Here we go again. I thought I would recreate this training journal for those who have taken an interest in strength training. You can visit my home board if you would like to see how SST has evolved or if you would like routines that leave out the Olympic Classical Lifts (the Clean & Jerk and the Snatch).

What is SST? SST stands for Specialized Strength Training and is a combination of Olympic Weightlifting, Power Lifting, and Strong Man. The purpose of this training method is to combine the best of all 3 lifting disciplines to create a program which makes an individual strong, fast, coordinated, agile, and flexible. IMHO the sum is better the parts that make it up which is why I created this in the first place. I took data dating back to the 60's to help me create this program. You can find a lot of the information I used in my PL, SM, Oly Forum at Xtraxxl.

Here is a little more detail about SST:

I train in 4 week waves where the 4th week is a deload week. The deload week gives my CNS a break. I train using percentages for my Big 5 movements which are Back Squats (Oly Style), Front Squat (Oly Style), Push Press, Deadlift, and Flat Bench. The percentages are as follows; week1 65/75/85%, week 2 70/80/90%, week 3 75/85/95%, week 4 40/50/60% (deload). I drop down to 3 exercises during my deload week and do no conditioning/cardio during the week to help my body recover. I add weight each wave. On all non Oly assisting movements I use a 7-5-5-3-3 rep scheme and switch them out every 2 waves. On my 3rd week, I may I add in some singles which reinforces that this week is the hardest and heaviest week out of the 4. This whole system allows me to continue to make progress, push myself, not get stale, and always have fun which is important. These rep ranges also have been proven to help convert Type I (endurance) muscle fibers to Type II (fast twitch). On all Oly movements I stick with triples, doubles, and singles for the most part. The purpose is to keep my form good which helps build proper motor and neural pathways and also keep from getting injured which easily takes place when form becomes sloppy.

The long and short of SST is simple; I use periodization on all major/main lifts and linear progression for all assisting lifts to achieve superior results in strength, speed, flexibility, and size.