Persistence and Tenacity

I had listened to an interview with Bill Kazmaier. In it he said that he built his traps by heavy high rep snatch grip shrugs which I’ll refer to as Kaz Shrugs hence the title.

Seeing that Kaz is one of those lifters I want to be like I decided to follow his advice.

I warmed up with sets of 5.

1 px5 (p=# of plates a side)
2px5
Add straps for 3px5
4px5, this set felt  a little heavy.

I think to myself “I’ll add another plate anyway, and just go hog wild”, the result?…

5p x 20-25 reps.

So Kaz’s traps (look back up at the picture) did ~650lb x 50+ reps, while mine did 495 x 20-25.

I have a ways to go. Cool.

To end I did 1×100 on the neck harness with a 35lb fat bell.

The shrugs gave a great post workout soreness. Honestly after all the cleans the different stimuli was fun.

I’m going to keep doing these, and see what happens. High reps can progress fast when you’re already strong and training them hard. Honestly if I was to go on a bodybuilding binge I’d likely do sets of 15,20,30,50,75 and 100. High reps can build up quick, both in your ability in them and your physical size.

The DOMS the next day was great as well. And that next day (today) was the first day of not being required to squat every day. Today’s session was freestyle. I’ll probably be doing another post on freestyle lifting soon.

Keep on going,

-J

Update: 11/21 495×30

Yesterday’s Session

Yesterday I cleaned 275 for the second time in my life, this time however I jerked it for 3 reps.

The first time I’d done it (back in April):

Now I wanted to tie my max cold, purely because  a buddy asked me what my max was. Circumstances really weren’t ideal, but after using the bathroom, kicking off my shoes, and headphoning up I went for it anyway.

Take 1: Deadlift, no speed.
Take 2: Deadlift , a little more speed.
Take 3: High pull, nipple level, couldn’t get under it though.
Take 4: caught low, couldn’t stand.

Take 5: Looked like the video below, but with success. I didn’t film it, and wished I had. It was step,step,step, fall onto toes/into calf raise/triple extension, push hips forward (horizontally) hard, and “Hey look,I stood with it”. I then jerked it for 3 leaving at least 2 reps in the tank. (The difference between takes 4 and 5 may have been solely due to righteous anger at missing and switching to The Game’s One Blood Remix.)

Next I doubled 300 easily on a front squat, with reps left in the tank (I definitely know what angle to use the Bill March isometrics at, mid point), and then tried to stiff leg power clean 225. I came very close, but missed due to a weird downward flexing of my wrist. This caused me to think that I may have injured it. I quickly flexed it/used isometrics in all 4 directions against the rack upright, knew it would be fine tomorrow (it is), and got the stiff leg power clean on the 2nd attempt.

The last thing was 4 easy sets of unweighted 45° back extension (which oddly left a feeling of euphoria) superset with 3 easy sets of dumbbell rows.

It was a good, strong, fast session.

The Lessons

Whether I’m warming up or doing reps cold I should not be going over 90% of estimated 1rm.

It’s far better to add reps and consistency at various weights and then to add weight.

Had i taken 2 weeks to jump from 255 to 275 it would’ve been a lot cleaner a rep than it was taking only 2 days, and probably for 2 or 3, not a single.

In 2 weeks I’ll be able to hit 275 consistently, and not have to miss 4 times in a row to only then hit it in the ugliest manner possible.

The Dezso Ban split is adding reps and consistency, then adding weight slowly. That’s how one gets stronger. (There’s a lesson to myself here.)

Going like that allows just as much progress as a mad dash, but without the dangers and failures.

My 1 rep today will easily be for sets and reps in only a few months time (or less), I may not know what my max is while doing this, but it will obviously be higher.

Never strain, never miss reps, and just get stronger. (I’m constantly relearning this, it’s time to actually apply it.)

-J

When Have You Made It In Lifting/Strength?

My uncle asked me an interesting question the other morning, “When will you feel you’ve made it in lifting”.

I’ve been lightly pondering this since.

When will I feel I’ve made it?

My Thoughts

Deadlift

The first thing that popped into mind the second I gave it any thought was an elite deadlift. Most pro strongman seem to hit 800+ here, and this would be past 3x bodyweight at my current weight of 245, and just shy of a 3x bodyweight pull at my lifetime 275lbs with abs goal(another lesser standard). So first would be a great deadlift, 800+lbs or 3x bodyweight, whichever is higher. Note that I want this fully raw, no straps, and no belt.

Old Time  Pre-1972 Weightlifting Total

I think that pre-1972 weightlifting was better than post-1972 weightlifting, and also superior to powerlifting as a barbell performance metric. So add in the old time 3 lift (jerk,snatch,press) total looking for the impressive but doable 1000lb total. I fully intend to hit this in my lifetime with my terrible clean and snatch form.

Benching

Because I don’t give a shit about powerlifting, and despite the fact that I once wanted to get the 242 drug free squat world record, I’m not including the squat, but am including a bench metric. Two actually.

First for high end strength I want to be able to comfortably hit 405×5+ reps.

Secondly for more bodybuilder like properties I want to hit 315×20+ reps.

I’d say based on my endurance skew both of these would allow me around a 455 bench, and while I’d like a 500lb bench the above two rep metrics matter far more to me.

Note that I want to hit be able to hit the 405×5+ and 315×20+ with easy to moderate effort. I want them both to be something I can do at any given time, and comfortably without spotters.

Grip

495 overhand deadlift on an axle. Simple, not easy though.

Long way to go, bring it on.

Aesthetics

1. 275lbs with abs. It’s a weight and leanness level I fully feel I will eventually hit naturally.
2. 20 inch muscular neck- I think this is ridiculous, I was originally going to write 19 inch, but due to my neck not looking big at roughly 17-17.5, the fact it’s likely been 18 inches in the past, and the fact the one aesthetic I’ve ever cared about is neck size there it is. 20 inch muscular neck.

Bodyweight Performance

I’m only going to list one thing here:

To be able to do a one arm chin up.

I feel being able to do this, especially as a big guy will mean you’re completely covered on bodyweight ability.

I can comfortably do one arm pushups, and to hit the above pressing and bench metrics will have to be far stronger.

A one arm chin will give both rep pullup abilities and likely a strict muscle up as well.

It covers all the bodyweight bases.

Be Athletic

And hard to quantify, but to be athletic while doing all of the above. To be able to jump, run, sprint, walk, and play games comfortably. Basically to not be a gym rat, but an athlete. I’m looking to be able to do all of the above while being somewhere between a strongman, a linebacker, and while retaining some endurance.

The I’ve Made It Standards (Subject To Change)

• 800+lb deadlift raw/ 3x bodyweight, whichever is higher, no belt, no straps, actually raw.
• The Old Time Weightlifting 1000 lb 3 Lift Total (I’d like 405+ c+j,315+ snatch, 315+ press, so actually a 1035+ total)
• 405×5+and 315×20+ bench comfortably, ie safe with no spotter, low to medium effort
• 495 overhand axle/fat bar deadlift
• 275lbs with abs
• 20 inch muscular neck (seemingly ridiculous, but what I want)
• 1 arm chin
• Stay Athletic

And there it is, how I’d know I’ve made it in strength.

-J

Heat and isometrics can throw you into ketosis.

It’s the only reason I can think of that I smell like ammonia.

2015 out west I smelt it in my sweat a lot, and the cause of it was heat and isometrics.

Isometrics being the bigger part of the equation, but the heat speeds it up.

It was muggy, and early that morning as part of my workout I did some isometrics for the upper body.

Mostly pulling at a few angles, but a killer move where I pushed with one hand and pulled simultaneously with the other using a rack upright.

The 2 or 4 sets of that I think are what pushed me into the ketosis territory.

Internet forums view Steve Justa as a lunatic, but his thoughts on isometrics ring true in my eyes.

They can strengthen you, and burn your fat quite quickly. You may feel odd doing them in front of others, but who cares, they work. Plus you could do them anywhere.

The move I liked just needs an upright, this could be a squat rack, thin tree, part of a swing set, just about anything.

That’s the beauty of this, the amount of versatility.

Unlike most who are pro-isometrics I’m not saying just do isometrics however. I’m for you using everything. Do some calisthenics, lift some weights, do a bit of lifting specific and nonlifting specific isometrics, flex, do cardio, jump.

Mix it all, get decent at it all, and physically you’ll be a beast. Every method is another tool, and besides it’s damn cool to sweat ammonia.

-J

The squat every day end point is the 22nd.

I was toying with 531 for weightlifting, squatting every other day, pulling every other and doing upper by feel (military press probably daily).

This is almost the Deszo Ban program/split. (Also read this.)

The Deszo Ban program just makes more sense to me than running the modified 531. I don’t have to check a calculator ever, and with the current small amount of mental burnout plus actually going with general gym advice I’m going to start stupid light think ~60% 1rm for first 7×3 work sets, it’ll only take 10-12 weeks to be hitting big PRs.

I also want to get my press up. My favorite gym metric right now is the old school pre-1972 3 lift Olympic total.

Doing a shit ton of low rep sets makes sense to me.

Lots of front and back squats. Lots of power cleans, power snatches, deadlifts, various rows, and chins.

Lots of jerks, presses, benches, and some shoulder, tricep, and chest assistance work.

I fully intend to do roughly the 50 sets of squat or pull, and 30 sets of pressing daily sticking mostly to sets of 3-5 and only resting a minute between sets.

Sans the main lifts I will go higher reps in the assistance work, but still to the keeping it easy mantra.

Sets of 10 with what I could hit for easily 20. Lots of sets.

Tumble, jump rope, or row to end.

If I thought I was recomping now this is going to be scary.

I’m simply going to let my body weigh as it pleases which means a nice recomp. I’ll get leaner and visibly more muscular.

This split will make some fast strength gains.

Fuck it, may as well log this in a 99¢ notebook as well.

This is something of a higher volume Easy Strength (it’s a Pavel/ Dan John program, look it up).

The PRs that come from this are impressive.

I used to naturally train like this, back to 19, back to training like a barbarian.

I doubt I’ll be taking the 7th day off though.

What it’ll look like:

Legs (Ever Other Day)
10-15 sets back squat
10-15 sets front squat
Up to 30 sets assistance, likely partials,isometrics, low back, jumps and kb swings, very little hamstring work.

Pull (Ever Other Day)
10 sets power snatch
10 sets power clean, some jerks
10 sets deadlift variation
Up to 30 sets various pulls and chins, some jumps,some isometrics.

Press (Daily)
10+ sets military press
10+ sets btn press
Grab bag: bench/dips/dumbbell press/jm presses/lateral raise/ cable fly/isometrics.

I’m quite amped up to do this, and I’d say that this is how I’ll be training for the rest of the year unless MMA comes up (a possibility, but who knows). Actually fuck it, I could do this and train MMA daily (check how Bill March say he was playing loads of pickup basketball and semi-pro football while at York Barbell). There’s no such thing as overtraining. I simply need to get money in order to train full time.

-J

I know that the numbers I’m at are nowhere near my lifetime PRs. I have so much room to grow.

245 power clean and jerk cold at around a quarter to 1am, followed by a 295 front squat, again cold.

My lifetime PRs are 275 and 315, they must be way up to hit 245/295 cold at that time of night…fasted.

Using my ugly form I will power clean and jerk 405.

A video that inspired me back in the day:

I remember watching that in high school, stuck at the time at a 205lb power clean and jerk which would end up taking me years to break past. Yet at 16 while watching the above I said I can do that, with the jerk. The thought never went away over the years.

I know that I’ll hit that and definitely get that 3 lift old school 1000lb total. Shit despite a terrible press I was able to negative the 245 to shoulder this morning under control.

Once I hit that ugly 405 clean and jerk, and I’ll approach some coach and go “teach me”. I know the thought in my head with a 405 terrible form clean and jerk will be “500 with proper form?”, and that would open up some possibilities.

Olympic medal? Career as coach/seminars? Defect to the Arabs and train?

Call me delusional then eat a dick.

Late blooming can suck as there are no scholarships, and lower chances at elite, but you know what? Never say die, and you can overcome.

I’m meant to be a pro athlete, I’ve always taken above average to everything, and had a fucking Rockyesque drive. I will grind for years with seemingly no gains, then boom, it all starts getting much better very quickly.

Get it.

Make enough money to train full time.

Get the place of your own and have the goddamn set up in your living room (because frequency works best), or get to the elite level and defect to Qatar. “Provide me with a pension, a home gym, plenty of dead cow, gallons of milk,and a pretty blue eyed Arab girl, I’ll medal for you” while slamming your fists down on the table and becoming a modern weightlifting Varangian.

-J

 

Is It Possible To Thicken The Wrist?

One can thicken their wrist. I look at old photos of me, and see that the years of lifting have made them thicker. At around 16 I could touch my middle finger and thumb around the circumference of my wrist, now I can no longer make the connection, there’s a gap of around a centimeter.

How To Thicken The Wrist

The primary way that one thickens their wrist is to get far stronger supporting presses (any variation) in their hands.

Back at 16 my wrists would cock back on a bench press of as little as 185. I can remember that at the end of my junior year of high school hitting 3×5 with 225 hurt my wrists a decent amount.

As I aged I got used to holding weights. The pain in and cocking back of my wrists went away. A 315 bench does not cause either, and I only cock my wrists on overheads as a part of the natural movement (the catching of the clean).

Hitting the bag bare knuckle played in as well, and would fall under the support/keeping the wrist straight category.

Hell, now I can do shit like this:

The secondary way to build the thickness is with more isolation type movements.

Sledgehammer levers, dynamic/isometric lever simulation( open palm on top of fist, which can also be used to simulate wrist curls), and an old internet sensation the Glen MacCharles 50 rep wrist curl. (Google that shit, and/or read about it on the link below.)

(When I have an impressive 50 rep wrist curl I’ll video it should I remember. Years ago I hit 115×50, I’d say it won’t be long to 135×50 factoring how much stronger I am now.)

Building Forearm Size

My opinion is that you need to get massive pumps to really build the size. I think holds and hangs are great for building strength, but its reps with movement that build the size.

Do sets of the aforementioned MacCharles 50s, and open your hand for hundreds of reps (yes this is also mentioned by MacCharles). The levering is movement also, do that too.

-J

As I practice the one arm axle snatch I can’t help but think about the accounts I’ve heard of old time strongman, vaudeville shows. It’s the natural place for one’s mind to drift while doing such lifts.

I still have not hit 135 in any manner of one handed snatch be it axle or regular bar,  although it’s quite easy on a clean.

Now narcissistic extra video link aside (I want the views) back to the one arm axle snatch. I’ve written before on timed holds for extra time under tension, and am in a phase right now of where my body wants to get bigger, stronger, and leaner so I’m purposefully hitting my core hard expecting to get strongman abs.

The above link is what I was doing yesterday. Snatch into holds, and after an easy 105 with long hold (gym staff pretends they’re not staring) I ended up failing 115 twice. I want 135 short term, and actually lost sleep visualizing 205 on the one arm axle snatch.

Think about that for a second. The wrist strength to support that over head is diesel with only one arm. The squeezing grip is quite high, and the oblique strength is stupid. Never mind the fact that outside of weightlifters who even could come close to snatching that one arm or two?

I have not been training olys at all lately as the labor and tendonitis combined made it a stupid idea, but the tendonitis is gone, and so is the labor job.

As you know I’ve been attacking partials and front squats, and it makes sense to readd olympics, both in the form of the power clean and jerk, and the one arm axle snatches. I like both, and both do good things. The jerk held aloft is hard as hell on a core unused to jerking weight, in addition to being metabolically demanding as all hell. The clean and jerk will raise your core temperature.

This all seems to have been one hell of an aside based on the title. I was thinking “Why couldn’t I get stupid good at old time odd lifts and make a career out of vaudeville performance?” I always did want to be a pro athlete. What one man can do so can another.

This was fun to write and all over the place.

Time to partial front squat and weight lift.

One last thing: I’ve heard of Glenn Pendlay at Cal Strength letting his lifters bench up to a max and stopping them at 405-455 as he didn’t want them to get hurt. Lifters that don’t train the bench. Let that sink in for a moment.

If you can clean and jerk it don’t you think you could at least bench that shit with a bounce? (Now what do you think is in my head?)

-J

I’ve finally added in partial squats this past week in the form of partial front squats. 3 times total in the last 4 or 5 days, and wouldn’t you know my front squat is set to PR, and it’s stability is far better than it was even last week. My power clean moved up overnight as well, and again it must be those front squat partials, they add horsepower overnight to your body.

My abs are getting closer and closer. Partials are easy to make progress in (be it weight,reps,or distance), and it’s not far off where the combination of my now warp speed metabolism and the thickening of the abs via partials will lead to visible strongman abs.

Partial squats are great, yet even 5 minutes of effort will show you that partial front squats are even better. Slightly more pros and far less cons.

Here’s my advise:

Go to the gym and take over a squat rack (take that bitch over, complete with flag claiming it,armed border guards,pee on it to mark it,etc). Set the pins in this rack somewhat high (go no lower than half squat), and proceed to do partial squats. Reap the rewards. Trust me your body will thank you, quite quickly in fact.

-J