Look Like A Bodybuilder Perform Like An Athlete

You are pretty much doing the big three anyway…I just add heavy regular deadlifts for the lower (3x3) @85% 1RM to the level 3 lower workout before SGDL and add weight each week and I will restart at 85% +10lbs next cycle. I also added heavy lockouts (Top half bench/OHP) and I have been recovering with no issues.

Addressing the bar for a snatch grip dead, the bar starts 3-4 inches further out then for a standard dl?

What? No. It is close to the shins Well to be precise the bar should be above the metatarsal joints (above the base o the toes)

When finding you max training weight, should you test all exercises in 1 session, 2?

*Prior to starting program

Ideally 2, same set-up as the training week

CT, For the muscle snatch is the goal to simply muscle it up or can we get under the bar?

CT great podcast on mahler’s blog the other day. Feels like your interviews come out once every few years so it’s always highly anticipated…

The part about morning wood was interesting…good indicator of overtraining

I stumbled on this while looking at hfsw, do you still view these as optimal training pointers

The Do’s and the Don’ts

Don’t perform an exercise or use a training tool because it looks cool or it’s the “in” thing right now. DO perform an exercise or use a training tool because it’s the best way to solve a problem.
Don’t try to develop everything equally at the same time. DO focus on a maximum of three elements at once.

Don’t trash a muscle group so that it will take 5-7 days until you can train it again. DO focus on being able to train a muscle on a daily basis while performing at a high level.

Don’t be afraid of the complexity of the Olympic lifts. DO learn the Olympic lifts gradually because they will provide a tremendous training effect while improving shoulder health.

Don’t include so many exercises in your program that you cannot work on mastering any of them. DO focus on a select few money exercises and work hard at mastering them. Become OCD about learning the fine details of each of these movements.

Don’t work “chest”, “biceps,” “legs,” etc. DO work movement patterns: pushing from down to up, pulling from up to down, pushing away in front, pulling horizontally toward you, standing up with the lower body, pushing with the lower body.

Don’t focus on going slow on purpose during a lifting exercise. DO focus on lifting explosively. The only time the bar will not move with lightning speed is when lifting for maximum tension/force, but even then still attempt to produce as much power as possible.

Don’t focus on the eccentric (i.e. the “negative.”) It’s overrated for muscle growth and will greatly increase the length of the recovery period. DO focus on high acceleration and high tension/force concentric actions as well as high tension holds (isometrics) in important positions. These will build the most strength and power, and require much less recovery time, allowing you to perform on a daily basis.

Don’t neglect jumps. DO perform 7 to 14 single jumps during each training session. This will prime the nervous system, making the whole workout more effective while building explosiveness and increasing your lower body’s responsiveness to training.

Don’t train on rings with the purpose of getting to the most advanced positions as fast as you can. DO use the rings to work on perfecting body position, especially at the shoulder joint. Rings for us are a tool to create a certain type of contraction while being in position; it’s not an end in itself.
– Christian Thibaudeau

If you get under the bar (bend the knees into a partial squat) it becomes a power snatch

Hi CT

Do you think you could elaborate on how you do added hypertrophy work with this program? you said you do sets inbetween the main sets? same exercise? opposing muscle group? reps?

coach,

after a 4week cycle of this program, would u rather recommend doing another one with your new 3 RM or some kind of program emphazising on hypertrophy before the next “look like…” training cycle?
advantages/disadvantages?

Did you finish test week? Did your lifts improve?

me?

Well, I’m currently in week 4 and I can already tell I’ve become stronger than ever, I feel it in terms of explosiveness when lifting weights I could barely lift before. Looking forward to test week tho.
Especially regarding the benefits of SG deadlifting I have to admit I underestimated this program as it improved my conventional deadlift heavily (tested it a few days ago)
packed on some good mass as well!
10/10 program.

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Nice to hear!

As I recall, CT wrote somewhere that he usually recommends doing 3 cycles before switching. Common sense would say that in the following cycle your new 3RM should be used, at least that’s my point of view.

I’ll definitely do 2 more cycles since I’m a noob with regard to most of the lifts. Liking the progress so far!

Cheers

Yes people tend to underestimate the value of lifting with maximum acceleration. They look at the weights and think “this is too light” but if they resist adding more weight and really focus on speed they are all surprised by the results.

I myself just bought a device that measures the speed, power output, force and other variables for each rep I’m doing and I always have a specific speed zone I want to be in on my main lifts. And at first I had to adjust my loads down a bit because even though I thought I was being explosive, I was a bit too slow for my target.

I use 4 different training zones:

ZONE 1 - Maximal/near maximal strength
ZONE 2 - Explosive strength
ZONE 3 - Strength-speed
ZONE 4 - Speed-strength

For each of the zone I select my training weight based on the speed I want to reach. I will use the most weight I can use while doing all my reps in the proper training zone.

Those speeds are:

Maximal/near-maximal strength (0.2 - 0.5 m/s)
Explosive strength (0.5 - 0.75 m/s)
Strength-speed (0.75 - 1.0 m/s)
Speed-strength (1.0 - 1.2 m/s)

For example, at the moment I have 2 upper and 2 lower body days. Each day has 2 main movements.

On one of the days I focus more on power so I train one lift in zone 3 and one lift in zone 4

On the second day I train more for strength so I have one lift in zone 1 and one in zone 2.

I then do some assistance work for my weaker muscles.

Hello CT,

What do you mean with explosive strength and why is “explosive” strength so low in velocity(0.5m/s) ?

Thanks in advance

@CT: I’m curious to what device did you buy? I have a PUSH. I love the speed zone concepts and can’t wait to experiment some myself.

I have the “Best Strength” device. From what I’ve seen it is similar to the PUSH device.

As early as 2004 I had a Tendo unit but it broke in 2008 and I never bought another one.

Well I go with the Bosco classification of the different types of force application. Explosive strength simply means being able to demonstrate a large amount of force in a rapid manner, It could also be called Rate of Force Development.

Coach,
When you are doing “pressing assistance by feel” for upper back and rear delts, are you doing mostly isolation work?
In the 2012 version of HPM, the two pressing days were back-to-back, followed by an NCT. So, I could pretty much pick whatever (lots of BW inverted rows and facepulls). In the 2016 version, I clean the bar to start my presses and push presses, then SGHP, Muscle Snatch, and SGDL the next day. I am hitting my traps and rhomboids every day, so I find myself not wanting to add much else. Am I missing something in the program set up? I know my rhomboids in particular are my weakest area, and tend to spasm first when I have overdone it.
Thanks!!

So squat training max is 87.5 percent of actual 3 rep squat max since it is performed on upper body day?