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June 6, 2005
Is Traditional Power Cycling Obsolete?
No. Progressive overload cycling is the most reliable muscle and strength building method, period. It has produced great champions like Marty Gallagher's star pupil Kirk Karwoski. 'Captain Kirk' squatted a grand and his legs have been compared to a T-rex’s for their Jurassic muscularity. Take on the following squat cycle and see for yourself how ‘obsolete’ it is.
The cycle lasts sixteen weeks, one squat workout a week. For the first eight weeks you will be doing two sets of five with the same weight. Then take fifty pounds off the bar and perform two more sets. This time pause in the ‘hole’ where your thighs are parallel to the floor for three painful seconds. Add ten pounds per week. For the second eight cut your reps to triples.
Make a realistic estimate of how much you can improve in sixteen workouts and work back to establish the starting poundage. If you are new to power cycling, just take your current 1RM, tested or estimated, as the goal for two sets of three in the end of four months. If your max is 355, subtract 160 pounds – ten pounds multiplied by sixteen workouts – and you will get 195. This is your starting poundage. Your first workout will be 195x5x2 and 145x5x2 pause squats. It may not sound like much but this easy start is one of the secrets to the success of powerlifting cycles.
In workout number eight you should confidently put up 275x5x2 and 225x5x2 paused. Your ninth workout will be 285x3x2, 235x3x2 paused. In workout number sixteen you will squat your old max for two triples, 355x3x2 and 305x3x2 paused. You are closing in on four wheels!
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Posted by james at June 6, 2005 6:20 AM