IsoMax 6x6 1-Rep Max Testing

Today was the first day of my newest training block, which will be focused on strength via overcoming isometrics on the IsoMax. As always, the 1-Rep Max protocol from the book Ultimate Isometrics Manual was used.

The results in pounds:

• Lateral Single Leg Deadlift (LSLDL) - 102.4
• Overhead Press - 115.9
• Drag Curl - 115.2

Compared to the previous 1-rep max test last December, the overhead press was down from 120.87 and the drag curl was up from 91.2.

It's odd to see my IsoMax overhead press go down, yet my 20kg kettlebell strict press rep max go up from 1 to 3. The KB pressing strength going up makes sense because I'd been practicing the clean+press a lot as part of The Giant for the last 10 weeks (2 under Giant 2.0, and 8 total under Giant 1.1 and 1.2). The IsoMax overhead press going down might be because I hadn't practiced it since December. Both the IsoMax overhead press and the KB press work the same muscles. However the technique is a little different because the overhead press with a bar forces the hands to be in pronation, while starting position for a KB press places the palm closer to a neutral position (neither pronated nor supinated). As the KB is pressed, the hand tends to be rotated so that at lockout position, the hand is pronated. Also, overcoming isometrics encourages whole body tension and force generation, while the KB that I used for The Giant was not heavy enough to make me practice generating that kind of whole body force.

Anyway, while the mystery of the drop in isometric overhead press performance combined with the gain in 20kg KB press performance is interesting, I don't think it matters much in the long run. Overcoming isometric training involves practicing using one's central nervous system (CNS) to generate muscular force. Hypertrophy training under a program like The Giant typically results in gains in muscle size but the CNS is not typically trained to the same intensity. A few weeks of 6x6 style isometric training typically results in the CNS making more efficient use of the newly gained muscle mass.

The drag curl gain was a surprise at first, then I remembered that I was doing a few sets of chin ups on the afternoons after my morning The Giant sessions. I was not doing the chin ups to try to make my biceps grow bigger, but to try to condition my elbow tendons to better tolerate chin ups. This ended up working well for my left elbow. My right elbow still felt some pain on the first set, and felt better if I did the 2nd set within 10 minutes of the first set. I adhered to the guidelines mentioned in Geoff Neupert's chinup video - volume should not be more than 5 sets of 5 reps. By my last week of The Giant 1.2, I was doing 4 sets of 4 reps. Anyway, it must have been the chin up training that led to the increase in drag curl strength.

For both the overhead press and drag curl, I tested with the bar set, so that the targeted muscles would be as long as possible. For the overhead press, the bar was as low as I could set it and still be able to do an overhead press. The low height of the bar makes me stretch the chest and pull the elbows down - thus all the overhead pressing muscles are as long as they could be for the overhead press. For the drag curl, the bar was practically on top of my thighs, thus making my biceps so long the arms close to straight. The reason is research finding that isometric training at long muscle length resulted in greater transfer to dynamic performance compared to isometrics at shorter muscle length. I did not go for long muscle length in the LSLDL because I didn't know how low I could really go without compromising safety for my low back, and I didn't feel the risk would be worth it.

Substituting the LSLDL for the Zercher Lunge is one change from previous takes on the 6x6 program template. I've been practicing P3 Protocol for a while, first under the Sore Joint Solution program, and lately under Systematic Core Training For Kettlebells. Side Lying has been the most difficult of P3's 3 fundamental body positions for me. I think it's because my lateral chain is the weakest of my 3 kinetic chains (anterior, posterior and lateral). I looked in Ultimate Isometrics Manual for any Isochain/IsoMax exercise that might hit the lateral chain hardest of all, and LSLDL looked like the best candidate. I figured a 6x6 block featuring the LSLDL might accelerate my progress with Side Lying exercises.

THe LSLDL is briefly shown in NoLimitSquad's video. My modification to the LSLDL is to simply allow the ball of the non-working foot to rest on the ground, which should allow the CNS to focus more on force output and less on balance. Another modification I made, compared to the photo in the book, was to align the hips with the shoulders. In the photo, the shoulders are not aligned with the hips, so the spine is bending a bit to the side. Having a history of low back injury, I'm in favor of not allowing the spine to bend to either side in this exercise. A 3rd modification is supinated rather than pronated grip for the front hand. This feels more natural to me. A pronated grip for the front hand would put the front shoulder into internal rotation which doesn't feel as good. With these modifications, the LSLDL does indeed work the lateral chain while not putting the low back into any danger or any other discomfort

Another modification I'm making to the 6x6 template is a triple wave scheme that I'm stealing from Geoff Neupert's The Giant X, which in turn was inspired by the Cuban Rep scheme he got from his weightlifting coach. The 6x6 program in The Ultimate Isometrics Manual says to test for 1-rep max, then train at 70% of 1 rep max every session until a retest of 1-rep max. Switching to the triple wave means not training at the same target load all the time. This is my understanding of the triple wave:

1. Wave within one session by doing ladders - lowest force at the lowest rung, more force at the next rung, most force at the highest rung. 6x6 is 6 reps of 6-second holds, so I'm going with a 3-rung ladder that is repeated once.
2. Wave within one week by having light, heavy, and medium training days. Use the highest load settings on the heavy day and the lowest settings on the light day.
3. Wave within the entire block by increasing difficulty on the heavy days over time, then dialing back as needed.

I was going to do a more literal adaptation of The Giant X to this modified 6x6 program, but decided to improvise instead. The info collected in the book Beyond Bodybuilding suggests that wave loading may work best when there's some randomness to the waving. I'll generally increase load for the heavy days but I'll also try to avoid setting the load so high that I can't do 6 full reps. When a heavy session makes me feel like I'm close to my limit, I'll wave the heavy day back down.