The Program-Hopping Confessional Thread

Yeah, I have a hard time sticking to a program. I need flexibility. I think the secret is to not worry too much about a "program" and just make sure you're hitting the primary movements with consistency and intensity. Of course, the more advanced you get the more important programming becomes, but I'm not sure it's ever going to be that important to me.
 
i guess it would depend on your schedule - for me fight training and bjj are at night which makes lifting the next morning a bitch. so i try to do them on the same day - Monday lift (AM) and bjj (PM) take tuesday off or do light cardio work.

also i modify sheiko at times to be a little less volume - for instance today I was supposed to work up to squats at 315x3(x5) (actually 311 or something but i round up) and then do a 5x5 at 275. I'm planning on going to bjj tonight so i just cut out the 5x5. It's still a good solid workout and I am still a functioning person when 730 comes around.

also, i guess you have to be prepared to miss workouts because of fatigue. strength training and fight training get in the way of eachother a lot. they complement each other too, but sometimes its hard to do both. without getting into a coolstorybro situation, i'll just say that my fight training has been inconsistent lately but when both are happening on a regular basis, I'd say I miss at least one workout every 2 weeks or so.

this is just my personal experience, but finally i'd say that HIIT or other intense cardio is much harder to do while lifting and fighting. for me, lsd works much better because of recovery issues.

sorry to hijack this into a 'balancing mma and other training' discussion' but i guess it kind of fits with your question.

That can be a problem for me as well; my BJJ and Thai is Tuesday and Thursday. Wednesday is day off so I Lift then. Friday is a late start so I can hit the weights in the morning. But strength training at 0930 after finishing a three hour martial arts class 12 hours previously is no fun at all.

I must admit to giving serious consideration on cutting my strength training from Wed/Fri/Sunday to just Wednesday and Sunday.
 
Question for all program hoppers: who has made PB's on lifts in the time they have been program hopping? (probably disregard noob gains I guess)

Who has put on size while training some sort of mma/bjj as well?

I have plateaud for about 6 months on bench and only made small increase on squat and DL (pretty good increase in SOHP though) and I am thinking that the program hopping maybe didn't help but maybe moreso just not eating enough. (I am the same weight as I was 6 months ago also and I train mma twice a week)

Thanks

Chris
 
I have the same problem though it's mainly because I am in the Australian army. i set my PBs back when i was 16 and am now 19. I also weigh 10 kilos heavier ... sadly only lift that has gone up is my benchpress. Just in case anyone was interested lifts were ... 175 kg deadlift, 150 kg squat and 100 kg benchpress at 68 kg which was a decent start i thought. Sadly at 77 kg most i have got to lift is a 160 kg deadlift, 120 kg squat and 110 benchpress. Just shows how important sticking to a program is, if you have the oppurtunity don't waste it.
 
Hello. I am Corrosion and I am a program-hopper.

This horrible malady has cursed me throughout my entire training history. I cannot seem to stick to one method of training, I think way too much about things that should be simple, and make absolutely no progress because I can't stick to a plan and I change things every month. I gain weight one day, lose it the next. I want to be a fighter one day, and the next, the World's Strongest Man. One day it's 5/3/1, the next it's Hepburn. I'm spinning my wheels in circles, and it needs to stop. If I don't correct this, I will forevermore remain a weak pussy.

I'm going to change my program one...last...time... (back to 5/3/1) and I'm going to stick to it for at least ONE YEAR. If I don't, I want to be humiliated by Sherdog in the worst possible fashion. Please hold me accountable. Please. I need help.

For anyone afflicted with this plauge, this is not the thread to seek support and compassion, but rather, a wake up call to get our shit together. Join in, and be held accountable for our fail.

I hear you my brah. I've been doing the EXACT same horse shit for the past 2 years and I've made ZERO progress as a result. The worst part is that whatever routine I'm using is usually working when I make the switch. I just get bored or convinced that there's something else out there that's even better than what I'm using.

The best results I've had in my entire life came when I did a traditional full-body workout every other day and stuck with it for a year. I transformed myself from a skinny puke to a beastly stud in roughly 12 months.

I've come to realize that the acftual program you are using makles no damned difference. Consistency and adding weight to the bar are all that matters. I've been on HST for the past 24 days and the urge to jump to Rippetoe's or Starr's 5x5 is hitting me hard right about now. But I'm not switching. I'll stick with what I'm doing and get back to where I want to be.
 
This thread has got me thinking (well it's already something I was sort of thinking about). My programming/routine used to be more consistent, and I had been following the same routine for quite a while with some success. However my deadlift stalled, and I took sometime from that routine to run a different routine I was given to fix my weak links on my deadlift. Since then my programming hasn't been nearly as consistent...a lot of trying different things, experimenting. Not a complete waste, I learned some stuff, and made some gains. But I can, and should do better.

I think I've got my routine figured out now, and it's something I could do for quite some time, with only occasional tweaks as needed. Still, I wonder if I shouldn't just do Sheiko. The reason I say sheiko is I have a preference for volume over intensity, and many of the lifters at the gym I go to follow Sheiko.
 
I almost bailed out on 5/3/1 4 cycles in because my squats were going down, then i started adding squats on my deadlift days and it helped. Squating once a week was just not enough for me. I guess you just have to find a program/routine that works for you because everyone will have a different experience.

I always think about my sig whenever i have a bad day at the gym..
 
This thread has got me thinking (well it's already something I was sort of thinking about). My programming/routine used to be more consistent, and I had been following the same routine for quite a while with some success. However my deadlift stalled, and I took sometime from that routine to run a different routine I was given to fix my weak links on my deadlift. Since then my programming hasn't been nearly as consistent...a lot of trying different things, experimenting. Not a complete waste, I learned some stuff, and made some gains. But I can, and should do better.

I think I've got my routine figured out now, and it's something I could do for quite some time, with only occasional tweaks as needed. Still, I wonder if I shouldn't just do Sheiko. The reason I say sheiko is I have a preference for volume over intensity, and many of the lifters at the gym I go to follow Sheiko.

It'll be interesting to see what you choose. After seeing study after study, the one thing I've noticed that gets people strong is consistency.

I almost bailed out on 5/3/1 4 cycles in because my squats were going down, then i started adding squats on my deadlift days and it helped. Squating once a week was just not enough for me. I guess you just have to find a program/routine that works for you because everyone will have a different experience.

I always think about my sig whenever i have a bad day at the gym..

Great quote and so true.
 
It'll be interesting to see what you choose. After seeing study after study, the one thing I've noticed that gets people strong is consistency.

If you read my log you'll see that I have decided to try Sheiko (Day 2 of Sheiko 29 is tomorrow). Whether it works for me remains to be seen.
 
If you read my log you'll see that I have decided to try Sheiko (Day 2 of Sheiko 29 is tomorrow). Whether it works for me remains to be seen.

Good luck, Tosa - Hope it works great! Always appreciate your posts...
 
Ok, so i have a question for my fellow program-hoppers. I've now done Texas for two weeks, and before that i did 5/3/1. So i haven't been doing 5 * 5 for a while, not with really heavy weights and weekly progression. I've noticed that when i bench and squat 5 reps i'm really, really slow these days. I manage to do them, but slowly and not with satisfying explosiveness. The remedy for this is a no-brainer - boxed squats and strict bench on mondays, regular slow squats and TaG bench on friday.

Is this program-hopping? Is it a brain-ghost? I know that i'm a whole lot slower, back when i did 5 * 5 (up until may this year, so not that far back) i was an order of magnitude more explosive than now even with weights close to my 1RM, but this might not be a problem? If it is a problem, it might not be worth solving due to admitted issues with program hopping? Or maybe switching to boxed squats and strict bench on mondays is not a bad thing at all?

What do you think, guyz? I'll do what you guys say since i'm an admitted characterless maggot, so bring it on. Workout is five hours out. Here's to hoping dem americans are awake at this hour...
 
For what it's worth, my opinion is that sometimes you have to fine-tune a workout to achieve specific goals. Or deal with a weakness. This is not the same as Program Hopping. And sticking slavishly to a routine when it is no longer giving results would do more harm than good.

Like I said, just my opinion. Good luck.
 
Currently on 3rd week of 11 week program aiming for 160kg DL, 125kg squat, 95kg bench and 60kg SOHP. Last week PB'd bench press at 90kg so was very happy with that. Wouldn't put it down to sticking with the program though as it is only early but I have been stuck on bench for over 6 months. Just making a conscious effort to eat a bit more has really helped :)
 
I think Hepburn would be better for your goals, you should consider switching.
 
Meh, that program is boring. Switch back.
 
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