I finished a BTS3 run with deadlifts as a heavy pull. Here is my experience.
Setup :
- Pull: Deadlift (H), Chin Ups with a band (M), Barbell Rows (L)
- Push: Military Press (H), Bench Press (M), Double KB press (L)
- Squat: Back Squat (H), Zercher Squat (M), Double KB Front Squat (L)
Test results (only heavy exercises):
DL 120 Kg - 6 reps improved to 7 reps
Back Squat 110kg - 6 reps improved to 8 reps
Military Press 52,5kg - 6 reps improved to 8 reps
Body composition results - got bigger, especially quads and also chest. I was also eating way more and not 100% clean so some of it is fat for sure. Also added casein at night on training days which I've never done before in the name of IF, and I think that had an effect to make sure my overall protein intake was sufficient and spread out more evenly (otherwise I do 2 meals per day)
Other notes - Life got in the way, on week 5 I went on a business trip and got sick afterwards, so I didn't train for about 2 weeks there. I think that if this didn't happen, my results would have been better.
My 2 cents:
I really enjoyed the program, especially the diversity options in terms of exercises. My goal were more geared hypertrophy as opposed to strength, which I why I chose different exercise variations for each movement. During weeks 6 a7 the workouts got pretty long though, but it was sustainable.
Deadlifts:
I didn't want to stop deadlifting, so I included it as a heavy pull. I did enjoy doing them and given that deadlifts in general require less volume to progress than let's say presses, I wasn't too worried. The volume is pretty low, even on Tough schedule (which I ran for deadlifts). I improved anyway (6 to 7 reps), but I had the capacity for more volume and I think it would help (many weeks have reps in single digits or lower double digits per session).
At the time when I started the program, BTS4 and BTS6 were not available yet. I am still feeling a bit salty about that because BTS4 would have been more suitable for me. Nevertheless, if I ever ran BTS3 with deadlifts (and I might), I would be interested in comparing to the hinge prescription of BTS4. Or maybe running them as a medium exercise on a light schedule.
Presses:
Throughout the programme, I was thinking about something I heard somewhere (I think it was Geoff Neupert but not 100% sure) about how vertical pressing contributes to horizontal pressing but not the other way around. I think that is the case for me as well. For hypertrophy goals, I don't think it's really that important. But for strength it might be. So for my next run, I will probably decide on whether to prioritise horizontal or vertical pressing, and have both of my heavy and medium presses either horizontal or vertical.
What's next:
I'm going on another business trip for two weeks, so I'll have time to consider what's next. I still want to do some hypertrophy, so if there happens to be a promo on Built Strong Maximum, I'll get it and run that. If not probably BTS3 again based on the considerations above. Maybe AXE on off days away from deadlifts.