Russian Programs

[Boucher]

I asked a question in my log and Steve suggested I start a thread about it. So here I am.

I am on my second week of Sheiko and I have noticed that the bench weights seem a bit light. They have allowed me to work on my form, but have not really pushed me too much. Has anyone experienced similar issues or read anything about this?

[BendtheBar]

What weight did you work with this week and what is your 1RM?

[jwood]

I experienced the same thing with the sheiko program, but it still increased my bench. I know what you are saying, if you use a true max the weights will feel very light.

It seemed weird to me at the time, but I had the same experience.

[Boucher]

My max is 225 and I was using 180 today. For the most part that is the highest weight I will be using. I know it makes sense to not try to max out for every set so that I can hit the reps and sets, and I'm sure it still works but I wasn't sure if it made sense to add 5 lbs for the heavier sets so that it pushes me more.

[BendtheBar]

I think it's a good thing if 180 is feeling light.

My best advice is what Jwood said. Stick with it and see how it turns out. The frequency will work wonders.

[Boucher]

Alright thanks guys! I figured it would be best to stick with it but wanted to get a few opinions. I've never actually followed a program to the percentage.

[Isaku900]

I have two questions:

Why Sheiko with a 225lb bench press? I ask why because that is a "level" where I'd mostly recommend linear progression or weekly progression (5x5, texas method, etc) rather than periodized progression like Sheiko. This is due to the faster progression available on a linear/weekly program. Sheiko is usually fairly advanced and as such has a slower progress rate to accommodate the level of lifters using the programming.

and What # program are you using? 29 is the usual beginner template.

I took a quick look at your log, and there's a lot of noise about what you're going to do when you "finish" Sheiko, and how you're excited to test your max in 2.5weeks. Excitement is good, but that's not giving Sheiko time to work properly. You're supposed to string together several of the 4 blocks in sequence before going into a skills evaluation/test day.

[Boucher]

I went with Sheiko because I was trying to figure out where to go with my programing and it was suggested to me by someone who used it and had it work for them. And because it sounded fun. No other reasons really besides that.

As far as what number of the program I'm using, I'm not sure. I was given a copy of the program as an excel document.

As far as stringing together blocks in sequence, I thought it would make sense to test my maxes to either plug them back in to Sheiko, to make sure I'm lifting heavier if I'm capable of it, or to start a different program. I will admit I was under the impression that Sheiko was more of a program that you ran for only 4 weeks. Thank you for your feedback.

[Isaku900]

Originally Posted by Boucher

I went with Sheiko because I was trying to figure out where to go with my programing and it was suggested to me by someone who used it and had it work for them. And because it sounded fun. No other reasons really besides that.

That's all fine, but you really need to make sure you're using the right level of Sheiko programming for your total. There are sequences that are recommended depending on the total you have.

As far as what number of the program I'm using, I'm not sure. I was given a copy of the program as an excel document.

I'm attaching a spreadsheet here that has #29, #30, #31, #32, #37, #39, #40, the CMS-MS Prep cycles, CMS-MS Comp Cycles, and MSIC Prep and COmp cycles.

the CMS-MS cycles should only be used if you have a CMS-MS level total:
CMS
148-1144
165-1243
181-1325.5
198-1390.4
220-1463
242-1512.5
275-1540
275+1573

A quick look at your log and comparing it to the required reps indicates that you're doing the CMS/MS Prep #1. That's not a good idea unless you have at least the totals I listed above. If you don't, you are setting yourself up to get injured.

As far as stringing together blocks in sequence, I thought it would make sense to test my maxes to either plug them back in to Sheiko, to make sure I'm lifting heavier if I'm capable of it, or to start a different program. I will admit I was under the impression that Sheiko was more of a program that you ran for only 4 weeks. Thank you for your feedback.

though you can test your maxes again after just 4 weeks, you really haven't had any time for any adaptation, and are not going to see any results from periodized work like Sheiko. You may see a slight increase in your maxes just from the additional form practice from doing so many reps, but it won't be an actual strength increase.

Switching programs again after just 4 weeks is just plain silly. Programming ADD kills your progress because of the lag time of your body's ability to super-compensate and recover from input. There is a suggest "bump" to your maxes that you can do every 4-8 weeks and slowly increase your training intensity (% of 1rm) over time in the Sheiko framework.

I would suggest using #29, then #37, then #39, then #40, that's a solid 16 week cycle, and bump your weights up 5lbs per lift in between 37 and 39.

[BendtheBar]

Sheiko XLS:

http://www.muscleandbrawn.com/pdf/Sheiko.xls

Will add this to "Tools" above.