Juggernaut Question
 

After you've finished a cycle of Juggernaut training, how would you start the next one? I know when you start your first cycle that you take 90% of your 1RM and calculate from there. Would you then take 90% of your projected max for starting the next cycle? It's not really covered in the e-book. Thanks.

Maybe I shouldn't be jumping into this, but aren't the increases based on the reps performed in the realization week? I remember reading something about a 1.25 - 5lb increase for every rep performed.

Perhaps Jwood can chime in...

Taking a quick look at the e-book (for I am an ADD training e-book collector junkie):


"Moving Up Your Working Max

This is the most important part of this program. Your working max will be adjusted at the end of each wave depending on your performance during the Realization Phase. For every rep you perform over the standard (The standard is 10 in the 10’s Wave, 8 in the 8’s Wave, etc) you will move your working max up a set amount."


As I understand it, you would simply re-adjust your working max at the beginning of the next cycle, based on your previous reps.

So you establish a (90%) working max before the first cycle, and continue on a rolling basis from there throughout several cycles.

He doesn't really make this particularly clear in the book!

Yes, I'm clear on wave to wave calculations, just not on cycle to cycle calculations. I guess I could just keep rolling with the new projected max and do sets of 10s with 75%, but here's my concern...

I started this squat cycle at 400 lb.
The first wave is 10+ reps @ 75%
I got 300 lb x 15 reps

The next cycle I can see my projected max being 475+ lb
So that will mean I will be using 75% or 360+ lb for 10+ reps

That's a 60+ lb increase after only one cycle? I hope I can gain that but I think that's being pretty optimistic :)

Well I assumed cycle to cycle would be the same as wave to wave, however given your example that seems somewhat unlikely!

I really can't see any clear explanation in the book though.

Given the heavy influence of 5/3/1 upon the Juggernaut method, is it maybe a simple case of adding an arbitrary "x"lbs to your working max and re-starting? Failing that, Chad Wesley Smith is still listing his training log on EliteFTS, you can ask him a question directly via EliteFTS - Superior Products and Knowledge for Lifters, Athletes, Coaches, and Trainers :)

Thanks, I'll try that route. Might as well go to the source.
I submitted my question, we'll wait and see...

So, I got my answer. Take your projected max or test a new max after the 3s, subtract 10%, and start over.

Sorry I meant to jump in here, that is pretty much what I was going to say.

Personally, I am going to do a few weeks of Westside after the juggernaut cycle. Mostly because of my upcoming competition. I am not sure if I will run the full juggernaut cycle again, 16 weeks is a long time. gets monotonous, doing the same things every week. but it is truly a great program.

It doesn't make sense

I have seen people do it a few ways. One is to recalculate percentages based on a new tested 1rm. Another is to add 2-5 poundsper rep over the prescribed reps(like described above), and another is to add a set amount of weight per month like 5/3/1 does. I am not really sure how its called for in the program as I have not run it, but i have seen it done the ways I described.