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Barbell PTTP with 10lb increments?

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IonRod

IonRod

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I have a weird problem. I am doing PTTP and the gym I go to has several barbells and lots of plates. However, for some strange reason they only have four (!) 2.5lb plates. Usually this is not an issue at all - I only need two at most on any given session and I am always the first one at the gym, so there is nobody to hog them. However, today 3 of those 4 plates were lost. At least I think they were lost - I searched the whole gym. The girl at reception was no help and I train so early none of the personal trainers are there to ask. Luckily for me, I only needed them for my back off set, so I completed the main set as planned, but did a lighter version of the back off one.

Hopefuly, the gym will find these by tomorrow, but I was thinking - what kind of workarounds can the community propose for when you only have plates for 10lb increments?
 
I recall a vid of Pavel referring to smaller plates as “washers” and advising against their use, and this seems pretty reasonable in the context of the heavy deadlift that is emphasized in PTTP.

PTTP recommends using 85-95% of the one rep maximum for the deadlift. So with a heavy lift like the DL, a 10 pound increase works for a lot of people because it’s a small percentage of the overall weight.

But there’s an alternative. PTTP recommends 5 or fewer reps for the DL, so reducing the number of reps is an option when first dealing with a new, heavier weight. If an increment was a bit heavier than what I had planned, this is the option I’d consider.

But if your gym has equipment that’s not available, that’s the problem.
 
Another solution is 1 pound wrist/ankle weights. Super cheap and easy to bring a few pairs with you. I'd do the 10lb jump on the deads but maybe a lower weight on the press.
 
H. Mac said:
But there’s an alternative. PTTP recommends 5 or fewer reps for the DL, so reducing the number of reps is an option when first dealing with a new, heavier weight. If an increment was a bit heavier than what I had planned, this is the option I’d consider.
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+1
 
Bigger jumps are better - otherwise you just spin your wheels in the beginning, and train too hard for too long in the end of the cycle.

Pavel says (in the SFL manual and elsewhere):

"Give all your small plates to your competitors"​
 
If you need to do daily 5 pounds jumps (for example because you use the press and have a low enough working weight to justify it), you can always do a step cycle. For example, instead of doing in a week 85, 90, 95, 100, 105... do 85, 85, 95, 95, 105,... Your drop sets will then be 75, 75, 85, 85, 95... You may be away from the "ideal" 10% less on the second set, but I don't think it is meant to be an exact drop, more a guideline to ensure that you can get quality work without overextending yourself.
 
Thank you all for really interesting suggestions. Thankfully today all 4 plates were there. I truly cannot understand where they could have been the day before. Nevertheless, I will keep in mind the recommendations given here as I started going to this gym this week and don't know yet if this is a frequent issue.
 
Speaking for myself, I generally try to stick to some combination of big wheels, 25's, and 10's, so 20 lb. jumps at a minimum is my usual practice. The only time I break out the little ones is, e.g., the other day I wanted exactly 300 lbs. and I need a pair of 2.5's so I put them on there. Had I been of stronger character, I would have just used 5's and pulled 305. :)

-S-
 
@Steve Freides , you have an extensive experience with deadlifts and I can't even imagine the depth of understanding you have for this lift and your body compared to a novice like me. I guess you know exactly what to prepare for when making such a jump in weight. Looking back to when you were also new to deadlifts, would you have used such large jumps then?
 
Yes, it’s a good idea. But you needn’t be overly dogmatic about it. Stick to big jumps in training for the most part, but if you need little ones for something like a new max attempt, by all means use them.

-S-
 
IonRod said:
@Steve Freides , you have an extensive experience with deadlifts and I can't even imagine the depth of understanding you have for this lift and your body compared to a novice like me. I guess you know exactly what to prepare for when making such a jump in weight. Looking back to when you were also new to deadlifts, would you have used such large jumps then?
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A bit more on this - if you take the idea from S&S of owning a particular weight before moving up, you can make a big jump with some confidence. It also doesn't hurt to look at a 1RM calculator. E.g., if you have deadlifted 225 lbs. for 5 reps, the online calculator says your 1RM is 253. I think that means you can add a 5 lb. plate to each side of the bar and be pretty confident you'll be able to lift 235 lbs., and probably more than once even the very first time you try it.

My best deadlifts in the last year are 365 lbs @ 147 and 358 lbs. @ 144. In training, I usually make 40-50 lb. jumps to get up to working weight, e.g., 225 x 3-5 reps, 265/275 by 1-2 reps, then work sets in the 285-325 range. (I haven't found any point in DL'ing less than 225 so that's what I start with.)

-S-
 
Steve Freides said:
A bit more on this - if you take the idea from S&S of owning a particular weight before moving up, you can make a big jump with some confidence. It also doesn't hurt to look at a 1RM calculator. E.g., if you have deadlifted 225 lbs. for 5 reps, the online calculator says your 1RM is 253. I think that means you can add a 5 lb. plate to each side of the bar and be pretty confident you'll be able to lift 235 lbs., and probably more than once even the very first time you try it.

My best deadlifts in the last year are 365 lbs @ 147 and 358 lbs. @ 144. In training, I usually make 40-50 lb. jumps to get up to working weight, e.g., 225 x 3-5 reps, 265/275 by 1-2 reps, then work sets in the 285-325 range. (I haven't found any point in DL'ing less than 225 so that's what I start with.)

-S-
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I agree - I made much larger jumps with my swings and getups during S&S and it was fine. I guess I am just thinking how much PTTP can be modified before it's no longer PTTP and in that case maybe I should just do another program which accounts for bigger jumps as part of its design.
 
IonRod said:
I agree - I made much larger jumps with my swings and getups during S&S and it was fine. I guess I am just thinking how much PTTP can be modified before it's no longer PTTP and in that case maybe I should just do another program which accounts for bigger jumps as part of its design.
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PTTP allows for lots of different ways to structure cycles. I've done 4 steps forward/3 steps back wave cycles with 15lb jumps between sessions in each wave, and I don't think that is necessarily extreme (and for a stronger lifter with higher overall poundages, the same poundage jump is a smaller percentage jump).

There's nothing about the essence of the program that's tied to the size of jumps between sessions.
 
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I never use less than 5kg (appx 10 lb) plates for DL. Usually I play with big plates only.

For example:

WUP
- bar x 10
- add red plates = 70 kg x 5
- add yellow ones = 100 kg x 5
- add blue babes = 140 kg x 3
- add green beauties = 160 kg x 2

Work sets
- add another pair of greens = 180kg x 3 x 3

Dismantle the set, go home and rest!
 
Consider PTTP an Easy Strength approach - aim for 6-10 reps per day. 10 reps is the standard, but as you're getting nearer to a max, triples are fine.

-S-
 
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