Do any of you do heavy squats multiple times per week? page 3

[TTBlue21]

Each week I have a pure DL day (5-7 sets) and I have a legs day which starts with heavy squats. I am really not sure how you can target that area more than twice a week.

[dml]

I just finished the 12 week squat program here:

MIKE'S GYM | Programs

I squatted every Monday and Friday for 12 straight weeks.

At age 50, I went from 330 to 365 in 12 weeks.

The first few weeks were the hardest because of the volume. After that, the weights increased, but the program seemed easier. I also set a new front squat PR along the way.

[RichMahogany]

It's recommended to get your weights higher before adding in the power cleans. I haven't even been doing deadlifts for an entire week yet.

Aren't you supposed to do bent over rows until you incorporate the power cleans? I don't think you're ever supposed to deadlift every workout in SS. You could ask them over there. And to answer your other question, I ordered some 2" interior diameter washers from McMaster-Carr to use for microloading, they were cheaper than Fastenal.

[Toshison]

You mention squatting 275x10, 315x8,315x8. Are you programming this workout yourself or following a specific routine? Most variations of the full body/squat 3 times per week workout require sets of 5 reps specifically because doing higher rep sets require longer recovery periods.

You mention being experienced; look into Wendler's 5-3-1 or Bill Star's madcow. Both excellent intermediate programs. If you are programming yourself and want to continue to do so, either lower your reps to the 5ish range if you want to squat 3 times a week or accept the fact that you may only be able to squat once or twice a week if you stay in the 8-10 rep range.

I program my own workouts. I take bits n pieces from different sources as I have yet to find a program that I can fully comply and agree with. This is because I take into account my own personal variables including previous injuries, my current goals and what I have found most effective for my frame.

In the past I have done a lot of heavy weight (for me anyway), low rep (i.e 3-5rp) work but nowadays that sort of training does not suit my goals or interest me. Im 32 years old and have been weight lifting since I was 14. When I was around 19-22 I trained really heavy and I was much stronger and pushed around more weight back then when I was bench pressing 365 and was squating/deadlifting over 400lbs comfortably. But all those strength and mass gains came at a price as I tore a pec (which is why Im totally against barbell bench presses now - stick with dumbbells always), knee problems, neck problems, lower back problems and all sorts of rotator cuff issues.

For my age, I feel like Ive put a lot of miles on my body so Im looking long term now. Im thinking more about staying injury free, less wear and tear on my joints and just staying reasonably strong and lean. Minimizing risk of injury is very important for me and why I stay away from powerlifting, high weight, low rep ranges.. Risk is higher there and Im a little chicken these days.

This is why Im trying to transition to shorter full body workouts versus weekly bodypart split routines. Im looking to spend less time in the gym and am going for bang for buck. Just trying to keep what I have really.

I've just always seen routines here and there where it calls for squats 3 times a week and I was wondering if anybody could manage to do that with adequate recovery but it seems most (here anyway) don't.

[sbhikes]

Aren't you supposed to do bent over rows until you incorporate the power cleans? I don't think you're ever supposed to deadlift every workout in SS. You could ask them over there. And to answer your other question, I ordered some 2" interior diameter washers from McMaster-Carr to use for microloading, they were cheaper than Fastenal.

This is what Rippetoe himself told me:

The power clean is used to help athletes convert strength to power, which is the explosive display of strength. This is explained in the book. Not everybody needs to do power cleans, especially if doing them poses a greater threat of injury that the benefits that could be obtained. You're probably in this category. Just get your deadlift up to 200 and worry about cleans then.

Right now I'm just doing deadlifts but if it turns out they are just too much to do them every time, I will start swapping out other things. In addition to the SS stuff I add a few other things anyway in my attempt to one day be able to do a pullup. So eventually maybe I can do the version of his program that has chins and pullups.

It sucks when you are so far below the starting place that even a program called Starting Strength is too far advanced.

[Owly]

Not too advanced, necessarily--I find that a lot of programs are designed with dudes in mind, so the suggested weights are just not great for beginner women. My CF box had 33lb bars for women who were starting out, which is a more reasonable starting point for a lot of us than a 45lb bar. Fractional plates help too (they had ones as small as .5lb). It sounds like you're doing pretty well using the fixed barbells and working on the movements, so don't sweat it if the unloaded 45lb bar is heavy.

Hell, the bar represents more than 50% of my 1RM for strict presses, and I've been lifting for a while now. If I want to start my warmup at 40%, I'm still heading over to the fixed barbell rack. It's all well and good to say "start off with an unloaded bar", but for many newbie women, that's pretty freaking heavy to expect them to press 5 times.

Also, you can totally sub Australian pullups, assisted pullups, negatives, dead hangs, or whatever you're doing as your pullup progression for the pullup portion of the program. A lot of guys can't do those at the outset either, so it's fine if you're still working on them.

I sometimes struggle with feeling like a wimp compared to the dudes at the gym. The newbie teenage boys with noodle arms walk in and bench more than I can. It's hard to remind yourself that testosterone and differences in muscle distribution really do matter and that the vast majority of programs out there are designed with a guy's starting strength level in mind.

[Toshison]

I sometimes struggle with feeling like a wimp compared to the dudes at the gym. The newbie teenage boys with noodle arms walk in and bench more than I can. It's hard to remind yourself that testosterone and differences in muscle distribution really do matter and that the vast majority of programs out there are designed with a guy's starting strength level in mind.

As a fairly big guy myself, I will say that there is nothing more impressive than an incredibly fit woman. In fact, when I go to the gym, the one person I see regularly that inspires me the most is a woman (who is incredibly lean and impressively fit) versus other bigger, stronger guys. I also see from watching how hard my wife works (who's a group fitness instructor), how much slower gains/progress can be for women.

Don't worry about feeling like a wimp either. I think its best to surround yourself with people you can learn off and feed off versus say going somewhere where you are the king/queen of the hill and people are learning/feeding off you. If you are the best in the room (and you're not the teacher), you are in the wrong room.

I always try to put myself in situations/class etc where Im the crappiest guy in the room. For example, if I walk into a random group fitness class, like a yoga class, I feel totally out of my element and kinda like a wimp too since Im probably the least experienced in the room. Its a good gut and ego check to help you stay humble and always learning. Maybe think of it that way.

[Owly]

I usually like to remind myself that I lift hard with good form and that I'm making the weight room a space that's hopefully more friendly for other women to join. I notice another woman there who is sort of like me--she's a bit nerdy, she's not dressed to be super trendy or sexy or worried about whether benching is going to mess up her hair, she's just there to work hard and she always has a smile for other women when they come into the space.

And you're right--a lot of guys respect anyone who's there working hard and getting fit, regardless of strength or gender. Not all of them are like that (that's something for another thread), but many of them are happy to share the space as long as you're not doing curls in the squat rack. I like getting the nod from the grizzled old guy who looks like he's been lifting almost as long as Jack LaLanne when I drop down from doing chinups.

(Oh, and I'm not a wimp for a woman my size...it's just that when my partner does his first warmup set on the bench with my max, it's a bit of an eye-opener!)

[Mr. Anthony]

I've said "thanks" to females who are in the weight room doing serious lifting before, just letting them know I appreciate it when I see a woman doing real weight work. Pretty sure I don't freak them out...

I'm strong as crap--I do heavy weighted pull-ups, my warmup set on bench is 225--but I'm way more impressed when I see a small female dumbbell pressing with 40 lbs in each hand. Keep working hard, ladies, it's appreciated!

Edit: that whole post was off-topic so: I typically only squat heavy one day/week. I add in some plyos, lunges, front squats, whatever on some other days. But I hate heavy squat day, so I'm probably a bad example. It's hands-down my only weak spot in my workout program.

[canuck416]

For what its worth here is my current 3 Day training cycle. Day 1 - Weights -Legs, Chest, Back, Abs Day 2 - Sprint intervals and Weights - Shoulders and Arms, Day 3 - easy 3 mile run or hike. I alternate heavy squats and endurance squats, so the first Day 1 is heavy squats, the next Day 1 is sets of 30. Seems to be working great for me.