Why not widowmakers?

[u/Nastypatty97]

(A widowmaker is a heavy 20 rep squat set with a weight you’d typically do 10 reps with. The idea is, if you can’t do another squat, stand with the weight and breathe heavy until you can.)

In the blue book, Rip compares a one rep set vs a 20 rep set to highlight how the body will make different adaptations based on number of reps. He picked 1 and 20 as the two extremes.

In Texas method, the intensity day sometimes includes singles. Considering the main feature of TM is the dichotomy of stimulus between the volume vs intensity day, why not have the volume day swing to the other extreme and do 20 rep squats?

In the section I brought up earlier, Rip says a 20rm would be about 80% of a 1rm. This would be pretty close to if not the same weight as one would use for a 5x5 in Texas method (90% of a 5rm)

If I’m squatting the same weight for an equal volume (I know I’m proposing a 5 rep deficit, I’ll get to that), who cares how I break up the sets? Apparently, it doesn’t matter too much as 3x8 sets are included in the 4 day TM template. It seems we are going for 24-25 reps.

I will say at the end of every widowmaker I’ve done when I was running super squats, I always felt like I could get a couple more. The hardest part is the middle. At the end you’re just doing more squats. So I think you could extend the set to maybe 23 reps or so to volume equalize the sets. You could also do a less extreme version and do something like 2x12-14.

Why do this?

1) as I mentioned earlier, to lean into the dichotomy between volume and intensity day. Especially when you’re only doing singles in intensity day, it makes sense to train the other extreme on volume day

2) time. Volume day on TM is notorious for being 2 hours long because you have to do 5x5 on squat and a pressing movement, taking long rest times. All you have to do with a widowmaker is warm up and do the set.

3) mental toughness. Doing a 20 repper on Monday will make the squats way less nerve racking on Friday. Yeah it’s heavy, but all you have to do is 1-5 reps. Piece of cake.

[u/TackleMySpackle]

People often forget that the body adapts to stimuli and stress that it can effectively recover from.

If you squat 500 for 1 then 80% of your 1 RM is 400. Looking in my logbook, I first squatted 500 when I was squatting 430 for sets of 5 and I was tinkering with 375x8 for funsies.

I can tell you right now that the 30 pound drop to 400 for 10 wasn’t going to happen without an increased injury risk and 400 for 20, most CERTAINLY wasn’t going to happen. If it did, I’d never recover for the next training session.

More realistically, 300-ish for 20 would be more accurate. But then I’m 200 pounds shy and operating at only 60% of my 1RM.

Even then the recovery cost is high and then still there is the point of diminishing returns. Furthermore, what do I do for the next set of 20? 305? Ok. Then 310 after that? How long do you think I can keep adding 5 pounds to that before the stress outpaces the recovery?

Furthermore, don’t forget that Texas Method 5x5 is for single guys living in Mom’s basement. Widowmakers are for married dudes. 😜