Marv's Journal
 

G,day all. I am currently using the Texas Method and have decided to keep a journal. My goal is to continue making strength gains. This is my present set up:

Sunday:
Squat 5x5
Bench 5x5
Rows 5x5
Grip Work 5x5

Tuesday:
Over Head Squat 3x5
Front Squat 3x5
Press 3x5
Chins 3x?
Grip Work 3x5
Hanging Leg Raises 3x?

Thursday:
Squat 1x5
Bench 1x5
DeadLift 1x5
Chins 3x?
Grip Work 3x5
Hanging Leg Raises 3x?
Calve Raises 3x5

My current Body weight is 88kg, Ive have started cuting back carbs and want to be leaner for summer around 81kg. My current PR's are:
Squat 135kg 1x4
Bench 110kg 1x3
Deadlift 170kg 1x3

Good luck on your continuing progress.

This has been working for you well?

Good luck Marv. How long have you been using this method? Those are some great PR's mate.

Cheers,
Jeff

Thanks Guys.
Okay all has gone well so far. However on Thursday's PR day I missed a rep on the Squat 135kg 1x4. I also missed reps on the bench 110kg 1x3. I felt fatigued. I also missed reps on sundays bench 95kg 1x5,1x5,1x4,1x3,1x3. I have been going strong for 7 or 8weeks, I guess I need to deload. I am planing to drop my main lifts by 10% on sunday's volume work out. I might change thursday to a dynamic day and work on power for a while! any suggestions guys?

How long have you been using this method? How many times have you deloaded before? Seven weeks is a pretty good run mate!

If this is your first time needing to back off, you could probably just do an easy week or two across the board, then roll back two weeks and run at it again. Perhaps change the parameters slightly, say from doing heavy 5's to doing heavy 3's or a few singles on Thursday, and maybe alternating 5x5 and 8x3 somehow on Sunday.

If you've had to deload a couple of times already, starting to add some power stuff on Thursday sounds like a good idea. Or maybe alternate power and intensity days on Thursday? I don't have all that much experience with dynamic stuff, so someone else can probably advise you on how to begin including it better than I can.

Let us know what you decide!

Cheers,
Jeff

LOL, I've done many different intemediate 5x5 incarnations. No offense meant here but, with the proper circumstances and depending on the person, one may be able to go 15 to 20 weeks solid with nary a change, making PR's all along the way.

This is a malleable way of triaing. Everytime you hit a snag or don't get a PR does NOT mean you need to deload. If you need to deload everytime then why the heck are you managing fatigue on a weekly basis? I think around two months on average is when people will start having problems and need to make some adjustments.

No, little changes need to be made along the way and progress can usually be reestablished for a while without fully "deloading".

My first thought is, since you had trouble with bench on sunday and thursday that you could just adjust back Monday's workload a little. Not a back off in weight. Just a reduction in volume. You say you were fatigued. If fatigue is carrying over into Thursday then recovery is simply being outstipped or not allowed...so something needs to be done to allow recovery and still allow progress. But not a whole deload.

However, looking at your recovery day I'd suggest you cut back there a little and see if it helps you on thursday. I would take out the ab work and the chins and just do chins on thursday. I know that doesn't seem like a big deal but it actually can be. you might think about reducing those front and overhead squats to 3x3's. Or perhaps do front squat for 3x3, and OH squats 2x5. Although I wouldn't do OH squats on that day (I usually don't like to do front squats either). OH squats are different enough that they don't really help keep you in that squatting groove.

With your corrent setup it IS possible that some fatigue is lasting into Sunday. You see if recovery day doesn't allow recovery but instead mounts up more fatigue that fatigue will carry over and accumulate during Friday. It's a mistake to think that PR day has no effect on your body. It does. It's just a different effect. But the effect is still cumulative. Especially considering the deads on thursday....

I know that may seem like overthinking the matter but I've done this type of thing A LOT so I've had some time to think :biglaugh:.

I think right now your goal should be primarily to re-establish progress on Monday. Then see if that allows PR's to be re-established on Thursday.

As Jeffo was suggesting you should change up things on Thursday. Actually nothing formal. Basically you should change it up liberally and often. 5 here, 3 there...you can do 1's, 2's, 3's, etc..

Thanks guys!

Jeff, I have reset once due to the flu. I started using TM around 4 months ago.

Thanks Eric that was the advice I needed. I increased all my lifts by 5kg for 3x5 today. This has given me back confidence. I will scrap chins and abs on Tuesday and lower squat volume also.

Sunday 16th september:
Squat 117.5kg 3x5
Bench 97.5kg 3x5
Rows 87.5kg 3x5:weights:

I will correct myself, that was a 2.5kg increase on all my lifts today for 3x5.

I see what you're saying Eric.

This is a malleable way of training for sure. I've had to adjust Monday upwards and downwards to keep Friday moving as well, usually between 3 and 7 sets depending on fatigue and perceived effort. Even then, I was still only able to do about 8 weeks before feeling generally worn out and sore, and not even all of those weeks were in PR territory.

I think one of my mistakes in the past was just trying to hit a heavier and heavier 5RM every Friday, never alternating or cycling my PR attempts. I think that was part of the reason I never saw more than about 8 weeks of straight training before feeling generally worn out, both physically and mentally. As you said, the Intensity day is stressful as well.

I still can't imagine going 20 full weeks straight of heavy lifting. I don't think my joints could handle that. Perhaps I'm just not cut out for that long of a run? Did you mannage to handle it fine?

And no offence taken. I'm used to people laughing at me :) Good advice by the way.

Cheers,
Jeff

I wasn't laughing at you, bro :D. I was laughing at the general idea of what would be a good run. So much of everyone's idea of this stuff comes from guys doing on the internet who didn't realize that the wall they hit after after 7 to 9 weeks was just a signal that changes needed to be made, not that they had overreached and certainly not overtrained. Just hitting a stall, that one thing, is not a signal of over-reaching and needing a de-load.

You do get guys saying everyone needs to take a week off every two months regardless, for instance. But it depends on your trainging. Nothing wrong with a week off or a taper or whatever, but you don't need to cut short something where there is still progress to be made.

Not me I can't go 20 weeks straight with hardly any change on just the TM alone. I've done 5x5's where where progressive sets became sets across, this became that, and so on, and THEN I was able to make tremendously long runs. I milked each phase for everything it was worth before going on to the next change. For instance starting with something more like a Starr beginner program I hit a stall then backed off and got things going again, then took out a few reps in the lead up sets and got it going again for a couple weeks then switched to straight sets...all the while making apporpriate changes (for me) for the week.

But my joints were shot for sure after shit like that! No doubt. Yet I've seen guys do similar things with no complaints so I don't use myself as a gauge. Me and a 20 year old are very different. But for sure let me say that regardless, after a long run at heavy lifting, take a deload at least, try to peak and if needed take an entire week if not more!

Some can progress for very long periods of time. 20 weeks is an extreme example but a possible one. Anuj went 16 weeks and only stopped because he was leaving the country. He wasn't finished and still had many cards to play. But I'm just trying to illustrate my central point and that is to make small changes as you go along in order to keep progression going.

Also, a build up in the first 4 weeks before you reach your max on Mon, can make all the difference in the world. That can really be a "deload" from the previous period but it gets the body slowly into the swing of what is to come.

In fullbody 5x5's in general I have run them anywhere from 12 to 16 weeks but it's really up the individual and in the end I don't care if it's 8 weeks or what so long as someone lives up to their potential.

But I understand what you are saying, Jeff and I'm not saying you didn't do a good job for you. But what happens for me and you and what is possible is two different things. So while some people will progress longer than others, I don't want to give them the mindset that enables them to give up too soon!

For sure. If we include moving from ramped sets to across, from 5's to 3's, back off and build up weeks (which definately act as deloads), etc., all as part of the overaching method itself, then this style of programming can be used for months and months on end. I certainly didn't mean to suggest that after 8 weeks, or when you miss a PR, you have to change the template.


Good point. I remember a new intermediate who used Starr's Intermediate template for about 6 months straight. I follwed his log on another board. I think he backed off once and switched one exercise the whole time.

I think it also has to do with how far along you are in the intermediate stages as well. When I first started Intermediate stuff I used Starr's program as written for about 10 weeks straight, PR's every week on all lifts, and the weights still felt fine when I hurt myself. Who knows how far I could've taken it without changing a thing? I couldn't imagine getting away with 10 weeks of uninterrupted progress now without making changes along the way.

Cheers,
Jeff

Tuesday 18th september:
Front Squat 80kg 3x5
Press 52.5kg 1x4 1x4 1x3
Light Grip work.

I was not able to complete my reps on the press today, so I will make an adjustment next week. Maybe do 3x3 or go for 3x4 using the same weight. Hopefully the reduced workload today allows me to continue progress on Thursday.

Buisness as usual!!!

Thursday 20th September:
Squat 137.5 1x5
Bench 112.5 1x3
Deadlift 162.5 1x5
Chins bw 87kg 1x10,1x7,1x6
Hanging Leg Raise 3x10
Calve Raise 360lbs 3x6

Today went as planned. I increased Squat and Bench by 2.5kg. Deadlift was 162.5 for 1x5, because I wanted to work on technique. I will now increase from there. I may move Deadlift to Tuesday eventually. I allways cut open my right shin Deadlifting how bout you guys. Calve Raises have moved 10lbs per week so far. Another reason I struggled last Thursday is the fact I was still trying to increase my Squat by 5kg each week. Today was a great session!! I get to add another wheel to my Squat next week!!!SICK!!!!

How Do I refresh the page without losing my message??

while you're typing a reply? highlight it all with your cursor...and then hit control + C to copy it...and refresh...then hit control + v to paste it...

Yeah I copy all long posts just in case...

Taking No Prisoners!!

Sunday 23rd September:
Squat 120kg 3x5
Bench 100kg 2x5,1x4
Rows 90kg 3x5
Grip Work 3x5

I felt very strong on Squats today. Powering out of the hole with good hip drive. I felt strong on the first 2 sets of bench, Im still working on my Bench technique and improving each week as I find my groove, and build new motor pathways. Couldnt make the last rep, but feel I can still make progress next week.

Marv.

Recovery:
Tuesday 25th september:
Front Squat 85kg 2x5,1x3
Press 52.5kg 3x4

My Heart just wasnt in it today, I only got 3 reps on my last set of Squats. A few minutes of positive thinking and I got my 3x4 on the Press. Hope I am Recharged for Thursdays PR's

You know, Marv, this is the very reason I don't like front squats for so called recovery or light days. Think about why in the world should you ever fail to meet reps on a squat that is supposed to be light and "refreshing" :D. Or, in other words help you recover. I actually disagree with Rip and many others about the only concideration being pure weight on the bar. Anything that has you failing can't be helping you recover and could be introducing more fatigue. It's obviously intense by any definition of the word and even when people don't fail they still end up using a weight that has a lot of "intensiveness" because of the exercise itself.

It doesn't matter how you were feeling there is no reason to ever have trouble with those squats on Wednesday. You should either lighten up the front squats are just use 80% of whatever you use on Monday's reg squats, which is a much more fool-proof method.

Thanks Eric,

Great advice, the Front Squat is much more intense. I originally included Overhead and Front Squats to learn the technique of both exercises. Like you said its a Light Squat day, I will change to 80% reg Squats from now.

Oh, yeah, I had forgotten that was you. Sorry, Marv, we have so many TM journals going they are blending together in my mind. LOL, I need to be careful about that.

Yeah, the 80% takes the guessing out of it.

Thanks Eric,

That was a great answer to my Question over on HitHoppers journal.
I understand this program much better now. Great advice!

Marv.

Im a happy Man!

Thursday 27th September:

Squat 140kg 1x5
Bench 115kg 1x3
Deadlift 165kg 1x5

I trained after a long day at work and was still able to get my PR's easy. I was pretty psyched up to get my 140 squat, that helped alot today. Thanks for the advice Eric Im STOKED.

Awesome lifts bro!!

Nice work 140kg squat is hyoooge!! :)

Thanks Mate!

This program has been great. 160 squat is the new goal.

No, thank you for the kind words.

Sunday 30th September:

Squat 122.5kg 3x5
Bench 102.5kg 2x5,1x3
Rows 92.5kg 3x5
Grip work

Todays session went ok, except for my last set of bench. I am only resting 2 minutes between sets, so I may increase to 3 minutes on bench. I will leave my bench weight the same next week and get my 3x5.

Any reason why? I usually give it 3 mins + especially on later sets.

Hi Hopper,

I like to keep the workout moving allowing only as much rest as needed. Until recently I was only resting 1 and a half mins. Although I will now need to increase to 3 or more if I want to keep increasing strength. I guess part of the reason was trying to keep a certain level of fitness. Training Time is also a factor, some earlier sessions were already taking 1 and a half hours, with 90 seconds between sets.

Marv

Ok cool, I think the extra rest is a good idea, all of the 5x5 influenced articles Ive read seem to think its necessary. From my own experience it works great and I keep the shorter rest periods for higher rep work.

PS do you follow the footy??

What a devistating weekend it was for us Power faithful!! :wtf:

Hey Hopper,

Nah dont really follow the footy. I didnt even watch the grandfinal.
Heard about the thrashing though.............

Tuesday 30th September:

Squat 98kg 3x5
Press 55kg 2x5,1x4

Squats went ok, my technique feels better with Heavy Weight though. I'll work on it. Hold my breath, Budda Belly, sit back and drive up with the hips. I'm planning to by a belt for my PR Squats, any advice, does it make the exercise less effective or is it an advantage allowing more weight to be lifted? Press went better than expected I was only shooting for 3x4.

Marv.

I think this is a sticky over at IAs site

http://www.ironaddicts.com/forums/sh...ight=wear+belt

Dude is very convincing!!

Also I recently asked the same question myself and 311 recommended this

http://www.inzernet.com/index.asp

Gotta save the $ myself first but I hear nothing but good feedback about them.

BTW Eric will chew us both out for this belt thing!:biglaugh:

Hmmm,

I just read some old post's I might just work on holding my breath and pushing my abb's out for now. Thanks anyway Hopps.

Good man. You can drop a lot of names that recommend belts and you can also drop a lot of names who don't. Siff was an engineer btw, not a kinesology or biomecanics professer. If you get injured because you didn't wear a belt it is not necessarily because you didn't wear a belt. It could just be because you fucked up. There is a time for belts...but for EVERYONE whenever they do triples or 5's? I don't believe that. I only wear belts sometimes doing rack pulls or anything of that nature where the weight is way above my normal ability on squats or deads. Otherwise I don't feel I need it.

I'm honestly not bothering to talk about belts anymore :). People just need to know that they better spend plenty of time not wearing it too and not all of that work without the belt should be shit light. And as for as CORE work....situps and all the other shit people call core work is really just ab strenghtheing work. It does not necessarily train stabilbility. You WILL become dependent on a belt if you wear it too much. Then if you overestimate yourself one day on something without the belt you will be MORE prone to injury.

One practice I HATE is the practice of recommending belts out of pure paranoia over getting sued if someone gets and injury. Ok, so this is provided for entertainment purposes only and I assume NO responsibility for any screwed up thing whoever may be reading this does in the gym. Train at your own risk.

OK, so I'm covered :D. But seriously, could a personal trainer also get sued if they failed to tell someone to take in a good breath into the belly, tighten there abs and hold their breath? This has been shown to increase IAP better than a belt in routine lifting tasks and indeed the most benefit with belts has been shown with intensitiels over 90%. Course then you could injure your back due to your detrained extensors when you move that heavy ass This End Up solid wood sofa in your living room. Then you could sue the guy for TELLING you to use a belt. It's just silly.

If you feel vulnerable and that you need a belt you probably do. But if you need a belt to do PR days on an intemediate program then you probably haven't been training well in the first place or you have a really bad back or something.

I will tell all you guys this who like to wear belts on every thing they do. When you end up injuring your back or something the one time you lift heavy without the belt, don't come asking me to help rehabilitate it :biglaugh:

Thanks Eric,

I will leave the belt idea for heavy rack pulls or heavy 1's in the future.

Marv.

LOL, please reread that post wihout the quadrillion typos and the bad wording. That was the very worst thing I ever wrote :D. I hope it made sense.

Thursday 4th October;

Squat 142.5kg 1x5
Bench 117.5kg 1x3
Deadlift 165kg 1x5
Chins 1x10,1x9,1x6
Hanging Leg Raise 3x10
Calve Raise 360lbs 3x5

I need to work on Holding my breath and pushing out the abbs on Squats, it doesnt feel natural. Usually I just relax the stomach and breath out as I drive up, is this a bad habit Eric?? I know it feels more stable to take a breath, tense the abbs and push them out.

Marv.

Relaxing the stomach is definitely a bad habit. It's funny that it would feel more natural to you. Tightening up the abs under heavy load is a sort of natural response.

In any case, in order to be the most stable and protect the spine you need to tighten up. The best approach, imo, is the valsalva maneuver. So you take in a good breath of air low down into the diaphragm, not the chest. And then you tighten the abs. With squats you should do that at the top. On deads some people do it at the bottom getting ready for the lift and others at the top if they have difficulty getting a breath of air in the bottom position.


On the breathing I think there are two different sides to it. On one hand I believe that no one should have to concentrate on artificial modes of breathing, that they naturally know what they need to do and shouldn't be preoccupied with anything but proper lifting. On the other hand it's pretty clear that what you've described increases IAP greatly and provides the most stable midsection. Unless you are a Chek disciple, and although, he provides a lot of good info on this, and has probably helped hundreds, I think he goes a little bit berserk in his enthusiasm for the wonders of the TVA.

It's good to start with a full breath in and tight as possible midsection. But holding the breath all the way can be a little problematic especially with more volume. As you go up it is probably fine to let some air escape, but without loosening up. But holding the breath is probably safer than having a belt tightly cinched since that holds the blood up high and restricts breathing, severely screwing with blood pressure. And with belts they have to be tightly cinched in order to actually do anything.

What I do with the really heavy stuff is grunt on the way up. I am mostly holding my breath but just letting a little go as I rise. Grunting or making a sound like that is the best way of controlling air flow.

Eric, thanks mate. Well explained, I think I have been over thinking this whole thing. Just a tight mid section, maybe let out a little air on the way up, sounds good.

Marv.

Just back from the BATTLEFIELD!!!

Sunday 7th October:

Volume Day:
Squat 125kg 3x5
Bench 105kg 3x5
Rows 95kg 3x5
Gripwork 3x5

Everything is coming together, Squats felt good, tight torso, Im starting to find my Groove on the Bench, Rows are coming along.
Progress as usual, a good day. I get to Bench 120kg on Thursday.

Marv.