Started with a max attempt. I played with moving my stance in a little today, and it feels awesome. It's more technical than my old way of squatting, and easy to hit bad reps. But on good reps, My torso is upright, I hit the bottom DEEP and get a great stretch reflex. hit 135, 225, then 275, 305, and 315. 315 was tough, and my form was a little iffy (missed the stretch reflex), so I called that my first "max."Phase one complete.
Phase two: dropped back to 135 and worked up again. Hit 135, 225, 255, then 285. Jumped straight to 315, but I lost it forward a bit and failed. Phase 2 complete
Phase 3: dropped back to 135 and worked up AGAIN. Hit 135, 185, 225, 275, then 305. Then I attempted 315 and got completely stuck in the bottom, had to dump. Phase 3 complete - 3 maxes, one after the other.
Next, I took 90% of my final max (305) and did a 3 x 3 with that. 275 for 3 x 3 was solid, but tough. With the new squat style, it's easy to lose my balance a little forward. But if I am careful to fight to keep my chest up, and I really think about spreading the floor and engaging my hips, they feel really good and athletic. This 3 x 3 was probably the toughest part of today.
Next, I took 90% of 275, (250) and did a 3 x 5 with that. I expected this to be harder than it was. At this weight, my technique was really solid, and although I had bad reps, for the most part I was nailing the stretch reflex out of the hole and didn't have any serious trouble with any rep.
Finally, took 90% of the 3 x 5 weight (225) and did a 3 x 8 with that. Again, I expected this to be miserable, but my technique felt awesome at these lighter weights, and despite bad reps I was able to get through these sets. The 8th rep of set two was soul-crushingly hard, but set 3 I went all out, getting 12 reps. It was an absurd workout. The skin on my back is destroyed from the bar, and I'm thinking my legs are going to be killing me tomorrow. But hey, now I get a full week off. I'll live.
So, I got to feel out this new style a lot, and I think it will be really great for me in time. I need to get used to the different movement. I need to make sure I nail that stretch reflex every time, And I need to increase my quad strength and my core strength in order to be able to handle bigger weights with ease. In time though, I will become much stronger with this new squat.
So here's the plan: I will max out with this new style when I get home, and whatever that max is, I will re-set my 5/3/1 with that max (take 90% of it, treat that as my working 1-rep, and go from there). This will give me time to adjust to the new style without feeling pressured to be as strong as I was with my old technique right away. It will give me a mental break, and time for my quads and core to grow so I can massacre weights that are tough now. I can't wait.
Goodbye for a week. When I return: some light days to get me moving weight again, then MAX OUT WEEK.
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