Things are going well.
As far as the links, I found them helpful to learn about
- auto-regulation through AMRAP sets
- using INOL to compare different programs and select reps, sets, and weight accordingly
Cool. Apologies for not reading through, but I'm trying hard these days to limit my non-essential online time. I looked up the acronyms just now however.
Seems to me, in an older vocabulary, 'AMRAP' was "lifting to failure." A common finishing technique, often using drop sets. I may begin doing some of this once I'm back up to my past strength levels in 2-6 months.
'Auto-regulation' is pretty much what I do these days, constantly adjusting my loading as I make progress, or taking a day or two off when I feel a slight niggle. I think auto-regulation is pretty much what all lifters learn to do once they attain intermediate status.
Then 'INOL' appears to codify the basic notion that there is a balance between volume and intensity. We've discussed this a lot in previous threads and I used to incorporate this in my "weekly 5-7-3 wave" programming, with my three-rep workout representing high intensity, the seven-rep day representing high volume, and the five-rep workout having about equal intensity and volume. I even used bar graphs!
Anyway, this cycle I'm experimenting with an extremely simple "high intensity, low volume" approach. Just three lifts x three sets x three reps, each rep @ 90% 1RM. The advantage, for me, is mostly mental--making each workout very easy and doable, which in turn encourages consistency, the single most important training protocol, one which has been severely lacking for a long while.
I agree all three concepts are very helpful. But perhaps the single biggest insight I gained when I was looking through the lifting literature 2014-2015 was that there are essentially just six essential lifts or movements, plus or minus one or two, depending on who you talk to. These are the approaches espoused by Wendler and Rippetoe.
I've come up with my own set of basic lifts, based on a simple notion of push/pull pairings along three planes: Horizontal (Bench Press & Rows) and Upper Vertical (Overhead Press & Pullups/Pulldowns) and Lower Vertical (Squats & Deadlifts).
This cycle, these lifts are organized into a Push Workout (Squat, Bench Press, Overhead Press) and a Pull Workout (Deadlift, Row, Pullup).
I'm also trying to incorporate sled work this cycle, so I do a sled push on the Push workout day, and a sled pull on the Pull workout day.
Then, finally, I'll try to do something aerobic at the end of the each workout that also corresponds, roughly, to a pushing or pulling movement. For pulling, it's pretty easy: I'll do stationary rowing. For pushing, I'm going to first try the elliptical machine, and if I don't like that, stationary bicycle, but I would prefer to reserve pedaling for real cycling outside once a week.
Are you still running?