7 replies to this topic

[Streetdawg]

after 10 wks consecutively heavy progression I hit 715 on squats. a new PR for me at age 46. yes I am an old dawg. but far from dead

hit the top of my mountain for a short moment-enjoyed the breeze, and now back down the other side again. I'm now going lite and getting some recovery in for 4-5 wks. then will hit it again hard for 10-12 wks. hoping to hit 735-750 next round.

so many people dont understand the importance of cycle training & wind up overtrained. those that compete have no choice but to train in cycles. but the recreational & hardcore gym rats also need to train in cycles to maximize gains over time.

what works for me is 10-12 wks progressive heavy phases then 4-6 weeks lower intensity with pretty much all light weight hi reps to recover fully. everyone has to find what works best for them by trial and error.

I see way too many guys in my gym going balls to the walls til they drop. it typically works for 4-5mos at best. then injury or illness or both hit. even with AAS, etc, one will get overtrained and injured in time.

SD

[Streetdawg]

sure no prob! always here to help out when I can

seems in Jan or Feb I may have posted a long one on all the things it took to hit 700 the first time.

SD

[Anabolic Beast]

Congratulations on the new squat PR!

[Streetdawg]

Thanks AB

I'm on the porch with the puppies in time out behaving for now.....

have to have a break from myself to recoup

SD

[m6speed]

congrats man!

i've been trying to tell my buddy to do cycle training but he only wants to lift hard/heavy all the time with no change in routine.

[Streetdawg]

M6 - its easy to do when you're eager and wanting it all as soon as possible. the body sorta has a way of shutting down or slowing down after a certain point once the central nervous system (CNS) gets overloaded long enough. even just changing it up every 6wks is good too but the level of intensity has to drop at some point regardless of light wt or heavy weights. and when you get your absolute strongest - who wants to stop there? most want to keep going up the mountain. reality is though that you dont keep getting stronger and it tapers off all on its own.

SD

[mad_dawg]

Good job SD! That's an awesome squat. Now you get to enjoy the break from all that load (both mental and physical). I always have to cycle my workloads when getting ready for meets too. I'm about your age at 43 and it is hard now days to keep my strength high all the time. I can stay fairly strong (if not injured) but not at my peak. It seemed like it was easier when I was younger.

Keep up the awesome work!
Mad_dawg

[Streetdawg]

thanks MD!

I get that whole part of staying pretty strong yr round but not at peak strength for so long. I enjoy the high while it lasts from the peak & then accept it being short lived. its not like being 22 anymore is it?!

SD