Adapt and Adopt

Adapt and Adopt
     I read a lot. I read constantly. Reading is one of my favorite past-times. Am I nerd? Yes. *shrug* I'm ok with that.
     One of my favorite things to read is training-related material - blogs, books, articles, whatever. If I think its crap, I quickly skim over it to see if there might be anything useful, and then move on. If it isn't crap, I read it, decide whether its useful or not for me at this time, and then either save it for later or see how I can implement it in my current training schedule.
     Two things I've been reading lately (among others) is Bryan Mann's "The APRE" e-book and liftbigeatbig.com. I think both are excellent resources, and would recommend you at least checking them out. They might be useful for you now, or perhaps later.
     APRE stands for autoregulatory progressive resistance exercise. Essentially, you pick a weight for a rep max (3, 6, or 10 in the standard protocol), take two sets to warm up to it, perform max reps for a third set, and adjust the weight for the fourth set based on the reps you achieved in the third set. Your next session would then be based on how many reps you achieved on your fourth set. According to (Dr.) Bryan Mann, this is the scientifically-proven fastest way to get stronger/bigger (depending on your reps). Long-term results aren't guaranteed, as eventually this method is unsustainable. But for beginner and intermediate lifters, this method has been proven to provide more strength gains in 6 weeks then linear progression.
     Are there pros and cons to this system? Of course. Are there limitations? Well, yeah. Can you do this forever and eventually become the strongest man (or woman) on the planet? Well... Maybe not.
     Why did I decide to start playing with this style of training? First and foremost, I've gotten ridiculously weak compared to where I was a year ago, and I wasn't that strong to begin with. I'm not patient enough anymore for the super-slow gains of linear progression, even though that system is a very decent way to train. Ideally, I'd like to add 100lbs to my squat and deadlift, and around 50lbs to my floor press and overhead press. I don't think these are unrealistic numbers, as I've achieved them all before. Following a standard linear progression model, these weight increases could take a year or longer to achieve. Is that bad? No. But I'm not patient enough for that.
     Well, why not try a Westside style program? They do maxes every week! Honestly - I don't feel comfortable doing that right now. Is it a bad program? Results don't lie, and its produced some very good powerlifters. But, where I'm at and with my goals, I'm not feeling it.
     APRE lets me progress at what I feel is an appropriate pace. So... I'm using it. Having faith in a program brings you 90% of your results.
     As for liftbigeatbig.com ... A big thing I've taken away from that is I need to train my back more. Hence the high pulls. I tried these before, my form was terrible, and I stopped them. So, I learned how to do them correctly and put them back in. And they were devastating. 3x10 with 60s rest in between them was brutal for what poor shape I'm in now. 4x10 is the goal, as is a massive back. So ... we'll so how they fair.
     All this to the title of this little post: adapt and adopt. Programs (in my opinion) are not these strict things that are set in stone - you MUST do this exercise for this many sets and reps at this exact percentage or you'll over-train or under-train or get AIDS. I understand why a great many people who write programs say "do this and no changes." But ... I can't do that. Maybe that's bad. Next year, I guess we can see whether I was a fool for not doing a program "as written" or whether I was able to get stronger. And who knows - maybe if I could follow a program to the letter, I'd be stronger and healthier. But unless a coach or trainer creates an individual program just for me, I will probably continue to ticker with everything. I'll probably never be happy and always tinker, but ... That's ok.
     For me, this is fun. The tinkering is fun and the training is fun. Maybe I won't make the best gainz out there. But I'll be having fun, and I'm happy, so who's to say I'm doing something wrong? Assuming I don't do something idiotic or set myself up for failure or injury ... In which case, please come tell me! But you better bring a 2x4, 'cause I have a thick skull and don't listen too well...


Two Training Sessions:
9.13.13
Barbell Deadlift 45lbs x15, 135lbs x6, 205lbs x3, 280lbs x3, x8, 245lbs x3, x3, x3
Front Squat 95lbs x8, x8, x8
Barbell Yoke Walk 135lbs, 3 sets of 2 minutes (~200ft/set)

     I haven't deadlifted heavy in about 15 months, so I'm pretty happy about this. 105lbs shy of my 1 rep best. APRE style training for my deadlifts, plus a couple "back off sets." All my reps are paused at the top and reset at the bottom (no bounce!), double overhand hook grip.
     I find that combining deadlifts and front squats are absolutely brutal and seriously drain me. Hence why I do them...
     Barbell Yoke Walk - place a barbell on your back like for a squat. Walk with it like its a yoke. It was so hard to breath. It felt brutal.

9.16.13
Jerk 45lbs x15, 95lbs x5, 115lbs x5, 135lbs x1, x1, x1
Clean and Jerk 135lbs x1, x2, 155lbs x1, 165lbs x1
Power Snatch 45lbs x3, 65lbs x3, 95lbs x3, x3, x3, x3, x3
Floor Press 95lbs x3, x6, x15, 105lbs x18
High Pulls - Clean grip 165lbs x8, Snatch grip 105lbs x10, x10, x10
Barbell Yoke Walk, 105lbs, 3 sets of 200': 1:29, 1:18, 1:20
Reverse Curl 45lbs x40, x20

     Jerk felt slow and heavy, and almost every rep ended in a pressout, so I decided to try to clean and split jerk it. (It was a power clean, not a full clean.) This definitely helped me avoid pressing out. My second set with 135lbs felt awesome, so I was like "oh, I'll go for a second jerk rep!" ... And smacked myself squarely in the chin. This was a very good reminder: get that head out of the way!
     Power snatch pretty par for the course. 95lbs was a lot harder then I expected.
     Floor press in a semi-APRE style (APRE10). Semi because my warm-up sets aren't exactly what they call for... But it worked, felt good. Next week I'll try this same set-up with 115lbs or 120lbs.
     High pulls - the clean grip high pulls were my repeated attempts to clean 165lbs to jerk it. I'd get it up, but I just wasn't getting under it. It definitely was a mental issue... The snatch grip pulls were supposed to be 4x10, but I felt so out of breath and exhausted after 3x10 that I called it quits.
     Barbell Yoke walk: set distance for time, clean and pressing it to my shoulders at the beginning of each set. Next week I'm going to have another go at 135lbs. Turns every 50' - the momentum on the barbell when you turn is probably the hardest part.
     Reverse Curl - par for the course. Added a few more reps; I'm that much closer to 45lbs x100!