The Battle Notebook v2

[jdanger]

Hey y'all. Decided I'd start dumping a copy of my training logs here as there seems to be an increased presence of WL'ers roaming around. I'm a little banged up and life is busy so my sessions aren't always ideal but I'm trying to rehab some stuff and get back to the volumes/loads I'm happy with. Goals by the new year are 125 snatch, 150 C&J, 200 back squat.
 
I track a bunch of stuff so I'm including some of that information I use a la the Russian systems and one day when I formalize the spreadsheet a little more I may release it for anyone who's interested. Right now it works for me and the exercises I use but it wouldn't really make sense for anyone else.
 
Here's what the brackets mean at the end of the main (sn/cj related and strength) exercises:
[ex:wo:we - ton:ARI:AAI:MRI]
Where,
ex  = reps for exercise
wo = total reps in workout
we = total reps in week
ton = tonnage, load x reps, expressed in kg
ARI = Average relative intensity, expressed as percentage of max
AAI = Average absolute intensity, expressed in kg
MRI = Max relative intensity, expressed as percentage of max
 
Note: the calculations won't match what you see logged for the exercise because I only include reps at 55-60% and above for the calculations but I log the warmup sets.
 
All loads in kg's unless otherwise noted.
 
Sunday 10/27
Back squat - 70x5, 120x3, 150x1, 170x1, 185x1, 177x4, 177x3
 

Notes: Just a quick squat session to get things moving. No misses. Just felt good enough to hit 4 on a planned triple at 177. Hoping to break into the 190's soon but trying to remain patient and let some tempo/volume work pay off.

 

Monday 10/28
Snatch - 50x2x3(power + 2 full), 60x3(power + 2 full), 70x2, 80x2, 90, 100x8x1 [13:13:13-1190:78%:91.5:85%]
Power clean + jerk - 2+1 - 50x2, 70, 80, 90, 100, 105x5 [24:37:37 - 2385:71%:99.4:75%]
Snatch DL - 105x3, 130x3, 140x3x3 [15:52:52 - 1965:112%:131:120%]

 

Workout totals:

Reps - 52 - 28 snatch/24 c&j - 54%/46%

Tonnage: 5540

ARI: 87% - AAI: 107.3 - MRI: 120%

Maintenance 
A: BB rollouts - 4x12
B: Back ext. - 50
4 sets of:
C1: Lat raises 5kg x15
C2: Plate halos 15kg x10/side
D: Rev hyper - 4x15 45s rest

 

Notes: I'm going to just red out rep numbers when I have misses and note them here. Missed reps 6&7 on the snatches, six was behind and lost really only because I tried to bounce out of the bottom, seven I lost my head a little and left it out front. Regrouped on the last one and nailed it. These felt pretty good today and were the heaviest I've attempted in a few weeks. After tweaking my neck I could barely snatch 75% two weeks ago and didn't do any last week. Here's hoping it comes back.

 

P.clean & jerks were ok but hard. My power clean is crappy so it's something I need to work on. Jerks no problem, even when fatigued from p.cleans that were harder than they should be.

 
Tuesday 10/29
BTN jerk - 60x3, 70,x3, 80x3, 90x2, 100, 110, 120, 130, 140, 150 [11:11:63 - 1170:76%:106.4:107%]
Jerk - 100x3x3 [9:20:72 - 900:71%:100:71%]
Front squat - 90x5, 110x2, 130x2, 150x2x2 [8:28:80 - 1080:84%:135:94%]
Tempo back squat - 130x6x2 @ 66x1 [12:40:92 - 1560:70%:130:70%]

 

Workout totals:

Reps - 40 - 0 snatch/20 c&j/20 squat - 0%/50%/50%

Tonnage: 4710

ARI: 76% - AAI: 117.8 - MRI: 107%

 

Maintenance

3 sets of:

A1: chin ups x8

A2: landmine rows 35kg x 15

3 sets of:
B1: Lat raises 5kg x15
B2: Plate halos 10kg x10/side

 

Notes: Heaviest I've jerked since the neck issue. 150 was a little dicey and isn't a PR but I have to be happy with it. Goal is to hit 160 in this exercise within 3 weeks. Things feel really heavy in the front rack still and it bothers my neck but it's not debilitating right now. Just trying to get in some work without pissing it off (again). Going from the back is fine, same with squats. Front squats were harder than I'd like them to be but the neck thing was constantly on my mind. I had hit 155x4x2 a few weeks ago and was thusly primed for a PR but that's the way things go in this sport.

 

Tempo squats feel really good. Really able to control the descent all the way to the bottom now even when fatigued. Lat raises and plate halos are a staple I'm trying to do everyday in light of my recent neck (and shoulder) troubles. 

[chairohkey]

sub'd

[jdanger]

Wednesday 10/30
Clean & Jerk doubles - 60x3x2, 70x2, 80x2, 90, 103, 112x5x2 [12:12:104 - 1280:76%:106.7:80%]

Snatch doubles - 60x2x2, 70x2, 80x2, 88x4x2 [12:24:116 - 1004:72%:83.7:75%]

RDL - 120x3x10 [30:54:146 - 3600:86%:120:86%]

 

Workout totals:

Reps - 54 - 12 snatch/12 c&j/30 cln pulls - 22%/22%/56%

Tonnage: 5884

ARI: 78% - AAI: 103.4 - MRI: 86%

 

Maintenance

Lat raises - 5kg x3x15 -superset into RDL rest

Weighted situps - 15kg x3x15

 

Notes: Things feeling heavy, as I suppose they should on day four of a decent loading week. Even though things were hard and didn't feel as technically sound as I normally like, all the reps got done with no misses. Working on consistency during hard reps is something I'm focusing on. Neck feels pretty good. Really felt the jerks in my legs, possibly as a result of the eccentrics yesterday. This was the first time I C&J'ed meaningful weight the day following tempo work.

 

This was a condensed session as I only had 90 minutes. Was planning on doing clean fast pulls and RDLs but I think due to the hurried rest and being undercaloried I wasn't able to do them well. By the last couple sets of snatches I was walking away pretty light headed, which only happens when I don't eat enough. Took a few reps at 140 on the fast pulls and it was too slow and the timing was off so I just switched to RDLs and superset lat raises to save time. Wanted to do more core but there wasn't time.

[jdanger]

Thursday 10/31
Clean + jerk - 3+1 - 50x2x3+3, 70, 80, 90, 100x6x3+1 [32:32:182 - 3080:69%:96.3:71%]
Hang snatch fast pull + hang snatch - 3+1 - 60x2, 70, 83x6x3+1 [28:60:210 - 2272:69%:81.1:71%]
Back squat - 110x5, 130x3, 160, 180x0, 170x2x3 [16:76:226 - 2300:78%:143.8:97%]

 

Workout totals:

Reps - 76 - 7 snatch/32 c&j/21 sn pulls/16 squats - 9%/42%/28%/21%

Tonnage: 7652

ARI: 71% - AAI: 99.7 - MRI: 97%

 

Maintenance

5 sets of:

A1: GH raises x10

A2: Shoulder press 45kg x10

 

3 sets of:

B1: BB rollouts x12

B2: Lat raises 5kg x15
B3: Russian twists 16kg x10/side

B4: Plate halos 15kg x10/side

 

Notes: Main lifts were hard but felt fast and precise, which is the goal. Legs were too gassed for a decent squatting session but I need to swallow that pill and just do what I can after the main lifts.

 

Shoulder press was light as it was really bothering my neck last week. First set was dicey on the pain side but it cleared up and I was able to get some easy reps in.. progress?

 

My clean & jerk is my lagging lift so I'm biasing that lift both by doing it first in most sessions and having a jerk day all to itself and the weekly totals reflect that bias. Here's the rep summary for the week:

 

Weekly Reps

Snatch - 32 (14%)

C&J - 92 (41%)

Pulls - 66 (29%)

Squats - 36 (16%)

Total - 226

Tonnage - 24,172kg

 

Weekly Intensities

Snatch - Tonnage: 2798 - AAI: 87.4 - ARI: 74.7% - MRI: 85%

C&J - Tonnage: 9201 - AAI: 100 - ARI: 71% - MRI: 80%

 

I'm not doing too much deeper analysis at this point given the chaotic nature of my schedule. I'm just trying to accumulate volume and autoregulate percentages based on feel and performance (speed, precision, ect). I'm resting Fri and Sat so I'm calling this a week and next week will start on Sunday. I'll probably go Sun-Thurs with one or two of the sessions being quicker in and out sessions. Hoping to get in some singles in the 90-92% range Sunday. Next week should look a lot like this week only trying to push up the average intensities and will probably be less overall volume.

[Jaymul]

Subbed, looking forward to seeing how you get on.

[Hermione Gainser]

ohai.

[jdanger]

Little bit of an info dump. Last week was a down week due to life but I did work up to max on 11/3. Hit a 115 snatch comfortably (no misses) then got under 118 twice but just couldn't stabilize. Worked up to a 138 C&J then got pinned under the clean at 140. So a 253 total in the gym while not feeling great, without too much amp up, and no rest between snatch and C&J.. I'm ok with it. 

 

Due to stuff going on I needed to impose a little structure on myself so I decided to put myself on the intermediate program we run. When life is nuts I really need to have my entire workout plan mapped out for the week or it gets off the rails pretty fast. The advanced setup is just too much for me right now and there's no way I could fit it in and have a chance at recovering for it. Similarly I do enough programming for other people that my own always suffers so this should allow me to "check the boxes" and make some progress before the Arnold. It's a common theme in my coaching these days and it's past time I take my own advice, when it doubt simplify.

 

Progress in the lifts is hard to set in stone longer term but seeing intimidating numbers six weeks out is pretty good motivation to get serious and get the recovery side of things squared away. You know 95% is hard when you write it but there's something about seeing your own numbers in there that make it hit home. Something I'd never done until the beginning of this week. 111kg snatches and 133kg cleans from the knee for triples? Yeah, better get my shit together.

 

Anyway, plan right now is to go at least four days a week and add a fifth when time and recovery allows. Cutting out most of the auxiliary work due to time constraints but the fifth day will be dedicated to that stuff when I can get it in.

 

Sunday 11/10
Jerk - 50x2x3, 60x3, 70x3, 80x3, 90x2, 98x6x5 [30:30:30 - 2940:70%:98:70%]

Back squat - 98x5, 120x3, 133x3x10 [30:60:60 - 3390:70%:133:70%]

Shoulder press - 49x3x10 [30:60:90 - 1470:70%:49:70%]

 

Workout totals:

Reps - 90 - 30 jerk/30 sq/30 press - 33%/33%/33%

Tonnage: 8400

ARI: 70% - AAI: 93.3 - MRI: 70%

 

Notes: Only really including the work sets in the reporting for this cycle. Especially once I get in the groove the warmups aren't significant enough to warrant skewing the numbers at all.

 

Pretty easy session considering I my 10RM squat was in the 155-160 range a couple months ago and I don't think I've dropped significantly off that. Jerks felt fine, punchy and working on staying a little more narrow and receiving with my back leg bent. I'm good at this at lighter weights but have a bad habit of over splitting on heavy attempts. 

 

Monday 11/11
Hip snatch - 50x2x3, 60x3, 70x6x5 [30:30:120 - 2160:60%:70:60%]

Hip clean - 60x3x3, 70x3, 80x2, 84x66x5 [30:60:150 - 2520:60%:84:60%]

Snatch deadlift - 80x3, 120x2, 130x6x5 [30:90:180 - 3900:111%:130:111%]

 

Workout totals:

Reps - 90 - 30 sn/30 cln/30 pull - 33%/33%/33%

Tonnage: 8520

ARI: 77% - AAI: 94.7 - MRI: 111%

 

Maintenance

Three sets of:

A1: GH raises x10

A2: BB rollouts x12

 

Notes: Haven't gone from the hip to any significant degree in a long time so this session had me rattled a little. Didn't miss any reps but they were harder than I hoped for and felt a little out of the groove. The last sets were better as I refamiliarized myself with the movements. Legs feeling the squats from yesterday, good old tens. 

 

Wednesday 11/13
Jerk - 50x2x3, 60x3, 70x2, 84x6x5 [30:30:210 - 2520:60%:84:60%]

Back squat - 90x3, 115x3x10 [30:60:240 - 3450:61%:115:61%]

Shoulder press - 47x6x5 [30:90:270 - 1410:67%:47:67%]

 

Workout totals:

Reps - 90 - 30 jerk/30 sq/30 press - 33%/33%/33%

Tonnage: 7380

ARI: 63% - AAI: 82 - MRI: 67%

 

Notes: DOMs still going on from the squatting but that will go away next week. These lower percentage days have their place. Got quality work in on the jerks on tired legs, and body. Squats were on the hard side for 60% but this was a punch the clock sort of workout. Messed up my math on the press and did too much because.. I don't really care lol. Shoulders have been bothering me lately but these felt ok so, win?

 

Thursday 11/14
Hip snatch - 50x2x3, 60x3, 70x2, 82x6x5 [30:30:300 - 2460:70%:82:70%]

Hip clean - 60x2x3, 70x3, 80x2, 90x1, 98x6x5 [30:60:330 - 2940:70%:98:70%]

Clean deadlift - 120x3, 140x1, 155x6x5 [30:90:360 - 4650:111%:155:111%]

 

Workout totals:

Reps - 90 - 30 sn/30 cln/30 pull - 33%/33%/33%

Tonnage: 10050

ARI: 84% - AAI: 111.7 - MRI: 111%

 

Notes: Was worried about this session as shaky as Monday went at 60% but it was much, much better. Hard, but all the reps felt good and my timing and feel was much better on my clean especially. Feeling better about this cycle now. Kept my deadlifts around 110% of my main lifts this week and will try to increase them 3-5% per week in line with the main progression. 

 

Going to go in tonight and hit some front squat doubles and do some auxiliary work that I neglected throughout the week due to time but here's the breakdown for the week.

 

Weekly Reps

Snatch - 60 (17%)

C&J - 120 (33%)

Pulls - 60 (17%)

Squats - 60 (17%)

Press - 60 (17%)

Total - 360

Tonnage - 34,350kg

 

Weekly Intensities

Snatch - Tonnage: 4560 - AAI: 76 - ARI: 65% - MRI: 70%

C&J - Tonnage: 8400 - AAI: 93.3 - ARI: 67% - MRI: 70%

 

C&J numbers higher since I lump cleans and jerks together for simplicity. I'm normally pedantic enough to separate them out but for summary purposes I just roll with this. The heart of this program becomes pretty clear when compared to my last loading week. That week I was working at higher percentages, 80-85%, but only managed 226 reps and 24,172kg of total volume compared to this week's 360 reps and 34,350kg of volume. Practice, practice, practice..

[bigm141414]

My back aches already looking at that many snatch grip deadlifts. 

 

Also can you explain the notation [30:90:360] 

 

It looks like it is [reps per exercise:total reps per workout:total reps per week]

[jdanger]

Yeah they light it up for sure, in a good way. Back is always a touchy subject for me but I've been keeping up on some pretty aggressive chiro and it's helping. My hips get out of whack 2-3 times a week and wreak havoc if they aren't put in their place semi quickly. Right now my biggest issue is capsular hip pain which is a combination of not enough stretching/mobility, not enough eating right (to keep inflammation down), and opening the fire hose on the volume. I'm working on addressing 1&2 so that I can better deal with #3.

 

Yeah, that's the notation. Not super important on a program like this one but habits and all that.

[nightlight]

Little bit of an info dump. Last week was a down week due to life but I did work up to max on 11/3. Hit a 115 snatch comfortably (no misses) then got under 118 twice but just couldn't stabilize. Worked up to a 138 C&J then got pinned under the clean at 140. So a 253 total in the gym while not feeling great, without too much amp up, and no rest between snatch and C&J.. I'm ok with it. 

 

Due to stuff going on I needed to impose a little structure on myself so I decided to put myself on the intermediate program we run. When life is nuts I really need to have my entire workout plan mapped out for the week or it gets off the rails pretty fast. The advanced setup is just too much for me right now and there's no way I could fit it in and have a chance at recovering for it. Similarly I do enough programming for other people that my own always suffers so this should allow me to "check the boxes" and make some progress before the Arnold. It's a common theme in my coaching these days and it's past time I take my own advice, when it doubt simplify.

 

Progress in the lifts is hard to set in stone longer term but seeing intimidating numbers six weeks out is pretty good motivation to get serious and get the recovery side of things squared away. You know 95% is hard when you write it but there's something about seeing your own numbers in there that make it hit home. Something I'd never done until the beginning of this week. 111kg snatches and 133kg cleans from the knee for triples? Yeah, better get my shit together.

 

Anyway, plan right now is to go at least four days a week and add a fifth when time and recovery allows. Cutting out most of the auxiliary work due to time constraints but the fifth day will be dedicated to that stuff when I can get it in.

 

Sunday 11/10

Jerk - 50x2x3, 60x3, 70x3, 80x3, 90x2, 98x6x5 [30:30:30 - 2940:70%:98:70%]

Back squat - 98x5, 120x3, 133x3x10 [30:60:60 - 3390:70%:133:70%]

Shoulder press - 49x3x10 [30:60:90 - 1470:70%:49:70%]

 

Workout totals:

Reps - 90 - 30 jerk/30 sq/30 press - 33%/33%/33%

Tonnage: 8400

ARI: 70% - AAI: 93.3 - MRI: 70%

 

Notes: Only really including the work sets in the reporting for this cycle. Especially once I get in the groove the warmups aren't significant enough to warrant skewing the numbers at all.

 

Pretty easy session considering I my 10RM squat was in the 155-160 range a couple months ago and I don't think I've dropped significantly off that. Jerks felt fine, punchy and working on staying a little more narrow and receiving with my back leg bent. I'm good at this at lighter weights but have a bad habit of over splitting on heavy attempts. 

 

Monday 11/11

Hip snatch - 50x2x3, 60x3, 70x6x5 [30:30:120 - 2160:60%:70:60%]

Hip clean - 60x3x3, 70x3, 80x2, 84x66x5 [30:60:150 - 2520:60%:84:60%]

Snatch deadlift - 80x3, 120x2, 130x6x5 [30:90:180 - 3900:111%:130:111%]

 

Workout totals:

Reps - 90 - 30 sn/30 cln/30 pull - 33%/33%/33%

Tonnage: 8520

ARI: 77% - AAI: 94.7 - MRI: 111%

 

Maintenance

Three sets of:

A1: GH raises x10

A2: BB rollouts x12

 

Notes: Haven't gone from the hip to any significant degree in a long time so this session had me rattled a little. Didn't miss any reps but they were harder than I hoped for and felt a little out of the groove. The last sets were better as I refamiliarized myself with the movements. Legs feeling the squats from yesterday, good old tens. 

 

Wednesday 11/13

Jerk - 50x2x3, 60x3, 70x2, 84x6x5 [30:30:210 - 2520:60%:84:60%]

Back squat - 90x3, 115x3x10 [30:60:240 - 3450:61%:115:61%]

Shoulder press - 47x6x5 [30:90:270 - 1410:67%:47:67%]

 

Workout totals:

Reps - 90 - 30 jerk/30 sq/30 press - 33%/33%/33%

Tonnage: 7380

ARI: 63% - AAI: 82 - MRI: 67%

 

Notes: DOMs still going on from the squatting but that will go away next week. These lower percentage days have their place. Got quality work in on the jerks on tired legs, and body. Squats were on the hard side for 60% but this was a punch the clock sort of workout. Messed up my math on the press and did too much because.. I don't really care lol. Shoulders have been bothering me lately but these felt ok so, win?

 

Thursday 11/14

Hip snatch - 50x2x3, 60x3, 70x2, 82x6x5 [30:30:300 - 2460:70%:82:70%]

Hip clean - 60x2x3, 70x3, 80x2, 90x1, 98x6x5 [30:60:330 - 2940:70%:98:70%]

Clean deadlift - 120x3, 140x1, 155x6x5 [30:90:360 - 4650:111%:155:111%]

 

Workout totals:

Reps - 90 - 30 sn/30 cln/30 pull - 33%/33%/33%

Tonnage: 10050

ARI: 84% - AAI: 111.7 - MRI: 111%

 

Notes: Was worried about this session as shaky as Monday went at 60% but it was much, much better. Hard, but all the reps felt good and my timing and feel was much better on my clean especially. Feeling better about this cycle now. Kept my deadlifts around 110% of my main lifts this week and will try to increase them 3-5% per week in line with the main progression. 

 

Going to go in tonight and hit some front squat doubles and do some auxiliary work that I neglected throughout the week due to time but here's the breakdown for the week.

 

Weekly Reps

Snatch - 60 (17%)

C&J - 120 (33%)

Pulls - 60 (17%)

Squats - 60 (17%)

Press - 60 (17%)

Total - 360

Tonnage - 34,350kg

 

Weekly Intensities

Snatch - Tonnage: 4560 - AAI: 76 - ARI: 65% - MRI: 70%

C&J - Tonnage: 8400 - AAI: 93.3 - ARI: 67% - MRI: 70%

 

C&J numbers higher since I lump cleans and jerks together for simplicity. I'm normally pedantic enough to separate them out but for summary purposes I just roll with this. The heart of this program becomes pretty clear when compared to my last loading week. That week I was working at higher percentages, 80-85%, but only managed 226 reps and 24,172kg of total volume compared to this week's 360 reps and 34,350kg of volume. Practice, practice, practice..

at first, i thought, 115? why is he only snatching 115lbs... then i realized it was kilos. stupid american brain.

 

so psyched to start up on monday. 

 

edited because i went back and read the first post. derp.

[bigm141414]

Yeah they light it up for sure, in a good way. Back is always a touchy subject for me but I've been keeping up on some pretty aggressive chiro and it's helping. My hips get out of whack 2-3 times a week and wreak havoc if they aren't put in their place semi quickly. Right now my biggest issue is capsular hip pain which is a combination of not enough stretching/mobility, not enough eating right (to keep inflammation down), and opening the fire hose on the volume. I'm working on addressing 1&2 so that I can better deal with #3.

 

Yeah, that's the notation. Not super important on a program like this one but habits and all that.

 

 

Stop hurting yourself man. Thanks for the clarification on the notation, I think I am going to adopt it for my workouts since I have been reading Takano's blog lately. 

 

Also, have you seen the American Open list? Over 250 lifters are coming. You should still come down. Just sayin...

[Hermione Gainser]

Wait. Jdanger is human? And has.. injuries.. and life stuff... and needs a plan?  I think this is a bluff to throw us off your superhuman scent....  I will not be easily tricked, sir!

 

But in all seriousness:  glad you've got yourself set up nicely. Chiro - good, crazy ass workout plan - good.

[jdanger]

Stop hurting yourself man. Thanks for the clarification on the notation, I think I am going to adopt it for my workouts since I have been reading Takano's blog lately. 

 

Also, have you seen the American Open list? Over 250 lifters are coming. You should still come down. Just sayin...

 

Yeah, the injury thing has been a downer for sure. Really need to just shore up some of the prehab stuff and I'm on the right track with the chiro. Still don't stretch as much as I should. I'm blessed and cursed with really good mobility but my flexibility is pretty lackluster so I can get myself into trouble sometimes. Working on it.

 

AO probably isn't in the cards this year as much as I'd like to come. 

 

Wait. Jdanger is human? And has.. injuries.. and life stuff... and needs a plan?  I think this is a bluff to throw us off your superhuman scent....  I will not be easily tricked, sir!

 

But in all seriousness:  glad you've got yourself set up nicely. Chiro - good, crazy ass workout plan - good.

 

Haha, yep! Human as they come I'm afraid.

[spezzy]

Wheeee subbing.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[jdanger]

Friday 11/15
Max rep snatch at BW - 83x2x6

Front squat - 110x4, 130x2, 140x2

 

Notes: Was supposed to be a bodybuilding day with front squats but there was some competition my friend found on FB related to max rep BW snatches and I sort of just wanted to see how it felt. Was pretty smashed from the week so I didn't really push it too hard and just had fun with it. Could have probably gutted out 10 or so but that would have gone against my "just be smart already jackass" directive. After working up to a semi hard (RPE ~7) FS double I was over it and skipped the rest of BB day, save for doing a few chins. Sloth? 

 

Sunday 11/17
Jerk - 50x2x3, 60x3, 70x3, 80x2, 90x1, 100x1, 105x6x5 [30:30:30 - 3150:75%:105:70%]

Back squat - 90x5, 120x3, 142.5x3x10 [30:60:60 - 4275:75%:142.5:75%]

Shoulder press - 20x10, 40x5, 52.5x3x10 [30:90:90 - 1575:75%:52.5:75%]

 

Workout totals:

Reps - 90 - 30 jerk/30 sq/30 press - 33%/33%/33%

Tonnage: 9000

ARI: 75% - AAI: 100 - MRI: 75%

 

Notes: Energy down but jerks felt fine. Squats not really a problem, just hard enough. Really trying to stay calm and smooth during these and avoiding any kind of psychological arousal. Putting in "too much" effort on the squat front has always been something that I think has held me back, ironically enough. I'm pretty hard headed and can grind out things past the point of diminishing returns (see terrible tens, ect..) so I need to throttle my intensity on this front and I think I'm doing ok so far. Next week's squat session is 80% which is 152 and only 3kgs under my current 10RM of 155 which was done fresh and with a decent amount of amp up. If I can hit it semi relaxed and just get the reps in I will consider that a win.

 

Shoulder presses got pretty challenging. If I fail anywhere on this progression it'll probably be here. My press has never been that great and it seems to aggravate my shoulders more than anything but I'm going to stick with it. 

 

Monday 11/18
Hip snatch - 50x2x3, 60x2x3, 70x2, 76x6x5 [30:30:120 - 2280:65%:76:65%]

Hip clean - 60x2x3, 70x3, 80x2, 91x6x5 [30:60:150 - 2730:65%:98:65%]

Snatch deadlift - 90x3, 120x3, 135x6x5 [30:90:180 - 4050:115%:135:115%]

GH raise - 5x10

 

Workout totals:

Reps - 90 - 30 sn/30 cln/30 pull - 33%/33%/33%

Tonnage: 9060

ARI: 82% - AAI: 100.7 - MRI: 115%

 

Notes: Kind of a rushed warmup so the first couple working sets of snatches were rough, including a miss behind, but after that I settled in and hammered them out. Legs fatigued from yesterday but main problem was shoulder fatigue. Catch stability just wasn't great, no presses or anything, just shakier than 65% "should be". Cleans no problem, which I'm happy with, given they are my problem right now. Snatch DL's maybe a little easier than last week. The day 2 workouts might be my least favorite on this program. Though the percentages are higher on day four, I'm more rested and like hitting heavier weights. Day 2 after the squat and press loading can suck it. Welcome to base building.

 

As I write this on Tuesday I have to say that while yesterday's workout was tough I'm happy with my recovery so far. I'm in much better shape than I was on Tuesday last week. I did add in dat dere creatine, which I know helps me so maybe it's just science. Anywho, really hoping I can stick with this schedule for the next 4.5 weeks and get this entire cycle in. My next real meet will probably be the Arnold so I have about 14 weeks before things really matter but I do want to hit some PR's coming off this cycle the last week of the year. 125/150 might be a little ambitious but even 120/145 would be solid momentum heading into next year.

[Jaymul]

When you say "hip clean" do you mean clean from the hip or the hip clean ala Donny Shankle, where you arm bend the bar to the crease of your hip on the second pull? I'm assuming the former

[jdanger]

Yeah, basically a hang clean from the hip or power position with a vertical torso at the set, bumping about 3/4's up the thigh (for me). My arms are long relative to my torso and I'm not ungodly strong so the Shankle-esque hip clean doesn't really work that great for me.

[jdanger]

Wednesday 11/20

Jerk - 50x2x3, 60x3, 70x3, 80x2, 91x6x5 [30:30:210 - 2730:65%:91:65%]

Back squat - 91x5, 91x3, 123.5x3x10 [30:60:240 - 3705:65%:123.5:65%]

Shoulder press - 47x6x5 [30:90:270 - 1410:67%:47:67%]

Back extensions - 50 (20,15,15)

 

Workout totals:

Reps - 90 - 30 jerk/30 sq/30 press - 33%/33%/33%

Tonnage: 7845

ARI: 66% - AAI: 87.2 - MRI: 67%

 

Notes: Light day, feeling fine. Presses easier this week and didn't bother me as much. Progress?

 

Thursday 11/21
Hip snatch - 50x3x3, 60x2x2, 70x2, 80x1, 85x1, 88x6x5 [30:30:300 - 2640:75%:88:75%]

Hip clean - 60x2x2, 70x2, 80x2, 90x1, 100x1, 105x6x5 [30:60:330 - 3150:75%:105:75%]

Clean deadlift - 105x3, 130x3, 160x6x5 [30:90:360 - 4800:114%:160:114%]

 

Workout totals:

Reps - 90 - 30 sn/30 cln/30 pull - 33%/33%/33%

Tonnage: 10590

ARI: 88% - AAI: 117.7 - MRI: 114%

 

Notes: Looking at the cycle on paper I considered this workout the first real test. It was hard but got through it pretty well. Only missed one clean, the last rep of the third set, racked it but just got a little too far back and loose and had to bail. Overall I'm happy with how the cleans have been feeling. Stability in the snatch receiving position was much better than Monday. I'm definitely reminded why I stopped doing a bunch of presses and shoulder work before harder snatch days. It really does effect the movement, even when you don't feel like it should. Deads were tough but I did them on challenged rest and just got them done. 

 

Weekly Reps

Snatch - 60 (17%)

C&J - 120 (33%)

Pulls - 60 (17%)

Squats - 60 (17%)

Press - 60 (17%)

Total - 360

Tonnage - 36,495kg

 

Weekly Intensities

Snatch - Tonnage: 4920 - AAI: 82 - ARI: 70% - MRI: 75%

C&J - Tonnage: 11,760 - AAI: 98 - ARI: 70% - MRI: 75%

 

Overall happy with the week and with the cycle so far. I'm really happy with how I feel given the consistent volume. Won't make it into the gym tonight due to life but that's ok, next week the real fun starts. If I'm honest I have to say I'm afraid of next week's workouts, but that doesn't have to be a bad thing. Trust in the work you've done before and execute each rep as best you can and good things will happen. Gogo momentum!

[jdanger]

Sunday 11/24
Jerk - 50x2x3, 60x3, 70x3, 80x3, 90x1, 100x1, 107x1, 112x6x5 [30:30:30 - 3360:80%:112:80%]

Back squat - 90x5, 120x3, 140x1, 152x3x10 [30:60:60 - 4560:80%:152:80%]

Shoulder press - 20x6, 40x5, 45x3, 50x3, 56x3x10 [30:60:90 - 1680:80%:56:80%]

 

Workout totals:

Reps - 90 - 30 jerk/30 sq/30 press - 33%/33%/33%

Tonnage: 9600

ARI: 80% - AAI: 106.7 - MRI: 80%

 

Notes: Jerks went fine. Last couple of reps on the later sets were difficult but no press outs. Some shaky recoveries and my foot work isn't as consistent as I'd like but the 5's add up.Things feel very consistent for the first three or four reps then get a little sketchy but I'm happy with my lockouts.

 

Squats were actually easier than I anticipated. They were hard but all the sets were smooth and I didn't grind anything. Probably an RPE in the 7-8 range across the sets. Happy with that, will be more happy not doing tens for a while. And when I say a while, I mean a while. Probably won't consider a ten block until after the Arnold at least which means March at the earliest. Phew.

 

Shoulder presses were also a pleasant surprise. Definitely hard (RPE 9-10), but felt good and got done. I'll take it.

 

Monday 11/25
Hip snatch - 50x3x3, 60x3, 70x3, 77x1, 82x6x5 [30:30:120 - 2460:70%:82:70%]

Hip clean - 70x2x3, 80x3, 90x1, 95x1, 98x66x5 [30:60:150 - 2940:70%:98:70%]

Snatch deadlift - 98x3, 120x2, 140x6x5 [30:90:180 - 4200:120%:150:120%]

 

Workout totals:

Reps - 90 - 30 sn/30 cln/30 pull - 33%/33%/33%

Tonnage: 9600

ARI: 87% - AAI: 106.7- MRI: 120%

 

Notes: This was a "survive" session. Worked a long day and didn't start working out until late. Energy, focus, speed, and legs were way off the mark. Managed to get through the snatches with only two misses. Missed a rep each on the third and forth sets. Overall glad it got done and I'm glad this is the last week of this loading. These day 2 workouts really are the worst for me after the squat loading. If I run this cycle in the future I'd consider pushing this back a day and just doing some active rest in between. Cleans went better, had no misses, but they were hard too. Really had to talk myself into getting on the bar for every single rep. Just one of those days.

 

Snatch DLs felt better than I expected. Maybe because I expected them to feel like garbage but I'll take it. Super back pump afterwards but nothing to be worried about. Wish I had time for some maintenance work but food and sleep take priority. Didn't leave the gym until 10:15pm as it was.

 

I say I look forward to droppping tens and I do, but historically 5's have been even harder for me so we'll see how that goes. I do really like the undulating wave loading and it's worked well for me in the past - which is something that initially turned me on to this setup - so it should play out better than 5RM type progressions I've ran before. At any rate, I'll welcome the 5x5's and triples on the main lifts for a week or so at least.

 

More than anything I'm looking forward to going back to a standard, Russian inspired, prep cycle for the Arnold. That's one of the reasons why I like diverse, cyclical approaches. In a sport like Weightlifting where you just have to be on the bar day in and day out there are major mental benefits to really shaking it up every so often. Now that I have a schedule that I think I can stick to and have a month or so to design the cycle, I look forward to hopefully making a run into national qualifying total territory at the Arnold.

[nightlight]

 

Sunday 11/24

Jerk - 50x2x3, 60x3, 70x3, 80x3, 90x1, 100x1, 107x1, 112x6x5 [30:30:30 - 3360:80%:112:80%]

Back squat - 90x5, 120x3, 140x1, 152x3x10 [30:60:60 - 4560:80%:152:80%]

Shoulder press - 20x6, 40x5, 45x3, 50x3, 56x3x10 [30:60:90 - 1680:80%:56:80%]

 

Workout totals:

Reps - 90 - 30 jerk/30 sq/30 press - 33%/33%/33%

Tonnage: 9600

ARI: 80% - AAI: 106.7 - MRI: 80%

 

Notes: Jerks went fine. Last couple of reps on the later sets were difficult but no press outs. Some shaky recoveries and my foot work isn't as consistent as I'd like but the 5's add up.Things feel very consistent for the first three or four reps then get a little sketchy but I'm happy with my lockouts.

 

Squats were actually easier than I anticipated. They were hard but all the sets were smooth and I didn't grind anything. Probably an RPE in the 7-8 range across the sets. Happy with that, will be more happy not doing tens for a while. And when I say a while, I mean a while. Probably won't consider a ten block until after the Arnold at least which means March at the earliest. Phew.

 

Shoulder presses were also a pleasant surprise. Definitely hard (RPE 9-10), but felt good and got done. I'll take it.

 

Monday 11/25

Hip snatch - 50x3x3, 60x3, 70x3, 77x1, 82x6x5 [30:30:120 - 2460:70%:82:70%]

Hip clean - 70x2x3, 80x3, 90x1, 95x1, 98x66x5 [30:60:150 - 2940:70%:98:70%]

Snatch deadlift - 98x3, 120x2, 140x6x5 [30:90:180 - 4200:120%:150:120%]

 

Workout totals:

Reps - 90 - 30 sn/30 cln/30 pull - 33%/33%/33%

Tonnage: 9600

ARI: 87% - AAI: 106.7- MRI: 120%

 

Notes: This was a "survive" session. Worked a long day and didn't start working out until late. Energy, focus, speed, and legs were way off the mark. Managed to get through the snatches with only two misses. Missed a rep each on the third and forth sets. Overall glad it got done and I'm glad this is the last week of this loading. These day 2 workouts really are the worst for me after the squat loading. If I run this cycle in the future I'd consider pushing this back a day and just doing some active rest in between. Cleans went better, had no misses, but they were hard too. Really had to talk myself into getting on the bar for every single rep. Just one of those days.

 

Snatch DLs felt better than I expected. Maybe because I expected them to feel like garbage but I'll take it. Super back pump afterwards but nothing to be worried about. Wish I had time for some maintenance work but food and sleep take priority. Didn't leave the gym until 10:15pm as it was.

 

I say I look forward to droppping tens and I do, but historically 5's have been even harder for me so we'll see how that goes. I do really like the undulating wave loading and it's worked well for me in the past - which is something that initially turned me on to this setup - so it should play out better than 5RM type progressions I've ran before. At any rate, I'll welcome the 5x5's and triples on the main lifts for a week or so at least.

 

More than anything I'm looking forward to going back to a standard, Russian inspired, prep cycle for the Arnold. That's one of the reasons why I like diverse, cyclical approaches. In a sport like Weightlifting where you just have to be on the bar day in and day out there are major mental benefits to really shaking it up every so often. Now that I have a schedule that I think I can stick to and have a month or so to design the cycle, I look forward to hopefully making a run into national qualifying total territory at the Arnold.

 

Highlighted above for truth. you must be in my head. (at least for sunday and yesterday's workout.)

[Hermione Gainser]

Highlighted above for truth. you must be in my head. (at least for sunday and yesterday's workout.)

 

Word.  Seems like these were going around, huh?

[nightlight]

Word.  Seems like these were going around, huh?

though i doubt it's soon-to-be shark week for jdanger. /endgirliebits

[Hermione Gainser]

though i doubt it's soon-to-be shark week for jdanger. /endgirliebits

 

hahahaha I don't know... he has been awfully ranty lately... if he's mainlining chocolate too we might know the truth

[jdanger]

Tuesday 11/26

Maintenance

Superset x4:

A1: Chin ups x8

A2: GH raises x10

A3: BB rollouts x12

Handstand practice

 

Notes: Mess around day. Chins really limited by hand and elbow issues haha. The life of a weightlifter.

 

Wednesday 11/27
Jerk - 60x3x2, 70x2, 80x2, 90, 98x6x5 [30:30:210 - 2940:70%:98:70%]

Back squat- 60x2x2, 70x2, 80x2, 133x3x10 [30:60:240 - 3990:70%:133:70%]

Press - 20x5, 40x3, 50x3x10 [30:90:270 - 1500:71%:50:71%]

 

Workout totals:

Reps - 90 - 30 jerk/30 sq/30 press - 33%/33%/33%

Tonnage: 8430

ARI: 70% - AAI: 93.7 - MRI: 71%

 

Notes: Business as usual.

 

Friday 11/29
Hip snatch - 50x3x3, 60x2x2, 70x2, 80x2, 90, 94x6x5 [30:30:300 - 2820:80%:94:80%]

Hip clean - 60x2x2, 80x2, 90x1, 100, 107, 112x6x5 [30:60:330 - 3990:80%:112:80%]

Clean DL - 112x3, 140x2, 152x1, 167x6x5 [30:90:360 - 5010:119%:167:119%]

 

Workout totals:

Reps - 90 - 30 sn/30 cj/30 pull - 33%/33%/33%

Tonnage: 11190

ARI: 93% - AAI: 124.3 - MRI: 119%

 

Notes: This was the first real test of the main lifts on this cycle. Pretty groggy after turkey day and missed 5 reps on the my first three sets of snatches. Just wasn't feeling fast and finishing. Got it together and made the last three sets with no misses. Calling it a win given the weight and context of the workout. Didn't miss any cleans, standing up 30 times was the hard part and that's good.

 

Weekly Reps

Snatch - 60 (17%)

C&J - 120 (33%)

Pulls - 60 (17%)

Squats - 60 (17%)

Press - 60 (17%)

Total - 360

Tonnage - 38,820kg

 

Weekly Intensities

Snatch - Tonnage: 5280 - AAI: 88 - ARI: 75% - MRI: 80%

C&J - Tonnage: 12,600 - AAI: 105 - ARI: 75% - MRI: 80%

 

Thus completes the first three weeks of the six week cycle. Overall happy with how it's going. Cleans feeling good and snatches didn't really give me any trouble until the last workout but 80% for 5 from the hips "should" give me trouble. Looking forward to dropping to triples and going from the knee. Right IT band has been giving me some pretty serious issues over the last couple weeks but I'm working on it. Actually getting on the roller for once haha.

 

Without further ado, the first workout of the new cycle..

 

Sunday 12/1
Jerk - 60x3x2, 70x2, 80x2, 90x2, 100, 110, 120x6x3 [18:18:18 - 2160:86%:120:86%]

Back squat- 100x3, 120x2, 130x1, 140, 152, 162x5x5 [25:43:43 - 4050:85%:162:85%]

Press - 20x5, 40x3, 50x3, 60x5x5 [25:68:68 - 1500:86%:60:86%]

 

Workout totals:

Reps - 68 - 18 jerk/25 sq/25 press - 26%/37%/37%

Tonnage: 7710

ARI: 86% - AAI: 114 - MRI: 86%

 

Notes: This isn't going to be fun. Jerks were all makes (inc no pressouts) but were dicey in the beginning. Finally got my timing down and the legs didn't feel like jelly after the first four sets so I guess that's another win. Weights get intimidating pretty fast from here on out.. we'll see. Trying to remain positive and take it one rep at a time. First two sets of squats weren't too bad then the bottom fell out. Got all the reps but the last couple of sets got pretty grindy.. Not willing to speculate further. Remain positive effort revised to remaining hopelessly optimistic..

[nightlight]

 

 

 

Sunday 12/1

Jerk - 60x3x2, 70x2, 80x2, 90x2, 100, 110, 120x6x3 [18:18:18 - 2160:86%:120:86%]

Back squat- 100x3, 120x2, 130x1, 140, 152, 162x5x5 [25:43:43 - 4050:85%:162:85%]

Press - 20x5, 40x3, 50x3, 60x5x5 [25:68:68 - 1500:86%:60:86%]

 

Workout totals:

Reps - 68 - 18 jerk/25 sq/25 press - 26%/37%/37%

Tonnage: 7710

ARI: 86% - AAI: 114 - MRI: 86%

 

Notes: This isn't going to be fun. Jerks were all makes (inc no pressouts) but were dicey in the beginning. Finally got my timing down and the legs didn't feel like jelly after the first four sets so I guess that's another win. Weights get intimidating pretty fast from here on out.. we'll see. Trying to remain positive and take it one rep at a time. First two sets of squats weren't too bad then the bottom fell out. Got all the reps but the last couple of sets got pretty grindy.. Not willing to speculate further. Remain positive effort revised to remaining hopelessly optimistic..

 

this whole thing is like a love letter to weightlifting.