Dbc, Liftbig, Bob...

[spatts]

I want to hear it from those of you who actually TRAIN AT Westside (or did), do they, or do they NOT, squat (1RM, FULL ROM) regularly?

I need help with my squat game plan, and I'm starting to feel like I don't squat often enough. Out of the 2 comps I've done, I was shocked about my squat both times, because I always go into it clueless, for lack of practice.

I want 450 by June. I need a game plan.

 

[Liftbig]

i wouldnt say regulary. about 98% of squatting is done off a box, so if you mean free squat then no not regurly. but as far as box squat, on me day every few weeks we will do a low box, or hassock with different bars. do you know what kind of carryover you get from box squats to you comp squat?

 

[Imnotdutch]

I cant answer your question........I was just wondering what your squat PR is.

I want to hear it from those of you who actually TRAIN AT Westside (or did), do they, or do they NOT, squat (1RM, FULL ROM) regularly?

I need help with my squat game plan, and I'm starting to feel like I don't squat often enough. Out of the 2 comps I've done, I was shocked about my squat both times, because I always go into it clueless, for lack of practice.

I want 450 by June. I need a game plan.

 

[spatts]

Gym or comp, imnotdutch?

Liftbig, I hit you on AIM. I don't do low box squats nearly that often. Perhaps I should bring them up in the rotation. Also, I thought the hassock squats got phased out...they're still doing those? I've been training for strength for 10 months, and was only able to secure my squat form (with the help of Bob Youngs) weeks before my first comp, in November 2002. I have the form down now, I have excellent speed, but I need to squat more weight...plain and simple. The first meet, I went down and up with 365 like there was nothing on my back at all. This last comp, I was suffering from a kidney infection and failed a 405. I got to the bottom headed up, and felt (for lack of a better way to say it) like I as going to give birth to a kidney, right there. No more "making weight" for me. Anyway...I'm not sure of the carryover because I'm still in a very experimental stage.

FWIW, I went through a circamax phase based on a 365 squat this last time, and the WHOLE cycle felt too easy. I topped out at greens plus 204 pounds, and still had decent speed. Perhaps this means I need to work the bottom part more.

 

[DBCooper]

The only time I've taken a weight with straps up and free squatted was a few weeks out and still only worked up to under my opener-usually trying a new/different suit on. Like last meet I went up to 675 free weight and did 875 at the meet, my circa max was the hardest tho 455 with the large blue and green bands. Heavy back work is key if your back and hips are strong all you need to do is fine tune your speed. So basicly besides a meet I will do full squats about 3 times a year in full gear. BTW what meet in June?

 

[spatts]

That's exactly what we do/did.

 

[DBCooper]

Remember you have ME day so go heavy on back work etc, we work heavy on 10/12/14" red bar box squats9w/wo bands-chains) , hassock squats, belt squats, standing good mornings with the cambered bar/red bar/out of chains, rack pulls from diff heights, pulls standing on mats, pulls with bands around the bar, reverse band pulls, and then sometimes for 3 reps on any/all, hell if I can good morning 725 I can sure as hell squat it, if I can pull over 7 on standing on mats I can pull it at any meet. If you want take a couple heavy box squat days before your meet. Change your ME stuff weekly.

 

[Imnotdutch]

Gym lift will do.......sounds like you were capable of more in that comp if your kidneys didnt play up.

 

[spatts]

Most of that sounds like what we do.

For example, two weeks before the meet, I did 36" chain suspended GM's 415 x 3, and wasn't totally spent. Then I crap out on a 405 squat? WTF? Granted...the kidney thing, but still. In general, my squat is messing with my head. I love to deadlift, and my bench...well, I never expected to have a bench, so I'm ecstatic that 270 was easy. I guess I just take what I can get on bench...I work hard, but I'm not as upset about a weaker bench (given the rehabbing shoulders) than I am a weak squat.

 

[DBCooper]

One thing we do before a meet the last 2-3 weeks we tend to focus on our hard ass circa max on fridays and will ease up on Monday to assure recovery, like work up to a set of 3-5 and then just do accesory(sp) lol work.

 

[flapwrlftr]

S-
I agree with DB and he knows his stuff. I work up to my opener in the squat 6 weeks out from the meet and then do 3 weeks of a semi circa max followed by two weeks of de-load. I think you need to compete more often. You are very strong, but still new to the sport. Keep in mind that I did my first meet in 1991. Up until 2000 or so I competed every 8-10 weeks.

 

[spatts]

Thanks, B. I definitely agree about DB; I have abused his knowledge base a time or two.

When you work up to your opener 6 weeks out, do you then base your circa max phase on THAT number? This falls in line with what I emailed you about several weeks ago, when I felt my CMP should be based on the numbers I aspire to, not the ones I know I'm already capable of. As I mentioned above, I was doing 204 plus greens and not losing speed, which tells me, along with other factors, that the bottom of my squat is suddenly the weak link (which is new).

It was also brought to my attention that competing in a single poly squat suit, with NO briefs, which has gotten loose since the last comp, didn't help. I had planned on competing every 12 weeks, but if you think I should try for more than that, I will certainly consider it. I was just telling liftbig that I wanted to do a comp in April (for my 1 year mark in PLing) and wanted to do the June meet too. That's about 8 weeks from now, and then again 8 weeks later.

 

[DBCooper]

Just count it as another workout, unless you find your way stronger than what you thought, you can always add weight/or bands the last set or two to up the ante. Changing stuff that close to a meet can be bad, set a goal and hit that first. oh and abuse away

 

[spatts]

I would like more ideas for working the stregth at the bottom of the squat. Hassock squats, low box squats, dip squats....what else? Do you work with the weight releasers at all?

Thanks for all the help so far.

 

[b fold the truth]

Spatts:

I posted this on a Strongman board the other day when someone was asking my opinion about how I was using WSB to bring up my deadlift (via the box squat). Maybe a little out of context here...but it might help you a bit.

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Hey man...I have been varying my weights and band use on the box squats (speed, DE squat, WSB style).

My box is about 13.5-14" tall which is right at or slighly below parallel for me. My stance is also fairly wide (near or at 50" from widest point to widest point).

For a few contests I would run a Circa Max phase and I would use 275, 300, 310, 325 plus 250-400 pounds of band tension on the bar for 6 sets of 2 with 45 seconds of rest between sets. I do feel that it helped to make me VERY explosive but I found that it was just too rough on my joints while doing heavy and intense events.

For Boston I decided to do the following:
275/325 (3 sets of 2 each) with 45 sec rest between then 2 heavy singles
295/350 (3 sets of 2 each) with 45 sec rest between then 2 heavy singles
315/365 (3 sets of 2 each) with 45 sec rest between then 2 heavy singles

I would then rotate back down and start at week 1 again.

I used to use between 50-75% of my 1RM on Squats but I found that my body would recover more by using even less. Bob Youngs also suggested this to me a long time ago for Strongman (even though I didn't listen to him at the time). Right now I would like to think that I could do a raw squat with about 575-625 and do an 'equipped' squat with 650+. Right now I am using 258 and 315 on my box squats and taking some heavier weights after my 6 sets.

Week 1: 258/315 (3 sets of 2 each) with 45 sec rest between then 2 sets of 5 reps with 348
Week 2: 258/315 (3 sets of 2 each) with 45 sec rest between then 2 sets of 5 reps with 365

Week 3: 258/315 (3 sets of 2 each) with 45 sec rest between then 2 sets of 3 with 405
Week 4: 258/315 (3 sets of 2 each) with 45 sec rest between then 2 sets of 3 with 438

Week 5: 258/315 (3 sets of 2 each) with 45 sec rest between then 2 heavy singles (somewhere around 500-535)
Week 6: 258/315 (3 sets of 2 each) with 45 sec rest between then 2 heavy singles (somewhere around 525-565)

I do all of my squatting completely raw...but I have been pulling that way also.

Note that I also use the method of 'increase the deadlift by committee'. I use box squats, speed deads, pull throughs, glute ham raises, reverse hypers, good mornings, etc...to bring up my deads. I also hit my abs hard and heavy using full ROM exercises and most of them are straight legged (reps from 3-20).
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Right now I am wanting to increase my base strength some more...so I plan on taking more heavy weights after my DE sets (only doing 6 now).

I hope that this helps some...

B True

 

[spatts]

Thanks, B

 

[flapwrlftr]

S-
I have actually decided to completely scrap my circa max. I am just going to do a regular phase going into the meet. I did one week of my circa and it was just too much. My elbows hurt so bad it was going to screw up my bench. I base my percents off of what I did last meet.

 

[spatts]

How low are your low box squats?

 

[flapwrlftr]

I use a 12" box for low boxes and squat on a 14.5" box on DE day.