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For how many Cycles do you think, will this way of training be sustainable

  • 0, not even 1

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • 1

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • 2-3

    Votes: 1 50.0%
  • 4-5

    Votes: 1 50.0%
  • 6+

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Total voters
    2
  • Poll closed .
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PaulAtreides

Level 3 Valued Member
Comrades,
This is my first post here on Strongfirst, so I would like to share what I'm doing at the moment. I will try to update this log every 1-2 weeks.

My stats on Day one

22y/o 173cm, 75kg, 15% body fat.
Pull-up: ~13repMax, 3rm slightly more than 25kg at 75kg Bodyweight.
Barbell OHP: 1rm 53kg

Introduction:
I've done a couple of PttP 3-week step cycles (usually 2-3 in a row) in the past 2 years and it's always worked really well, especially for the Barbell OHP. When I started doing pullups about 5 years ago, the Fighter Pullup was the second program I tried and it worked really well. My PR from 2 years back was 18 strict form hollow bodyweight pull-ups, 2rm 32kg at 85kg BW, and 1rm 70kg for the OHP. I've been pretty much off any regular or structured training for 1.5 years, mainly due to travels and work. I have developed back pains during my travels, and my Doctor and I are in the process of finding cause and potential consequences, all I know is Pull-ups and OHPs don't seem to do any harm, in fact, they seem to decrease the pain.
So now I'm back home with our garage gym and ready to resume proper strength training for at least a couple of months.
As of now, no physical labour or sports on the side; just this program.

Choice of exercises:
Pull-ups: I just love the exercise, and it is somewhat of a full body exercise. My goal is to get a 3rm with the 48kg KB hanging from my belt, sometime between new years and easter. I would have chosen the deadlift instead of the pull-up, but the diagnosis for my back is still in progress so I don't want to DL beyond 150% BW. I may exchange the Pull-up with the DL (at lower frequency of course) if my doctor says it's OK; it is the king of lifts after all.
OHP: I feel it has a lot of carry-over to many activities in my life and in sports, and I love this exercise as well. My goal is to get a 3rm with the 48kg KB , sometime between new years and easter. The reasons I'm not working my 24/32kg KBs instead of the barbell, are that a) I've made better progress on the Barbell in the past and b) It might be a bad idea to work unilateral loads before the proper diagnosis for my back is in.

Choice of programs:
As mentioned earlier, I've had great success with PttP and Fighter Pullup and I've been responding well to high frequency and low-medium reps. I have, for some reason, never made progress at all with any variant of PttP on the weighted Pullup, so I'll try cycles of Fighter Pullup 3rm-5rm, increasing weight only after reaching 5-5-4-3-2 at the end of a cycle.

Programming:
(see next post for a readable format of the program. Original format and its content have been removed from this post)

Cycle 2 will be the same as 1, but with new starting weights based on new 3rm/5rm numbers.

I intend to stay on this program once one of the following sets in:
a) Doctor gives approval for the DL. Or disapproves of any weight training.
b) Excessive fatigue build-up, or hitting a hard plateau (as in "Waves in my cycle won't get me any further").
c) I reach one or both of my goals.
 
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Week 1: September 24, 2018 - September 30, 2018

The first week went just as planned.

upload_2018-10-5_8-12-0.png

The first three sessions felt super-easy, so I got bored and started playing around with my new gym rings (support hold, skin the cat, dips, chest flys) after the FPP@PttP sessions; That was a mistake, I never worked with rings before and underestimated how taxing they are. Shoulder and lat pains since Thursday's session of ring work, so I stopped working the rings.

I decided to at no point add accessory lifts during this cycle and focus on just the program and perfect quality work, no matter how easy it feels. After all, if I can make super easy progress, I should darn well take advantage of that instead of fooling around.
 
Week 2 - Failure: 1-7. October

upload_2018-10-6_12-49-24.png

going strong for the first 2 sessions. exams and a Heavy Metal concert on Wednesday - lots of headbanging, not much sleep. for the remaining 3 sessions, I started out completely exhausted, couldn't get my mind to focus on the exercises.
Sessions 3 and 4 were very hard, technique was still pretty good, but couldn't get the full ROM on the pull-ups (chin just above bar, as opposed to adam's apple above bar). Slow / irregular bar speeds on both OHP and pull-up.

Failed the pull-ups in today's 5th session with 4-3-2-1 instead of 5-4-3-2-1 (I just did what I could without injuring myself and/or cheating). The weakest link in the chain was my left forearm and wrist. shoulders are pretty much back to normal.
For the OHP 5x50kg & 5x45kg, both sets and especially the first set were dangerously close to failure but I just made it. no obvious weakest link in the chain, I just couldn't get my muscles to fire up.

Possible explanations:
1. compared to week 1, I had an average of 3h less sleep per night and a lot more work/study related stress in general. --> bad recovery, low energy, bad focus
2. after about 1 year off the bar, going from training 0-1 days a week to 5 days a week might be too big of a jump.
3. left wrist might be due to excessive time spent on the computer (study, work, gaming)

Next steps:
Repeat week 2 of the cycle entirely with perfect technique and bar-speed, as well as a strict bed-time of 8.5h per day or more.
Next Cycle:
Retest and start anew, as planned. Again, strictly no assistance work.
 
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Week 3 - Failure, cycle aborted: 8-14. October 2018

Monday
Pull-ups: Managed 3-2-2-2-1 instead of 4-3-2-1-1
No overhead pressing because of elbow pain from a minor household accident.

Tuesday
I probably could have done 3 reps like the day before, but it felt too close to failure.
Instead, I stopped at 2 and tested how many sets of 2 I could do in a 1 minute cadence. I managed 10 sets of two with good form.

Reasons for failing this cycle
[Deleted due to privacy concerns]

Conclusion
Currently, this type of training isn't likely to work for me. PTTP and Fighter Pull-Up have separately worked for me in the past and did wonders for me, but it has failed me at least once in the past in a very similar way and similar circumstances.
What I believe I need now is
a) A program easy on the attention span (=even lower reps per set).
b) A program with less frequency and more intense sessions (to counter the "every day half-a$$ed training" problem I'm having).
c) A program that features more auto-regulation / that's easier to autoregulate.

Solution
Temporarily switching to a modified version of Ethan Reeve's density training method, coming back to my original Fighter Pull-Up & PTTP plan after a cycle or two.
 
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My modified version of Ethan Reeve's Density Training plan.
Goals:
- Circumvent issues specified in previous post.
- Get the body used to strength training again.
- Build a stronger Pull-Up and Overhead press, also build more well-rounded upper body strength

3 Days a Week, alternating between Workouts A and B every session.
Workout A: Weighted Pull-Ups & Barbell OHP
Workout B: Ring Dips & Weighted Chin-Ups

Example
Monday: A
Wednesday: B
Friday: A
Monday: B
Wednesday: A
Friday: B

Same procedure for every exercise:
In a 1-minute cadence, do as many sets of X reps as you can, until you hit 60 total reps.
Start with 2 reps per set. Once you hit 30 sets (=60 reps) with good form, "compress" to 3 reps per set for 20 sets.
if you can't hit 20 right away (most likely will be the case), same procedure as before; do as many sets of 3 as you can.
Continue like this until you hit 60 reps in 12 sets or less (=sets of 5+).

Autoregulation:
Simply do fewer sets when you feel weak on a certain day, always do as much as you can do with perfect form.

Cycle planning:
Every 4th week, train with half the volume of week 3.
Weights stay the same until you hit 60 reps in 12 sets or less.

Weights for Cycle 1
Weighted Pull-Ups: BW +25kg (~100kg total)
Barbell OHP: 50kg
Ring Dips: BW
Weighted Chin-Ups: BW +25kg (~100kg total)


I will post my progression with this new plan as soon as I'm training with it; next week

----------------------
Edit:
Right before starting this protocol, I tested how far I can go with given weights and sets of 2
OHP: 50kg, 4 sets (very tired that day)
Pull-up: +25kg, 6 sets (very tired that day)
Ring dip: BW, 10 sets
Chin-Up: +25kg, 10 sets

Strangely enough, I performed better on chins than on pull-ups, even though I never trained chins before, just pullups for about 5 years on and off. This might have just been low energy levels on that day ...we shall see next week.
 
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New cycle: Density training

Week 1: 15-21. October 2018
Bodyweight: 76.3kg, 15.6% fat
Reps per set for Pull-Ups: 2
Reps per set for Chin-Ups: 2
Reps per set for OHP: 2
Reps per set for Ring dips: 2

Monday: Session 1, Workout A

Side notes: Very tired that day due to going out on the night/morning before (no alc, just not enough sleep).
Pull-Ups 25kg: 9 sets (+3set=50% increase compared to initial test)
OHP 50kg: 6 sets (+2set=50% increase compared to initial test)
Addittional work: 1h footbiking at 130bpm on average (~65% HRmax),

Tuesday: Rest
Additional work: 2x ~30 min footbiking at 145bpm on average (~70% HRmax)
[Entry Deleted due to privacy concerns]

Wednesday: Session 2, Workout B

Side notes: an average day in terms of sleep and energy levels
Chin-Ups 25kg: 15 sets (+5set=50% increase compared to initial test)
Ring Dips: 15 sets (+5set=50% increase compared to initial test)
Additional work:

Thursday: Rest
Additional Work: Elastic band shoulder mobility work (dislocations)

Friday: Session 3, Workout A

Side notes: feeling sick and sneezing a lot, probably caught the cold virus, no fever as of now. still feeling my upper back from the elastic band exercises, probably overdid them.
Pull-Ups 25kg: 7 sets (-2 sets compared to last session, + 1 from initial test)
OHP 50kg: 4 sets (-2 sets compared to last session, +0 from initial test)
Additional Work: Some 1 & 2 handed dead hangs. Some hammer levering work about 10 total reps front and back for each hand.

Saturday: Rest
Additional Work:

Sunday: Rest
Additional Work:
 
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[Content deleted due to privacy concerns]

What does this mean for my current training goals and routine?
Pull-Ups & Chin-ups: no changes
Ring dips: no changes
OHP: stop at bodyweight or as soon as something feels off. at that point, replace it with either more dips/flyes/push-ups on the rings or Benchpress

long story short: no changes for the moment.

What about the Deadlift? I guess maintaining a 100-120kg DL can't do much harm, as it doesn't require much work and isn't so far away from things I might need to lift in real life (Server racks, Printers, Desks, etc.). For the time being, I won't go beyond that as much as I'd love to.
What about kettlebell OHP? unilateral loads at an already uneven distribution of spinal stress may not be the best Idea. I won't attempt any Kettlebell OHP's before reaching bodyweight on the barbell. Kind of hoping things get better until then (since things have gotten much better over the last 3 months, to the point where I hardly feel anything that's off) but I won't take anything for granted.


Edit: Looking for a sports orthopaedist now, as my doctor doesn't seem to have much of a clue about sports. to see how I came to this conclusion, see this Thread in the Kettlebell section
 
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Week 2: 22-28. October 2018
Bodyweight: 75.2kg @ 15.2 body fat
Reps per set for Pull-Ups: 2
Reps per set for Chin-Ups: 2
Reps per set for OHP: 2
Reps per set for Ring dips: 2

Changes to initial plan:

To make my plan more goal-specific, I Decided to change the initial pattern
"Workout A B A, B A B, A B A"
to
"Workout A B A, A B A, A B A"

Monday: Session 4, Workout A

Side notes: Revisited my Pull-Up form using one of Karen Smith's videos and noticed I'm not paying enough attention to the "pulling elbows down and back" motion. Before I just squeezed as hard as I could, now it feels much better and I managed to get my chin higher than before. Average energy levels, despite 4-5h sleep.
Pull-Ups 25kg: 12 sets (+3 / 33% sets compared to PR, +5 / 70% to last session, +100% to initial test)
OHP 50kg: 5 sets (-1 set compared to PR, +0 to last session, +0 to initial test)
Additional work: 8 more sets of OHP at 40kg, still within the same 1 minute cadence. I did this because I think I'm undertraining my OHP at this point and need to get more volume.

Tuesday: Rest
Additional work:

Wednesday: Session 5, Workout B

Side notes: Pain (5-6 out of 10) in my left wrist since Tuesday afternoon, itwoke me up at night twice. Not sure when it happened, probably when I was moving things in my flat... 6h sleep, energy levels average or slightly above average.
Chin-Ups 25kg: 25 Sets (+10 / 66% sets compared to PR and to last session, +150% to initial test)
Ring Dips: 25 Sets (+10 / 66% sets compared to PR and to last session, +150% to initial test)
Additional work: no additional work per se, but I've changed my dipping technique a bit. increased range of motion, hollow body support position hold for 1-2sec at the top of each rep, setup no longer requires a "jump" but basically doing an additional unassisted rep to set it up. basically I've been doing 25 sets of 3 reps today.

I feel like I could do about 12-18 consecutive ring dips with proper technique by now. Chinups @ 25kg probably 7-10 consecutive reps.
also, no feelings of fatigue after working out, feeling like I could take on a main battle tank right now. Unarmed *makes Doom guy face*

Thursday: Rest
Additional Work: Mobility and BJJ solo drills.

Friday: Session 6, Workout A

Side notes: poor focus, mind preoccupied, could have done at least 2 more sets of pull-ups with better mental focus. Average energy levels.
Pull-Ups 25kg: 12 sets (+0 sets compared to PR and to last session, +100% to initial test)
OHP 50kg: 6 sets (+0 set compared to PR, +1 /20% to last session and to initial test)
Additional Work: 6 more sets of OHP @ 40kg. Mobility and BJJ solo drills.

Saturday: Rest
Additional Work:

Sunday: Rest
Additional Work:

Mid-cycle conclusions:
this method works incredibly well for my Chins and dips, works quite alright for my pull-ups, but doesn't really work for barbell OHP.
My back health is noticeably improving at a fast pace, so I may switch to unilateral kettlebell presses next cycle or the cycle after that.
Another thing I've noticed, is that I've unknowingly modded my OHP workout into a completely butchered version of the russian bear program, so I might as well try the real bear program for my next BB-OHP cycle.
 
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Week 3: 29. Oct - 4. November 2018
Bodyweight: 75kg @ 15.1 body fat
Reps per set for Pull-Ups: 2
Reps per set for Chin-Ups: 2
Reps per set for OHP: 2
Reps per set for Ring dips: 2

Monday: Session 4, Workout A

Side notes: strange pains from the sternoclavical joints (or something in that area), especially on the right side. Also, the left side of my neck muscles feels strained now. I have no idea what could have caused them, as I didn't do anything apart from studying and sleeping between Friday and Monday. in the first set, it was barely noticeable, but with each set, it gradually increased up to a 5-6/10, so I called it a day.
Pull-Ups 25kg: 6 sets (stopped due to pains, previous session: 12 sets)
OHP 50kg: 0 sets (tried with an empty bar, unusual pains and audible clicks so I stopped)

Additional work: after a 15-minute break, I tested how many pull-ups I can currently do at 25kg. 6 moderately easy reps, leaving 1-2 in the bank. 6 is already a +2 increase to my PR, and I'm pretty sure I could've done 7 but I was cautious due to the pains from previous sets. when the pains subsided, I also cautiously tested my 24kg KB OHP, managed 10 with good form and good speed. no shoulder pains from the Kettlebell and my back seems to have taken it well.

Tuesday: Test maxrep counts
later this week, I will begin working on a new job (they only told me today, on a short notice) and I probably won't be able to continue with this program because of fatigue and occasional pains.
therefore, I tested my approximate numbers for the exercises
KB Goblet Squat 24kg: 10 Reps (never really tried them before, felt really good for my back)
Pull-ups 25kg: 7 Reps (+3 in 2.5 weeks)
Ring dips: 12 Reps (ca. twice of what I was capable of 2.5 weeks ago)
Barbell OHP: 1 Rm @ 52.5 (no increase, but maybe it was just low energy after the other tests)
Chin-Ups 25kg: 3 reps (obviously unreliable result due to low energy, this should be in the 7-14 range)

Conclusions:
-Chin-Ups need to be retested, Barbell OHP should be retested.
-Either way, this program doesn't work for Barbell OHP at this percentage of 1rm, at least not for me.
-KB OHPs felt great for my back, not in the "awesome bro I can't walk, so hardcore" sense but it felt strong, healthy and pain-free: loose and lethal. They will replace my barbell pressing when I resume training.
-same feeling with KB Goblet squats. the deep ROM + resistance also felt incredible for my piriformis, I feel this could be much better than the stretches from my physio-therapist.

Wednesday: Session 5, Workout B

Side notes:
Chin-Ups 25kg: TBA Sets (TBA)
Ring Dips: TBA Sets (TBA)
Additional work:

Thursday: Rest
Additional Work:


Friday: Session 6, Workout A

Side notes:
Pull-Ups 25kg: TBA sets (TBA)
OHP 50kg: TBA sets (TBA)
Additional Work:

Saturday: Rest
Additional Work:

Sunday: Rest
Additional Work:
 
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Future training plan - Considerations

1. identify and keep what went well
- density training obviously works well for Ring dips, weighted chins and pull ups. I will continue to train at least one of these with my modified density template which I've described in detail in an earlier post.
- Ring dips are awesome for my back, they will be part of my next program. They also pump up my chest and abs, which is a nice bonus.
- KB Goblet squats seem to precisely address all of my weak spots in my hip, but and back. they will definitely be part of my next program
- KB OHPs feel really good for my back and they don't hurt my shoulders in any way the Barbell MP did. They will replace the barbell OHP for the time being

2. identify and remove what went wrong
- Barbell OHP is bad for my wrists and shoulder joints. also, density training doesn't seem to apply although this could be because I'm using too much weight. anyhow, no more Barbell OHP for the time being.

3. what could have been improved
- include leg work (KB Goblet Squat)
- perhaps some variance in loading (heavy/light days) and acceleration (speed/isometric/normal days) could improve the program. I don't want it to be over-complicated though, and it already works really well for the most part.
- start out with weights that you can do 8-12 sets of 2 with. by coincidence, that's what I did for ring dips and chins and it resulted in incredible gains. In contrast, pull-ups (6 sets at the start) worked pretty well, but nowhere close to the two formerly mentioned exercises, and OHP (4 sets at the start) didn't seem to work at all.

in short, these are my guidelines for my future training:
- 1 or 2 exercises using my density template, 2 times a week, starting with a weight that I can do 8-12 sets of 2 with.
- main exercises: weighted pull-ups, KB Goblet Squats, and KB OHP
- assistance exercises: ring dips, and a pull-up variation (weighted chins, one arm hangs, speed BW pull-ups, archer, isometrics)
- frequency and fatigue levels: at this point unknown. needs to match with my new working conditions
 
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Tested my 32kg Pull up today:
4rm 32 kg @ 75kg BW (4x108kg)
which is a new PR, at least in terms of relative strength;
my last PR was 3x32kg @ 83kg (3x115kg) in 2016.

back in 2016 I went "beastmode" and gave it 110%, whereas this time, I played it safe as one ought to. back in 2016, I also used lower range of motion because of low ceiling in my old apartment (chin 1-2 cm above bar). at the old ROM and "beastmode" I could have probably done 6 reps
 
A friend of mine asked me for a concise template of my flavour of Ethan Reeve's density training. I thought I'd name it "Fremen density training", inspired by the Dune novels of Frank Herbert, where young Paul Atreides (see my nick-name) moves to planet Arrakis where he joins the native warrior people, the Fremen, and becomes their leader.

So much for the nerdy lore, here it goes:

Fremen density training V1.0

Training frequency:
Monday: Workout A (main exercises)
Wednesday: Workout B (assistance exercises)
Friday: Workout A (main exercises)

Preliminaries:
- Pick two main exercises (I picked weighted pull-ups and an overhead press variation)
- Pick two assistance exercises (I picked weighted chin-ups and ring-dips)
- For each exercise, determine how much weight you can handle for 10 +/-2 sets of 2 in a one-minute cadence. Alternatively, your 5rm should be a close guess. This will be your working weight.

Training:
In every session, you use the same method for all exercises, which goes as follows:
Do as many sets of 2 as you can manage with perfect form in a one-minute cadence. Call it a day when you can't manage another perfect rep.
Your number of sets will experience peaks and valleys corresponding to your energy and fatigue levels, both are welcome as long as you always give it your best and don't go completely berserk.

Progression:
As soon as you can do 60+ total reps for any given exercise, make it more "dense" by increasing reps per set by 1 and working up to 60+ total reps again.
Restart the program with higher weights or switch programs as soon as you manage to do 60 reps in 12 sets of 5.
alternatively, although this should no longer be called density training: Restart the program with higher weights or switch programs as soon as you manage 30 sets of 2

Periodization:
3 weeks of work followed by one week of rest (or 50% volume). repeat for 1-3 cycles, then switch to a more conventional program featuring fewer sets, higher reps/heavier weights and 3-5 minutes between sets.

Predictions:
- Your repmax at the end of a cycle will be approximately the same as your max number of sets of 2, divided by two (30 sets of 2 --> repmax ~15)
- After 1-3 cycles, you should respond very well to more conventional schemes of fewer sets, higher reps/heavier weights and 3-5 minutes between sets.
- You should respond very well to this kind of training after a couple of cycles of more conventional schemes of fewer sets, higher reps/heavier weights and 3-5 minutes between sets.
- Your chances of getting hurt on this program are very low if you limit your work to perfectly executed reps only.
- General fatigue can be a problem if you don't sleep/eat/hydrate properly and engage in other physically demanding activities (play sports, manual labour). This program is designed for the desk-jockey strength enthusiast.
 
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Training vs. Job/study situation
My working times and intensity of work will be very flexible (read: unpredictable) for the next 3 months. I will also have to fit in studying for my undergraduate degree in Psychology, and I want to start training BJJ again by the end of this month.

What I need now, is a program that
1) Addresses my goals and weaknesses
2) Doesn't create excessive fatigue
3) takes up little time

Also I really want to keep training at least one exercise with my "fremen density" template, because it worked so nicely up to now and because I want to gain more experience with it.

My solution
1-3 sessions per week, whenever I can afford it. alternate between workout A and B

Workout A
Fremen density: weighted pull-ups (resume where I had paused it)
10-minute unstructured "safely playing around": KB Military press

Workout B
Fremen density: KB Goblet squats
10-minute unstructured "safely playing around": Ring Dips

+ 20-30 minute mobility work
for my back and for BJJ, 4-7 times a week
 
Week 1: 5.11.2018 - 11.11.2018

Monday:
Side note - still recovering from half a week cold and fevers, energy levels below average. switched from 25kg plate to 24 kg KB for pull-ups because it's more convenient to have fewer implements standing around in the "courage corner".
- Mobility and BJJ solo-drills
- Fremen Density, weighted pull-ups: 11 sets of 2 @24kg + 74kg BW
- unstructured 10 minutes, KB MP 24kg: ~30 reps per arm

Tuesday:
Side note - Poor sleep, jumped from sets of 2 to sets of 4 for squats because sets of 2 seemed extremely boring and I somehow felt ready for it, no regrets
- ~1.5h of footbiking throughout the day
- Fremen Density, Goblet squats: 10 sets of 4 @24kg + 74kg BW
- Unstructured 10 minutes, Ring dips: ~15 reps, support holds for time, skin the cats
- Mobility and BJJ solo-drills, stronger focus on BJJ

Wednesday:
- 30min footbiking

Thursday:
Side note - very low energy.
- Mobility and BJJ solo-drills
- Fremen Density, weighted pull-ups: 12 sets of 2 @24kg + 74kg BW
- Unstructured 10 minutes, KB MP 24kg: ~25 reps per arm

Friday:
- Light mobility work

Saturday:
- Fremen Density, Goblet squats: 15 sets of 4 @24kg + 74kg BW (60 total reps, time to increase to compress)
- Unstructured 10 minutes, Ring dips: 20 reps total. different tempos, extra time and focus on the more jitter-prone parts of the exercise.
- Light mobility work
 
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Busy as hell, occasional Hermann Görner-inspired ladders when I had some spare time and energy left, this will probably stretch until christmas

Bodyweight 72kg
Pull-ups: 3reps with 32kg, 3 reps with 24kg, 3 reps BW with high acceleration, pause 2-5 minutes, repeat. 1-4 ladders per session
some occasional stretching and mobility but not the complete stack of exercises.
 
My Job situation has become less erratic, so I have resumed regular training last week. I have changed my training approach a little bit according to my situation.

ideas:
- more holistic training for functionality and injury prevention (leg and lower back, grip and overall stability)
- less heavy volume, flatter distribution of fatigue throughout the week
- more of an "every day after work" feeling, easier on my mind to stay on the routine
- 3 weeks of work, 1 week of rest
- every session is started with specific mobility pre-workout. every session ends with a more general and extensive mobility routine

notes on the new program:
upload_2018-12-9_20-34-0.png

the program:
upload_2018-12-9_20-37-37.png
 

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Week 1:
Bodyweight: 73kg @ 14% body fat

felt purely awesome. I'm thrilled to see how this works out in the long run.
If it actually works for one or more 3-week cycles, this might be the best routine I've been on so far.

upload_2018-12-16_10-44-39.png

No pains, except brutal muscle ache after leg day for 2-3 days, literally every single muscle below the belly button. I'm really impressed by the goblet squat.
I can already see strong effects on my legdrive when footbiking.
 
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Week 2:
Bodyweight & fat 73 @ 14% fat

Another good week, good progress on all exercises (except for overhead/racked/suitcase-carry holds for time) but starting to feel the fatigue building up.
Switched from single-arm kettlebell shrugs to more conventional shrugs using a 20kg plate per hand.

upload_2018-12-16_10-46-33.png

next week I will change my leg day: start off with a few technique attempts at the Zercher squat, followed by 24kg goblet squats for 10 minutes, as many reps as possible
reasoning behind this change, see thread Gripping technique for KB Goblet Squats
 
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I'm very pleased with the results of my take on density training which I call Fremen Density training (which I've described in this previous post: Path to OHP&Pull-up the 48kg Beast and more).

it still needs some little tweaks and most of all, the set of instruction needs to be simplified so I or anyone who's interested in trying it, can more easily implement it into their training.
so here goes Version 2 of Fremen Density training

Fremen density training V2.0

Training frequency:
2 Sessions per main exercise. no more than 2 main exercises. If you use the Fremen method for 2 exercises you can do both on the same day, but I would recommend splitting it up to 4 sessions.

Preliminaries:
- Pick 1-2 main exercises
- For each exercise, determine how much weight you can handle for 10 +/-2 sets of 2 in a one-minute cadence. Alternatively, your 5rm should be a close guess. This will be your working weight.

Training:
In every session, you use the same method for all exercises, which goes as follows:
Do as many sets of 2 as you can manage with perfect form in a one-minute cadence. Call it a day when you can't manage another valid rep.
Your number of sets will experience peaks and valleys corresponding to your energy and fatigue levels, both are welcome as long as you always give it your best and don't go completely berserk.

Progression:
As soon as you can do 60+ total reps, increase reps per set by 1 and again work up to 60+ reps.
if you only came within the 30-60 rep range by the end of your cycle, increase by 1 in your next cycle.
Repeat this process for 2 cycles or until you hit 12+ sets of 5 reps.

Periodization:
3 weeks of work followed by one week of rest (or 50% volume). repeat for 1-2 cycles. follow up with, either a program that specifically boosts your RepMax or your 1RM. the idea here is that you
a) You've built a good overall muscle and strength base. Now you should be able to quickly but gradually crank up your RepMax and/or 1RM numbers.
b) Might hit a plateau doing the Fremen Method for more than 2 cycles due to fatigue, boredom, and lack of new training stimulus

Predictions:
- Your repmax at the end of a cycle will be approximately the same as your max number of sets of 2, divided by two (30 sets of 2 --> repmax ~15)
- After 1-3 cycles, you should respond very well to more conventional schemes of fewer sets, higher reps/heavier weights and 3-5 minutes between sets.
- You should respond very well to this kind of training after a couple of cycles of more conventional schemes of fewer sets, higher reps/heavier weights and 3-5 minutes between sets.
- Your chances of getting hurt on this program are very low if you limit your work to perfectly executed reps only.
- General fatigue can be a problem if you don't sleep/eat/hydrate properly and engage in other physically demanding activities (play sports, manual labour). This program is designed for the desk-jockey strength enthusiast.
 
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