Looking back now, those 20-rep squats we hit back at the beginning of September (“TIED UP IN SQUATS“) – done at 65% of our 1RM – don’t seem so daunting when viewed through the spectrum of Sunday’s programmed squat workout.

In the blog-post following our 20-rep squats at 65% which we referenced above, we made mention of the Hatfield Muscle Fiber test and it’s applicability to determine a lifter’s muscular strength-to-endurance ratio: 

Test – Find your one rep max back squat
– Rest 15 mins
– Perform as many reps as possible with 80% of your 1 RM
Analysis – Less than 7 reps = fast twitch (FT) dominant
– 7-to-8 reps = mixed fiber type
– More than 8 reps = slow twitch (ST) dominant 

Although this Sunday’s squat workout wasn’t a true Hatfield test (no 1RM test immediately preceding the AMRAP set), it was still a great indicator of where you fall on the spectrum as an athlete.

To prep everyone for their AMRAP work set, a progression was set-up as follows:

1 x 10 @ Bar Only
1 x 10 @ 35%
1 x 5 @ 50%
1 x 3 @ 65%
1 x 3 @ 70%
1 x 2 @ 75%
and then,
1 x AMRAP @ 80% 

Tough to be sure, and some epic performances, including some incredible 20+ sets from the ladies, including Amelia, Jessi, and Steph! However, just to be clear, hi rep back squats are a good indication of an athletes muscular endurance, NOT of their max effort strength.

There are formulas which will help calculate your theoretical 1RM based on the number of reps achieved and the amount of weight lifted, and there are plenty of online calculators which will do this for you (most notably, ExRx.net’s One Rep Max Predictor). You’ll note, however, the ExRx’s calculator will not accept a rep amount larger than 10, and for good reason. The higher the rep count, the less trustworthy the results. How far off can it be? Well, let’s use coach Tom Brose as an example:

– Tom’s current 1RM back squat is 455lbs.
– On Sunday, he pushed out 16 solid reps as 365, 80% of his 1RM.
– Now, using those two numbers (16reps at 365lbs) to calculate out a theoretical 1RM back squat for Tom would put him at a whopping 625lbs!! 

Could Tom currently squat more than 455 for 1 rep? Most likely. Could Tom currently squat 170lbs more than his current 1RM? Definitely not. It would make for a nice “squish” though.

Following completion of the back squat work, class finished things off with some skill practice. In two separate 3 minute blocks, everyone was to complete as many reps as possible of Ring Dips and K2E as possible. Either movement could be done as strict or kipping, as preferred. Dips were scaled to negatives on the rings, or to jump and support (maintaining the arms extended position as long as possible).

Awesome work, with lot’s of cheering and support for those who were in the midst of some awesome AMRAP squat sets. We’ll be posting this week’s supplemental workouts tonight, but in the meantime, be sure to pencil in CFDC’s annual Thanksgiving Day workout and earn that feast.

We’ll continue last year’s tradition of combining a Hero and A Girl for this year’s workout. The workout, which will be announced on Thursday, will be run as a partner WOD, meaning everyone will need a partner. You don’t have to come with one, but feel free to coordinate amongst yourselves ahead of time.