness overcome my body. So I stopped and sat down. But it passed after a few minutes and I was able to complete five reps on the second set. Five reps of 290 supposedly corresponds to my 1RM PR of 360, at 80%, so it seems I've recovered my deadlift now after the strain almost two months ago. I guess the immediate goal now is to get the 5RM up to 300, but I'll probably wait until next week. It would be nice to finish this cycle with a bit of progress in the deadlift too.

Friday
AM
Running
1 mi run-commute. First run of the season with footwear, after we got the Freezing Snow on the 9-10th, with Sockwas. 5F/-3F wc

PM
1 mi walk-commute. 27F/5F wc. My legs felt a little tight after the short run in the morning, so I walked.

Lifting
Cable Row: 2 x 10 x 150 (68kg)
Squat: 3 x 5 x 200 (91kg)
OH Press: 5 x 120/115/115 (54/52/52kg)
Cable Row: 3 x 5 x 200 (91kg)
B Press: 2 x 5 x 210 (95kg)
Deadlift: 3/5 x 290 (132kg)
N Pulldown: 1 x 200 (91kg), 2 x 5 x 170 (77kg)

Squats still felt solid and automatic, but about one rep in each set the knee would cave a bit when I wasn't concentrating enough. Might be time to raise the weight to make it harder and demand more focus.

OH Press, once again, I could only do 120 for the first set. I knew my form would degrade if I didn't take it down five pounds for the second and third set. But the third set felt pretty strong, so I wonder if I need to warmup more before hitting the worksets. I usually do just a few reps at 90 as warm-up.

Cable Row was fine. I could probably take these up 10 pounds, and probably should because my Bench just went up.

On the Bench Press, I messed around a bit with bar position in my grip while ascending in increments--90/130/180--during my warm-up. Closer to the heel worked OK, but when it came time for my worksets, I decided to forget about it, just focus on squeezing the shoulder blades together and get a slight arch, because 180 felt pretty light and I instinctively wanted to up the load to 210. That went fine, a perfect 5RM weight actually, since the last rep of the second set was a little challenging, but still went up with good form. So now my projected 1RM, based on my chart percentages, is 263, unless my ability to do singles has atrophied. I might have to test it at the end of next week.

With a higher Bench though, all the other 2:3:4:5 lifts have gone up too. The base unit is now closer to 88, so OHP=175, SQ=350, and DL=438. I've got my work cut out for me!

The 1:1:1 lifts should probably go up too. I can't do five reps of 210 pulldowns, but I can probably do that with Cable and DB Rows (105 per side).

I was starting to feel fatigued, so I jumped ahead to my Deadlifts, and those went better than Wednesday. Five reps are a challenge with Deadlifts. I think I'd rather do 3x3, but 2x5 is a good governor on overtraining.

I tried 200 on my Supine Pulldown, but by that time I was pretty spent, and just managed one rep. So I lowered it to 170 to close out the workout.

Saturday
Was going to run down by the river in above-freezing temps, try to get in a little bare stimulation for the first time in two weeks, but I got called back home early.


---------------Week 8: Cycle 2---------------
14.11.23-11.29

Sunday
PM
Running
6 mi. 44F.40F windchill. Wet surfaces but feet were fine. Very slow and some walking.

Monday
PM
Lifting

Squat: 2 x 5 x 210 (95kg)
OH Press: 2/3/5 x 120 (54kg), 5 x 115 (52kg)
Deadlift: 3/3/5 x 290 (132kg)
B Press: 5 x 130/180 (59/82kg)
1-DB Row 4 x 5 x 105 (48kg)
N Pulldown: 2 x 5 x 170 (77kg)

Had to pick up my daughter early from Discovery Club. She had a stomach ache that miraculously got better as soon as we got home. So I was a little pressed for time.

Nonetheless, I bumped up my Squat by 10 pounds. It still felt solid but it's definitely getting close to my 5RM limit. I think ten more pounds ought to do it, to 220, which will bring the quintuples up where they're supposed to be, 80% of my 1RM PR of 275.

I tried thumbless grip again on the OH Press, because it's supposed to be better for one's wrists and shoulders, but the images of those Bench Press thumbless grip fails in Lee Hayward's video kinda spooked me. I could imagine the bars smashing down into my thighs. So after two reps I reracked the bar and did three more with a normal grip. I was able to do a second set of five at 120. Then I reduced by five pounds for a third set.

I jumped ahead to the deadlifts, figuring I'd get in my three most important lifts--Squat, OH Press & Deadlift--first and then see how much time I had left over. I started out feeling a little nauseous, so I decided to just do 3x3, but on the last set the bar all-of-a-sudden felt light, so I whipped out five fast reps, the bar barely touching the floor in between reps. Strange. I guess I'm ready for 300.

With some time left over, I thought it would be a good idea to practice my new Bench Press tweaks--retracted scapulae & slight arch. 130 wasn't quite enough to feel it, so I did the second set at 180.

Since my 5RM for the Bench Press increased to 210 last week, I figured my Row should be 210 as well, or 105 for the One-arm Dumbbell Rows, so I adjusted my dumbbells and did two sets of five for each arm. I used to write this simply as 2 x 5, but from now on I'll write it as 4 x 5, as this helps me keep track of total poundage in my log.

I did the Pulldowns at a slightly reduced weight, same as the Bench Press, and got out the door in time to pick up my son at daycare and do some banking before the 6pm cut-off.

So I ended up getting in a pretty full workout after all.

Wednesday
PM
Lifting

Deadlift: 2 x 5 x 300 (136kg)
OH Press: 5 x 120/115 (54/52kg)
Squat: 2 x 5 x 220 (100kg)
B Press: 2 x 5 x 210 (95kg)

Put the Deadlifts first to make sure I had all my energy and motivation to push to 300. It was challenging but doable. No strain, so a good confidence boost.

I'm still having trouble doing two sets of five reps at 120 for the OH Press. Might take a few more weeks before that gets solid.

The Squat was fine bumping up another 10 pounds, but I'll hold steady now at 220 for a couple of weeks I think. I almost had an accident reracking after the first set. I thought the bar was on the carriage bolts but the right side hadn't caught yet. I was able to recover, but one of the plates on the right side almost slid off the bar and my left upper trap got pulled a little bit. I think I was overly excited about having made five reps at 220 and was already looking ahead to the second set.

The Bench went fine. I went back to the grip-width of my OH Press and Deadlift. Maybe this will be my universal grip-width.

Then I remembered I needed to pick up some wine for Thanksgiving, so I cut the workout short. There's a Total Wine retail shop near my son's daycare, so I need an extra 15 minutes to get some bottles before picking him up. Bummer. I was anxious to try a new concept of putting the upper body pulls at the end and experimenting a bit with rep counts and intensity levels. Oh well, next time.

Thursday
AM
Running
3.5 mi. 2F/-13F windchill. Franklin-Marshall bridge circuit. Stretched on Franklin Bridge handrail, then ran Fartleks the second half. I wore Sockwas with smart wool socks, so it was no problem walking and running over the fresh snow from Wednesday.

Saturday
PM
Lifting
Deadlift: 2 x 5 x 220 (100kg)
OH Press: 2 x 5 x 90 (41kg)
Squat: 5 x 130/180 180 (59/82/82kg)
Bench Press: 5 x 130/180 (59/82kg)
Cable Row: 2 x 10 x 150 (68kg)
N Pulldown: 2 x 5 x 150 (68kg)

Did everything light. I was feeling creaky and my son was anxious to get outside. Even so, I think there's some benefit to doing these lighter workouts once in a while, maybe as often as once-a-week, although I don't think I'd program them in. Autoregulation and circumstances seem to program them just fine. But it's interested to think what a "Monday, Friday hard effort, Wednesday light effort with assistance" scheme would be like.


---------------CYCLE II SUMMARY---------------

The six-lift, 3xweek workout scheme was a great success. I had my doubts as to whether I would have sufficient recovery time, and whether it would get dull mentally, but I found it easy to lighten loads whenever I felt a little overtrained, or was simply pressed for time or tired, and I never got bored doing the same lifts every workout. In fact, the simplicity of just doing six lifts per workout makes working out mentally easier.

With Abide a la Dan John's input, I strove to get in 10 reps of each lift every workout. After a few weeks, I found myself falling into the 2x5 set/rep scheme pretty naturally as the base standard. Sometimes I would add sets or alter rep counts too, but five reps seems like a very good count most days for each lift. This was a minor revelation for me, as I had never been very concerned with maintaining a strict count across all the lifts before, but it feels right, at least right now.

I was also surprised that I never really felt the urge to mix in a heavy day for the major lifts. Maintaining a good 80% 1RM for five reps seemed like a good, daily intensity for me, with no real need to alter it.

It took me much longer to rehab my right knee and hamstring strain than I thought it would. I thought I was already on the mend the first week of this cycle, but then in the second week the muscles around my right knee tightened up so much that I had trouble unbending it without a hard massage first. Nonetheless, I was able to surpass my 5RM on both the Deadlift and Squat by the end of the cycle. My right knee still clicks a bit when unbending, but it's almost completely gone.

I also made significant gains on all the other lifts. So the higher frequency experiment worked out quite well, all-in-all. As long as I'm making gains and avoiding the possible overtraining I encountered in Cycle I, I don't see any reason to change it.

I put the finishing touches on my reconfigured garage gym, a project that began at the beginning of the summer with the purchase of a $30 power rack c/ cables off of Craigslist. For the time being, the gym feels pretty complete and the workouts flow more smoothly and efficiently now. In Cycle III I will begin using my Rogue C-70 bar and the T-grip bar too.

Running began to go well, but then I let an early snowfall and temperature drop put me off my game for the last few weeks of the cycle, as I kept waiting for conditions to improve enough for a barefoot run. Finally on Thanksgiving I put on my Sockwas and went for a decent fartlek run.

I lost four pounds while running every day for three weeks, but gained it back when I stopped for two.

---------------CYCLE II GAINS---------------

DL: +25lbs/11kgs
2 x 5 x 225 (275*) --> 300 (102/125* > 136kg )

SQ: +15lbs/7kgs
2 x 5 x 135 (205*) --> 220 (61/93* > 100kg)

OH Press: +25lbs/11kgs
2 x 5 x 95 --> 120 (43 > 54kg)

B Press: +25lbs/11kgs
2 x 5 x 185 --> 210 (84 > 95kg)

DB Row: 0 lbs/kgs
2 x 5 x 105 --> 105 (48 > 48kg)

Cable Row: +30lbs/14kgs
2 x 5 x 170 --> 200 (77 > 91 kg)

N Pulldown: +40lbs/18kgs
2 x 5 x 150 --> 190 (68 > 86 kg)


*Total from previous cycle before straining my right knee and hamstring at the beginning of this one.

 

Looks like a good program, with a nice mix of set/rep protocols. It'll be fun to see how you progress through it.

And thanks again for the idea of doing eight-week training cycles. It's a good way to keep things fresh and experiment with different training philosophies.

I'm still trying to figure out how my six-lifts-per-day routine will work, but I'm thinking along these lines:

Incorporate Wendler's 5/3/1 idea of maxing out on the last set, so if I do 3x5, for example, the last set would be 1x5+ -- for as many reps as possible. I also like the idea of 2x5, 1x3+, where I would add weight on my last set to get the triple weight I was doing in the last cycle, but shoot for extra reps beyond that if possible.

Alternatively, I would mess with some sort of heavy/light alternation, or a max/dynamic alternation.

I might also loosen up the definition of each lift, to a more abstract Dan John concept of 'movement', so that if, for example, it gets to be too much doing low bar squats every workout, I could sub Goblet squats instead. Likewise, I can freely vary the type of row being done, but the DB Row would remain the primary.

Once one does the same lifts every workout, it seems to allow one to be more flexible in almost every other parameter. Basically, the only fixed parameter is to do some version of each of the six main lifts every time. Everything else is up in the air.

Assistance lifts, as always, will be done when I feel like it. The only important thing is to make sure I get through all six lifts or movement each time, to give the protocol a fair chance of producing results.

It's funny, but I find the basic movements kind of addicting, and find myself just wanting to do them each time, so the trick will be to find the right combination of intensity, sets and reps to make it feasible.

Right knee feels pretty much recovered from last week's overtraining, but I'll take things slow to begin with. I think my main priority in this training cycle is going to be to establish a good running routine, before winter hits, and let the weights take a back seat. So I may go light on the deadlifts and squats for a few weeks, even if my knees are feeling fine.

Good luck Abide on getting to 400 before the end of the year. I know that's not going to be possible for me, but I except to make it sometime next year. One thing I think I learned last week is that my knees, or the muscles and tendons around them, are my limiting factor in the deadlift, and not my back, as I suspected. So perhaps focusing more on squats for a while will improve my deadlift in the long term?

P.S., I took the chin-up bar and cross-over cables off my rack. I also got rid of the Smith machine-like j-clips and substituted them with fixed carriage bolts. I ordered a four-tier dumbbell rack to save some space, and I think I might get a bar holder too, to get the bars off the floor. I'm trying to create a really simple, uncluttered workout space. I think it will help clear my mind to just focus on the main lifts, and also enable me to switch between them as efficiently as possible.

 

Yah, felt a little strain in the right quad just above the knee on my light squats yesterday, so I'm going to be taking it slow, but looks like there was no lasting damage done, and who knows, perhaps in the long run this will have made me stronger. At the very least, I learned where my DL weak point is. I had always thought it was the back.

Yah, with your longer runs, your body will probably be trying to break down some of the muscle you've built up with lifting, so proper recovery times will be key. For me, running just 5-10K, there shouldn't be too much interference after I have time to adapt. Last year when my running was starting to come along, I wasn't doing nearly as much deadlifting and close to zero squatting, so it may take a while to figure out how all this fits together, but I think my plan right now is a good first attempt.

Progress, in any case, is nonlinear, like you say. When you read up on Wendler's 5/3/1 system and all the people who've had success with it, you realize how complicated the process can be. I could never follow such a complicated system, but I guess he lays out all the percentages in his book.

That said, I think I'm getting closer to a system that keeps me progressing, without overtraining, and yet allows for autoregulation. I wrote up my latest tweaks in this morning's training log edit. My projection is that sometime within a year, maybe two, I will hit a natural plateau, given my genetics and age, after which it won't be worth it to try to push beyond that. Even the reduced routine I did yesterday afternoon is probably perfectly adequate from a purely fitness perspective.

Looking back, I think maybe I was given signs that I was overtraining the deadlift for a week or two prior to the strain. The same weights were feeling heavier, not lighter like they're supposed to. When that happens again, I'll know to back off right away.

A five kg or 10 lb increase over eight weeks is probably a best case scenario for intermediate lifters like us. I will no longer be pushing things though. I think in the last eight-week cycle I learned more or less where my rep-count weight increments should be, so I won't increase them now until they start to feel easy. That's been my MO in the past. Now, on days when I got good energy, I think I'll just extend the sets or reps, rather than increasing the weights.

The j-clips on the sliding smith-machine were too deep, even after I took a grinder to them and shortened them. After a heavy set of squats or bench pressing, I don't want to worry about whether or not the bar has made it back in. Plus, I'm trying to get everything off the floor, including the smaller plates. So I'm hanging them on the other side of the rack, using carriage bolts as their hooks, which interferes with the path of the sliding j-hooks. And having adjustable j-hooks was unnecessary for me. I only use two heights, one for my squats and standing OH PRess, and one for my bench press and seated OH Press. Then I have a carriage bolt in the lowest position as a safety catch for the bench press, and then another removable one two holes up as a safety catch for the squat.

I found a buyer for my two small dumbbell racks, so I'm getting a four-tier one, a bar holder, and a small dolly for the heavy bag. I also found a guy on craigslist who's selling 81 square feet of rubber mats for $50. So I think within a week I could have a pretty nice, simplified set-up, with everything tucked away when I'm not using it, yet easily accessible. I'm also going to make a place for the kids to hang up their coats and backpacks right by the garage door so they'll have no excuses for throwing everything on the floor when they come in. The secret to doing lots of different lifts in a single workout will be getting from one exercise to the next efficiently. The actual number of sets won't change that much. My six-foot oly bar should arrive today, so that will also help free up some space, mentally as well as physically. The t-grip bar with the neutral grip won't show up until November sometime, but when it does, I'll get rid of my EZBar and store it some place. I also got used Olympic sleeve adapters for my hex-bar, at Second Wind, so I can start to sub in hex-bar deadlifts once in a while using my oly plates and maybe do some shrugs too. So I'll only be using the standard plates on the cables and can store them close by. I'll try to take some pics next week when the whole thing comes together.

 

I would think the squat qualifies as a full-body lift as well.

Anyway, I have a slightly different way of looking at it. I tend to think in terms of bottom, middle, and top lifts, each one with a push or a pull. As you go up, the reps can increase both within the set and across sets. The more muscle involved, the heavier the weight = fewer reps. So not all 'half-body' lifts are created equal. A Bench Press uses more muscle than an OH Press.

My mistake, perhaps was keeping the 1/3/5 drop sets too uniform, although I allowed for some variation. But I dunno. Just because more reps are possible on lighter lifts doesn't necessarily mean you should do them if the main benefits come from the heavy lifts. Overall, I'm trying to find the most efficient approach. No use doing reps that aren't giving you much benefit. For example, after three sets of five reps on the pulldown, do I really gain anything from doing another set? On the other hand, I know doing as many reps possible on the deadlift or squat is going to lead to good benefit. It's just a matter of avoiding overtraining. What I want to do is come as close as I can to my limit on those big lifts on a consistent basis.

But yeah, everybody warns about overdoing the deadlifts. I learned my lesson, I hope.

I won't say anything about swings, except I know I need to give them another try at some point.


Edit: OK, reading a bit more Dan John over brunch. I think on my heavy days, the easiest and also most flexible protocol would be to simply start with my 2x5 weight, but do just one set, then keep adding weight, until I can only do a set of one rep, then call it a day for that lift.

So for example, on the heavy deadlift day, do

1 x 5 x 265, then maybe 1 x 4 x 285, 1 x 3 x 305, 1 x 2 x 315, 1 x x 1 335.

It's kind of the opposite of my drop set approach. It would be easy to keep track of progress this way, as my single would eventually start going up. When it does, I increase the five-rep count by 10 pounds.

I think I'll try your idea of timed intervals, to make sure everything moves along efficiently. Maybe two minutes per interval and three minutes in between different lifts?

 

Problem for me with the OH Presses is that I have trouble maintaining good form with 1-2RM. My right arm starts to lead, but I'm working on it. I want to just do 3-5 reps for a while until I gain a little more strength and better technique, then maybe start to think about OH Press singles.

Yah, it seems kind of ackbasswards to pyramid up, because by the time you get up to the doubles and singles, you've already expended a fair amount of energy, but it will be interesting to try it as a change of pace. Just have to set the increments. Maybe 20 for the DL and 10 for the bench and squat? Doing singles and doubles when you're already fatigued would be more of a hypertrophy than a strength protocol, though, right? In any case, I really like idea of having no set set or rep count on the heavy lift, helps me get back to just doing it by feel, like I used to do, but keeping all the other lifts in the same workout fairly disciplined and workaday, just 2x5 or 3x5.

Yeah, Dan John is full of ideas. He thinks outside the box as they say. I think he's absolutely right though, that we should always be striving to be as simple as possible, given x goals. That's the big lesson I've learned this year. Even now though, I have trouble letting go of the idea of, say, doing shrugs once in a while, and I've never done shrugs. What's up with that?

Sh!t, right hammie is tightening up, have to stretch it out and maybe pass on the afternoon run I had planned down by the river.

 

Haha, yah, got my new 6' Oly bar yesterday. The dimensions are perfect, and there's no center knurling as was depicted on the web, so it could really be the perfect bar for me--we'll see how it holds up. Some reviewers complained that it rusted, but that happened on my standard bar too, until it stabilized. For the rack I have, this bar will work perfectly. There's just enough space outside the rack before the sleeves to grip for my back squats, and the sleeves can just handle four of my Oly grip plates on each side, with just enough room for the collars. Plus, it's supposed to weight 40lbs instead of 45lbs. If true, this will get me back to thinking in integers of ten, which is a lot easier to remember and calculate. A got a little garage dolly for my bag, so I can cart it to the side when not in use, and keep it off of the ground. Yesterday I picked up 81 sq ft of 3/8" rubber mats for $30 off of craigslist. It's about six inches too big for my garage door, so I'll have to do some cutting, but it was a good purchase. I like the extra grip for my bench and it will protect the floor some when the bar comes down a little too fast on those heavy deadlifts.

I'm also going to DIY plate holders like this: http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showthread.php?t=128764841&page=1
and I'm making a deadlift jack out of pipe too. Those rubber wedge/ramp things don't work that well with my grip plates cuz the plates taper to a narrow contact point, so it's easy to miss or roll off.

Wow, I like that set/rep variation. I may have to try something like that too, so the theft is more like a gift exchange. Kinda gets back to what I noticed earlier, that once the parameter of exercise selection is simplified, it really opens up all the other parameters to greater variation and flexibility. I mean, say you're really feeling the OH Press one day. Well, go for it with EMOM x 10 It won't disrupt scheduling or anything because you know you got the other lifts covered minimally with 10 reps, and it'll only take 30 minutes or so to do those.

My idea is really your 40-day idea is really Dan John's idea is really just a full-body workout each and every time. I think it did occur to me independently that there are just six basic force/direction pairings, but surely many others have thought of this before. I also like my three-basic-lifts-per-workout scheme in the first cycle. It's still a full-body workout, but with a bit more focus and intensity.

I thought your split scheme looked pretty good too, and made sense given your twice-weekly long runs. But it'll be cool if we follow the same basic protocol, and you can always do the leg push/pull light before a long run. I think I'll try to move the loaded carries into my must-do list too, so that our programs are nearly identical. All that will vary are the set/rep schemes. It'll be interesting to compare notes. I'm pretty sure I'll keep my one-heavy-lift-per-workout idea, but the intensity will vary depending on mood, energy, and motivation. The basic lifts x 10 reps will work for general fitness purposes, and the gains will still come, but I'd like to push the gains a little bit still. I would still like to see a 400 DL, a 340 Squat, and a 280 bench press (notice how I've already adjusted my goal weights now that I have an 40lb bar?) some time next year, if possible. But I'll probably continue to keep the leg stuff light until this hammie/knee issue completely clears up. I gotta re-establish my running at all costs now while the weather is still nice.

Another nice thing about always doing 10 reps of the basic lifts is that you can add in the assistance stuff whenever you feel like it. Just do them at the end to make sure it doesn't interfere with the basics.

I'm also thinking that all assistance stuff, which inherently puts one's muscles and joints in biomechanically less advantageous angles and movements than the basic lifts, should always be done lighter and higher rep. So I might reduce my Russian Twists from 100 to 75, for example.

After doing the basic stuff, the second layer of plyo/mobility can easily be added on top of it. This is where we can move the joints in a more athletic manner, using the basic strength we've gained in the lifts with more limited ROM.

This all goes back to RDL's philosophy, which states that we should just train the prime movers at their strongest lengths and angles, then apply that strength in athletic movements. Like you say, if the pecs, the prime movers, are strong on a bench press, then the triceps must be too. I think we've been so influenced by the bodybuilder and powerlifter protocols that we forget that we need to filter it to more of a strength protocol. It's amazing how on the meathead sites almost no one is advocating a basic strength program. Dan John and Rippetoe and maybe a few others are the exceptions. The norm is people like Bret Contreras who never seem to tire of thinking up new variations. Of course, part of it is marketing, but I think part of it is either (1) the bodybuilder's need to get even secondary or supporting muscles to bulge, or (2), the powerlifter's need to squeeze out every last ounce of performance potential.

I've actually never done shrugs more than once or twice, but it's one of those lifts where once you know they exist, there's a certain Catholic guilt if you don't do them. It's taken me a while to fight that urge successfully and really simplify, trust that a few basic lifts are enough.

Finally, one of the reasons I wanted to do all six basic lifts is that it seems to keep me looser if I do all the movements three times a week. When I only bench once a week, especially, I tend to feel stiff until I've warmed up. Doing everything three times a week kind of keeps you permanently warmed up. I should really read some Pavel and his greasing the groove philosophy.

Already looking forward to this afternoon's st . . .

 

OK, here's a way I could incorporate your set/rep scheme (besides simply copying it):

----------Mon----------Wed----------Fri
DL-----5x1x340----3x3x310-----2x5x280
Rw-----3x5x110-----3x5x110-----3x5x110
OHP---3x5x100-----3x5x100-----3x5x100
SQ-----2x5x200-----3x3x230-----5x1x260
BP-----2x5x190-----5x1x230-----3x3x210
PD-----3x5x150-----3x5x150-----3x5x150

It's a little more sophisticated than my scheme up above, because it basically has a heavy, medium, and light day for the big three lifts, instead of two light and one heavy. On the heavy day, I would have the option of pyramiding down and adding assistance towards the end. The squat and deadlift light days are paired with the other's heavy day. It still utilizes the same three 1/3/5/ rep-counts though, so I could use the same weight increments as I did in the first cycle I think.

Anyway, something to consider. But it does introduce some complexity, which I'm trying to get away from, so maybe try it next cycle? It might be good (for me) to try the simplest way possible before adding in some wrinkles. On the other hand, always doing five reps could get monotonous. Varying the rep counts on the big three could be a good way to keep things a little fresher. Doing the same six lifts every workout is bound to get a little stale after a while, so a little set/rep variation could spice things up a bit.

 

Yah, I only had time for the bench press yesterday, but I did them 5 x 2 x 225, as per your suggestion, and I got a feel for how this could all work. The 10-rep protocol is actually kind of brilliant in its simplicity, and yet it has the built-in flexibility we need. You simply approach each lift knowing you're going to do 10 reps, and then let effort-level guide you as to whether you're going to do 2x5, 3x3, 5/3/2, 5x2, or 5-10x1. Really nice. So six lifts, 10-reps each, with numerous permutations possible in any given workout. Let's call it the post-DJ L'Abide protocol (L'=Lee).

I've been ordering my workouts according to what needs the least/most warm-up and energy/mental focus, but it would be a good idea to adjust it for equipment changes. I like maintaining the bottom/middle/top order though, and then just repeating it twice. It keeps the leg stuff, presses, and pulls spaced nicely.

Yah, I was thinking the same thing, have a chart giving the weights for each rep count. Maybe pull back for the first week or two to make sure I'm not overdoing it. I think I've decided to lay off the squats and deadlifts until I've established the daily run. It'll give the strain more time to heal, and allow me to ease into the daily running a bit more comfortably. So just upper body st for a week or two.

My new shorty bar worked pretty well yesterday. The grip does seem a bit bigger, as some reviewers complained. It might be 32 mm, but it could just be the different knurling fooling me. One thing I don't like is it doesn't have any reference bands within the knurling, so it's kind of hard to see if the bar is centered on the rack. I put on some strips of athletic tape, but those will wear off. I need a more permanent way of marking lengths, maybe just two bands 7 inches in from the sleeves, lined up with the inside of the rack posts. Also, the copper tubing I have covering the carriage bolts qua j-clips is too sticky. I'll have to look for an alternative. Otherwise, the new set-up is taking shape. Should be finished when the four-tier dumbbell rack arrives Monday.

What do you want the extra barbell for, btw? Do you have enough plates that you can have two or more loaded bars at a time? My bars will eventually be: the shorty bar, the t-grip neutral bar, and the hex bar. I'll keep the 7' Olympic bar around though, just in case. I'm also going to figure out a way to keep the landmine's standard 1" bar always loaded for Russian Twists.

 

Maybe a better name, more descriptive, would simply be the "6x10" plan, or the "6L/10R," or the "Six Lifts/10 Reps" plan, or maybe the "60" plan, as in, "Yah, I'm doing a 60 later today."

Yah, it would be nice to have a bit more space and dedicated bars and racks. If I could do overhead presses standing up, I would do those in the same rack position as the squats too. Unfortunately, it's my seated OH Press and Bench that use the same rack position, and I don't want to do those together. So basically four plate changes, and then the dedicated dumbbells for rows, and pre-loaded pulley for pulldowns. Not bad.

I have dedicated weight increments on my adjustable dumbbells--80, 100, 120--but I also have 12 pairs of fixed hex dumbbells, in five-pound increments--5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55, 60. Twenty thru sixty pounds are rubber hexes that I bought for 70 cents a pound. A great deal. I don't really want to put them in storage, and I couldn't get what they're worth selling them, probably, so I'm selling my two small 2-tier dumbbell racks on craigslist and getting a four-tier rack on Monday from Wayfair. The buyer for the former should be stopping by this weekend. This will clear some floor space, as I'll be able to get all the hex dumbbell pairs as well as the heavy, dedicated dumbbell singles on the new rack, plus perhaps a few other things like my medicine ball and ab wheel. I don't really use the lighter dumbbells much--just for the loaded carries and hyperextensions, and hypothetically for DB Presses, lunges, tipping bird, and triceps extensions, but there's a chance my wife or kids will use them more someday, or me when I'm old and feeble. I don't like using plate-loaded dumbbells for anything except db rows, but I especially don't like using them for anything overhead. Someday I'll probably fork out the money for some heavy rubber hexes too, if I can find a good deal on them. I don't need pairs past 60-80 pounds, single dumbbells in 10-pound increments would work.

Yah, I was thinking something similar for the presses, maybe do the OH presses a bit heavier on Squat day, and bench press really light on that day, and Rows a bit heavier on Deadlift day. It will take a while to see what sort of weights are doable on a more frequent basis, but in most cases, 48-72 hours should be enough for recovery. Here's the chart I came up with as a guide:



The numbers shouldn't be taken too seriously. They're just first-guesses at what might be feasible.

So in a three-day workout week, on Monday the deadlifts and DB Rows might be heavier, on Wednesday it could be the Bench Press and Pulldowns, and on Friday it would be the Squat and Overhead Press. Or alternatively, I could switch the row and oh press heavy days.

Just realized I was benching 220, not 225 last night. The new bar's supposed to be five pounds lighter. I'll have to weigh it to verify.

Yah, just upper body lifts for a few weeks maybe. Might have to work some assistance back in, or try harder to get to the plyo/mobility stuff.

I should also think about doing a proper warm-up at the top of the workout, and mix in some foam rolling and stretching. Maybe that's where I could fit in the plyo/mobility stuff, instead of at the end of the workout. That way I would kill two birds with one stone, getting a nice warm-up and having a way to make sure I get that stuff done. So this:



Good luck on the 60K!

Hey, I like this idea: