This is one of those things that puts me at odds with gym culture at large:
You should damn near always have the ability to max out and still get near your 1rm.
You should at all times be good for 90%+ of your 1rm.
This should be an ability you have to hit cold, no warmups, even straight off the street, even while needing to take a shit. (I’m not kidding on that, performance should be available at ALL times.)
You should be able to hit a full body volume workout and still hit near your maxes.
Ditto to during a two a day, which often finds me stronger in the later session.
After a shift of labor? Yep, then too.
Whatever circumstance you should be able to tie or come near tieing your maxes.
It’s the principle of being able to perform at all times.
Common knowledge is “lift on a routine schedule, try to go at the same time of day”. I disagree. Get up in the middle of the night and PT. When your buddy calls you up going “deadlift day?” Tell him to swing by, you’re down, even though you’d been up for over 24 hours.
You know in human history someone was able to perform well under far less ideal circumstances, our age is far too pampered getting it’s exercise in air conditioned building and whining about lacks of sleep,food, “overtraining”, and “injuries”.
Plant your feet against human softness, an easy place to start is by regaining your ability to perform physically at any and all times.
Get it,
-J