The Body as One Piece program

[coolcolj]

The Body as One Piece program by Dan John
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This is a real world program. It took years to develop, so it went through a lot of revisions. I will try to make the stuff that doesn't make sense, make sense.


Week one
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Monday

Power Snatch
6 sets of 3 (18 reps) trying to do two double pyramids
After each set of snatches, immediately do a quick set of light hang or "top" snatches with 30% of your best snatch. Dumbbells can be used here, too. (Think 8-10 reps)

Tuesday

Overload Squats, six heavy sets. Overload squats need spotters. The athlete takes a max or near max weight, fights to go down under control and then is assisted back up. Be sure the athlete comes up quickly! (And does most of the squatting) Reps are supposed to be high, but it really is hard to do more than three to five. Immediately after racking the bar, the athlete does ten vertical jumps, it is best if there is a target to touch (ceiling, rim, top of head, if really tired).

Wednesday

If able, do Power Curls 6 sets of 3, with two pyramids
If fatigued, straight leg deadlifts
Or rest (the first time through, many athletes can't walk after overload squats)

Thursday

Rest


Friday

Bench Press
6 sets of 3, immediately followed by Push presses with 30% of best bench. Dumbbells don't work well.


Week two
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Monday

Power Snatch
7 Sets of 5 (35 reps, double last weeks volume of reps) followed by 30% quick lifts

Tuesday

Overhead Squats. Reps are five's. The athlete can do a single "ladder" sets of five to best, or, the double pyramid style of going up once, backing off and going up again. If gym situation permits, mix with exaggerated skipping or bounding

Wednesday

Straight leg deadlifts


Thursday

Rest


Friday

Bench Press
7 Sets of 5, mixed with 30% push presses (again 8-10 on these 30% lifts)

Week three
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Monday

Pyramid up to best double in power snatch. No "fuzzy logic" here. Get two reps or it doesn't count!

Tuesday

Test on vertical jump (jump and reach) and standing long jump. This is more important than it looks. We found the athletes really began to improve here in two cycles.

Wednesday

Power Curls up to a heavy triple


Thursday

Rest


Friday

Oddest thing of the program: Max 8 reps in 8 seconds on Bench. Using a stopwatch, see how much the athlete can bench 8 times in 8 seconds. It takes, perhaps, three cycles to get this right, but it is illuminating when the athlete throws the shot or disc. Improvement here leads to improvement in the throws, and the football field and the ...


Week four

Unload.

Either rest from weights or do circuit-like training.

 

[Doktor Bollix]

Awesome CoolCol, props to you for coming up with a lot of good stuff lately.

 

[coolcolj]

I'm always searching for new stuff

I'm waiting for my copy of Supertraining to arrive, awesome book. A must have for all athlete's reference library.

 

[Arioch]

Did they give a reason for sets of five in the overhead squat? That seems incredibly high when you consider the CNS fatigue that occurs with this exercise. Most OL'ers do sets of 1-2 to avoid dropping the bar. It is not exactly a mass building exercise, unless your rhomboids are weak.

 

[Doktor Bollix]

I can't do one set of overhead squats, haven't got the necessary flexibility yet. I've been doing a lot of dislocates, holding an olympic bar at the cuffs overhead and bringing the bar back as far as possible. I've been doing this 3 or 4 times a week, hopefully I'll be able to overhead squat with an empty bar soon.

 

[coolcolj]

Not sure, but I do sets of 5 myself. But I use quite light weights, concentarting more on speed, but yes after 4 reps you start to huff and puff a bit. I generally take a breather between reps.

Snatches sure get your blood moving. When I do snatches in slo mo when your warming up, you feel untaxed . But when you start to move it faster using just the empty bar, man does the breathing go heavy, and your core temp jumps, and sweats starts to pour out.
Its my warmup move of choice.

Beats cardio machien for warming up


Arioch - I've been doing split hang jump snatches where I jump normally but split upon landing. Is it ok to jump from a split and alternate legs as you land? Never seen anyone do a hang snatch from a split jump, as oppsed to a split landing. Think this may help my one legged layup jump power.

On a related note, as my arms get bigger I'm finding it harder and harder to rack the bar in an Olympic style Front squat, The bar sits on my chest fine, just that I right now I only have one set of knuckles under the bar from my hands

 

[Arioch]

Arioch - I've been doing split hang jump snatches where I jump normally but split upon landing. Is it ok to jump from a split and alternate legs as you land? Never seen anyone do a hang snatch from a split jump, as oppsed to a split landing. Think this may help my one legged layup jump power.

This is fine. One of the benefits of the split style is that it forces you to pull the bar higher.

Below is a link to a pick of the great Norb Schemansky, who set a record in the snatch at 37 years of age as a SHW. This record stood for an incredible 7 years.

http://www.geocities.com/Colosseum/Field/7342/Nrbrts.jpg


There is a reason OL'ers do not waste time doing curls.

 

[skyflyer231]

Intriguing

 

[AEKDB]

Bump - Because this should be in the vault.

 

[AEKDB]

Its been a year since I bumped it last. I know Dan John's link is in the vault but since his server crashed the old stuff is just too hard to read through.