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Other/Mixed Looking for a "checklist" style plan

Other strength modalities (e.g., Clubs), mixed strength modalities (e.g., combined kettlebell and barbell), other goals (flexibility)

dfanelli83

Level 1 Valued Member
For a number of reasons I would like to train with a semi-flexible program that involves a "checklist" and just checking off items throughout the week. Some days this might involve 2-3 smaller workouts throughout the day, while others might be a longer 45-60 minute single workout. Some examples of a "workout item" might be:
  • Swings EMOM for 15 minutes
  • Deadlift 5x2 supersetted with Pushups
  • Skater Squats 3x2-3-5
  • 30 minute Ruck walk
  • Pullups 5x5 supersetted with Goblet squats
  • 15 minutes of hill sprints
The list of items contained about 15-20 total things to choose from. I would then choose about 1-5 items to complete during a workout (depending on the desired length) and check them off when done. Some items I'd aim to hit multiple times a week, while others the goals was just to get them done once.

Overall, I liked training this way and it was a good way to get more exercise and more volume in a week, but it was hard to know when and how to progress. Wondering if anyone knows any programs like this or has ever had any success doing something along these lines?

Thank you in advance.
 
dfanelli83 said:
Overall, I liked training this way and it was a good way to get more exercise and more volume in a week, but it was hard to know when and how to progress. Wondering if anyone knows any programs like this or has ever had any success doing something along these lines?
Click to expand...
A few ways you could go. One would be RPE, or rating of perceived exertion, aiming to put about the same amount of effort in each time. If the training is stimulating adaptations, you should be able to do more, more weight, harder variations, etc. as time goes by.

Another way would be to specifically program increases in 3 or more of the exercises. In this case I would let your goals (or desired adaptations) drive your choices and your strategy. What do you want to get better at, or what physical changes do you want to have?
 
Not *exactly* the same, but Dan John has a workout generator you might like. If I was doing something like this I would approach it as some exercises you might not necessarily try too hard to add weight/reps, just take a blue collar approach and punch the clock. For instance, there have been times I didn’t try particularly hard to improve on pull-ups, but still added a few sets just because I wanted to do them. Another example is OS stuff like crawling. I like the movement practice but don’t necessarily make it a priority to “improve” it. Others I would try to add weight or reps every time they came up, and back off when I’m no longer seeing progress.
Something along the lines of- the die roll tells me I’m doing Zerchers, I start with 5-5-5 @70% 1RM, next workout I add weight, again 5-5-5, proceed until 5-5-5 is “hard” so drop to 3-3-3, keep adding weight, drop to 2-2-2 for a few workouts, then test new 1RM and start over.
If it’s a body weight or fixed weight exercise like KB clean and press, I might do ladders, increasing the number or size of the rungs when it feels “easy.”
Lots of ways to go about this and still measure progress.
 
Anna C said:
A few ways you could go. One would be RPE, or rating of perceived exertion, aiming to put about the same amount of effort in each time. If the training is stimulating adaptations, you should be able to do more, more weight, harder variations, etc. as time goes by.

Another way would be to specifically program increases in 3 or more of the exercises. In this case I would let your goals (or desired adaptations) drive your choices and your strategy. What do you want to get better at, or what physical changes do you want to have?
Click to expand...
Good ideas. I think I have a tendency to push too hard so it might be good to try to keep my RPE from going about 7-8 (most of the time) while progressing something else. I think for my goals progressing to more volume and/or shorter rest breaks is the best bet.
 
tomstranger said:
Not *exactly* the same, but Dan John has a workout generator you might like. If I was doing something like this I would approach it as some exercises you might not necessarily try too hard to add weight/reps, just take a blue collar approach and punch the clock. For instance, there have been times I didn’t try particularly hard to improve on pull-ups, but still added a few sets just because I wanted to do them. Another example is OS stuff like crawling. I like the movement practice but don’t necessarily make it a priority to “improve” it. Others I would try to add weight or reps every time they came up, and back off when I’m no longer seeing progress.
Something along the lines of- the die roll tells me I’m doing Zerchers, I start with 5-5-5 @70% 1RM, next workout I add weight, again 5-5-5, proceed until 5-5-5 is “hard” so drop to 3-3-3, keep adding weight, drop to 2-2-2 for a few workouts, then test new 1RM and start over.
If it’s a body weight or fixed weight exercise like KB clean and press, I might do ladders, increasing the number or size of the rungs when it feels “easy.”
Lots of ways to go about this and still measure progress.
Click to expand...
I like this idea. What I have been doing recently that has seemed to be working is when I am feeling run down or like I just need a bit more recovery, I'll just do my warm-up sets on some of the bigger lifts. So if I was going to do something like 4x6 @ 365 on TB deadlifts, I'll just warm-up to a set of 3 or so and then stop. Also, for pullups and shoulder press, I usually can progress pretty quickly on these but then start to have shoulder issues and stop doing them all together. I think I'll take the "punch the clock" approach on these for a while just to keep the movement pattern grooved and maintain that strength.

I do a lot of ladders and love them.

And boy do I miss Zercher squats, but TB deadlifts and heavy sandbag carries are the next best thing. :)
 
So checking back in after trying the "checklist" style workout for a bit over a week. It ended up just not feeling right for me at the moment. Even though I thought I wanted more freedom and variety, I am now wanting more consistency :)

I've thus decided to try something similar to Easy Strength. I've been doing this so far, and am liking it.

Done daily 5 days per week (either 5 days straight and 2 off, or 3 on 1 off repeat)
1)Skater Squat 2x8
2)1-arm band assisted pushups 2x5
3)Pendlay Row 2x5
Optional "Volume" work
- Goblet Squats or Rdl LIGHT 1x20-40
- Pushups Light 1x20-40
- Band Row or Pull-aparts 1x20-40
Additional Optional work
- Swings (either in warmups or as "conditioning work"
- Hill sprints (minimal volume)
- Ruck walking 2-4 days per week 20-45 minutes

Substitutes
- Some exercises I may occasionally substitute out to prevent overworking certain areas or neglecting others.
- Pullups for Rows, 1-2x per week.
- Deadlifts for Skater Squats 1-2x every 2 weeks.
- Floor press for pushups 1-2x every 2 weeks.
- Stepups or single leg RDL for Skater Squats 1-2x per week.
 
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