reasonable strength goals and a path to getting there

[pistachio]

hi all

ok, well after doing a lot of reading on here about the benefits of strength training in building an impressively muscular physique, i have decided to dedicate approximately 12 months to getting strong.

i am not sure when i am going to start this, could be as soon as 2 weeks or as much as 2 months. i need to sort out a few issues first, namely my squat technique and flexibility before attempting to lift heavy. staying injury free is a priority over this period. when i start, i will do a full series of measurements, photos etc to see the changes that such a style of training will make.

what would be reasonable goals in this period of time? im thinking sometihng like:

squat: 175kg (not sure what i can do properly at the moment, although it should be at least 100kg. as mentioned above, i need to get my squat technique right, so i will probably be starting VERY light and hoping to progress quite quickly)
deadlifts (sumo): 200kg (currently 6 x 160kg, only just started sumo style)
military press: 100kg (currently can do 70kg for about 5)
bench: 150kg (done 145kg before, although this was years ago and i would like to do the 150kg with strict technique)
wg chins: +40kg x 10 (can currently do +20 x 6)

does this sound realistic? as the squat is my weakest lift, this will need the greatest attention.

any recommendations on a good program to get me here? bear in mind that hypertrophy is still my main goal and i am really just using strength goals as a proxy for getting me there... although i think 100kg military press would be pretty neat to see at the gym hehe

thanks in advance
Pistachio

 

[NPR]

Stop cutting and start eating big if you want strength and hypertrophy.

Get your squat and deadlift technique down 100% I cant stress this enough! Without the correct movement you are wasting your time. PPP would be good for your strength level on these movements when your form is good.

For bench I would do a westside style program, 1 day heavy and one speed. Thats how I made the most progress on my bench.

Cycle through good assistance/supplementary exercises like front squats, pulls, rows, chins, dips and over head presses and you should be good to go.

 

[dave]

Nick gives good advice and i bet your squat is much better than you think. Post up a few vids of your lifts if you want.

 

[pistachio]

thanks mate, yeah, i probably will stop the cut prematurely, just want to get down to a respectable body fat level first as i realise i will gain some fat doing this, but don't want to end up overweight by the end of it.

yup, working on the squat and deadlift as we speak. spent an hour yesterday trying to do a 'perfect' goblet squat, some overhead squats, trying to get as deep as possible. this is a work in progress lol. i need to get this sorted before starting a new program, hence the variable start date. i think my sumo deadlift is ok, although i am still working on this. all i know is that my lower back doesn't hurt after doing deads anymore so that has to be a good thing IMO

i've seen a lot of people mention PPP although have no idea what it is... i'll have to look it up. i'll have to look up westside style too lol

so what about rep ranges? im assuming full body workouts, 3 times a week would be the go too? i like the idea of cycling through the assistance/supplementary exercises, keeps things from getting stale..

 

[pistachio]

Nick gives good advice and i bet your squat is much better than you think. Post up a few vids of your lifts if you want.

i wouldn't be so sure lol, in any case, im pretty sure my technique hasn't been correct after spending the best part of 2 hours watching various videos and reading various posts on the topic...

i don't have a video camera at all, so not sure how i could go about posting up the videos... otherwise i'd probably give it a go.

i reckon a year of training like this would have a pretty good impact on my physique. 100kg used to be a pipe dream to me, now i've been just a whisper away at 99kg. now even 110kg seems achievable if i really wanted it.

i used to always say 100kg lean was my goal, then convinced myself it wasn't possible (naturally). now im beginning to think that it just might be..

 

[pistachio]

also, just wanted to add that my traps are greatly lagging (along with legs) so anything that will add some serious mass here would be great

i tried those hise shrugs, maybe i was doing it wrong, but it didn't seem to really do that much?? the ROM seemed to be very small too, although this could possibly be a flexibility issue

 

[brendon]

cleans, hang cleans will get your traps growing

 

[dave]

110kg lean is a nice goal at your height (6'2 area yeah?). You could always get some one to photograph you squatting, just go nuts and get as many photos per rep as you can and then post them up. Or better yet (depending where you are) go find a good coach for a couple of sessions to teach you.

Also try SquatRx (search for it) you can get some good tips from there on what to do.

 

[pistachio]

cleans, hang cleans will get your traps growing

cheers mate, getting bits and pieces of info here, just got to piece them all together into once mass building program!

110kg lean is a nice goal at your height (6'2 area yeah?). You could always get some one to photograph you squatting, just go nuts and get as many photos per rep as you can and then post them up. Or better yet (depending where you are) go find a good coach for a couple of sessions to teach you.

Also try SquatRx (search for it) you can get some good tips from there on what to do.

hmm, 110 lean might be pushing it lol, i was thinking get to 110kg and then lean up to 100kg. then again, i am 95kg at the moment and reasonably lean... yeah, about 6'1.5 ish

yeah, photos isn't a bad idea actually.. hmm, i'll see if i can rustle something up. i'll see if i can get my form as good as possible, and then see if i can get some photos or vids up here to see if i'm on the right track

 

[dave]

NPR is/was 110 and lean at 6'2. He is currently coming off an injury so he may be a tad lighter/not as lean. Also all natural.

At your height that is an achievable target with lots of eating and hard work.

 

[NPR]

108kg naked in the morning after a piss but nice and lean.

Those numbers are VERY doable in a year, dont worry about bodyweight.

Videos of your squat would really help. Front and side view please.

 

[pistachio]

110kg lean would be a lofty goal indeed, but we'll see how it goes i'd probably have to pack on at least 10 inches on my legs to get there tho lol

i'll see what i can do about some vids, maybe one of my friends has a video camera on their phone or something.

so can anyone recommend a good program to achieve these goals? should it be a split (deads one day, squats another or whatever), or the same workout each time with minor variations in exercises? and what kind of rep ranges should i be looking at?

i have pretty much exclusively trained with a pyramid style, 10,8,6 reps increasing the weight each set.

 

[dave]

Nick put up good suggestions before. PPP will do it though I like squatting twice a week when your squat is still weak though. I see you are in Perth, talk to amac on here about the gym he goes to. You can get some good coaching on technique from there.

 

[pistachio]

Nick put up good suggestions before. PPP will do it though I like squatting twice a week when your squat is still weak though. I see you are in Perth, talk to amac on here about the gym he goes to. You can get some good coaching on technique from there.

i had a look for PPP, but all google showed me is public private parternships lol. and on here the search won't show anything for some reason.

westside style sounds interesting, but that might be a little bit advanced for where i am now..

i'll have a chat to amac, cheers

 

[Shrek]

PPP is a PTC program. You can PM him and he will e-mail you a copy for a nominal fee of course. Also there is a thread on it here.

http://ausbb.com/strength-training-power-lifting/11113-ptc-ppp.html


There are also numerous member using this. Check out the training diaries.

 

[Stevo82]

Msg PTC on here think it around $20 a very small investment, I going to stop fukn around and do it myself.

 

[pistachio]

PPP is a PTC program. You can PM him and he will e-mail you a copy for a nominal fee of course. Also there is a thread on it here.

http://ausbb.com/strength-training-power-lifting/11113-ptc-ppp.html


There are also numerous member using this. Check out the training diaries.

50 pages, fuck me!! i'll see if i can read through all of it lol. thanks shrek, i'll have a look through and see if it is something that would suit me

 

[JDizzle]

Bench 4 plates, Squat 5 plates, deadlift 6 plates would be good goals for you in the long run

or squat 4, deadlift 5 in 12 months

go!

 

[PTC]

For those of you brandishing around numbers

Arnold was 106kg at 6'1 1/2" during the Olympia featured in Pumping Iron.

Feel free to compare yourselves.

You guys get the idea

 

[pistachio]

i have that second one on my bedroom wall lol

i think weights are pretty meaningless when comparing people tho, at the same weight, two people can look unbelievably different (even at the same body fat, same height etc)

that said, i think 106kg ripped would be pretty damn ambitious for me, if i made it to 100kg lean i'd be pretty happy, 110kg lean would have to be close to my natural limits..