during the winter i’m gonna try to focus more on strength while still training for speed, and cardio endurace, so i’ve modified the single factor 5x5 program and wanted to get some opinions from u guys (its identical to the layed SF 5x5, but with added sprints/tempos/SE):
Monday – Heavy Day
Squat – 5 sets of 5
Then some plyos (ie 3x10 depth jumps, 3x10 box jumbs)
Bench – 5 sets of 5
Powercleans – 5 sets of 5
2 sets of weighted hypers
4 sets of weighted Sit-ups
Tuesday-tempo
Wednesday – Light Day
Sprints (10x10m, 5x20m, 5x40 m)(sprints are full effort)
Squat – 4 sets of 5 (lighter than monday)
Incline Bench – 4 sets of 5 (PR attempt at final set)
deadlifts – 4 sets of 5 (PR attempt at final set)
Sit-ups – 3 sets
Thursday- speed endurance (400, 200, and 300 m runs)
Friday - Medium (no PR attempts)
Squat – 4 sets of 5, 1 triple, back-off
Bench – 4 sets of 5, 1 triple, back-off
Powercleans – 4 sets of 5, 1 triple
Weighted Dips – 3 sets of 5-8
chin ups (3x5)
Don’t fatigue the nervous system, only to expect it to fire maximally and efficiently later. (IE - All explosive movements, plyo’s/olympics go FIRST).
13 sets of 5 Squats + 1 set of 3 Squats = Too Much
Drop some of your squats for some unilateral leg training (single leg box squats, reverse lunge, walking lunge, step ups)
10 sets of Power Clean per week can be a lot, depending on the person. If your going to be sticking with this program for some time, move to a different olympic movement (hang clean, snatch) after a couple weeks, or do power cleans once per week, with the 2nd day an olympic variation (DB Clean or Snatch, Single Arm Barbell Snatch etc).
I see 3 upper body pushes, but one upper body pull. Even that out. Insert some horizontal pull forsure (that say’s insert, not replace, pull ups/chin ups are very good). You can only push what your lats can stabalize/control.
Basically, 3 squat session’s/week can be very benificial. But you have lower body training 6 days a week. Therefore you must drop some of the volume of your strength work. Also, moving your tempo & SE work to strength day’s (~6 hours later) might also help, allowing you have a minimum of 36 hours to recover, before your next strength work.
while you make some valid points, this is the old, tried and true Bill Star program. I love it and when I hit a stumbling block, go back to it.
bottom line; it works for the majority of people who embark on it.
Joe - I’m definitely not arguing with effectiveness. I’ve seen great gains with programs much poorer in their design than this (this is not even a poorly designed program). The goal is ‘optimal’ stimulation/gains isn’t it? Training your most neurally demanding exercises first just makes sense, and I’ve never come across any information to really disprove that. Volume is obviously very person-dependent. Very few people can handle this type of volume for long. I was under the impression OMYSS would be completing this for the remainder of the off season, which I’m sure he’d burn out by.
I do agree with you, if nothing seems to be working, and your in one of those ‘ruts’, moving to something like this for 4 or 5 weeks would get you back on track, and I can see how great gain’s could be made. Personally, (it sounds like he’s just starting his off season training) I would start with something more balanced (both exercise selection and volume) and look for maximal gains before I move to something like this.
three things…
I don’t know OMYSS’s work capacity, but I’d hope it’d be able to handle the rather miniscule volumes associated here, especially considering the demands of sprinting. I don’t consider this high volume at all.
second, I’m not sure why I stopped using the bill starr - it just works. 4 weeks, 4 months , 4 years, as long as you progressively strive and rotate on a regular basis…
last, all my experience being around athletes leads me to the conclusion that there isn’t any one optimal. Maybe there is, but not for the caliber I’ve been around. Ive been down that road of “lets figure everything out perfectly” before… just get under the bar - that’s my philosophy.
well the 5x5 on squats aren’t really a true 5x5, only the last set is the “heavy set”, and your not usually training to failure… nonetheless i’ve modfied this a little … what do u guys think:
Monday – Heavy Day
Squat – 5 sets of 5
Bench – 5 sets of 5
Powercleans – 5 sets of 5
sprints session1: 10x10m, 6x30, 6x40m
2 sets of weighted hypers
4 sets of weighted Sit-ups
Tuesday-tempo (focussing on conditioning as a posed to recovery)
Wednesday – Light Day
Squat – 4 sets of 5 (lighter than monday)
Incline Bench – 4 sets of 5 (PR attempt at final set)
deadlifts – 4 sets of 5 (PR attempt at final set)
sprint session2: 4x40, 4x60, 1x100m
Sit-ups – 3 sets
Thursday- tempo (focussing on conditioning)
Friday - Medium (no PR attempts)
Squat – 4 sets of 5, 1 triple, back-off
Bench – 4 sets of 5, 1 triple, back-off
Powercleans – 4 sets of 5, 1 triple
Weighted Dips – 3 sets of 5-8
chin ups (3x5)
then later some indoor soccer
I definitely agree, way too much time can be spent in planning/periodization, and not enough under the bar. Volume aside for a minute, you agree to do Olympics completing after a neurally taxing exercise? That, I just don’t think I can agree with. The Olympics depend on the rapid firing of the motor units, producing as much acceleration of the bar as possible. If this is compromised, you won’t be able recruit the same number of motor units, and you’ll be forced to lift lighter weights, slower. And that’s the last thing any athlete should be striving for. If pure squat/bench gains are the goal for that day, then you should omit the Olympic, and save it for another day.
You say you see great gains, 4months, 4 years, as long as you keep rotating…how would you rotate within this progarm? Just reps/sets? Because it doesn’t look like there is much room for changing exercises, and from omyss has sets/reps already defined.
I’m just a huge fan of not having set programs. Sit down and figure out your goals, and set up a template on how to get there. Fill the template in every day with certain exercises, that way there you’re constantly rotating both exercises, and sets reps.
I don’t really think the power clean is an olympic… not anymore. If you must, consider it a “muscle” clean. The idea is just to pull something fast and heavy. I’d be concerned if he wasn’t sprinting, but it’s fine to me.
re: rotation, I’d just get creative. Or for a few weeks/sessions/whatever focus on one then switch or use dumbbells or there’s a million alternatives out there. Elite fts still has a list of about a hundred or so special exercises for each lift. If you need Ideas, check that out.
I like templates too, but that takes a certain sophistication of both the athlete and coach to do well.
Ya, Elite Fts is great. I’m huge on changing exercises, a la Westside. I didn’t realize that in Star’s program, you were considering where it said ‘squat’, you were considering the whole range of squats (high box, low box, regular, band, chain, front etc).
As for the muscle clean, definitely if that’s what the exercise is, then there’s no problem with that going after squats. Except that I see no real reason to do a ‘muscle clean’ (I know exactly what you mean, I see it done all over the place). The goal of the Olympics, whether it’s a clean, snatch, DB, Single arm barbell, is rapid hip extension. It’s the hip extension that is the key, which will transfer to the field. If triple extension is not reached, then what good is a bigger ‘muscle’ clean? Someone once described the Olympics to me as a “vertical jump with weight”, which I think is the perfect analogy.
I really think the Olympics are great. But they aren’t the end all and be all. Until the athlete has learned to reach triple extension, I think a range of plyo’s and your normal weight training principles will transfer to the field more than being able to muscle curl 3 plates.