Switching from The Giant X1 to Easy Muscle as my current training block

I got through the Monday Giant X1 workout fine but the sets that prescribed reps close to my Clean + Press rep max of 7 were pretty tough for me. I took at look at what Giant X1 prescribes for my Wednesday workout, and did not feel I could handle it.

I then took a look at other Geoff Neupert hypertrophy programs that incorporate the C+P, and thus share similar characteristics to The Giant X. I wanted to continue trying to build muscle with the C+P but under a program that would not be as difficult for me as The Giant X.

• Easy Muscle Schedule A: 8-week C+P only program that I'd previously attempted with double 16kg kettlebells, but then had to switch to single KB training because not having the mobility for double KB press was hurting my shoulder.
• The original The Giant - specifcially 1.0 and 1.1: The Giant comes with 5 training schedules, each lasting 4 weeks: 1.0, 1.1, 1.2, 2, and 3. 1.0 is the lowest difficulty level and is practically identical to the first half of Easy Muscle A. 1.1 is meant to be done after 1.0 if you want to do another 4 weeks of The Giant, but the difficultly level jumps a little more from 1.0 to 1.1

Between Easy Muscle A and original The Giant 1.0 I decided to switch to Easy Muscle A. I liked the ladder concept in Giant X1 but I underestimated just how difficult it would be for trainees working with weights that they cannot already C+P for 10 reps. Easy Muscle Schedule A also recommends training with the heaviest weights you can C+P for 10 reps, but it does not ask you to train too close to your rep max as early on as Giant X1 does.
The load cycling in Giant X is supposed to produce faster results compared to the original Giant but the higher rate of progress does not come for free - you're going to work harder for those faster results. While I'm not built right now to handle the demands of Giant X, I'm not ruling out trying again in the near future. One possible scenario is finding a C+P rep max of 3 with double 20kgs and a rep max higher than 10 with double 16 kgs - in this case I'd favor the ligher weights because I know the lighter weights would allow me train with consistently higher volume compared to the heavier weights. I'd probably be looking for a more challenging way to train double 16k C+P than Easy Muscle and Giant X would be a possible choice. One of the original Giant programs is also a possibility as some of them are challenging in their own right. Those programs are all 4 weeks long - I could choose of 2 or even 3 of them. For example I could do Giant 1.1 then 1.2 for 8 total weeks of hypertrophy training, with the option of following 1.2 with Giant 2 to extend my hypertrophy block to 12 weeks.

While Easy Muscle Schedule A is more suitable to my current fitness level, it's still a routine that requires effort to produce results, and it's effort that will make me sweat, get my blood pumping, and make me breathe harder. Completion of this schedule should get me closer to my goal of being able to double C+P 20kg kettlebells, which itself would be yet another step towards the more ambitious goal of double C+P with 32kg KBs.

As it is, the Wednesday workout under Easy Muscle looks less daunting than it would have been if I stuck with Giant X1.

The Giant X1: Week 1

Day 1 was fine. For my cooldown I did modified pigeon stretch to address the outside hips and half pancake stretch to address the side muscles,lats, and hamstrings. I forgot to do a backbend stretch such as the sphinx. I felt DOMS in the lower back and shoulders the following day.

Day 2 was more of a challenge because of one of the sets (ladder rungs) was very close to my C+P rep max. The first time I did that rung, my form degraded after the 5th rep but I managed to complete it without incident. I was only able to do the ladder for that day twice. The 2nd time I did the hardest rung, I felt more in control and did not notice as much form degradation. For cooldown I did a P3 session. I felt lower back DOMS the following day. Thus, it doesn't seem to matter whether stretching or a P3 session is better for cooldown from a Giant X1 session.

For Day 3 I managed to do 50 total reps

New Training Block: The Giant X1

This past Saturday, I decided on a whim to test my double 16kg kettlebell Clean + Press repetition max. The result was just like before: I was able to do 7 reps safely, but because of accumulated fatigue I did not feel an 8th full rep would be safe to attempt. This was really 2 tests in one - the other thing I was testing was whether my left shoulder would hold or if it would start feeling like it's slipping out of the socket again.

The shoulder passed the test, at least for that day. So I decided to start The Giant X1. It is an 8 week hypertrophy program, and thus barring any accident or other unexpected event, I should be able to complete it before the end-of-year holidays. Tape measurement confirmed what I suspected - that coming down with COVID-19 towards the end of this past summer, and the inactivity that followed, resulted in loss of muscle mass and strength. So hopefully I can do a complete block of Giant X1 and regain some muscle mass, then leverage the new muscle mass into new strength gains by doing 6x6 on the IsoMax again. This latest block of 6x6 resulted in improved stability of the left shoulder, reduction in elbow pain, but only a modest gain in terms of strength. In the case of my overhead press, I tested in around 111 lbs, hit a PR of 119 lbs., but generally continued to perform in the 110-115 lb. range. I should note this 6x6 block was only 4 weeks long. If I did 6 weeks it's possible my overhead press may have improved to the 115-120 lb. range.

There are some similarities in programming between The Giant X1 and Easy Muscle Schedule A. Both are based on the C+P, whose are summarized here by Geoff Neupert and Mike Mahler here. Without giving too much away, the main difference appears to be ladder repetitions. You would be doing a higher rep set earlier in Giant X1 compared to Easy Muscle Schedule A, but because of the ladder concept, you would not be doing the same number of reps on every set. Giant X2 looked like an interesting alternative to X1 but it seems like double clean volume would be sacrificed for more upper body exercise variety. I haven't done enough double clean work this year, hence the choice of X1

Today's inaugural session went fine. I managed to do 3 full ladders plus one set of the lowest rep rung of the ladder within the session time. More importantly I didn't feel my shoulder slip out of the socket.

IsoMax 6x6: Week 4 complete

I continued gradually working up the target load for Zercher Lunge and Drag Curl, staring at 34 lbs. and ending at 38 lbs. My Zercher Lunge numbers were consistenly around 80 lbs for both legs. My Drag Curl numbers were inconsistent like last week, but I hit a new high of 99.8 lbs on Friday without irritating my elbows.

Overhead Press performance was worse compared to last week. I'm not sure if it's because of the usual nonlinear nature of progression through overcoming isometrics, or because I was changing the target load too much. For next week I'll stick to 78 lbs. as the target load until I hit more than 115 lbs. 3 sessions a row.

IsoMax 6x6: Week 3 complete

I continued training Zercher Lunge and Drag Curl at low target load, except at 32 lbs for this week. Performance in Zercher Lunge peaked Wednesday with a max of 81.6 lbs on the left leg and 77.8 on the right leg. When training Drag Curl, I was in elbow rehab mode so I was more interested in applying as much force as possible short of pain, as opposed to pushing the limits of my pulling strength.

Progress in the Overhead Press was fine. I thought I'd try a bit of load waving by lowering the load to 76 lbs. on Friday, and gradually working back to to 79 lbs the following week. Anyway I got my best result yet on Friday with a max of 119.8 lbs.

On my in-between training days I practiced Geoff Neupert's P3 method, within his Sore Joint Solution program. It's primarily a motor control program, which promises gains in mobility among other things.

I found this Using Turkish Get Up for mobility training video, which includes a drill for improving mobility for holding a kettlebell overhead

Video examples of Spread Triads for technical studies/soloing

Rodrigo Gouveia spread triad exercise

Eric Johnson incorporating spread triads whenever and wherever he feels like it

IsoMax 6x6: Week 2 complete

I'm enjoying Zercher Lunge training at the low load of 30 lbs. No danger of cramp/strain of the quads. The bar is getting a little too easy to trigger though. The last rep force numbers are roughly the same as last week's despite the drop in load.

I was able to ramp up pulling force in the Drag Curl without irritating the elbows. The bar is also getting a little too easy to trigger here. I'll try bumping up the load to 32 lbs. for both Drag Curl and Zercher Lung

Overhead Press performance was roughly the same as last week, albeit with the increase in load from 76 lbs. to 79 lbs.

IsoMax 6x6: First session with new tweaks

Zercher Lunge with the target load dropped down to 30 lbs. was more enjoyable. With such a low setting for triggering the IsoMax beeper, I didn't feel like I had to apply so much force with my leg and thus I didn't feel any danger of inducing a cramp in my quad. I saved max effort for the last rep and got almost 78 lbs on my left leg and 81 lbs on the right leg.

I'll continue training the Zercher Lunge at 30 lbs. until holding the position feels less tiring. When that finally happens, I'll start increasing the target load.

I just got a ProBand BandIT which is a brace that you wear on your forearm in hopes of relieving pain from elbow tendonitis, carpal tunnel, etc. Before the Drag Curl, I put the BandIT on my left forearm since my elbow tendonitis flares up more in this forearm than in the right forearm. The IsoMax was already set to a 30lb. target load from the Zercher Lunge training, so I went ahead and did my Drag Curl set at 30lbs. With the BandIT on my left forearm, I had to pay more attention to my right elbow when I started ramping up the force. I managed to avoid irritating it with the exception of my 3nd or 3rd rep. My last rep max was just under 50 lbs.

I'll probably keep training Drag Curl at 30 lbs. for at least a week. I'll continue paying close attention to how hard I can pull before either elbow starts feeling irritated, and quickly back down if that happens.

I increased the target load for Overhead Press to 79 lbs. because my last rep max was 112.6 or higher for 3 consecutive sessions. This isn't a rule I saw in the Ultimate Isometrics Manual or other writing on isometric training - just somethign I made up which seems to work for me. I got almost 116 lbs. on my last rep.

For the rest of the day I did this hammer exercise. This one is taught differently compared to other videos teaching a rehab exercise with a hammer, in that there are 5-second holds and a gradual increase in lever length.