Deprecated
This post has been deprecated and was only a draft / thought dump while I was working on the weekside program and doing a trial run.
The information here is not the final program and a reference for myself.
Foreword
This is a placeholder for my new program, the weekside method.
This is going to be more Cube/RTS/conjugate principles applied in what I hope to be a long term programming cycle.
My main priorities are:
- Getting my strength back - pushing my 1RMs past old PRs
- Dealing with fatigue - RTS's 4th day has been wrecking me, which I think is mostly due to deadlifting twice a week. I need to address this.
- Keep my work capacity up and keep my rest cycles short
- Target weaknesses. I'm at the point where I think the only way to get stronger is to attack my weaknesses - just pounding out the same lifts constantly isn't going to cut it anymore. Addressing weakpoints is huge weakpoint in itself for me which I have very little education on. I plan to really focus on this.
- Keep up high frequency on bench (3+ times a week). Lower frequency for deadlift to once a week. Squat 2x a week.
WIP...
General Structure
General ideas
- Using cube method kingpin / boss structure as a base.
- Squat and Bench on same day like RTS style
- Split up the 3 main cube lifts into seperate days for frequency
- One bodybuilding day like Cube
- One SBD variation day (using the lifts we split out from the main days)
- Bench everyday
- Follow Cube accessory to start
Lifts - Deadlift, Bench, Squat
Schemes - Heavy, Explosive, Reps
As I was writing this, I realized that the 3 variations in each day of cube can be summarized as the following:
Squat
- Comp Squat
- Variation 1 - Squat with longer ROM (front squat)
- Variation 2 - Squat with shorter ROM or pause (Box squat / Pause squat)
Bench
- Comp Bench (Wide grip, in my case)
- Variation 1 - Bench with longer ROM (close grip)
- Variation 2 - Bench with shorter ROM or pause (Board press, 1" pause off chest)
Deadlift
- Comp Deadlift (Sumo, in my case)
- Variation 1 - Deadlift with longer ROM (Deficit, conventional)
- Variation 2 - Deadlift with shorter ROM (Block pulls, Rack Pulls)
This isn't something I've seen discussed anywhere and it really put the choices here into perspective. This gives me a solid understanding of why these specific exercises were chosen. Strong365 just briefly touches on them "hitting every angle and intensity", but the ROM choices can't be coincidental.
As far as I can tell, variation 1 and 2 are not meant to be done in the same style (they don't have to be explosive on explosive weeks).
Each of the 3 ROM types / variations have specific rep ranges for the 3 styles and 3 waves. (oh hey, it's a 3x3x3 cube)
They look something like below for each lift. The weeks in the below chart would be for the lift that starts heavy in week 1. Other lifts would have different weeks assigned, but the rotation is the same.
I'm not sure why it isn't broken down like this is the Strong365 book. This was taken from page 32 and the sample program. He explains a bit later on that how it works is essentially: Take the comp lift, add 5% for one variation and substract 5% for the other. Modify reps and sets to hit some other intensities.
- Heavy Day 1 (Week 1)
- Comp Lift - 80% x 2 x 5
- Variation 1 - 85% x 1-3 x 2
- Variation 2 - 75% x 4-6 x 2
- Explosive Day 1 (Week 2)
- Comp Lift - 65% x 3 x 8
- Variation 1 - 70% x 5 x 2
- Variation 2 - 60% x 8 x 2-3
- Reps Day 1 (Week 3)
- Comp Lift - 70% x 8-12 x 2-3
- Variation 1 - 75% x 6-8 x 2
- Variation 2 - 65% x 10-12 x 2-3
- Heavy Day 2 (Week 4)
- Comp Lift - 85% x 2 x 3
- Variation 1 - 90% x 1-2 x 2
- Variation 2 - 80% x 3-5 x 2
- Explosive Day 2 (Week 5)
- Comp Lift - 70% x 2 x 6
- Variation 1 - 75% x 5 x 2
- Variation 2 - 65% x 6 x 2-3
- Reps Day 2 (Week 6)
- Comp Lift - 80% x 4-8 x 2-3
- Variation 1 - 85% x 2-3 x 2
- Variation 2 - 75% x 6-8 x 2
- Heavy Day 3 (Week 7)
- Comp Lift - 90% x 2, 92.5% x 1, 95% x 1, 80% x AMRAP
- Variation 1 - No variation this week
- Variation 2 - No variation this week
- Explosive Day 3 (Week 8)
- Comp Lift - 75% x 2 x 5
- Variation 1 - 80% x 3 x 3
- Variation 2 - 70% x 3-5 x 2-3
- Reps Day 3 (Week 9)
- Comp Lift - 85% x 2 x 2
- Variation 1 - 90% x 1-2 x 2
- Variation 2 - 80% x 3-5 x 2
- Meet week (Week 10)
Test Run
My first round of this is going to be a 3 week test run (every style for every lift) using a custom day structure, but following the Cube Kingpin lifts and rep ranges almost identically. There will be some extra bench / chest in order to hit it every day, and some accessory has been modified. For example, I know I need adductor work, so I've added in good girls. I don't want to do pullups and pulldowns everyday, so I've mixed in pullups, chinups, and pulldowns across different days. I have a soft spot for face pulls, so I've added those in.
While I was working through this, I came across a VERY similar idea to what I wanted to create from Garrett Blevins. I've largely stolen one of his cycles, which are largely stolen from the Cube / RTS. He takes it a bit further with RPE volume/intensity blocks, which is something I want to implement as well.
I don't see this being the final structure, but this should give me a good idea of if I'm onto something or completely off here.
This structure is already quite complicated, and over these next few weeks of running it I want to see if I can simplify it to be less percentage based, more RPE based, and driven intuitively rather than these set structures.
Here it is with everything plugged in and some conservative training maxes for round 1.
Week 1
Monday
| Lift | Style | Specific Lift | Percent | Weight | Reps | Sets |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Comp Squat | Heavy | Squat w/ Belt | 80% | 452 | 2 | 5 |
| Squat Variation Long | Heavy | Front Squat | 85% | 480.25 | 1-3 | 2 |
| Comp Bench | Explosive | Comp Bench | 65% | 276.25 | 3 | 8 |
| Bench Variation Long | Explosive | Close Grip Bench | 70% | 297.5 | 5 | 2 |
| Delts | 10x3 | Front / Side raises | 10 | 3 | ||
| Face pulls | 10x3 | Face Pulls | 10 | 3 | ||
| Pullups | AMRAPx3 | Pullups | AMRAP | 3 |
Wednesday
| Lift | Style | Specific Lift | Percent | Weight | Reps | Sets |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Comp Deadlift | Reps | Sumo Deadlift w/B | 70% | 437.5 | 8-12 | 2-3 |
| Deadlift Variation Short | Reps | Block Pull 2-3" | 75% | 468.75 | 6-8 | 2 |
| Bench Variation Short | RPE8 | Floor Press | RPE8-9 | 6 | 3 | |
| Lats | Pulldown | 15 | 4 | |||
| Shrugs | Shrugs or Upright Row | 10 | 3 | |||
| Chinups | AMRAP | 3 |
Friday
| Lift | Style | Specific Lift | Percent | Weight | Reps | Sets |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Squat Short / Pause | Heavy | Pause Squat | 75% | 423.75 | 4-6 | 2 |
| Bench Unassisted Pause | Explosive | Tshirt/1" Pause | 60% | 255 | 8 | 2-3 |
| Deadlift Variation Long | Reps | 2" Deficit DL | 65% | 406.25 | 10-12 | 2-3 |
| Grip | DB/BB Walk | 30s | 3 | |||
| Leg Curl / GHR | Leg Curl | 15 | 3 | |||
| Back ext | Back Ext | 12 | 4 | |||
| Lats | 15x4 | Pulldowns | 15 | 4 |
Saturday
| Lift | Style | Specific Lift | Percent | Weight | Reps | Sets |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bench Accessory (DB/incline/flyes) | 10 | 3 | ||||
| OHP | 10 | 3 | ||||
| Rows | 10 | 3 | ||||
| Curls | 10 | 3 | ||||
| Calves | 25 | 3 | ||||
| Good girls | 10 | 3 | ||||
| Pullups | AMRAP | 3 |
Week 2
Monday
| Lift | Style | Specific Lift | Percent | Weight | Reps | Sets |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Comp Squat | Explosive | Squat w/ Belt | 65% | 367.25 | 3 | 8 |
| Squat Variation Long | Explosive | Front Squat | 70% | 395.5 | 5 | 2 |
| Comp Bench | Reps | Comp Bench | 70% | 297.5 | 8-12 | 2-3 |
| Bench Variation Long | Reps | Close Grip Bench | 75% | 318.75 | 6-8 | 2 |
| Delts | 10x3 | Front / Side raises | 10 | 3 | ||
| Face pulls | 10x3 | Face Pulls | 10 | 3 | ||
| Pullups | AMRAPx3 | Pullups | AMRAP | 3 |
Wednesday
| Lift | Style | Specific Lift | Percent | Weight | Reps | Sets |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Comp Deadlift | Heavy | Sumo Deadlift w/B | 80% | 500 | 2 | 5 |
| Deadlift Variation Short | Heavy | Block Pull 2-3" | 85% | 531.25 | 1-3 | 2 |
| Bench Variation Short | RPE8 | Floor Press | RPE8-9 | 6 | 3 | |
| Lats | Pulldown | 15 | 4 | |||
| Shrugs | Shrugs or Upright Row | 10 | 3 | |||
| Chinups | AMRAP | 3 |
Friday
| Lift | Style | Specific Lift | Percent | Weight | Reps | Sets |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Squat Short / Pause | Explosive | Pause Squat | 60% | 339 | 8 | 2-3 |
| Bench Unassisted Pause | Reps | Tshirt/1" Pause | 65% | 276.25 | 10-12 | 2-3 |
| Deadlift Variation Long | Heavy | 2" Deficit DL | 75% | 468.75 | 4-6 | 2 |
| Grip | DB/BB Walk | 30s | 3 | |||
| Leg Curl / GHR | Leg Curl | 15 | 3 | |||
| Back ext | Back Ext | 12 | 4 | |||
| Lats | 15x4 | Pulldowns | 15 | 4 |
Saturday
| Lift | Style | Specific Lift | Percent | Weight | Reps | Sets |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bench Accessory (DB/incline/flyes) | 10 | 3 | ||||
| OHP | 10 | 3 | ||||
| Rows | 10 | 3 | ||||
| Curls | 10 | 3 | ||||
| Calves | 25 | 3 | ||||
| Good girls | 10 | 3 | ||||
| Pullups | AMRAP | 3 |
Week 3
Monday
| Lift | Style | Specific Lift | Percent | Weight | Reps | Sets |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Comp Squat | Reps | Squat w/ Belt | 70% | 395.5 | 8-12 | 2-3 |
| Squat Variation Long | Reps | Front Squat | 75% | 423.75 | 6-8 | 2 |
| Comp Bench | Heavy | Comp Bench | 80% | 340 | 2 | 5 |
| Bench Variation Long | Heavy | Close Grip Bench | 85% | 361.25 | 1-3 | 2 |
| Delts | 10x3 | Front / Side raises | 10 | 3 | ||
| Face pulls | 10x3 | Face Pulls | 10 | 3 | ||
| Pullups | AMRAPx3 | Pullups | AMRAP | 3 |
Wednesday
| Lift | Style | Specific Lift | Percent | Weight | Reps | Sets |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Comp Deadlift | Explosive | Sumo Deadlift w/B | 65% | 406.25 | 3 | 8 |
| Deadlift Variation Short | Explosive | Block Pull 2-3" | 70% | 437.5 | 5 | 2 |
| Bench Variation Short | RPE9 | Floor Press | RPE9-10 | 6 | 3 | |
| Lats | Pulldown | 15 | 4 | |||
| Shrugs | Shrugs or Upright Row | 10 | 3 | |||
| Chinups | AMRAP | 3 |
Friday
| Lift | Style | Specific Lift | Percent | Weight | Reps | Sets |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Squat Short / Pause | Reps | Pause Squat | 65% | 367.25 | 10-12 | 2-3 |
| Bench Unassisted Pause | Heavy | Tshirt/1" Pause | 75% | 318.75 | 4-6 | 2 |
| Deadlift Variation Long | Explosive | 2" Deficit DL | 60% | 375 | 8 | 2-3 |
| Grip | DB/BB Walk | 30s | 3 | |||
| Leg Curl / GHR | Leg Curl | 15 | 3 | |||
| Back ext | Back Ext | 12 | 4 | |||
| Lats | 15x4 | Pulldowns | 15 | 4 |
Saturday
| Lift | Style | Specific Lift | Percent | Weight | Reps | Sets |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bench Accessory (DB/incline/flyes) | 10 | 3 | ||||
| OHP | 10 | 3 | ||||
| Rows | 10 | 3 | ||||
| Curls | 10 | 3 | ||||
| Calves | 25 | 3 | ||||
| Good girls | 10 | 3 | ||||
| Pullups | AMRAP | 3 |
Modifications after trial run
After running the above program for 2 cycles, I've made some modifications to the accessories, squat variation structure, and been able to dial in some RPE equivalents for these lifts.
Main Lifts
I was hoping to get all the lifts on an RPE schedule, but it's just not possible with explosive lifts - they're just too low of a percentage to guage.
For the heavy days, these sometimes barely registered on the RPE scale (they weren't 6 RPE or above). For the RPE version, I'm essentially upping the intensity of the heavy days to be more in line with what I think they're really for.
Rep days are where the RPE system will shine - the targets here are easy to define.
Front squat percentages based on back squat max were insane and unobtainable. I'm not sure how anyone hits these. I've kept the percentages the same but tracked the Front Squat training max as its own entity.
Accessory
There was too much pull down / chin up / pull up work. I've dialed this back.
Glute / Quad / Hamstring isolation has been tricky at home. This is still a WIP.
Other
Where should box jumps or sprints fit into this? Brandon talks about them but they're not really implemented.