Phase 3 Day 46

50/20.

1. Squats
315x2; 315x3; 315x5; 315x2; 315x3; 315x5; 315x2; 315x3; 315x5; 315x2; 315x3; 315x2 (37 reps, +2)

2. Bench
250x8; 250x5; 250x3; 250x6; 250x4; 250x5; 250x4; 250x4; 250x4 (43 reps +1)

3.  Bent Row (strict)
185x5; 185x5; 205x5

4a. Chins
5; 5; 5

4b. Dips
8; 8; 8

Notes
Solid session all things considered.  I missed yesterdays workout because I was hungover (yes on a Monday... had an Easter party).  So I decided I needed to combine this shit to not get too far off track.

I got in 12 squat sets in 20 minutes.  Thats kind of a lot, and I think I'm starting to push the boundaries of what is effective in terms of total sets vs actual reps and work achieved.  I went +2 on those, but it easily could have been more.  I just didn't feel like killing myself.

I'm starting to get really fed up with bench.  I'm just not seeing great progress in terms of performance throughout the session.  The actual movement feels GREAT.  Seriously, individual reps are just very grooved right now.  But, I'm a little stumped as to why I'm not combatting fatigue better.  I'm basically going up by 1 rep per session right now.  Thats pretty shitty when you consider I'm shooting for between 35-50 reps.  I'm trying to be patient and will give it another week or two.  I've been waiting for a break through day where I just blast shit, but it hasn't happened.

Pretty soon I'm just going to go up to 275 and start doing reps there.

Bent row felt amazing.  This is kind of like RDL's for me now.  I get so much more enjoyment/mileage out of them by going light an really focusing on the movement.  I have zero body english on these sets.  I'm not saying that super strict is great by itself, but I really feel my scapula moving and my core/spine staying rigid (without a super arched low back).

Edit: for the record, I'm now approaching 50/20 in a ladder style.  It is my opinion that there is more to density training than just how many reps you achieve in a given block of time.  For example, I do not think that:
doing doubles on the minute (40 reps), is the same as
cascading 8, 8, 6, 6, 4, 4, 2, 2 from high to low (40 reps), is the same as
hitting ladders 5, 3, 2, 5, 3, 2, 5, 3, 2, 5, 3, 2 (40 reps).

I think those approaches produces different training effects.  Volume just isn't volume and total workload just isn't total workload.  I'm actually not sure what quality the doubles and ladders necessarily produce besides better neuromuscular coordination.  I need to read some Mike T. articles and think about that some more.  I do know that the cascade seems to be more in the realm of hypertrophy.  Why?  Fatigue. Hypertrophy is induced by fatigue and time under tension. Cascade basically leaves you fatigued as hell and sore.  Ladders, not so much.

Connor has been doing everything cascade.  I was doing shit cascade, then I moved to ladders.  Connor essentially willed his way through squats, but it seems to have caught up with him.  Ladders seem to work fine for me with squatting, but aren't doing jack shit for bench.

I have no conclusions on any of this - not yet.