So, here we are, on the cusp of kicking off the 2nd block of my Condensed Conjugate programming. We’re also in the midst of a global pandemic that has basically left everybody quarantined at home in some capacity. I live in New York, north of the New York City, which means that while we aren’t in a full-on lock down, and we are actually allowed to leave the house, I am still working from home full-time and all gyms are closed. This includes the MMA gym that I had been training at.
The initial reason I’d settled on this condensed conjugate set up is simply because I wanted to have the time available to train Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Now that this isn’t an option, I’m faced with the choice of breaking away from the condensed conjugate structure and following a normal 4 day microcycle, or continuing on. I’m thinking that continuing with the planned structure makes the most sense, but now I have ample time to add in extra training days so that’s what I’m going to do.
My basic plan here is to follow a lower/upper type of split, in which I’ll utilize more bodybuilding focused rep ranges, as I’d like to develop a greater level of hypertrophy, as well as improve my conditioning a bit through the higher volume.
My plan for the next 3 weeks is the following:
Lower Supplemental Training:
A1. High Bar Close Stance Squat – Work up to a heavy set of 6, and then repeat for a total of 3 working sets.
B1. Romanian Deadlifts vs. Monster Mini Bands – Work up to a heavy set of 8, and then repeat for a total of 4 working sets.
C1. Back Raises – 3-5 sets of 15
C2. Reverse Lunge – 3-5 sets of 15
- Adding load is optional, depending on how challenging the unloaded version is.
D1. Ab Wheel Rollouts – 3-5 sets of 15
Upper Supplemental Training:
A1. Flat Dumbbell Bench Press – 3 sets of 20
B1. American Cambered Grip Bench Press (Grip 2) – Work up to a heavy set of 6, and then repeat for a total of 4 sets
C1. 2-Arm Dumbbell Rows – 5×10
D1. 1-Arm Barbell Row – 5×10
D2. Landmine Russian Twists – 5×10
E1. Barbell Curl – 5×8
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This set-up is obviously much higher volume than my standard training days where I focus more on heavier loading and more explosive lifting, but that’s basically the point. I honestly don’t know how this macrocycle is going to go, this is a significant increase in total volume across the microcycle, and it might be shooting me in the foot for the 2 main training days. My hope is that the increased squatting volume will continue to help my knees feel better, and bring up my overall squat strength again as that has been lagging behind fairly significantly with such a big gap between squat training days.
Ramble on Fitness 