Anyone find that some of the 1RM's are too high?

[lovebeingmom]

I just started Meso 1 and sometimes i'm finding that the weight my logs suggest are too high.

This morning I did my first leg workout and OMG, I thought i was going to puke I was so out of it. I usually dont have problems lifting first thing in the morning but this morning I had a really hard time

I found that with some of the upper body exercises too. i had to lower my weight.

I just hope as I move on i'll get stronger and Meso 2 and 3 are not too much

anyone else find that? or does it get better as you go?

 

[elsie3]

Well, here's at least one other person with the same problem. I just drop down to the weight I can handle and barely eek out the number of reps (with reasonably good form. I'm in Meso 2 now. I don't have a rack, so I can't do my suggested weight on barbell anyway, but I'm still feeling it. Hopefully the next time I go through the program, I'll be closer to my 1RM's.

 

[Traildoggie]

I was new to many of the exercises when I got STS. I skipped the 1 rep max except for movements I was familiar with. I didn't feel safe pushing the weight on things I never did before.
I'd watch an exercise and pick a reasonable weight. if it was way light or heavy, I'd switch right away. Record the weight on the worksheet. the first time thru meso 1, I repeated each disk twice. the second time thru was much faster. the weight you use is likely to change anyway as you get stronger or more familiar with the move. I learned quickly what weight to use as I learned strengths and weaknesses. I used the same approach for meso 2 which I'm finishing today.
DH is doing STS too. he looks at the weight I used and knows how much to add for his workout.

 

[dr.mel_PT]

This happened to me, mainly on the chest exercises. My 1RM was WAY higher than I could manage. It took some trial & error but I eventually found a safe working weight for myself. Definitely take Cathe's advice and record all your #s; esp if you're tweaking the 1RM's, it's really helpful for the weeks ahead. I'll usually print out my WO cards for the week, see what the increase is, and add it to whatever I was able to life the week before, then write it all on the cards so I'm good to go once I pop the DVD in.

 

[rose2boys]

This is my 2nd time round, but...

both times, I found this true only for Meso 1 -- for me it's because of the sheer number of reps (15!), sets & fast pace.

As I moved onto M2 & M3, I found myself really wanting to push & go higher in weight -- with the reps being less and a slower pace I could really eek out 8-10 reps with a high weight.

 

[elsie3]

This happened to me, mainly on the chest exercises. My 1RM was WAY higher than I could manage. It took some trial & error but I eventually found a safe working weight for myself. Definitely take Cathe's advice and record all your #s; esp if you're tweaking the 1RM's, it's really helpful for the weeks ahead. I'll usually print out my WO cards for the week, see what the increase is, and add it to whatever I was able to life the week before, then write it all on the cards so I'm good to go once I pop the DVD in.

I like your approach. Thank you for sharing.

 

[MDolfiniReed]

Yup, I had to make some adjustments during meso 1. Went back and redid a few 1RMs and have been okay through meso 2. I'm starting my active recovery week tomorrow then on to meso 3. I have to say STS has been a pretty amazing journey so far.
~michelle

 

[Autumn68]

I've had to make some adjustments at times. But I log it into the workout manager. I try to do the weight suggested for the amt of reps on the sheet. And if I come close it's ok, but if it's like...no way, then I adjust. It's only been one or two exercises that I had to do that. Also I have some weaker days and some stronger ones; so I take that into consideration. - autumn

 

[tothemax]

Not so much in M1, but a few times in M2

 

[Shadowpup]

This is my second time through STS (am on Meso 2). I've ended up making changes both to the 1RMs and also the weight/reps on a given day without changing the 1RMs.

It makes sense though, if you did your 1RM testing the way I did. I allowed plenty of rest between tests so that muscle fatigue wouldn't be an issue. When actually doing STS, there is much less rest. It matters where an exercise shows up in the program and how many other exercises have worked a specific muscle already. Also, a few times I've overtrained/overstressed a muscle and it hasn't fully recovered the next week, so it's a little weaker than predicted.

Muscles also get stronger at different paces. For me, legs got strong much faster than predicted, so that by the end of my first time through STS my predicted 1RM were around fifty percent higher than when I started. Shoulders increased slightly more slowly than predicted, and if memory serves, biceps/triceps were about on track, except in Meso 2, where I overtrained (underrested) and had a setback there.

What works for me is to adjust my 1RMs downward if I find an exercise is consistently too heavy two weeks in a row, to adjust the 1RMs upward each week if the weight feels too light, and to leave things alone otherwise (and just use reps/slight weight adjustments on that particular day). Also, I throw in an extra few active rest days if an entire workout feels too tough or I'm feeling very tired overall.