Maxing Out Everyday on Squats

Hi,

My current 1RM for low-bar squat is 140kg and 135~137.5kg for high-bar squat.

I am wondering if I should max out on squats everyday.
I’m on a bulking diet, weighs 75kg and gets at least 7~8 hrs of sleep everyday. Energy level is pretty high with no experience of overtraining/overreaching symptoms.

Need sincere and genuine advice. Thanks.

In my opinion no. My best results have come from one Back Squat session a week and one Front or Squat Safety Bar Squat session a week. Neither to a max my CNS gets fried.

Read squat everyday by Matt Perryman. What do you hope to gain by maxing everyday? How do you feel doing this will help you achieve your goals? Maxing everyday and a daily max are two very different things you should understand the difference if you attempt this.

I’m taking what you said to mean every single day of the week. NO! Don’t do that. Increasing frequency is fine but I wouldn’t even squat more then 3-4 times a week for any reason. I personally have gotten my best gains at twice a week. But absolutely don’t max everyday. you will not get stronger. If you really want to squat everyday do a squat type movement at the beginning of each workout. Meaning Maybe do Back squat one day, front squat the next day, safety bar squats the next day. But only go all out one day per week.

As long as you listen to your body and modulate your intensity and volume, yes you can squat to a daily max every day and make really good gains.

Ive squatted at least 4 times a week for the last two months but I never go to a true max. I stop as soon as my speed really starts to fall off. I use a higher bar placement and a relative close stance that way I dont fry my hips. So far, the weights are slowly going up and my technique is getting better. Again, I dont do any grinding sets…and I eat alot of pizza and drink alot of chocolate milk.

On a side note, there are about 5 people on this forum, and when one of them speaks, I listen. Mr Reed is one of them, so you may really want to consider what he said

[quote]Chicksan wrote:
On a side note, there are about 5 people on this forum, and when one of them speaks, I listen. Mr Reed is one of them, so you may really want to consider what he said[/quote/]

I second this

No unless you are very confident in your technique and recovery methods. This is an idea that gets propagated alot probably because people love “hardcore” training methods. Ask yourself this, have you stopped making gains squatting 1x-2x-3x a week?

[quote]Chicksan wrote:
Ive squatted at least 4 times a week for the last two months but I never go to a true max. I stop as soon as my speed really starts to fall off. I use a higher bar placement and a relative close stance that way I dont fry my hips. So far, the weights are slowly going up and my technique is getting better. Again, I dont do any grinding sets…and I eat alot of pizza and drink alot of chocolate milk.

On a side note, there are about 5 people on this forum, and when one of them speaks, I listen. Mr Reed is one of them, so you may really want to consider what he said[/quote]

Felt like I needed to say something. First, I always read what reed has to say, he is a strong, smart guy who knows what he’s doing. However, I would caution a less advanced natural trainer to emulate the training of someone using much larger weights with enhanced recovery.

What Reed is saying is probably completely true, for him. But, the OP with a moderate stance squatting to a daily non-grinding max in the 110 to 130kg range, even 7 days a week, isn’t going to fry your nervous system especially if you work up to it. One thing I think people overlook regarding building recovery ability is that the CNS can also be trained to higher frequency. CNS capacity isn’t a fixed asset.

[quote]cparker wrote:
No unless you are very confident in your technique and recovery methods. This is an idea that gets propagated alot probably because people love “hardcore” training methods. Ask yourself this, have you stopped making gains squatting 1x-2x-3x a week? [/quote]

I actually find it far, far easier as a training method. No psycing yourself up. No grinding reps. And squat sessions that last all of 15 minutes. Me, squatting every day, I spend about 3.5 total hours a week squatting and much of that is just light warm ups with only the very occasional truly hard rep. I think many people have the wrong impression of the way most people who train this way really train (though there are exceptions). Most of the people do it like it’s a job. It’s more like going to work and punching the clock and going home. Like if you are a roofer and have to carry shingles up to a roof. You’d never try to carry so many shingles up at once that you’d have any doubt of making it to the roof. You just go and take manageable chunks and get the work done. Over time, your workload and amount you can carry in a trip goes up, but you still follow the same guideline and don’t really make any single trip that hard.

I also don’t ever really get sore. You don’t always feel great, but it’s a different feeling than with more standard training.

And as an aside, I actually think training this way can be safer. And one of the main benefits is that you get so much practice to perfect your technique with heavier weights.

Thanks for the kind words honestly I’m a no body but thank you. As to what is being said I agree. If you do not max and I mean a honest max sure you can see progress here. Not as much as other programs in my opinion but none the less. Also, this is not a sport quite like Oly lifting. You need to be able to learn to and be effective at grinding. Obviously you shouldn’t be grinding every session but, none the less it needs to be practiced atlesst some.

When trying to squat every day even one grinder could really throw off the next days training. I think personally if he is smart about it he could so ok with it but I personally still think he could greatly benefit from a lower frequency and higher intensity. Atleast in my experience. But, def to each his own and there are multiple ways to go about training. I just personally don’t agree with this one.

Oh and a final note I don’t want to have to be in the gum 7 days a week. I enjoy spending time with my friends and family and doing things out side the gym.

[quote]Reed wrote:
Thanks for the kind words honestly I’m a no body but thank you. As to what is being said I agree. If you do not max and I mean a honest max sure you can see progress here. Not as much as other programs in my opinion but none the less. Also, this is not a sport quite like Oly lifting. You need to be able to learn to and be effective at grinding. Obviously you shouldn’t be grinding every session but, none the less it needs to be practiced atlesst some.

When trying to squat every day even one grinder could really throw off the next days training. I think personally if he is smart about it he could so ok with it but I personally still think he could greatly benefit from a lower frequency and higher intensity. Atleast in my experience. But, def to each his own and there are multiple ways to go about training. I just personally don’t agree with this one.

Oh and a final note I don’t want to have to be in the gum 7 days a week. I enjoy spending time with my friends and family and doing things out side the gym. [/quote]

There are some guys at the top of the sport training both ways and with and without grinding (I’ve never seen malanichev, for example, grind any rep ever). Personally, unless you are going for real records or are trying to earn some money at it, I’d train the way I liked to train. I like squatting every day, I never feel completely destroyed, but I get the training high every day. It also works for me because I train at home and can make progress only training 30-45 minutes in the morning, leaving the evenings to spend time with my new daughter. And really, for the vast majority of people, enjoying training is critically important because consistency trumps inconsistency even on a more optimal program.

[quote]DoubleDuce wrote:

[quote]Reed wrote:
Thanks for the kind words honestly I’m a no body but thank you. As to what is being said I agree. If you do not max and I mean a honest max sure you can see progress here. Not as much as other programs in my opinion but none the less. Also, this is not a sport quite like Oly lifting. You need to be able to learn to and be effective at grinding. Obviously you shouldn’t be grinding every session but, none the less it needs to be practiced atlesst some.

When trying to squat every day even one grinder could really throw off the next days training. I think personally if he is smart about it he could so ok with it but I personally still think he could greatly benefit from a lower frequency and higher intensity. Atleast in my experience. But, def to each his own and there are multiple ways to go about training. I just personally don’t agree with this one.

Oh and a final note I don’t want to have to be in the gum 7 days a week. I enjoy spending time with my friends and family and doing things out side the gym. [/quote]

There are some guys at the top of the sport training both ways and with and without grinding (I’ve never seen malanichev, for example, grind any rep ever). Personally, unless you are going for real records or are trying to earn some money at it, I’d train the way I liked to train. I like squatting every day, I never feel completely destroyed, but I get the training high every day. It also works for me because I train at home and can make progress only training 30-45 minutes in the morning, leaving the evenings to spend time with my new daughter. And really, for the vast majority of people, enjoying training is critically important because consistency trumps inconsistency even on a more optimal program.[/quote]

I think thats something alot of new guys miss, training the way they want to train and actually enjoying it. They are too busy looking fo the perfect program, they forget they started lifting because they enjoyed it. I enjoy being in the gym, so I enjoy being there at least 6 days a week if not more. Is that for everybody? FUCK NO and I wish my damn OCD would let me take more time off. If I want to squat 7 days in a row, I will, because thats what I want to do and thats what Ill enjoy doing. Thats also why Ill never be at the top of the sport, but im ok with that too.

I agree and nothing wrong with training the way you want. I for one personally wish I could be in the gym more than 3-4 days a week but I have experienced even with AAS use I just don’t recover fast enough and my joints just do not like training that frequently. Recovery and rest has been my biggest factor. Whether eating clean, shitty, sleeping perfectly, or what ever if my recovery days are not there I just begin to stall out or even progress backwards. With that though I’m not just going through the motions. I utilize alot of top sets, volume through BBing accessories here lately and overloads (Bands, Reverse Bands, Knee Wraps and top end movements) all of which require more recovery time and mental prep in my experience. I guess if my goal was to work up to semi not very challenging weight daily ot wouldn’t be that bad. But, I prefer pushing a set until there is nothing left true intensity. I personally feel the important variables are ranked

Intensity
Volume
Frequency

If the first 2 increase I generally see PRs however frequency has showed less carry over for me personally.

I do believe that consistency is key and obviously enjoying what you are doing will lead to improved consistency. However what I enjoy more than anything is seeing PRs weight or reps and if that means altering my training to be in the gym less than 4 days a week I am willing to make that sacrifice. But, I am trying to be the absolute best I can be. I am trying to set records whether it be a personal or world record 10-15 years down the road.

DON’T DO IT

Do research into the bulgarian method first

Maxing everyday is a recipe for disaster. Squatting everyday is not.

I’ve had great success squatting/benching/deadlifting 5+ times a week. You just need to do your research and understand you could hit a daily max for a month and never actually hit a pr.

The OP should just try it to see if it works for him. I agree that the training variables of intensity, volume and frequency are important and people have to learn how to balance them to make optimal progress based on their own conditions.

I have tried using higher intensity programs and I tend to overdo it so reducing that and focusing on the other variables give me more room for error while still making progress. Reed mentioned training at high intensities and grinding through sets but not all the time. When I trained at higher intensities I would constantly grind thinking heavier is better but you have to learn when and how much is acceptable. You just have to experiment to figure out what works.

[quote]lift206 wrote:
The OP should just try it to see if it works for him. I agree that the training variables of intensity, volume and frequency are important and people have to learn how to balance them to make optimal progress based on their own conditions.

I have tried using higher intensity programs and I tend to overdo it so reducing that and focusing on the other variables give me more room for error while still making progress. Reed mentioned training at high intensities and grinding through sets but not all the time. When I trained at higher intensities I would constantly grind thinking heavier is better but you have to learn when and how much is acceptable. You just have to experiment to figure out what works.[/quote]

This ^^^ x2

I worked up to a heavy single 6x/week about a year and a half ago when my squat was fairly low too, like 275 on a good day low. Although I had a coach choosing my weights and making sure my form was at least acceptable. Hardly any to no grinding. It really helped to boost my confidence going into new one rep pr’s having felt similar weights often and knowing how easily I had hit just a little lower weight before. Also all the frequency does add up to a lot of volume to really help out your form.

That being said, I probably wouldn’t suggest this method if you don’t have a good coach or training partner that can keep you realistic on how you’re doing. My coach had me do an RPE scale when he wasn’t able to watch me anymore and if a set is a 9 when I reracked it about 5 mins later I have it in my head that it was a 7. Needless to say I burnt out and had to change my training to fit my new needs.

Personally, I have made my best gains of strength on the squat going heavy (3-5 reps @ ~8 RPE) every other week. What I did was follow squats by doing a 1-3RM on beltless chain suspended roundback good mornings at bellybutton height. The weeks in between I would deadlift but keep it on the lighter side for singles (however many I felt I needed that day) with lighter weight (50-80%).

Although I will never do those good mornings again because I think they are way too risky, my squat did jump from 675-700 in loose briefs and wraps, in about 5 months and I managed to get up to 600x1 on those goodmornings all at a bodyweight of about 205 at that time-only squatting 2 x month. And I have heard of people making great gains by squatting 3-4 x week but with a much lighter %. So play around and see what works for you. But Id think that squatting every single day no matter what youre doing isnt going to be enough recovery time.

@160 lbs/75kg = best get on a proven program like madcow