stronglifts, OHP and not increasing weights

sjohnny

I've never used an HRM to track but rest time for me is significant as well. I will rest upwards of 5 minutes before a 1RM attempt and 2-4 minutes for top sets (5/3/1, last set is heaviest). But for isolation work it's usually 1-2m.

Having a square filled in on my Garmin calendar is a "reward" for me (yeah, I'm a dork). I don't use the calorie burn info or anything.

nexangelus

Maybe this is a timely reminder that rest is very important. It seems "duh", but I don't think I rest that long to give myself a chance either, which means I have been wimping out for a long time...ugh!

heybales

Having a square filled in on my Garmin calendar is a "reward" for me (yeah, I'm a dork). I don't use the calorie burn info or anything.

I've found it also is interesting to confirm for data junkies that yep, you couldn't hit your reps, and your HR didn't go as high, must have been tired.

I've had many times where Monday's session of whatever had such an impact, that even by Wed lifting time, I didn't feel tired, but I most obviously was from the results.
But for me it's interesting to see just how far off was my maxHR compared to other times.

Really shows the difference between lifting to failure because you are tired, or because you were rested but correctly overloaded.

Which I didn't notice this confirmed by Tauto or others.
Are you putting the OHP into the lifting order where expected, or have your own order?

PriceK01

Thank you for this thread! Lots of really great information!!

I'm doing SS and presses are really bumming me out. I completely know what you mean about feeling week and girly. And yes, I did actually cry when I couldn't press what I was supposed to be doing that session (a measly 55lbs since I just started). I went back and reread that section of Rip's book, watched a bunch more videos, big breath, used abs, and could still barely get through one set. Frustrating as all get out!!!

DopeItUp

Everyone has given great advice. Just wanted to add a little encouragement as EVERYONE finds OHP slow and painful. I've been doing the same weight for at least a month and I'm not even close to being able to move up. What I try to do is just add 1 rep per week. So this week is, 5 reps, 5 reps, 5 reps, 5 reps, 6 reps. Next week is 5 reps, 5 reps, 5 reps, 6 reps, 6 reps. Until I can do 5x6, then I might try adding 5lbs and doing 5x5. Or even smaller steps, just adding 5lbs for the very last set and going from there.

It takes forever. It will probably be 6 months before I can do 135lbs 5x5 and I can currently do 120lbs 5x5. That's slow!

Will_Thrust_For_Candy

OHP is a B!tch!!!!! It took me forever to add an extra rep onto my current weight which I finally accomplished yesterday and let me tell you.....I thought my arms were going to fall off!

Rest is critical and deload can work wonders. I agree with trying at this current weight for a couple more sessions and if no progress deload and try again.....3x5 is a wonderful option if it's really kicking your *kitten*. The only thing I would not do is increase weight if you haven't managed to successfully do AT LEAST 3x5 at this current weight. You can also use fractional weights to increase as well...I know for me there is no way that I could increase OHP at 5lbs per workout!

You will own that b!tch soon enough....power through!

jayliospecky

You say the last few are horrible, but I'm not sure if that just means you find them extremely difficult, or if your form has also really deteriorated. If the form on your last few sets or reps are really bad, then actually I wouldn't count them as "completed." In which case I would repeat the same weight until I had 5 sets of 5 with good form all the way through.

I definitely agree with resting more. Especially as the weights get more challenging, it will become more of a necessity. You are taxing your entire body and you need the rest. When I was doing 5x5, I rested 2 or 3 minutes between sets, 4-5 minutes if I had failed. Coincidentally, this also made the workout friggin' LONG so I eventually moved on to 3 x 5, partly for that reason. But I don't think you need to consider dropping to 3x5 yet, you still have the option to deload and work back up a few times as well.

There are some who say 5 x 5 is overkill, and Starting Strength is ALL 3 x 5, so then again, you could switch to 3x5 whenever you want, I suppose.

And yes, OHP tends to be the lift that most people hit a wall with first. Don't let it discourage you, just follow the program, deload if you need to, and keep going.

xidia

Regarding rest periods, from the research i did when i started lifting heavy: lifting is fuelled,by muscle glycogen. When it's exhausted, you can't push out another rep. When you rest, your body refills the muscles from glycogen in the liver, and it takes 3-5 minutes. As the weights get to the point where you're running out of energy at the end of every set, you need to leave enough time to refill the muscles completely, hence the rest period. When you're not running out of energy every set, you're only topping up the muscles, so a shorter rest period is fine.