Yea, I know, just to make it clear to everyone what Im talking about...

The point is that when you sit down you transfer a much greater force to the lower back than when you're standing. Everything equal, that force must go somewhere. So Im thinking that the hips and legs (and therefore the knees) get some of it?

I dont want to sacrifice even the slighest long term knee problems that could come as a result of pressing a month or two before the knee is "ready", but if there really is NO problem, then obv I would like to press.

There is no stress on the knees when pressing. The weight remains above the centre of the foot and the knees are locked. All the force is vertically downwards.

I don't have a 2:3:4:5 ratio. My deadlift too strong, bench too weak for this to be the case.

Does anyone have any info on doing weighted planks using medium ass weight for ~60s vs using heavy ass weight for 5-10s, then resting a bit and doing another 5-10s. Basically doing short "reps" vs doing one longer iso hold? I was thinking about it today at the gym and it seems at least plausible to me that doing shorter reps might have better carryover to real world situations. And I don't mean tabata planks, even shorter times (like 5-10s as mentioned). Anyone read anything on this?

Due to ****** math this morning, I accidentally went up 15lbs on my bench rather than my intended 5. I was able to do 2 sets fine, and 3rd set only got 3 reps. What do I do next bench workout?

Workout #7: 80lbs bench
Workout #8: 85lbs bench (intended), did 95lbs, but failed 5-5-3.
Workout #9: ?

I figure either stay at 95 or go to 90 and pretend I just passed 85. Since I did 2 sets (that were a struggle, but not impossible), maybe I am ready for 95.

If you got 553 then just do 95 again.

you could go straight to 100 next time

If you got 5 reps in the first two sets you perhaps aren't being aggressive enough with your scaling being a beginner. Go up in 10 pound jumps until you can't any longer. You should be able to do that a few more times at least.

It certainly surprised me I was able to do it. I've been pretty conservative with my jumps due to lower recovery levels.

Squats I'm going to stay at 5 lbs since I've struggled so much in the past with it, plus I'm doing it every time. Bench I can probably go 10lbs for a few more. Deadlift I'm increasing 10 and haven't really had any huge issues. Gone from 135 -> 175. Maybe go to 15 or 20lbs increases for a little? 175 was starting to feel like effort, but I know I can do more if I needed to. Maybe 195 next time? Presses are screwed up and I already am doing more than I should relative to my other lifts, so 5lbs seems fine there. Cleans I haven't failed a rep yet by increasing 5, maybe time to increase 10. I am pretty sure I can handle it. I did 95lbs last time for cleans.

I split the difference and usually shoot for 30-40 seconds. Using a weight heavy enough to fail after 10 seconds is asking for an injury. I don't think it matters too much either way, I've found that you progress with weighted planks so fast that the risk of injury probably makes the exercise not worth doing after you've been at it for 10-20 workouts and are doing 30+ seconds with more than a hundred pounds added.

Definitely don't do 10 lb jumps on cleans. 95 is pretty heavy given your squat and DL numbers. I'd get a video up first thing to fix whatever form issues you have, because the weight is likely already more than heavy enough.

Any recommendations for deadlifts? Should I go to 15 or 20 lbs, or just stay at 10 lbs jumps?

Need to get videos, hoping to get some Sunday. There's pretty much no place I could set down the camera to get good angles without tons of crap being in the way unless I have someone holding it.

At your stage your DL should be increasing faster than your squat. So if you can handle 5 lb jumps in squats (for 30 lbs per two weeks) then you can probably handle 15 lb jumps on deadlifts (for 45 lbs per two weeks).

I'm 3 weeks in, squat has gone up only 25 lbs due to failures, deadlift has gone up 50 (based on what I'll do next time). I'll try going up 15 next time for DL. I'll probably hit a wall fairly soon, but I should be able to go a few weeks until its too much.

Does anyone know of any good resources for this whole cutting thing that I've seen referred to? Google leads me to a whole lot of forums and websites that look unreliable. I just want to know how I can cut some of this fat off but keep my strength, or whether that's unrealistic, or whether the whole bulking/cutting thing is bunk to begin with. If the FAQ has info on this I've missed it.

Lyle McDonald / Alan Aragon

I was just thinking about buying LM's flexible guide to dieting. Does that cover it or should I start picking through the articles on his site? Thanks.

Holy **** LM's site is stacked with info. Not sure why I didn't just hang out here for awhile rather than just making it a buy his book/don't buy his book decision.

I would read his free articles first to see if you like his stuff. It should take you some time as he's made quite a wealth of information available for free. Still, his Flexible Guide to Dieting is a solid product.

Awesome, thanks kyle.

I don't get your sitting down analogy. The press is performed with locked knees. Consult your doctor if you want to be super safe. And then take whatever he says with a big grain of salt cause most doctors don't know jack about sports physiology.

You can also go herer: http://startingstrength.com/resource...play.php?f=129 and use the search function to see if Rip has commented on the subject of knee injury or knee surgery. I'm betting he has.

I did this and learned so much I felt bad about not buying his products, so I ended up buying a couple books. If you're only going to buy one, get Guide to Flexible Dieting.

What does A&C stand for? Mobility exercises apparently. I'm interested in them, except I don't know what the full name is.

Assess & Correct.

Where can I go for information about how to best use a foam roller? And what exercise/stretches to do in particular if you're doing an SS routine?