Hi,
On bench press in the realization phase amrap set of wave 10 I did 51KG for 15 reps. That worked out at:-
34KG X 5 Reps
40.5KG X 3 Reps
47.5KG X 1 Rep
51KG X 15 Reps AMRAP.
3 Mins rest inbetween each set.
I have encountered this weight again in the accumulation phase of 5’s wave. So, I thought my amrap goal for this should also be 15 reps minimum. However I only managed 12 reps.
The sets are a little different though at:-
5 X 5 at 51KG with 2 mins rest.
1 X 12 at 51KG with 3 mins rest.
When you measure this as a projected working max:-
51KG X 15 Reps X 0.0333 + 51KG = 76KG (Estimated 1 rep max).
51KG X 12 Reps X 0.0333 + 51KG = 71KG.
It looks like a strength decrease.
Should I have choosen 15 reps as my target reps in the 5’s wave accumulation amrap? Or does the volume increase (5 X 5 At 51KG) make it an unrealistic target rep?
I don’t want to under perform during the amraps by setting poor rep goals but I don’t want to be unrealistic and fail. I also don’t just want to go with the flow on the day of the lift and see how I feel. I’d like to have something to aim for. Should I factor in a tolerance, say 5% because of the volume increase or just increase rest time from 2 to 3 mins in the sets before the amraps. I’m going to have a play around with that idea but wondering what others have experienced.
Thanks,
You did 5x5 with that weight before your AMRAP set. That would go a way to explaining what happened.
You are also likely carrying more fatigue in an accumulation phase than a realisation phase in general.
Yeah I thought the volume of the sets beforehand was the problem.
So, how would I decide on what would be a good number of reps to aim for in that amrap set then if I don’t base it off a previous weight I did for that number of reps and I also don’t base it off a projected working max (est. 1 rep max) ?
Thanks,
AMRAP means as many reps as possible, so just do as many as possible. Depending on various factors you might beat your previous performance or you might not, but as long as overall your 1rm is increasing then you can rest assured that you are making progress. One bad day means nothing, unless it’s a meet then it sucks.
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Hi,
No doubt training volume prior to the AMRAP has a huge effect.
Rather than basing my AMRAP rep goal on a rep number for that weight I got in a different phase I am going to look at projected maxes (Estimated 1 rep maxes) for each individual phase. Each phase is not like for like simply because of their different volumes. I will treat AMRAP sets for Accumulation, Intensification and Realization phases individually.
Thanks,
Estimating a 1RM from high rep AMRAP sets like that isn’t very accurate. Just think of it at the extreme, would you expect to be able to predict someone’s 1RM from how many squats the can do with an empty barbell? The higher you go in your reps for your test, the more you are gauging your muscle endurance and the less you are gauging your maximal force production. In my experience, high rep, muscle endurance testing sets can be very sensitive to external factors, with this being more significant the more novice a lifter is. I prefer to stick in the 4-6 RM range if I’m wanting to test my maximal strength. Regardless, when you’re using tests like this to track progress it is extremely important to control everything leading up to the test and make it the same every time. For example, if you slept 9 hours, sat on your ass all day before and were super carb loaded when you hit 15, but only slept 6 hours, were on your feet all day and didn’t get enough to eat when you did 12, that decrease in test performance wouldn’t be surprising at all.
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Hi,
Thanks for the comments, that has really been insightful. Very useful ideas, I’m still learning metrics and how to measure strength progress etc.
Thanks,