We had a bunch of questions about the 8 – 9 – 10 workout last night so I thought I better fill in some details. Here’s what I posted a few days ago.
There is new kind of strength session I am calling “8 – 9 – 10.” In this workout, we are going to do all three lifts but at a much lower weight than we usually do. For instance, it will look like this:
2 x 4 – Box Squats (~70% so you’ll have to do one or two warm-up sets)
3 x 3 – DL or Power Clean (~60% these will be light enough to do without a specific warm-up)
2 x 5 – Bench press (~60% these will be light enough to do without a specific warm-up)These workouts are going to be a little crazy because it might be hard to figure out how to get your weights ready in time, but we are going to work our way through the logistics.
I’ve been doing this kind of workout myself and with a few personal training athletes. It is inspired by Dan John’s Easy Strength or 40 day workouts. We are adding this kind of strength session for a couple of reasons:
- We used to do a workout called The Beast (it may make a return in the near future), that cycled through lifts and it was a great tool to help show the function of the lifts. I think this will serve the same function is a slightly less chaotic way.
- This is a great way to get some volume in for those who come everyday. And a great way to get some practice in for people who come in once or twice a week.
You are not required to do this strength session, you can focus on a single lift if that is what you want/need to do.
Here are some rules that might help you make 8 – 9 – 10 work for you:
- Every rep has to be as technically perfect as you can make it. There should be no doubt in your mind that you can easily do all the reps easily. Don’t struggle on any lift the last lift should look and feel exactly the same as the first one.
- Know what your 5 rep max on each lift. Use your 5 rep max – 10% on the “8.” Use your 5 rep max – 25% on the following lifts.
- If you feel like you under estimated your weight at a rep or two.
- Make the first lift something that you need more strength. Use the middle lift for something that you need more practice on. Use the last lift something that you want more volume (i.e. something you like and are good at)
Let any of the coaches know if you need help figuring out the weights or if you have comments.