I wanted to give a breakdown of what I am doing with my training and goals. I decided this year that one of my goals was to train everyday of 2024. This doesn’t mean that every day is a heavy lift. My “off days” are at minimum of 30 min of weighted vest walks.

Here is a breakdown of my training week.

• Monday: Volume (Squat, Bench and RDL)
• Tuesday: Weighted vest stair stepper or weighted vest walks
• Wednesday: Speed lower and heavy vertical press (Squat, Press and Clean)
• Thursday: Weighted vest stair stepper or weighted vest walks
• Friday: Heavy (Squat, Bench and Deadlift)
• Saturday: Manual labor/vest day
• Sunday: Finish out the remaining 150 minutes of zone 2 cardio

I am currently training for a powerlifting meet, so my training is geared towards preparing for the meet. My goal is to maintain a sub 10% bodyfat while continuing to get stronger.

I have made it a priority to improve my relative strength/grip strength. I wanted to explain my manual labor work capacity/pull-up progression.

Here is the breakdown:

Phase 1

Week 1: 30 min AMRAP; Week 2: 35 min AMRAP; Week 3: 40 min AMRAP; Week 4: Deload 30 min

• X3 Neutral Grip Pull-ups
• Squat x10
• Dips x5
• Sledgehammer x3 Each
• Archery x1

Phase 2

Week 1: 35 min AMRAP; Week 2: 40 min AMRAP; Week 3: 45 min AMRAP; Week 4: Deload 35 min

• X3 Towel Pull-ups
• Squat x10
• Dips x5
• Sledgehammer x3 Each
• Archery x1

Phase 3

Week 1: 40 min AMRAP; Week 2: 45 min AMRAP; Week 3: 50 min AMRAP; Week 4: Deload 40 min

• X3 Rock Climber Grip Pull-ups
• Squat x10
• Dips x5
• Sledgehammer x3 Each
• Archery x1

These workouts are performed with a 20lbs weighted vest. After I progress through the 12 weeks, I will then start over but add weight to the vest.

My exercise selection:

Pull-ups, squats and dips are my foundational bodyweight movement patterns. Sledgehammer slams are a great transverse plane (rotational) movement. I am a huge fan because it allows you to be violent while training in the transverse plane. It is important not to neglect rotational movements especially when powerlifting because the squat, bench and deadlift are all in the sagittal plane. I add some archery as an active rest but also to control my breathing and heart rate while trying to place a well-aimed shot.

These sessions are not meant to be the hardest sessions of the week. These sessions are performed on Saturdays which is after my heaviest strength training session on Friday. I work at a pace that allows me to stay moving the entire time.

Feel free to reach out on IG @mass.lunchpail with any questions.