Blut Wump - Korte 3x3

[blut wump]

An I see that make more sense to break up all the heavy days and separate dead and squat as much as you can.

I'm also hoping that I'll be able to attempt a deadlift without feeling bleary-eyed while I'm doing it.

I'm not yet sure why the Bench gets so much Volume. You have to think while you're running this program either that Korte has a really poor bench and felt the need to work it or his bench was so good that he simply had no respect for it.

It seems like a good system. On each day, two of the exercises go light while you work the third. This might be why the program doesn't have a fixed deload period, as such. Also you only do singles on the heavy lifts; none of this heavy 3x3 nonsense.

 

[blut wump]

Week 5 Day 1

First day of the Intensity Phase. It wasn't the easy ride I was half expecting. My legs were still aching from last week and my knee was still giving me grief.

Putting the ache in my legs aside, though, the Squats went fine. No real surprise considering I was only doing 9 reps rather than the 35 reps last Friday with a higher weight.

Ditto Bench: no big deal. The Korte articles don't mention cycling the grip during this phase but I decided to do it anyway. I decided the do sets 1, 3, 5 with my Wide grip and slot the other two in between.

Deadlift was a bit of a shock. It felt heavy and that includes the sets to get up to the weight I was doing on Friday. I still felt tired when I reached deads and my lower thighs were aching as was my lower back again. I think I'm still a bit of a wreck from last week and I'm glad I have until Friday before attempting my first heavy(ish) squat. I was in a bit of a quandary as to how to ramp my warmup sets. I didn't want to make too large a leap at any stage but I was also concerned about burning away my precious energy. The second top single went up comfortably enough but I felt like I was going to pop a blood vessel.

I have a concern about the 60% weights in that maybe they are too low. I might have to see about bumping them as time passes.


All weights in Kilos
Bench: N - Narrow, S - Shoulder width, W - Wide

ATF Squat: 20x10, 30x10, 50x8, 60x5, 80x3, 100x3x3
Bench: 20x10NS, 40x8W, 60x5N, 80x3S, 90 x 4 for 5 sets WNWSW
Deadlift: 60x8, 80x5, 100x3, 120x2, 130x1, 140x1, 150x1, 160x1, 167.5 x 1 for 2 sets

 

[anotherbutters]

You're still loaded. Hopefully you will deload and find things easier, quicker than the weights go up and you find things harder, if you know what I mean

Are there any kind of guidelines anywhere for the total number of warmup sets to do when building up to a heavy single? To my (inexperienced) eye, I'd say you were doing too many and the top warmup was too close to the actual top set. What do you think about this:

Deadlift: 60x8, 90x5, 110x3, 130x1, 150x1, 167.5 x 1 for 2 sets

That's still 5 warmup sets. I'm asking a question as much as suggesting anything.

As for the 60% weights, the main concern is obviously not them, but the singles. I'd keep the 60% as they are until you're happy with the singles.

 

[view]

gotta agree with anotherbrutters here. stick with the 60% effort on the other lifts. You have a huge load that needs to be deloading.

 

[blut wump]

Thanks to both of you. There's no question that I'm loaded to the gills. I can hardly credit that I was considering for a while on Friday that it might be worth trying to run another Volume week to dig myself in deeper. Insanity.

The 'warmups' today were a bit of a dilemma. I was confident that I would be able to lift the top set but I was not confident that some part of me wouldn't decide the weight was too heavy if I made too large a leap. I think I need to find something part way between what I did and what AB suggested. Of course, it gets worse each week as the top set gets higher. I'll see if a Plat search comes up with some good suggestions. I recall Curgeo giving someone advice.

I'll not be messing with the 60% weights until they really do start to feel too light. One aspect to the 60% weights, though, is that if I were using a suit or shirt then the raw 60% lifts would be heavier than they are since I do all my lifts raw. Still, deloading is the first priority at this time.

 

[anotherbutters]

Let us know if you find anything interesting on the warmups. I think you're right to cut some out, it's just a matter of how many and I'm sure there isn't a 'correct' answer. The fact that today was hard suggests that there were too many.

When you said you didn't want to make too large a leap at any stage, if you think about them as percentages, they're no bigger no matter which week you're in. Compare a big guy pulling 600 with a little guy pulling 200. Who needs more warmups? I'd venture they're the same.

On the suit, from what I remember Korte suggests wearing the suit only for the last two weeks, and I can only assume that it doesn't apply to the 60% weights in those two weeks. Why bother suiting up for a 60% lift when the purpose of those particular days is the single in deads or squats?

 

[anotherbutters]

My God, I almost sound like I know what I'm talking about.

 

[blut wump]

Here's a link with a couple more links inside it from madcow:
http://www.elitefitness.com/forum/showthread.php?t=393729

Don't forget that I've not pulled heavy for over a month and that I'm fatigued. They felt heavy around the point I was passing 100Kg but I was confident my muscles could cope to the end. I was mostly nursing my CNS which is unused to the exertion. I think I do typically take smallish increments when I start to get close to a top lift. It's just that today I crept up slowly through the lower end too.

On the suit and 60% aspect: if I were to wear a suit, belt and wraps then my top squat would be closer to 200Kg or more than the 160Kg I'm aiming for. Accordingly, my 60% value would be closer to 120Kg since all percentages are taken from your fully-equipped competition lifts even though you do most of the program raw. I think it's one of the flaws of the Korte and the way it considers its percentages. You only use gear for the heavy lifts in the Intensity Phase. All I have is my belt for the squats.

 

[blut wump]

My God, I almost sound like I know what I'm talking about.

 

[Jim Ouini]

Comp phase is de facto deloading, correct? You've cut your volume and kept intensity high, increasing it as it were. Or would it have been better to do a 'Week 5 Madcow' and cut your volume while keeping the weights the same as Week 4 for proper deloading?

As far as warmups go I too will be interested to see how you approach it as you approach 100% 1RM. I feel the same way in that I like to be within sight of my top weight just for the confidence thingy.

Today a guy I know was deadlifting and he said 405 x 10 was 'easy' (touch 'n go, but still his first went up no problem) and he slapped another plate on (he'd never done it). He had his hands on the bar and it didn't budge at all. he tried 2 more times and nothing, I think mentally he was gone already.