Road to 600 lb Squat

Other Discussions Training Logs
1

Current stats:

  • Male
  • 24
  • 185 (BW)
  • 5’8

Previous top singles: (09/2019)

  • Squat: 405 1@8
  • Bench: 285 1@8.5 ((T&G))
  • DL: 425 1@8

Since performing these singles, I’ve lost about 25 lbs, and I’m noticeably smaller, these were also performed w/o a belt. So as my skill w/ belt comp lifts increases, I should make some quick gains in my top singles.

This is truly my first time training with a planned program and counting macros religiously. When I did SSNLP & various other push/pull BB splits, I never really understood nutrition or what have you. So I’m excited to train, and make some strong progress.

Currently following a bastardized version of The Bridge. I added an extra pulling session, and added some more benching. It looks more similar to the “General Strength Training Intermediate Template” with a programming progression similar to The Bridge.

I would like to compete soon, and participate in Raw Nationals in 2022. My goal is to put up some strong figures come that time.

2

Week 1 (supposed to be a low volume week, but I pushed it)

(1/20/2020)

Squat - 275X5 @7; 295X5 @8; 315X5 @8; 315X4 @9 (w/ belt)

2 Ct. Bench - 175X4 @7; 185X4 @8; 205X4 @9; 205X4 @10

RDL - 205X7 @7; 205X7 @8; 205X7 @8; 205X7 @9

(1/22/2020)

Comp. Bench - 175X5 @7; 185X5 @8; 185X5 @8; 195X5 @10; 185X5 @9

2 Ct. Squat - 225X4 @6; 245X4 @7; 275X4 @8; 295X4 @9

OHP - 105X7 @8; 115X7 @9; 115X7 @9; 105X7 @8

(1/25/2020)

Comp. DL - 275X5 @7; 295X5 @7; 315X5 @7; 345X5 @9; 345X3 @8

T&G Bench - 185X4 @7; 185X4 @7; 205X4 @7; 225X4 @9

CGBP - 155X7 @7; 165X7 @8; 165X7 @10 (didn’t do last, my arms were trembling on the last few reps)

Beltless Squat - 155X7 @6; 185X7 @7; 225X7 @7; 225X7 @8

Overall comments for this week: the volume was supposed to be much lower but I got carried away. Earlier in the week, my form was off and I just wasn’t “feeling it”, as I got deeper into training, I became much more efficient and started to get in the swing of things. Also I started taking creatine for the first time on Monday (1/20).

Next week is supposed to resemble Week 2 of The Bridge in terms of volume for the main & supplemental lifts. I’m taking out RDL’s & subbing for Beltless Pulls. And I’m going to be substituting OHP’s for Paused DL’s.

I did The Bridge while on a huge deficit with added cardio and I was pulling twice with no problem at all. So I want to see what three-times pulling per week can do for me while on a surplus and more rest days.

Pre-cut I was maintaining @ 2,800 and my calories were at 1,900 by the end of it. (Last day of cut was 1/18/2020).

Right now I’m averaging 2,400 calories daily & not really gaining weight. My goal is to be at a ~300 or so surplus for next 16-24 months or however long it takes to hit a 600 lb squat, then I will cut a bit because I am “skinny-fat” . I have a bit of extra adipose tissue that I’d like to get rid of. Eating around 240g of protein & 3 meals per day for MPS.

https://youtu.be/efLN2giTDqU?t=1200

As Austin says, “eat intelligently, train w/ intelligent programming, and do that consistently for 10 years…”

So let’s go.

3

(1/27/2020)

Squat - 275X5 @7; 295X5 @8; 315X5 @8; 315X5 @9; 315X5 @9

2 Ct. Bench - 185X4 @7; 185X4 @8; 205X4 @9; 205X4 @9

Block Pulls (off of 45 lb Bumper Plates) - 225X7 @6; 245X7 @7; 255X7 @8; 275X7 @9

Overextended today. I felt good afterwards, really was left w/ the feeling of “having left it all on the court” but I might have trouble recovering from this. Didn’t sleep well last night, so I was a little more tired than I would’ve liked.

Auto-regulation is still not a forte, and I need to not make such a big deal out of taking weight off the bar if I’m not “there”.

4

(1/29/2020)

Comp. Bench - 175X5 @6; 185X5 @7; 205X5 @8; 205X5 @9; 185X5 @8

2 Ct. Squat - 245X4 @6; 275X4 @7; 295X4 @8; 295X4 @8

Paused DL - 225X4 @6; 245X4 @7; 275X4 @8; 275X4 @8

Some quick notes, seems like I’m definitely getting stronger week over week. I didn’t feel great today, didn’t sleep well (again). I get post-nasal drip from whey protein and it wakes me up in the middle of the night. So today I’m not having any and hopefully that allows me to recover properly.

My bench seemed strong and to be completely honest, I was going entirely by feel. Generally, I look at past week’s training for indication of what I should “do” the day of - but I’m glad that today I didn’t. I might’ve gone for 195 lbs for 3X5 @8.

Instead I made a jump to 205, without really thinking about it.

Overall, happy with the training session. Squats felt lighter than last week’s. Will most likely do 305 or 315 next week.

First time ever doing paused dead’s so I went a bit lighter, but will most likely rapidly go up on these. Have pulled 3 times in three sessions in 5 days. Still not really feeling any commensurate fatigue…

Just experimenting w/ 3X weekly pulling until indicated otherwise.

5

(1/31)

Comp. DL - 275X5 @7; 295X5 @7; 315X5 @8; 315X5 @9; 315X5 @9

T&G Bench - 185X4 @6; 205X4 @7; 225X4 @8; 225X4 @9

CGBP - 155X7 @6; 165X7 @7; 165X7 @8, 165X7 @7

Beltless Squat - 185X7 @6; 225X7 @6; 245X7 @7; 245X7 @8

Throughout this session, two things stood out to me:

1 - Deadlift performance has deteriorated significantly. So, I really have two choices here, either drop the third pulling day (paused dead’s on Day 2); or give it another week or so to allow my body to adjust to pulling more. I could also play around with dropping the block pulls (since it’s an overload variation) and do SLDL’s in its place. Or just straight beltless deads.

It’s funny. Throughout the entire DL session, I always felt like I had “more” in me. More strength. Like I could pull more, it’s just that I’d fatigue rather quickly. We’ll see what happens next week.

2 - CREATINE. As I was pulling up to the gym and throughout the DL session, I didn’t believe that I would be able to complete today’s training. Not with how fatigued I felt after this whole week of not sleeping very well, and pulling more, and being right off of a 10 hour work day…I just didn’t think it was possible. But somehow, I managed. Any other week, I would’ve gassed out early. But I managed AND WITH INCREASED PERFORMANCE ACROSS ALL THE LIFTS.

Last week, I was struggling to finish all the last work sets, today, not only was I able to finish most of them - but with increased weights, and lower RPE’s across the board (minus the DL, of course).

So, all in all, this being my first time training w/ this much volume and being very consistent with my diet; I think I’m really digging the results. Just the daily and weekly increases in performance. I’m very rapidly returning to my pre-cut strength levels and know I will exceed them. I WILL NOT miss a single session this year.

6

(2/3/2020)

Squat - 275X5 @7; 295X5 @8; 315X5 @8.5; 315X5 @9; 315X4 @9

2 Ct. Bench - 185X4 @6; 205X4 @7; 225X4 @9; 225X4 @10

Block Pulls (off of 45 lb Bumper Plates) - 225X7 @7; 245X7 @7; 275X7 @8; 295X7 @8

Strong performance increase on the bench. Really wanted to do some extra sets, but they just weren’t there today. Block pulls feeling much stronger week over week, however, this is my first time doing them so it’s expected w/ more practice & increases in locomotive efficiency.

Bench is surprising. I’m almost back to pre-cut levels where I would do 225 for 4 sets. Squat is nowhere close to what it used to be.

Not really gaining weight, yet. So, I’m bumping calories slightly this week.

7

(2/5/2020)

Comp. Bench - 185X5 @6; 205X5 @6.5; 225X5 @9; 205X5 @7.5; 225X3 @8

2 Ct. Squat - 245X4 @6; 275X4 @6.5; 315X4 @9; 315X4 @10

Paused DL - 225X4 @6; 245X4 @6; 275X4 @8; 295X4 @8

Huge performance increases across the board. Progressing even faster than I did during my novice LP. Lol. And I haven’t missed a single session in the last 6 1/5 months while running 2 separate strength programs (The Bridge & The General Intermediate Template). So it’s not like I was de-trained before to be progressing this fast.

I really wanted to get 225 3X5@8 but sleep continues to be poor. It’s steadily improving, so by the end of this week I should feel much much more fresh and start putting up bigger numbers. The creatine has been causing me GI distress, GERD, etc. So I have stopped taking it.

Overdid it on the bench. 205 felt really light, and so went back up to 225, major mistake, lol. Should’ve gone for 215, instead. Would’ve been more manageable. Next week is a slight bump in volume for the next 3 weeks. End of Week 3 this Friday.

My appetite has been RAVENOUS lately. Have never been this hungry in my LIFE. Lol. So training’s going well. Been deadlifting every training session every week for 3 weeks and I regret nothing.

Jordan told me not to do it this way. But training’s going well, I feel strong, slightly more tired than would be preferred, but that will be fixed in time.

BW remains 186ish (185 ~ 187).

8

Comp. DL - 275X5 @6; 295X5 @7; 345X5 @9; 345X4 @10; 315X5 @8.5

T&G Bench - 185X4 @5; 205X4 @6; 225X4 @7; 225X4 @7.5

CGBP - 155X7 @6; 165X7 @6; 185X7 @9, 185X6 @9.5

Beltless Squat - 225X7 @6; 245X7 @7; 275X7 @9

Pleased with how fast my bench is progressing. Immense and noticeable increases from session to session. Today was rough, I’m still not getting the best sleep even though it’s improved a lot. Stomach discomfort & a bit of GERD still makes it difficult. I can usually tell how good I will feel as soon as I pickup a 45 lb plate. Or I lift a bar. Today, both felt very heavy. But still very pleased to see how well things are progressing, particularly the bench.

I noticed something with my squat: I tend to go too far below depth. And it messes up my balance. I saw Alan Thrall’s video and I can definitely sense my weight shifting to my heels. So I need to focus on that. When I do paused squats, I tend to pause right at depth, which is why my paused squat is almost the same as my comp squat. I focused on that today, but all the fatigue from the week caught up and I just felt gassed by the last set. I didn’t have any more.

Got some video footage for DL that I will post. My form isn’t great, need to watch Jordan’s training vlogs to spot mistakes. For sure I’m not dragging the bar up my feet. And I’m not always locking my back before a rep. But overall, solid week.

Calories & volume being bumped a bit for the next 3 weeks, so looking to make some strong progress before the intensification phase.

9

(2/10/2020)

Squat - 275X5 @6; 295X5 @6.5; 345X5 @8.5; 345X5 @9; 345X5 @10, 315X5 @7

2 Ct. Bench - 185X4 @6; 195X4 @6.5; 205X4 @7; 225X4 @8.5; 225X4 @10

Block Pulls (off of 45 lb Bumper Plates) - 225X7 @7; 245X7 @7; 255 4X7 @8

Oh hey look at that my squat is finally in-line. Most likely due to technical adjustments. i.e not going allllllll the way down to the point my weight shifts back. Staying strong and tight. Wanted to get video footage to study depth, but couldn’t. Did my best to “feel it out”… Approaching my all-time weights albeit at a much lower body weight (187 vs. 207).

Strong progress. Was on short sleep, even though I actually slept pretty well the whole weekend. Oh well, c’est la vie.

Decided to do more volume on block pulls (+14 reps) and instead of paused DL’s, do OHP’s on Wednesday.

That keeps my Squat & DL volume at around ~72 weekly. And presses around ~140.

Overall feeling good & strong. Still seeing LP-esque session to session progression.

10

(2/12/2020)

Comp. Bench - 185X5 @7; 205X5 @8; 205X5 @8; 205X5 @8.5; 205X5 @9; 185X45@7; 185X5 @7

2 Ct. Squat - 245X4 @6; 275X4 @7; 285X4 @8; 285X4 @8

OHP - 95X8 @6; 115X8 @9; 115X5 @RPE 1,000,000

At that last rep, something in my body “clicked” and I was like…done. Overdid it on Monday. Was still very sore today and very very fatigued. So the weights were much lower and I was hyper-aware about not pushing anything.

Felt very out of breath and just sore. Will rest two days before my next session to allow some extra recovery.

11

Comp. DL - 275X5; 295X5; 315X5; 315X5; 315X3

Beltless Squat - 225X7 @6; 245X7 @6; 255X7 @6

Actually felt pretty good today but in my excitement I ate a giant plate of food b/c I wanted to “feel great” and be “fueled up” lo & behold I was still full when I got to the gym & as soon as I started pulling, the food started creeping up my esophagus.

So I had cut the workout short, and will finish it tomorrow. Had to go a little lighter on DL’s b/c I was thinking more about not puking then actually deadlifting. My form was really good, I know b/c these pulls felt really really light. I could’ve gone for like 7-8 sets, lol. A bit frustrating, but meaningless grand scheme.

Will do 2 sets of beltless squats (since I also missed a set last week); and then kill the benches.

12

T&G Bench - 185X4 @6; 205X4 @7; 215X4 @7; 215X4 @8.5; 220X4 @9

CGBP - 160X8 @6; 175X8 @8; 175X7 @10, 165X8 @8

Done w/ this week. Overdid it on Monday. Need to learn auto-regulation. On to the next one.

13

(2/17/2020)

Squat - 275X5 @XD; 295X5 @6; 315X5 @6.5; 315X5 @7; 315X5 @7, 315X5 @7.5

2 Ct. Bench - 185X4 @6; 195X4 @6.5; 225X4 @8.5; 225X4 @9; 205X4 @7

Block Pulls (off of 45 lb Bumper Plates) - 225X7 @7; 245X7 @7; 255X7 @8; 255X7 @8; 255X7 @8; 255X7 @8

So I guess that’s what regulation feels like…not feeling like I got ran over by a tractor at the end…huh. Went easier on the bench, definitely had room for 235-245. But I benched a lot yesterday so I went a bit easy…my chest was a bit sore, but not too much.

Squats felt stupid easy. Block pulls…hmm…might decide to cut the volume here, I was feeling very beat-up by the end and my form was beginning to break down; had to take some deep breaths and concentrate on technique for the last few reps of each of the last two sets. Depending on how I feel tomorrow, I might decide to cut those last two sets.

Overall felt strong, and left some gas in the tank for later on in the week. Was fearing I might had to deload.

14

(2/12/2020)

Comp. Bench - 185X5 @6; 195X5 @7; 205X5 @8; 205X5 @8.5; 205X5 @9; 185X5@7; 185X5 @7

2 Ct. Squat - 225X4 @6; 245X4 @6.5; ; 275X4 @7; 275X4 @7; 275X4 @7

OHP - 95X7 @6; 105X7 @7; 115X7 @8; 125X5 @8

Took it a little easier today. Soreness is mounting and I feel a decreased motivation in pushing the edges. I know it’s mental, and that if I wanted to I could push myself beyond these numbers, but I’d just create additional fatigue and for little extra benefit.

Depending on how Friday & the weekend goes, I might have to deload early. (I still have one more week before I deload & go into intensification phase).

This training cycle I didn’t do well sleep wise, and I could have managed it better. So, this coming deload, I’m going to be strict about adhering to a reasonable sleep time and get at least 7 hours. It’s within my power to do so.

I’ve done really well in terms of hypertrophy, every day I seem to be finding muscles in areas where they didn’t previously exist…but again b/c of poor sleep habits I cannot demonstrate these gains under the barbell. Once I rest up a bit and allow the fatigue to dissipate, the bar will start feeling very light again.

15

Comp. DL - 275X5 @6; 295X5 @7; 305X5 @7; 315X5 @8.5; 315X5 @9

T&G Bench - 185X4 @5; 205X4 @6; 225X4 @7; 235X4 @7.5; 245X3 @9

CGBP - 155X7 @6; 165X7 @7; 185X7 @8.5, 185X6 @9.5

Beltless Squat - 225X7 @6; 245X7 @7; 255X7 @7; 255X7 @8

EXHAUSTION & FATIGUE RPE: 10

Bench felt comically easy but by 3-4th rep the fatigue would get to me…

On 5 hour sleep…not fun times.

16

Squat - 275X5 @6; 295X5 @6.5; 345X5 @8; 345X5 @8.5; 345X5 @9

2 Ct. Bench - 185X4 @6; 205X4 @7; 225X4 @9; 205X4 @7; 205X4 @7

Block Pulls (off of 45 lb Bumper Plates) - 225X7 @7; 245X7 @7; 255X7 @8; 255X7 @8

Focused on valsalva today. Wow what a difference. I need to get better at it, as I wasn’t anywhere near consistent, but when I did it right - I knew.

Felt extremely fatigued today & had several aches and pains. It’s definitely time for a deload next week…I’m very focused on getting my sleep right, but it will take time.

This was my last volume day for competition squats, and it was right where I wanted. I know that when I feel fresh again, I’ll be crushing 365 - 385; especially as I get better w/ the valsalva.

Right on track.

17

(2/26/2020)

Comp. Bench - 185X5 @6; 195X5 @7; 225X5 @9; 205X5 @8; 205X5 @8.5; 205X5 @9

2 Ct. Squat - 245X4 @6; 275X4 @6.5; 295X4 @7; 295X4 @7

OH - 95X7 @6; 115X7 @7; 125X6 @8

This week, been doing one less set than programmed…not by choice. Workouts are very tough. The weights feel very, very light & I’ve put on like +30 lbs on most lifts across the board - just not able to demonstrate the full extent (prob closer to +50 lb / lift) because of fatigue…despite how “light” the bar feels early on, the fatigue starts to compound exponentially after rep 3.

But Friday is my last volume session this cycle, then will do a low stress week. Might have to do back-to-back low stress weeks until I feel normal again. Just very out of breath & extremely fatigued after every set. Even during warm-ups. Discomfot & aches in shoulders & hips. Bleh.

This is all a confluence of things:

1 - I didn’t do a low stress week(s) after a fairly lengthy cut so I started the cycle thinking that the fatigue would simply vanish after I eliminated daily hourly cardio + a 800 calorie deficit (ish). This didn’t really happen, there was a reduction in fatigue but then as the volume increased, the fatigue started accumulating again.

2 - Initially my sleep got messed up b/c creatine made it uncomfortable for me to sleep at night (stomach)…got rid of it but the first 3 weeks of training I wasn’t getting very good sleep.

3 - Then poor sleeping habits set in because I was tired & taking naps after work (on non-training days) and just messing up with my bedtime.

So the next 2 weeks, I just want to allow the fatigue to dissipate & inculcate strong sleeping habits.

I know that once I am fresh or near-fresh again, I will start crushing upper-300’s on SQ & DL for volume sets & mid-400’s for singles.

Current BW: don’t know. Fluctuates a lot depending on how fatigued I am. I would guess around 187.5.

18

Current PR: (AUGUST 2019 @ 208 BW)

SQ: 405 1@8
DL: 425 1@8
BENCH: 285 1@8.5 ((T&G))

SQ: 365X5 @9 (Current best: 345X5 @8)
DL: 365X5 @8 (Current best: 345X5 @8) // Before I found BBMD, I never really trained the deadlift past 1X / week for 1 set of 5. So it’s very detrained. It’s a learning curve, but I’ll get it :).

BENCH: 245X4 @9 (Current best: 225X5 @8)

To be able to match my all-time bests at 20 lbs lighter gives me great hope for what’s to come this year. The previous PR’s were done mostly fresh during the first few weeks of a cut while eating at around a ~200 deficit. So nowhere NEAR as fatigued as I am now. mid-500’s for SQ & DL aren’t far off targets this year.

Will start incorporating singles into my training regularly during the next phase & for the upcoming developmental work.

Patience.

19

(1/25/2020)

Comp. DL - 275X5 @5; 295X5 @6; 365X5 @10; 335X5 @9; 335X5 @9.5

T&G Bench - 185X4 @6; 215X4 @8; 225X4 @9; 225X4 @9.5

CGBP - 165X7 @8; 165X7 @8; 165X7 @8

Beltless Squat - 245X7 @7; 245X3 @X

At the risk of everything else, I went for 365 on DL. 275 & 295 felt like a joke, and knowing I would have a full weekend of rest ahead + a deload, I decided to hell with it, let’s hit some weights.

365 didn’t feel hard. I always felt like I had more…sometimes I would do the valsalva correctly and the bar would fly, sometimes the bar would be 3 inches off my shins and would feel much heavier.

Also, I didn’t feel like as if I was…“firing off all at once”…I was just left with this feeling of “I had more”.

Maybe i wasn’t properly warmed up, or maybe I just need more exposure to these kinds of weights. Anyways, the rest of the workout felt like death and I couldn’t finish yet again.

Onward.

20

Squat - 365X1 @6?; 405X1 @8; 425X1 @9;

2 Ct. Bench - 185X6 @8; 195X6 @9

Block Pulls (off of 45 lb Bumper Plates) - 225X7 @6; 275X7 @8

This morning I remember randomly squatting down to get something and my legs felt so explosive…? I was like HMM…the whole day I was shooting for 405…and then 405 kind of flew…and I was like…yes. So I went for 425 for a 20 lb Squat PR.

This was on 6 hour sleep & still some fatigue (this is Day 1 of Low Stress Week)…so I imagine that with enough exposure to 90%+ intensity weights, continued practice at those intensities, plus a bit of freshness, I could start hitting 445X1 @8 as-is.
Still 20 lbs lighter since I did 405X1 @8 back in Sept (208 lbs). BW currently at ~187.

Soooo excited for this training cycle…my eyes are set on 465 LB SQUAT @ ~190 LBS BW.

Although that PR did take a toll on the rest of my training…I was watching Squat PR’s at lunch time today and I know all that emotional arousal will also affect my training this week, but hopefully, I’m fresh enough by Friday that I can hit mid-400’s on DL.

Let’s see.