Sets of faahve

Blacktie. · 13-09-2017 10:01am

Nicolas Cage wrote:

If I actually decide to go down the RTS route

What's RTS?

Alf Veedersane · 13-09-2017 10:10am

Blacktie. wrote: »

What's RTS?

Presume it's Reactive Training Systems, i.e. Mike Tuscherer et al.

Mr. CooL ICE · 13-09-2017 11:00am

What Alf said.

It's not a program per se, but a way of designing a personalised RPE based program. It's a big learning process and I'm not sure if someone of my level should go near it. But I am interested in programming so I'll have a read and see what the craic is.

Mike has a sample program outlined here. It gives a rough idea of the types of lift variations, frequency and loads.

My biggest challenge though will be using RPE. I'm too used to going by designated reps/sets and weight by % or linear progression. This is what worries me:

The single biggest problem with the RTS system is that it introduces the element of potential user error. If you’re supposed to load up a certain weight and do a certain amount of reps, there is little room to fudge things up without going completely off script. With RTS, a lifter must be simultaneously brutally honest and hungry for improvement.

If you’re not brutally honest, you’ll always rationalize how you could have done one more rep if there was a gun to your head. That isn’t the point here. You need to be as objective as possible in rating your RPEs. Likewise, if you’re not aggressive, if you don’t expect to improve, if you don’t want to work hard, RTS will offer a convenient way out of every single workout: just inflate your RPEs.

Of course, being able to accurately rate RPE is also a skill set that is developed with practice. At first, users will make errors, not because of psychological defects, but because they simply aren’t used to thinking about RPE in such precise terms. With any new system, there is an adjustment period.

To successfully wield the RTS system requires both physical and mental strength. You have to stay objective or the system won’t work properly.

At the moment, I'm doing nothing really too specific. I'm just doing a lower/ upper split at the moment and trying to focus on finding issues with my form.

Alf Veedersane · 13-09-2017 11:07am

There is a bit of a learning curve with RPE.

If you continuously sail too close to the wind by going to 9/9.5 when you're supposed to do an 8, then you're fatiguing yourself beyond where you should be and it also means the weight you've lifted that should have been at an 8 is misleading.

The flipside is people taking it too easy on themselves.

There's a bit of a learning curve of finding that point where you know what an @8 feels like across the lifts.

What I did like about it was that it allowed me to get the most out of a session. Days I felt great and I'd be able to go heavier than the number I'd had in in my mind that I could hit for a triple @8.

coffee_cake · 13-09-2017 11:18am

Yeah hanley switched over to it a while back. I still have to keep checking the chart like what is rpe 8 again is that could have done 3 more reps etc

COH · 13-09-2017 11:22am

Alf Veedersane wrote: »

If you continuously sail too close to the wind by going to 9/9.5 when you're supposed to do an 8,

Also known as the Alf Method

Alf Veedersane · 13-09-2017 12:13pm

COH wrote: »

Also known as the Alf Method

That's how I know to give this sage advice!

Alf Veedersane · 13-09-2017 12:14pm

bluewolf wrote: »

what is rpe 8 again is that could have done 3 more reps etc

You might want to look a bit closer at the chart

coffee_cake · 13-09-2017 1:17pm

That was a question not a statement

It's 2 reps now i see

Mr. CooL ICE · 14-09-2017 9:17am

September 14

Bench (paused):
20kg x 5
40kg x 3
60kg x 5
70kg x 3
80kg x 1
85kg x 2
85kg x 2
85kg x 2

Bench (tng):
70kg x 8
70kg x 8
70kg x 8

Chinup:
x3
5kg x 5
5kg x 5
5kg x 5

Front plate raise/lateral raise:
10kg/5kgs x 10
10kg/5kgs x 10
10kg/5kgs x 10

Tricep dip/pullup:
x3/x5
xF

Arms wanted to fall off my torso. Couldn't get a single dip in a second set, so abandoned this planned superset

Heavy partial pulldown:
65kg plate x 5
89kg plate x 5
89kg plate x 5
89kg plate x 5

Wasn't planned today, but was another exercise I had read about and decided to give it a try. Not sure if I was cheating it tbh. Nice to try, but doubt it's for me.

Wasn't supposed to be training until tomorrow but due to scheduling stuff, it had to be today. Arms were still tired from Monday and the extra day would have been really, really useful. Oh well.

Mr. CooL ICE · 18-09-2017 8:41am

September 18

Pause squat:
20kg x 5
40kg x 5
60kg x 5
80kg x 4
100kg x 4
110kg x 4
110kg x 4
110kg x 4

Tempo squat 303:
80kg x 6
80kg x 6
80kg x 6

Sumo deadlift:
50kg x 3
70kg x 3
90kg x 3
100kg x 3
110kg x 3
120kg x 3
130kg x 3
130kg x 3
130kg x 3

<snip>

Am squatting with a wider stance at the moment and concentrating 100% on fixing my form. Recent pause and tempo squats have highlighted some form breakdowns at heavier weights so only did these variations today because slowing things down allow me to see where I feck everything up. No belt either.

More sumo deadlifts because glute activation. Video above is first set of 130kg. Moved alright but still need to get tighter at the bottom for the initial pull. Have been doing mobility every day to open up my hips as external rotation there has seemed awful in recent times, but seems to have improved a huge amount in the last week.

Mr. CooL ICE · 19-09-2017 8:38am

September 19

Bench (tng):
20kg x 5
40kg x 5
60kg x 5
70kg x 5
75kg x 5
75kg x 5
75kg x 5

OHP:
20kg x 8
30kg x 8
40kg x 8
40kg x 8
40kg x 8

Chinup:
x3
5kg x 6
5kg x 6
5kg x 6

Front plate raise/lateral dumbbell raise:
10kg/5kgs x 10
10kg/5kgs x 10
10kg/5kgs x 10

Bench felt really heavy so probably wrecked myself last Thursday. OHP was light but felt tough at that rep range. Too used to sets of 5. Slowly going to add reps to my chinups before trying to go up to 10kg. Lotsa medial/posterior delt burn after the superset.

Mr. CooL ICE · 21-09-2017 9:39am

September 21

Squat:
20kg x 5
40kg x 5
60kg x 5
80kg x 5
100kg x 5
* belt *
120kg x 5
130kg x 4

Plan was to go up a set of 4 @ RPE 9. Happy with how 130kg felt considering my recent change in stance width.

Pin squat:
60kg x 1
80kg x 5
90kg x 5

First time trying these. Set pin at a height where my hips were probably a little above parallel, so can adjust accordingly in future. Kept the weight light because I'm just afraid of damaging the rack. But I felt this in my hams and glutes a lot more than a usual squat. Interesting.

Sumo deadlift:
70kg x 1
90kg x 3
110kg x 1
* belt *
120kg x 1
130kg x 1
140kg x 1
150kg x 1

Plan was to go up as far as technical breakdown. The 140kg felt and looked perfect but hips rose before the bar @ 150kg. Now I know.

Snatch grip RDL:
70kg x 7
70kg x 6
70kg x 6

I don't have the mobility to do snatch grip SLDLs so doing the RDL variant for now. Felt easy. Grip started to go, so may use straps for these. I bought straps about 2 years ago and never used them. Now where the fcuk did I leave them???

Today was just to go a little heavier and see where my strength is at. I'm not doing a whole lot of volume at the moment so I knew it would be nowhere near pre-meet levels. Also practised some lift variants for when I start RTS.

Mr. CooL ICE · 22-09-2017 8:35am

September 22

Floor press:
20kg x 5
40kg x 5
50kg x 5
60kg x 5
70kg x 5
75kg x 5

First time doing these. They felt weird but started to 'make sense' more as the weight got heavier. I had my knees up but a trainer told me it makes more sense to have my legs flat to mitigate leg drive. Still ended up digging my heels into the ground.

JM Press:
20kg x 5
30kg x 5
25kg x 7

First time doing these. Watched videos so knew what to do. Didn't seem complicated. What I didn't research was what weight to expect to lift. 20kg felt tough so I thought I was just getting used to the movement. Went up to 30kg and almost crushed my face. Back down to 25kg then! Dunno if that was normal or if my triceps are just weak.

Chinup:
x 3
5kg x 6
5kg x 6
5kg x 6

Front plate raise/dumbbell lateral raise:
10kg/5kg x 10
10kg/5kg x 10
10kg/5kg x 10
10kg/5kg x 10

Facepull:
29kg plate x 12
29kg plate x 12
29kg plate x 12

Triceps are in bits. Maybe because I did two tricep dominant bench variations in a row? Was mainly trying out new stuff. Either way, grand day.

Alf Veedersane · 22-09-2017 8:46am

Is the JM like a cross between skullcrusher and close grip bench....like you started to do a legit close grip and then realised you were meant to be doing skullcrushers?

coffee_cake · 22-09-2017 8:47am

Jm press! I'm spreading the word

Yeah alf tis

Alf Veedersane · 22-09-2017 8:50am

Also, floor press definitely takes a set or two to get used to. You're trying to move it the same as if you were on a bench but you're not sure if you are. Definitely feel the introduction of it (in DB form) helped my bench though.

Mr. CooL ICE · 25-09-2017 9:00am

September 25

Squat:
20kg x 5
40kg x 5
60kg x 5
80kg x 5
* belt *
100kg x 3
110kg x 7 (7.5)
110kg x 7 (8)
110kg x 7 (8)

Bench (paused):
20kg x 5
40kg x 5
60kg x 5
70kg x 7 (8.5)
70kg x 7 (8.5)
70kg x 7 (9)

Pendlay row:
40kg x 5
50kg x 5
60kg x 5
70kg x 5

Squat form with wide stance starting to feel better. Depth finally coming. Did some pendlays because they appear in the latter weeks of the RTS program.

Grand day. Nothing too taxing

edit -> added RPE. Need to start noting these properly

Mr. CooL ICE · 26-09-2017 9:33am

September 26

Sumo deadlift:
70kg x 3
90kg x 3
110kg x 5
* belt *
120kg x 3
130kg x 5 (7.5)
140kg x 5 (9)
130kg x 5 (9)

Sumo felt better than it looked. Video suggests hips need to be lower and lats need to be tighter. Maybe looks like I need to widen my hips more but I widened them as much as I could. That's a mobility issue and still a work in progress.

Pin press (mid level):
20kg x 3
40kg x 5
60kg x 5
70kg x 5 (7)
75kg x 5 (8)

Tempo squat 303:
20kg x 5
60kg x 5
80kg x 5
90kg x 5 (8.5)

Mr. CooL ICE · 28-09-2017 9:19am

September 28

Squat:
20kg x 5
40kg x 5
60kg x 5
80kg x 5
* sleeves *
100kg x 5
* belt *
120kg x 5
130kg x 3 (8.5)
135kg x 3 (9)
127.5kg x 3 (8.5)
127.5kg x 3 (9)

Plan was up to 3 reps @ RPE9 followed by 4-6% load drop. Was optimistic about 140kg for top set but nope. Must be honest with myself.

Bench (tng):
20kg x 5
40kg x 5
60kg x 5
70kg x 5
75kg x 5
80kg x 5 (9)
75kg x 5 (8)
75kg x 5 (8)

Plan was 5 reps @ RPE 9 with 4-6% load drop. Had another few sets in me but I'm kinda just trialing how long these sessions take so cut this short.

Incline close grip bench:
20kg x 5
40kg x 5
50kg x 5
55kg x 7
55kg x 7

This was horrible. Had never done incline barbell work before. I looked like a fool faffing about, trying to figure out rack height, bench placement etc and even when I had plates on the bar, I kept hitting them off the pegs for some reason. Movement felt completely alien to me. Also, the ROM of this lift really, really sucks.

Interesting day.

coffee_cake · 28-09-2017 9:33am

I always feel like that doing incline bench too

Alf Veedersane · 28-09-2017 11:29am

Know those incline feels as well.

Bad enough that they take an age to set up the first time you do them but then the weight humbles you even more, especially the first time.

Good times...

Mr. CooL ICE · 29-09-2017 8:59am

September 29

Sumo block pull:
40kg x 1 (from ground)
70kg x 3 (from ground)
90kg x 3 (from ground)
90kg x 3
110kg x 3
120kg x 3
130kg x 3
140kg x 3 (8)
145kg x 3 (8.5)
137.5kg x 3 (8)
137.5kg x 3 (8.5)

Since I'm not 100% confident with sumo, I took it easy on a sumo variation. Reckon I could have gotten 150x3.

JM press:
20kg x 10
25kg x 6
30kg x 6
35kg x 6 (7, but did them wrong)
35kg x 6 (8)
35kg x 6 (8)
35kg x 6 (8.5)

I was convinced I was doing them wrong because they felt much lighter compared to last time. Should have gone to 40 but was getting plenty of tricep burn.

One-arm dumbbell row:
20kg x 6
25kg x 6
30kg x 6 (9)
27.5kg x 6 (8)
27.5kg x 6 (8)
27.5kg x 6 (8)
27.5kg x 6 (9 - on my left anyway)

Supposed to be one-arm lever rows, but no landmine in my gym. Don't really need a landmine but the gym owners are sound and I don't want to do too much crazy stuff with their equipment. Hadn't done dumbbell rows in a while. But using RPE for dumbbell movements felt a bit silly.

Grand day.

Alf Veedersane · 29-09-2017 10:01am

Nicolas Cage wrote: »

Supposed to be one-arm lever rows, but no landmine in my gym. Don't really need a landmine but the gym owners are sound and I don't want to do too much crazy stuff with their equipment.

If there's an area with a bit of space, get a heavyish dumbbell and put it on the ground against the wall (parallel) and put the end of a barbell against the wall under it. Kinda like this.

I've never seen it be as tight as it looks in that pick but the heavier dumbbells would have the handles higher off the ground.

Won't be fixed to an exact point but won't move too much and I've seen plenty of people MacGyver it that way.

Mr. CooL ICE · 02-10-2017 8:44am

October 2. W1D1

Squat:
20kg x 5
40kg x 5
60kg x 5
80kg x 5
* belt *
100kg x 5
120kg x 4 (7.5-8)
130kg x 4 (9)

Up at x4 @ RPE 9, no drop sets

Bench (paused):
20kg x 5
40kg x 5
60kg x 5
70kg x 4
75kg x 4 (8)
80kg x 4 (9)

Up at x4 @ RPE 9, no drop sets

Bench (3ct paused):
65kg x 5 (8.5)
70kg x 5 (9)

Band pullaparts:
Red x 20
Red x 20 underhand

Not part of the program. Had time to kill so did these and some mobility

Up at x5 @ RPE 9, no drop sets. First set was awful and was surprised at the 8.5. I thought maybe I didn't give myself enough of a break. Then I realised the sets just took forever between the count and the extra breaths I needed to take between reps, so the bar was in my hands forever which made my arms cry

Today was day 1. I got up extra early so I could have enough time to do everything properly and go to RPE 9 for everything that demanded it. Then I realised week 1 had no drop sets. Could have stayed in bed 30 mins longer :mad:

Mr. CooL ICE · 03-10-2017 8:38am

October 3. W1D2

Sumo deadlift:
40kg x 1
70kg x 3
90kg x 3
110kg x 3
120kg x 1
* belt *
130kg x 4 (7.5-8)
140kg x 4 (9.5)

Up to x4 @ RPE 9. 130kg was easy but suddenly a wild RPE 9.5 appears.

Floor press:
20kg x 8
40kg x 5
60kg x 5
70kg x 4 (8.5)
75kg x 4 (9)

Up to x4 @ RPE 9. 70kg shouldn't have felt like an 8.5 but I reckon I didn't take much of a break before it.

Front squat:
20kg x 5
40kg x 6
60kg x 6
80kg x 6 (8)
85kg x 6 (9)

Up to x6 @ RPE 9. Was in cons and they felt better than in squat shoes

Grand day

Mr. CooL ICE · 05-10-2017 9:26am

October 5. W1D3

Pin squat:
20kg x 5 (paused, no pin)
40kg x 5 (paused, no pin)
60kg x 5 (paused, no pin)
80kg x 5 (paused, no pin)
80kg x 5
90kg x 5 (7.5)
100kg x 5 (8)
105kg x 5 (9)

Up to x5 @9. The 90s and 100s felt dodgy. Bodyweight shifted towards my toes on early reps but corrected by forcing my knees out. Couldn't correct for the 105s so I considered that to be near failure.

Bench (tng):
20kg x 6
40kg x 6
60kg x 6
70kg x 6
80kg x 6 (9)
82.5kg (10)

Up to x6 @10. Was a tough one to figure out. The 82.5 was probably more of a 9.5 and I reckon I could have done 85. But the last rep was pretty 'jellyish' so I figured I'd fatigued myself to the point of a 10, so stopped.

Push press:
20kg x 5 (strict)
20kg x 3
30kg x 6
40kg x 6
50kg x 6 (8)
52.5kg x 6 (9)

Up to x6 @9.

Grand day

Mr. CooL ICE · 06-10-2017 9:17am

October 6. W1D4

Deficit sumo deadlifts:
40kg x 1 (no deficit)
70kg x 1 (no deficit)
70kg x 1 (no deficit)
70kg x 1 (no deficit)
80kg x 1
80kg x 1
90kg x 3
100kg x 5
110kg x 5 (7.5)
120kg x 5 (8.5)

Up to x5 @ 9. First time doing deficits in sumo stance and it took a lot of getting used to . I still find it hard to loosen up to get into a good sumo position, so in a deficit it was just plain awful. Once I got the hang of it, it wasn't too bad. Left it at the 8.5 because I'd spent enough time faffing about with my warmups.

Close grip bench press:
20kg x 6
40kg x 6
60kg x 6
70kg x 6 (8)
75kg x 6 (9)

Up to x6 @ 9. Jaysus, was still worn out from yesterday.

Snatch grip RDL:
40kg x 6
60kg x 6
70kg x 6
80kg x 6 (8)
80kg x 6 (8.5)

Up to x6 @ 9. I neeeed straps for these. Failure was due to grip rather than weight.

Grand day.

Mr. CooL ICE · 09-10-2017 9:45am

October 9. W2D1

Squat:
20kg x 5
40kg x 5
60kg x 5
80kg x 5
100kg x 5
* belt *
120kg x 5
130kg x 5 (8.5)
135kg x 5 (9.5)
127.5kg x 5 (9)

Up to x5 @9 with 4-6% load drop. Wasn't sure if the 130 was an 8.5 or a 9 so went to 135 and that was a struggle. Only a single drop set which was bad.

Bench (paused):
20kg x 5
40kg x 5
60kg x 5
70kg x 5 (7.5)
80kg x 5 (9)
75kg x 5
75kg x 5
75kg x 5
75kg x 5 (8)
75kg x 5 (8)
75kg x 5 (8.5)
75kg x 5 (9)

Up to x5 @9 with 4-6% load drop. May have gone to 82.5/85 but decided to play it safe due to how bad squats felt. Ended up doing loadsa drop sets. Just took ages to get fatigued.

Bench (2ct pause):

65kg x 4
70kg x 4 (8.5)
72.5kg x 4 (9)
67.5kg x 4 (8)
67.5kg x 4 (8)
67.5kg x 4 (9)

Up to x4 @9 with 4-6% load drop. Was light but arms were starting to fall off my torso. Especially with longer pause.

Today's weirdness was brought to you by my inability to know RPE. And maybe the buckets of wine on Friday and buckets of Guinness on Saturday didn't help.

Never did so much bench volume before.

Alf Veedersane · 09-10-2017 2:52pm

I always find bench the hardest to gauge RPE on.

Sets of faahve

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