Definitely throw in at least one week of 15s before your proper cycle. The only thing I strongly disagree with Komplement's Cluster setup is a lack of a proper phase (or mini-phase) that'll condition the joints for the future heavy lifting. Do that and you'll be fine going into the 95% 1RM level. If you don't want to do that, then throw in some burn sets during your first week of cluster training.
General recs:
1) DB Flies: do them as deep as you possibly can. LS after cluster set at lowest position for 10-15 seconds
2) BB Row: switch to strong-range partials and use 20% more load than you would normally use for each week. You may want to throw in a very short (5-ish) normal set at the original load afterwards to keep functional strength.
3) Overhead move: not sure what exercise you mean by this
4) Rack chins: see 2)
5) Scott Curl: Replace Scott curl with incline bench DB curl, palms-up grip. LS
6) French press: Use with dumbbells, palms up, elbows pressing "outward" and toward the ceiling. LS for 10-15 seconds
7) Deadlifts: none
8) Leg press: as low as you can safely go
9) Add in one week of 15s in order to condition joints
Generally, use only 10-20 reps for the single-joint movements. When you add in LS, you really don't need that much.
Experimental rec:
If you've been doing clusters at 30 reps for awhile, you may want to try a "tweak" with it.
1) Decrease the total rep quota to 20 reps or so
2) Use a "declining density" setup. Below are portions from PMs I wrote Hannesburk:
[b said:
Quote[/b] ]If your clusters are 3 reps, you use 15-60 second rest periods. If your clusters are are 2 reps, you use 10-40 second rest periods. If one rep, you use 5-20 seconds. (These are just guidelines.) For example, say you plan to do 15 deadlifts during the 5s. You do 15x1 with 5 second rests. By the end, you're using 20 second rests. On average, your total rest period will be 180 seconds, or 3 minutes. Your total TUL will be 90 seconds. That's just under 5 minutes.
Of course, as you do a lot of reps and very heavy reps, you'll need to significantly increase rest periods. Below are the rough guidelines:
[b said:
Quote[/b] ]
1) You set up # of reps per cluster that builds low-to-moderate fatigue. The # of reps will generate enough fatigue, so that you can build to optimal fiber recruitment.
2) You set up initially short rest periods. If the cluster is just one rep, then try 5 seconds. If the cluster is 3 reps, try 15-20 seconds. This way, you let the total fatigue build slowly in order to approach optimal fiber recruitment.
3) You then methodically increase rest. This way, you *stay* with optimal fiber recruitment and keep rate coding and neural drive moderate. When you feel a lot of blood is pumping or the rep is very slow or it is "hard", then you have too much fatigue. You need much more rest. Generally, try to increase rest with each following cluster until you need 20 seconds (1 rep), up to 60 (3 reps) in order to slow down fatigue build-up. If you need more, you may need to stop.
I'm not sure how well this works going beyond 85% 1RM. The theory is to manipulate the fatigue management in order to use fatigue to increase initial MU recruitment, then keep levelling that fatigue off, so that you reach an optimal zone of net MU recruitment, and keep it in an "optimal" zone for as many reps as possible. The physiological explanation is that it keeps the net effect of each rep's mechanical strain from tailing off, as it tends to when you do many "sets." This is similar to Gironda's rep schemes. I confess that I had this technique more in line with 10s and the first week of 5s, but it would be interesting if you could use something like this with even very heavy loads. For 90% and 95%, you would use one-rep clusters, but you would delibereately start with very short rest periods, and then increase as you go.
cheers,
Jules
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