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^ almost 1 sec.. just enough to kill bar momentum and really let my hams rest flat on the calves. i cannot do as much bounce from the hole in a front squat because too much bar movement can really get my wrist hurting.. then i drop the bar forward. need more practice with heavy front squats..

^ no. i wont say maxed out.. if i can repeatedly pause lift 440-445, aiming for repeatable 495s (non-paused) is not really impossible within a year. i mentioned that im prioritizing sprinting, front squats, broad jump and cleans right now, thats why any big volume of squat workout that will add too much fatigue is minimized or taken out..

if i were to really just focus entirely on the back squat max weight, i would add more volumes of back-off sets and eat a lot more.. probably not lift every single day also..

lifting daily for 14+ weeks also makes a high volume smolov workout less intimidating.. i might do that again.

^ strongest i've been lately was when i took the 445x1 paused rep vid at a wet BW of 172lbs. i was weaker when i was at 180-190lb BW. (squat high 300s at 180-190lb BW) i was jumping mid to high 30s at 180-192lb BW. 

im happy to be jumping high 30s repetitively (39x2" with vid.. no 40 on vid) at this BW without breaking anything. i don't think my knees will last as long if i was jumping the same height at 190-200lbs BW, (even if i get stronger and maintain the same squat ratio)

it could be just mental. but i jump a lot higher if i feel very lean and boosted up with 3-4shots of black expresso. i can't be at sub 170lb. for one, i need to qualify and make the 180lb minimum weight.

^ ive been stuck in high 30s/40s for quite some time now. unless i really slim down to mid-low 160s while keeping the same leg strength.. there is just no way to jump any higher.. faster.

Tue
Jan 10, 2012

Daily Squats Maintenance - Paused Reps
[150,200,250x4][300,350x2][400,410,420,430x1]

* plan for the volume back up sets did not fit my schedule. have meeting tmrw morning and can not afford to burn myself out right now. i will get all the sleep/rest i can get and i'l lift tmrw afternoon.
* happy to get 430x1 even with my daily 135lb back extensions. i just cut the reps down to 4-6, multi sets spread throughout the day.
* excited to get the new romaloes when they come out this january. i saw the new adiPower also available now but the all red color is not really my style.

looks like the adidas version of the romaleos. they are not cheap - $200 now.

^ thanks for the tips. i'm doing the sprint workouts to prepare for a combine testing.. so no competitive running there, just individual timed sprints.

Sun
Jan 8, 2012

Daily Squats Maintenance - Paused Reps
[150,200,250,300x4][350x2][400x1]

* worked night shift and did not get full 8+hr of rest yet. legs/form was ok. just did not recover well.  planned to go 400-410 max. a prep day for tmrws overshoot. no backup sets.

Dedication + Ruthless Aggression + Consistency + Focus + Passion + Intelligent Training + Go.Get.It

consistency beats all.. some sort of intelligent training helps.. but its mostly the ability to just do it again and again.

give darqui a break. he is just recovering from accumulated stress and abuse he did.. 1 step back, 2 steps forward.

How is the 60m coming along?  Do you have a decent way of timing yourself.  A really impressive goal, interested in seeing your mechanics at top speed.  I tried to increase my squat frequency although I don't have near your work capacity and also have problems with recovery because of track work... BUT... moved squatting from 1-2X week to 3-4x week.  Only problem is anything greater than singles with more than 350 gives me low and mid back soreness that ruins me for a few days are ruins the next workout.  For example Wednesday was 3x315,3x3x365 paused... Today my back hurt too much to front squat more than 245.  Have you ever dealt with back soreness like this?  Does it go away?  Weirdly my legs seem to adapt just fine and stay in a sort of sore but tight state which doesn't hinder training but my back just gets tighter and hurts more and more. 

- my acceleration has been improving a lot with the contrasting sled drags + sprint workouts. calves, glutes and quads got bigger. no formal timing yet. im doing my GPP type training on my own. i will not have time to train and get solid top speed mechanics. plan is to go apeshit on the acceleration and hopefully by the time it decays, the distance has already been covered in decent time. 60m is just 1 test.

- yes, sprint training is very draining. one thing i learned lately is that it is very difficult to make a sub-max workout in sprinting.. its mostly all out all the time. the only way to control intensity is to not do it often. my squat dropped from 440x1 top sets for 14+ days to a barely 400-410x1. i felt so weak in the squat it was not cool at all. the strong is coming back again and by sun-mon.. il be back to paused 440 again.

- front squats really require strong spinal erectors to keep the torso solid. with the way i do my back squats, i rely also a lot on keeping my torso solid and upright. my secret is the GHR (at home) - weighted back extensions in the mid-high rep range. i do it whenever it feels right. high rep 135s then chug down protein shakes. my spinal erectors got massive just from those.

- yes, tight/sore legs does not mean a bad squat workout. in fact, i usually lift heavier when i have some sort of that quad lock feeling. sore lowerback and everything is mush, squat strength at least -30 to -40lb easily.  i actually thought that the floor was uneven at one point because i cant seem to keep everything solid..

- sore lowerback: use smith machine bar to foam roll yourself. find a way to dig deep into the muscles. good luck on your training. i like sprinting. i don't like how it kills the squats if you over do it.