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Other/Mixed My BuiltStrong Minimalist Experience!

Other strength modalities (e.g., Clubs), mixed strength modalities (e.g., combined kettlebell and barbell), other goals (flexibility)
Week 4 of my fourth BuiltStrong Minimalist cycle is complete.

Tomorrow (Sunday) begins my testing week before I start BTS4.

After some tweaking, my schedule for BTS4 looks like this:

DAY 1:
- Double Kettlebell Front Squats (Heavy)
- Renegade Rows (Medium)
- 1-Arm Kettlebell Presses (Medium)
- Romanian Deadlifts (Light)

DAY 2:
- 1-Arm Kettlebell Presses (Heavy)
- Weighted Pull-ups (Heavy)
- Glute-Ham Raises (Medium)
- Split Squats (Light)

DAY 3;
- One-Leg Deadlift (Heavy)
- Weighted Step-ups (Medium)
- 1-Arm Kettlebell Presses (Light)
- Weighted Chin-ups (Light)

I will still be performing the sessions as a Circuit alternating upper and lower body exercises (like Day 1 is written).

I'll perform each set EMOM or with slightly longer rest breaks if and when needed (just like I've done on BuiltStrong Minimalist).

That's how I've been training for the last 14-15 years. It saves time, builds work capacity, and has allowed me to continue building muscle and strength while getting leaner.
 
renegadenate said:
I will still be performing the sessions as a Circuit alternating upper and lower body exercises (like Day 1 is written).
Click to expand...
I've run the circuits from H-M-L throughout each session. No alternating between upper and lower. So you end up doing (like day 3) a heavy hinge, up next is a medium squat. Those required extra rest, especially the top rung.
renegadenate said:
I'll perform each set EMOM or with slightly longer rest breaks if and when needed (just like I've done on BuiltStrong Minimalist).
Click to expand...
By the time I hit week 8 of BTS4, I needed less rest, there was a definite adaptation in work capacity.
 
mar2safety said:
I've run the circuits from H-M-L throughout each session. No alternating between upper and lower. So you end up doing (like day 3) a heavy hinge, up next is a medium squat. Those required extra rest, especially the top rung.
Click to expand...
Yeah, I definitely won't be doing leg exercises back-to-back.

Fabio recommends supersetting an upoer and a lower.

I'll continue to run as a non-competitive Circuit.

mar2safety said:
By the time I hit week 8 of BTS4, I needed less rest, there was a definite adaptation in work capacity.
Click to expand...
Absolutely! No "cardio" required. ;)
 
renegadenate said:
Yeah, I definitely won't be doing leg exercises back-to-back.

Fabio recommends supersetting an upoer and a lower.

I'll continue to run as a non-competitive Circuit.


Absolutely! No "cardio" required. ;)
Click to expand...
Re BTS4:
I hsve been supersetting Medium Romanian Deadlift and Light KB Front Squat in Session B, no problem.
Session C - I do some Medium Single FSQ while warming up the Heavy Deadlift. Then focus on the heavy sets before mixing the three Medium and Light sets once Deadlifts were finished.

Session lengths are compressing as I progress.
Duration fall between 1.4 and 1.8 minutes per set, which includes for a couple of Conventional and Sumo Deadlift warm up sets.
 
Just bought this, looks really nice!

Just to be clear, do we test maxes for each excersise we're doing? Or just the heavy lift?
Im going with the minimal to start, excersises will be
HML
Dips, kb press, pushups
Pullups, Chinups, kb rows
Split Squats, Split Squats, Goblet squat
 
Gary W said:
Just bought this, looks really nice!

Just to be clear, do we test maxes for each excersise we're doing? Or just the heavy lift?
Im going with the minimal to start, excersises will be
HML
Dips, kb press, pushups
Pullups, Chinups, kb rows
Split Squats, Split Squats, Goblet squat
Click to expand...
Yes, rep maxes for all 9 lifts/variations. That testing week is some interesting training by itself.
 
Gary W said:
Ok thanks, how do you go about testing 9 excersises in a week?
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One way would be to actually mimick you upcoming schedule and test just one zone per exercise category per day.
For example, Heavy Squats, Medium Pulls, Light Presses on one day, etc.

Or test squats on one day (starting with the heaviest variation, after a warm-up), and pulls and presses respectively.

One word of advice: Go for a technical rep max, and not and all-out competition max. This will be easier to recover from, and actually more helpful for your following plan. (The volume will be the same anyway, but the ladders will be slightly easier, which will come handy one large volume days.)

If you would use only the same variation per exercise category AND have a recent RM for each, you could also plug in 85%, 75% and 65% of RM into the plan and use a medium type ladder. But I think actually testing the max reps with each variation is better.
 
Thanks guys, how long do the workouts take roughly looks like they could get quite long, normally im restricted to 45min including a quick warm up
 
renegadenate said:
Yeah, I definitely won't be doing leg exercises back-to-back.

Fabio recommends supersetting an upoer and a lower.

I'll continue to run as a non-competitive Circuit.


Absolutely! No "cardio" required. ;)
Click to expand...
I didn't see where he recommended supersetting upper and lower, was it in the book or an FAQ or on the message board. In the book he recommended supersetting push/pull upper body exercises.
 
ChiBill said:
I didn't see where he recommended supersetting upper and lower, was it in the book or an FAQ or on the message board. In the book he recommended supersetting push/pull upper body exercises.
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Thought I read it in the ebook. But maybe it was the Push/Pull exercises.

However, if you want less fatigue, you could pair upper/lower (Squat/Pull and Hinge/Push) or do as a non-competitive Circuit like I'll be doing (Push, Hinge, Pull, Squat).
 
Gary W said:
Thanks guys, how long do the workouts take roughly looks like they could get quite long, normally im restricted to 45min including a quick warm up
Click to expand...
Stick with doing it as a Circuit if you're low on time.

That's how I get done in 45 minutes or less including my 6-minute warm-up.

I also try to do each exercise Every Minute On The Minute (EMOM) and only increase rest if/when needed.
 
Gary W said:
Thanks guys, how long do the workouts take roughly looks like they could get quite long, normally im restricted to 45min including a quick warm up
Click to expand...

renegadenate said:
Stick with doing it as a Circuit if you're low on time.

That's how I get done in 45 minutes or less including my 6-minute warm-up.

I also try to do each exercise Every Minute On The Minute (EMOM) and only increase rest if/when needed.
Click to expand...
I do all exercises as a slow circuit, even hinge/squat back to back. The shortest sessions are a little over 30 mins; the longest a little over 60 mins. I have yet to do any rungs EMOM, usually I start a set every 90 or 120 secs depending on how I feel. Top rungs of the ladder, as a circuit, usually require a bit extra rest.

I typically add in a few core exercises (hanging leg raises, paloff band presses, or ab wheel rollouts), sprinkling them in between the circuit. If I didn't add those in, the longest session would be just under an hour.
 
I got everything tested in the last week (and some things re-tested) to make sure I'm good to go for my first cycle of BTS4.

Knocked out a session similar to what my Day 2 looks like this morning:

1a.) 1-Arm Kettlebell Presses: 18kg x 8, 20kg x 6, 22kg x 5, then my work sets with 24kg x 2, 3, 3, 2, 3, 3, 2, 2

1b.) Weighted Pull-ups: BW x 8, 8kg x 6, 12kg x 5, then my work sets with 35lbs x 2, 3, 3, 2, 3, 3, 2, 2

1c.) Glute-ham Raises: BW x 4, 5, 9, 4, 5, 9, 4, 5, 9, 5, 8

The entire session was performed EMOTM as a Circuit.

I didn't perform Split Squats as I tested and trained them during Sunday's session.

I'm hoping to get in another session Saturday morning before work similar to my Day 3 workout.

It's been a crazy week at work with 10.5 - 12-hour days. Today (Thanksgiving) is my only day off, so I had to take advantage of it and get some training in.
 
I thought I would be able to start my new cycle of BTS4 this week, but my work and life schedule has not cooperated since last week!

One of our dogs must have eaten something he shouldn't as he's had diarrhea since Saturday night. There have been many sleepless nights. Luckily, his neds are finally working.

Also, after Thanksgiving and leftovers for several days, my knees [especially], shoulders, and elbows have been killing me.

It's crazy how quickly lower quality foods (seed oils [mostly], flour, sugar) affect my joints. I noticed this before, and this was a painful reminder.

Since my session this past Sunday was "Light" with higher volume, I performed a heavy low-volume session today.

1.) Double Kettlebell Front Squats: 20kg x 5, 22kg x 5, 24kg x 5, 26kg x 3, 3, 3, 3, 3

2.) 1-Arm Kettlebell Presses: 20kg x 5, 22kg x 4, 24kg x 3, 26kg x 2, 3, 2, 1, 2

3.) Weighted Pull-ups: BW x 6, 8kg x 5, 12kg x 5, 16kg x 2, 3, 2, 3, 2

I performed it as Circuit EMOTM.

It felt good to lift heavy while keeping the volume down.

I'll get in a "Medium" session on Saturday, and then I'll start BTS4 on Sunday (I'm making a few small tweaks).

However, I will use the Minimal schedule since work and life are crazy this time of year.

The good thing is that I've continued to lose fat, and my six-pack is almost ready to be unleashed!
 
Ever since Thanksgiving, life has beaten me down.

Besides ridiculous joint pain (knees, elbows, ankles) after Thanksgiving food/leftovers, my work schedule and stress levels have been high.

I managed to do all my testing for BTS4 and completed the first week, but I've decided to take a page out of @Brett Jones playbook and perform some intuitive training sessions for the next 3-4 weeks.

After performing BuiltStrong Minimalist since April, I could use the break.

The good news is that my infrequent training the last few weeks has helped me get leaner!

I've dropped 6lbs of fat in the last 4 weeks.

I'm going to bounce around with some Iron Cardio sessions and Pushup/Swing programs from my All-Terrain Conditioning manual.

Today was my first Iron Cardio (24kg is my 6RM) plus Pull-up session.

- 1-Arm Clean, Press, Front Squat (Right)
Rest until the top of the minute

- 1-Arm Clean, Press, Front Squat (Left)
Rest until the top of the minute

- Chest-to-bar Pull-ups x 5
Rest until the top of the minute

Repeat for a total of 12 Rounds per side/exercise (32 minutes)

It felt good, but my knees still hate squatting. :(

I'm going to perform a short All-Terrain Conditioning Pushup/Swing session tomorrow morning before work.
 
renegadenate said:
I managed to do all my testing for BTS4 and completed the first week, but I've decided to take a page out of @Brett Jones playbook and perform some intuitive training sessions for the next 3-4 weeks.
Click to expand...
I think this sounds like a great approach. Maybe even take a week off around christmas to kill of any type of overtraining.
renegadenate said:
I'm going to bounce around with some Iron Cardio sessions and Pushup/Swing programs from my All-Terrain Conditioning manual.
Click to expand...
On a side note: Do you think All-Terrain-Conditioning is worth the price when one already has access to plans like 033, 044, 060, Snatch Walking, and Step Ups?
 
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