jesusiscoming01
New member
Intro
(F) 5’7” 179lbs. I haven’t seen many reviews by women on Jon Andersen’s Deep Water Method over in the fitness wiki. I injured myself in January, and after I was cleared by my doctor, I ran this program to recover my strength and build my confidence back up.
TLDR: program kicked my ass, I liked changing up the progression scheme from increasing weight to reducing rest time, and I’m back to where I was pre-injury.
Background
Sedentary office worker checking in. Five years ago, I started concentrating on powerlifting, but have been off and on with exercise in general, trying to balance work and a new relationship. During pandemic, I did no strength training until September when I built my home gym. I ran the Beginner 5/3/1 program, followed by nSuns 4 day. Squat/Bench/Deadlift actual maxes at the start on 2021 were 190lb/145lb/240lb, all for 2 reps. OHP was 90lb for 3.
Unfortunately, in early January, I slipped on my carpeted(!) stairs, carrying a bowl of cereal, and ended up in the ER with two fractures and a sliced-up pinky. Luckily (if you can get lucky in the context of breaking your body on some stupid stairs), it was mostly just painful and scary, nothing long term. By mid-Feb, my doctor cleared me to resume my normal activities, including lifting, but to avoid contact sports and falling down more stairs.
Program
Generally, Deep Water (DW) is a 6-week, 5 consecutive day program. You can get a free copy of the e-book by giving your email on Jon Andersen’s website or it’s available for $10 off Amazon. (Note he also offers a 3-month DW weight training method for $180, which is different).
For the Beginner program, Days 1 and 3 are 10 sets of 10 reps of either squat or deadlift, and 10x10 of OHP or push press. Days 2 and 4 are 3x10 of back exercises including cleans and AMRAP pull-ups, and 3x10 of bench variations and AMRAP push-ups and dips. Day 5 is 20 minutes of conditioning. The lifting days also include core exercises of sit-ups, 1min planks and/or back extensions. Weight is set at 54% of your tested max.
DW Beginner progresses by reducing rest times. You start with a max of 4 minutes of rest between sets, and every two weeks, reduce the rest time by a minute.
Goals
I’ve wanted run DW for a while based on the reviews on r/fitness and r/weightroom. I wimp out on AMRAPs and was hoping to build up my stamina when lifting.
Post-injury, I wanted to recover my strength and my confidence in putting heavy loads on my back after spending the start of 2021 feeling weak and helpless and freaking out over every minor twitch. I also hoped to return to my previous maxes, but that was a secondary goal.
Modifications
I switched to bench dips, and pull-ups immediately followed by bench assisted pull-ups for more volume. I braced against a barbell for back extensions since I don’t have a machine. I also switched the sit-ups to Russian twists after I tweaked my neck the first week.
For personal preference reasons, I did the 10x10 deadlifts with a trap bar, and all OHP and push press with an axle bar.
Conditioning was mostly running up and down a hill or a HIIT spin class.
I actually emailed Jon Andersen some questions about my modifications, and to my surprise, he wrote back. Since I’ve never had clean pulls in my programming before, I was initially considering using a lower weight and relying on my lighter axle bar. He pointed out that I would probably be inhabited my grip and wouldn’t get the full benefit of the exercise. So I sucked it up and used a regular barbell, then surprised myself by going up to 95lb.
Finally, I really tried to keep to the 5-consecutive-day format but had a couple of weeks with an unintentional rest day midweek due to work. I also made first day of my period a rest day.
Diet
Y’all, this program made me eat. I went from drinking coffee only in the morning to waking up hungry. Breakfasted consistently for the first time in my life, ignored any sort of calorie restriction, and actually tried to meet my protein goals for once (aimed for 130-140g/day). Weight fluctuated up and down but generally is back to where it was pre injury.
The recommended diet in the ebook is five meals a day of high quality, organic protein, fats and leafy greens (Jon Andersen is anti-carb, safe to say). I initially wasn’t going to make any dietary changes, but since the program aims to remove easy recovery methods like carbs and rest days to challenge yourself further, I gave up my regular quick carbs like cereal and chips, and tried not to eat before or during the workout. However, fruits and beans were still a regular part of my diet, and I occasionally ate bread and sugar.
I also drank but had some success dialing that down by switching to Athletic Brewing NA beers. Many thanks to this sub for that recommendation.
Farts
They were bad.
Physique
I purposefully did not take progress photos because I wanted to focus on recovery (Sorry to disappoint—those are my favorite parts of progress write ups). However, my SO started calling me to Geodude, so I guess you could say I reached peak physique with this program.
Experience
I went from 4 minutes of rest between each set to 2 minutes of rest for:
+10x10 back squats: 100lb
+10x10 trap bar deadlifts: 165lbs
+10x10 OHP: 60lbs
+10x10 Push Press: 80lbs
+3x10 Clean Pulls: 95lbs
+3x10 Bench Press: 95lbs
I’m now a week into running nSuns again, and I’m back to where I was in January. (To be clear, I am not suggesting this program “healed” me, just that it allowed me to regain my confidence in putting heavy loads on my back).
More importantly, the program kicked my ass, and I had a great time running it. Most days, I ended each session feeling spent, HR in the cardio zone, and like I could not do another rep with a knife to my belly. Reps weren’t always pretty but the program really teaches you to push while still in recovery. (Only failed twice and reracked once during a set when I smacked myself in the jaw on a push press. Honestly, the overhead pressing was consistently an asshole to me the entire program, but I have now gone from 90lbs for 3 to 95lbs for 3). By the 5th week, I had mostly forgotten that I had this back injury, and I feel prepared to tackle whatever is next.
Before this, if I had to design my nightmare program, it would probably include high rep squats at warm up weight, mandatory conditioning, planks and only benching once a week. Certainly, two weeks in, I was wondering why I decided to go from feeling bad from not moving and eating too much sugar to feeling bad from DOMS and overeating. But DOMS started to subside, I figured out how to eat less like a dumbass, and I was never bored (hard to feel bored when you are always slightly afraid of the next set). The 10x10 were so much easier on my joints than heavy reps, I loved how simple it was, and I certainly got better at pushing myself when the chance of failure is very real.
My only change personally would be starting with a 60-65% estimate for the weight rather than 54%. I began with 54% of my January maxes (rather than the estimated max), assuming that being out of commission for 6 weeks would make those numbers safe. I went up in everything except squat, and I regret not increasing my squat—it’s the only lift that doesn’t feel as solid now at higher weights, and I think grinding at a higher weight would have helped. When I run this again, I will probably target what I feel comfortable doing for 3x10.
Final Thoughts
DW definitely targets men (email and ebook littered with talk like ‘this program will cause most men to break’, ‘don’t be a p****y’, that sort of thing. Email even addressed me as “my brother”
). But like the majority of lifting programs aimed at men it seems, DW is equal opportunity for anyone comfortable performing the movements. I ended up rereading the ebook a couple of times because the mental aspect of lifting isn’t something I’ve thought about a lot, and I appreciated learning about his thoughts and background.
Really, I’m just pro any program that challenges my preconceived notions of what I like or can do. And to go from lying in bed, dependent on someone else for basic needs, to pressing 80lbs over my head 100 times is something I am very grateful for.
(F) 5’7” 179lbs. I haven’t seen many reviews by women on Jon Andersen’s Deep Water Method over in the fitness wiki. I injured myself in January, and after I was cleared by my doctor, I ran this program to recover my strength and build my confidence back up.
TLDR: program kicked my ass, I liked changing up the progression scheme from increasing weight to reducing rest time, and I’m back to where I was pre-injury.
Background
Sedentary office worker checking in. Five years ago, I started concentrating on powerlifting, but have been off and on with exercise in general, trying to balance work and a new relationship. During pandemic, I did no strength training until September when I built my home gym. I ran the Beginner 5/3/1 program, followed by nSuns 4 day. Squat/Bench/Deadlift actual maxes at the start on 2021 were 190lb/145lb/240lb, all for 2 reps. OHP was 90lb for 3.
Unfortunately, in early January, I slipped on my carpeted(!) stairs, carrying a bowl of cereal, and ended up in the ER with two fractures and a sliced-up pinky. Luckily (if you can get lucky in the context of breaking your body on some stupid stairs), it was mostly just painful and scary, nothing long term. By mid-Feb, my doctor cleared me to resume my normal activities, including lifting, but to avoid contact sports and falling down more stairs.
Program
Generally, Deep Water (DW) is a 6-week, 5 consecutive day program. You can get a free copy of the e-book by giving your email on Jon Andersen’s website or it’s available for $10 off Amazon. (Note he also offers a 3-month DW weight training method for $180, which is different).
For the Beginner program, Days 1 and 3 are 10 sets of 10 reps of either squat or deadlift, and 10x10 of OHP or push press. Days 2 and 4 are 3x10 of back exercises including cleans and AMRAP pull-ups, and 3x10 of bench variations and AMRAP push-ups and dips. Day 5 is 20 minutes of conditioning. The lifting days also include core exercises of sit-ups, 1min planks and/or back extensions. Weight is set at 54% of your tested max.
DW Beginner progresses by reducing rest times. You start with a max of 4 minutes of rest between sets, and every two weeks, reduce the rest time by a minute.
Goals
I’ve wanted run DW for a while based on the reviews on r/fitness and r/weightroom. I wimp out on AMRAPs and was hoping to build up my stamina when lifting.
Post-injury, I wanted to recover my strength and my confidence in putting heavy loads on my back after spending the start of 2021 feeling weak and helpless and freaking out over every minor twitch. I also hoped to return to my previous maxes, but that was a secondary goal.
Modifications
I switched to bench dips, and pull-ups immediately followed by bench assisted pull-ups for more volume. I braced against a barbell for back extensions since I don’t have a machine. I also switched the sit-ups to Russian twists after I tweaked my neck the first week.
For personal preference reasons, I did the 10x10 deadlifts with a trap bar, and all OHP and push press with an axle bar.
Conditioning was mostly running up and down a hill or a HIIT spin class.
I actually emailed Jon Andersen some questions about my modifications, and to my surprise, he wrote back. Since I’ve never had clean pulls in my programming before, I was initially considering using a lower weight and relying on my lighter axle bar. He pointed out that I would probably be inhabited my grip and wouldn’t get the full benefit of the exercise. So I sucked it up and used a regular barbell, then surprised myself by going up to 95lb.
Finally, I really tried to keep to the 5-consecutive-day format but had a couple of weeks with an unintentional rest day midweek due to work. I also made first day of my period a rest day.
Diet
Y’all, this program made me eat. I went from drinking coffee only in the morning to waking up hungry. Breakfasted consistently for the first time in my life, ignored any sort of calorie restriction, and actually tried to meet my protein goals for once (aimed for 130-140g/day). Weight fluctuated up and down but generally is back to where it was pre injury.
The recommended diet in the ebook is five meals a day of high quality, organic protein, fats and leafy greens (Jon Andersen is anti-carb, safe to say). I initially wasn’t going to make any dietary changes, but since the program aims to remove easy recovery methods like carbs and rest days to challenge yourself further, I gave up my regular quick carbs like cereal and chips, and tried not to eat before or during the workout. However, fruits and beans were still a regular part of my diet, and I occasionally ate bread and sugar.
I also drank but had some success dialing that down by switching to Athletic Brewing NA beers. Many thanks to this sub for that recommendation.
Farts
They were bad.
Physique
I purposefully did not take progress photos because I wanted to focus on recovery (Sorry to disappoint—those are my favorite parts of progress write ups). However, my SO started calling me to Geodude, so I guess you could say I reached peak physique with this program.
Experience
I went from 4 minutes of rest between each set to 2 minutes of rest for:
+10x10 back squats: 100lb
+10x10 trap bar deadlifts: 165lbs
+10x10 OHP: 60lbs
+10x10 Push Press: 80lbs
+3x10 Clean Pulls: 95lbs
+3x10 Bench Press: 95lbs
I’m now a week into running nSuns again, and I’m back to where I was in January. (To be clear, I am not suggesting this program “healed” me, just that it allowed me to regain my confidence in putting heavy loads on my back).
More importantly, the program kicked my ass, and I had a great time running it. Most days, I ended each session feeling spent, HR in the cardio zone, and like I could not do another rep with a knife to my belly. Reps weren’t always pretty but the program really teaches you to push while still in recovery. (Only failed twice and reracked once during a set when I smacked myself in the jaw on a push press. Honestly, the overhead pressing was consistently an asshole to me the entire program, but I have now gone from 90lbs for 3 to 95lbs for 3). By the 5th week, I had mostly forgotten that I had this back injury, and I feel prepared to tackle whatever is next.
Before this, if I had to design my nightmare program, it would probably include high rep squats at warm up weight, mandatory conditioning, planks and only benching once a week. Certainly, two weeks in, I was wondering why I decided to go from feeling bad from not moving and eating too much sugar to feeling bad from DOMS and overeating. But DOMS started to subside, I figured out how to eat less like a dumbass, and I was never bored (hard to feel bored when you are always slightly afraid of the next set). The 10x10 were so much easier on my joints than heavy reps, I loved how simple it was, and I certainly got better at pushing myself when the chance of failure is very real.
My only change personally would be starting with a 60-65% estimate for the weight rather than 54%. I began with 54% of my January maxes (rather than the estimated max), assuming that being out of commission for 6 weeks would make those numbers safe. I went up in everything except squat, and I regret not increasing my squat—it’s the only lift that doesn’t feel as solid now at higher weights, and I think grinding at a higher weight would have helped. When I run this again, I will probably target what I feel comfortable doing for 3x10.
Final Thoughts
DW definitely targets men (email and ebook littered with talk like ‘this program will cause most men to break’, ‘don’t be a p****y’, that sort of thing. Email even addressed me as “my brother”
). But like the majority of lifting programs aimed at men it seems, DW is equal opportunity for anyone comfortable performing the movements. I ended up rereading the ebook a couple of times because the mental aspect of lifting isn’t something I’ve thought about a lot, and I appreciated learning about his thoughts and background. Really, I’m just pro any program that challenges my preconceived notions of what I like or can do. And to go from lying in bed, dependent on someone else for basic needs, to pressing 80lbs over my head 100 times is something I am very grateful for.
