I don’t know if more skill is necessarily how I would describe it. They are different and I wasn’t meaning to downplay 315 x 14 as that is a great achievement that I wish I could do. I guess what I was meaning is that to me it is like using an 800m to project a 60m time.
I don’t think that is a very similar comparison, John, because of the huge energetic differences between a 60m and an 800m. There is much less variation between a 1rm and a 15rm than a 60m and an 800m. I’ve noticed the exact same things as RJ WRT this. The only caveat I would add is that the squat is somewhat different since you are supporting a lot of weight on your spine, which makes it a bit different from a deadlift or other exercises that do not have this requirement.
Power clean is unbelievable. You should have bet your dad $100s on that instead of running 11.00 or whatever. I cannot comprehend that you cleaned 300 with like 0 practice.
Like fogelson said, a 1RM and a 14RM are not actually that far apart. One takes 3-4 seconds, the other takes ~45. Much closer to a 60-400 comparison, and 400 guys can usually run a damn fast 60.
The only real difference, disregarding energetics, is neuromuscular coordination specific to the task (lifting a heavy single). All of the other physical qualities of strength (muscle fiber volume, tendon volume/stiffness, etc.) are still there.
Thanks.
And haha, yeah, I should have. If bobsled doesn’t work out, maybe I’ll have a career in OLY lifting. 
it was an example and of course as with everything you will know best. :rolleyes:
John, I am speaking from experience on the matter. It just isn’t that different. I’ve used protocols very similar to what RJ is using with very large improvements in max strength as defined by 1RM. Talking 2x BW bench press and powerclean and more. Maybe you should try them instead of what you’re doing now? It could help out for athletes in your situation.
Actually John, I’m with fogelson 100% here too. I’ve been following your log for a while and, no offense, but your overall volume seems too low for someone with your strength levels. Working on submax sets of 6-12 would really help slap some muscle onto your frame and build a base.
If you want to get faster, it’ll probably require some more muscle on your glutes and hamstrings.
If we get back to the point I was trying to make which was comparing 15rm and 1rm. Any powerlifter will tell you they are chalk and cheese and different expressions of strength.
In my case you may well be right and thank you for your interest. I actually increased part of my weights program which was using Joe Kenn’s Tier setup a few months ago to where in part I was doing up to 12 reps. I believe that has led to some strength gains and I will probably use a similar or higher procedure next winter (summer here now). That said the weight room is additional and supplementary to other work.
why were you so confident you would get 285 having never cleaned before? 300 is impressive, but where did you come up with that number? Whats that say about the need for cleans in your program if you already have that type of strength? Maybe they arent magic after all?
The powerclean is one of the many tests he has to do in Bobsledding. 330 is the max.
Trackfan, I figured I’d be able to get 285 because in my mind, you should always be able to clean at least 66% of your squat without much difficulty (if you squat deep and narrow without a belt). 285 was around 2/3 of my projected back squat when I made that claim, so I figured it’d be easy enough to shoot for.
And I don’t like cleans. The only reason I’ll do them at all is because they’re a tested lift. I don’t think they’re good for developing much in the way of strength or power, as far as sprinters are concerned at least.
I only cleaned yesterday because I wanted to see where I stood in relation to the bobsled testing charts and 300 lbs seemed like a good stopping point. I probably could’ve gone heavier, but I had no reason to.
Tell that to Ed Coan and a ton of others who have used plenty of sets of 8-12 to build maximal strength. Plenty of them have used 20 rep squats and the like as well. The problem with comparing the 60 is that it has a huge portion that is non-upright running and purely maximal acceleration without really factoring in top speed, while you’re doing the same lift regardless of whether or not it is 1 rep or 100 reps (not changing the musculature involved like in early acceleration). If you took a flying 10 and a flying 150m, I bet you could pretty accurately predict the best flying 10 from the 150m time within +/-.02 at absolute worst, more like +/-.01. This is just like you could pretty accurately get a 1rm from a 15rm and a 15rm from a 1rm. There will be some give and take, but the general underlying qualities are really similar and specific (ie skill) training would account for the rest.
December 5th, 2009
Upper Body Focus
Condition:
I feel really good. I slammed my right knee into something, so it’s a bit creaky, but it’s coming back around.
Warm Up:
Push Ups and Chin Ups
Some shoulder stretches
Workout:
DB Incline Prone Front Raises (Neutral Grip, slow tempo)
4 x 12 @ 13 lb DBs, 180 sec. rest
Chin Ups
Just messing with form on a few variations, rest varied
Cool Down:
Shoulder stretching
Notes:
I don’t like the way my posture is starting to look. I’d like to throw in some rowing movements too, but I can’t get enough ROM on any of them I’ve got available. I could do DB rows, but I can’t load my DBs heavy enough. I’ll figure something out.
And on chins, I was looking for comfortable variations that sync up my abs and lats (for stabilization purposes). While doing this, I found out my rhomboids are weak. I can’t even do one slow tempo chin to my sternum. Ugh. Like I said above, I’ll figure it out.
December 6th, 2009
Lower Body Focus
Condition:
Not the greatest today. My knee still hurts from where I hit it, I spent far too long hunched over my textbooks, and I haven’t eaten enough. Still, I’m ready to go.
Warm Up:
Some RW Drills
Some activation drills (mostly non-tripods)
Workout:
Medball Tosses for Height
4 sets x 5 reps @ 23 lbs, 180 sec. rest
Back Squats (close stance, full ROM, start a new set every 3 minutes)
5 sets x (5, 4, 3, 2, 1) reps @ 345 lbs, ~150 sec. rest
SL RDLs (slow, focusing on stretch)
2 sets x 8 reps @ 95 lbs, 120 sec. rest
Ab Rollouts, Levers, Etc.
Until my abs were sore
Cool Down:
Some more activation drills
Mild plyos
Notes:
Well, since I hit my short term goal of a projected 2.25x BW squat, I’m shifting gears a little. Taking a cue from a friend of mine, I’m incorporating throws into my routine in lieu of OLY lifts. Despite the fact that the loading isn’t too great (23 lbs), the acceleration of throwing for maximal height more than makes up for it. 20 full effort reps was tough as hell.
After that, I was a little more tired than usual for squats, but they went down without a hitch. I wanted to take it easy today.
Things are going well all around.
Too heavy of ball for MB throws IMO. You should be using ~16lbs at most right now, probably lighter. Most people use WAY too much lower back when doing throws for height, OHB, or BLF and overloading the movement like that isn’t going to get you the progress you want I think.
Training looks good though, keep it up.
Also, you can probably do significant more volume on the throws in this set-up. Today was probably a good starting point, but you should be able to handle 40-50 throws fairly easily.
Yeah, I was being careful about using too much back. I find that if I brace my abs when I throw the right muscles end up doing the work. My glutes are absolutely trashed right now.
And yeah, I will do a higher volume of throws later, but my back was already tight from studying and making the medicine ball immediately prior to training, so I didn’t want to overdo it.
The weight will have to stay. 23 lbs may be a bit much, but the ball is sealed up. In any case, it’s lighter than PCs or snatches.
December 10th, 2009
Lower Body Focus
Condition:
My right knee is 100% better, but my glutes are still sore. I might be busy all day tomorrow though, so I still need to lift today.
Warm Up:
Some RW Drills
Some activation drills (mostly non-tripods)
LOTS of plyos
Workout:
Medball Tosses for Height
3 sets x 5 reps @ 23 lbs, 180 sec. rest
Back Squats (close stance, full ROM, start a new set every 3 minutes)
4 sets x 3 reps @ 365 lbs, ~150 sec. rest
SL RDLs (slow, focusing on stretch)
2 sets x 9 reps @ 95 lbs, 120 sec. rest
Ab Rollouts, Levers, Etc.
Until my abs were sore
Cool Down:
Some more activation drills
Mild plyos
Notes:
I wore myself out with plyos today, hence the lower volume of throws. My explosiveness is coming along nicely. After I reach my strength goals and shift to a real explosive block things should take off nicely.
Speaking of strength goals, I’m going to stick with 365 on the bar for a while. I could probably get 7 reps with it right now for an all out set, but I want 4 x 7 (starting a new set every 180 seconds), before this spring rolls around. This should allow me to hit 365 x 15, which puts my projected squat max close to 550 lbs. With that type of strength I could broad jump 11’+ pretty easily.
That’s all there really was to note. Oh, except that single leg RDLs really suck. I can feel these working despite the puny loading.
1-leg RDL’s are no joke. Tough exercise! Nice work, RJ. Keep up the great work.