6-WEEK STRENGTH + ENGINE BLOCK

Three sessions a week plus an optional fourth, 60–90 minutes each. Every session starts with wrist rehab. Weights restart at about 60% of your old bests and climb every week. The snatch starts in week 1; the clean and jerk comes back in stages as the wrist allows. All engine work is on the machines.

6 weeks 3 sessions + 1 optional 60–90 min each Wrist rehab every session Toes-to-bar & pull-ups in · no muscle-ups

01How this block works

The week

Day	Session	What is in it	Time
Mon	Day 1	Back squat · Bulgarian split squats + press · sled pushes	~75 min
Wed	Day 2	Snatch · clean rebuild (front squats, cleans in stages)	~75–80 min
Fri / Sat	Day 3	Deadlift · engine intervals · core	~80 min
Sun (opt)	Day 4	Easy machine work · pull-ups, dumbbell bench, rows, curls	~60 min

Only got three days? Drop Day 4 — nothing important is lost. On rest days, do the 5-minute wrist homework from the Wrist section.

The weights

All percentages are based on your old bests from 3 months ago:

Back squat	140 kg	Front squat	110 kg
Squat clean	100 kg	Snatch	65 kg
Split jerk	70 kg	Deadlift	120 kg

Week 1 starts around 60% because of the 3 weeks off. The weights climb every week and finish around 85–90% in week 6. If a listed weight feels wrong on the day, use last week's weight and carry on — do not force it.

Using this page

The week buttons at the top change every weight and workout on the page to that week.
The white boxes are for writing in what you actually lifted or scored. They save automatically on this device.
Phases: weeks 1–2 Base, weeks 3–4 Build, weeks 5–6 Heavy. The wrist rehab moves through its own 3 phases on the same weeks.

Tests week 1 and week 6

Test	When	Week 1
10-minute Assault Bike — total calories	Day 3
Back squat — heaviest single (week 6 only, optional)	Day 1	—
Snatch — heaviest single	Day 2	—

02Wrist Rehab

Every session starts with this — about 8–10 minutes. The idea is simple: the wrist gets stronger by being loaded a little more each fortnight. Weeks 1–2 you push against things that do not move. Weeks 3–4 you add moving weight. Weeks 5–6 you put bodyweight back through your hands (press-ups, handstands, loaded front rack). You only move up a phase if the pain rules at the bottom say you are ready.

Phase 1 Weeks 1–2

Wrist circles 10 each wayLoose fist, slow full circles in both directions.
Wrist stretches 2 × 30 s each wayArm straight out. Use the other hand to gently pull the fingers back towards you (palm up). Then point the fingers at the floor and gently pull the back of the hand towards you. A mild pull only — never pain.
Push-up-and-hold 4 holds of 30–45 s, half effortForearm flat on a bench or your knee, hand off the edge, make a fist. Put your other hand on top of the fist. Try to lift the fist while the other hand blocks it — nothing actually moves, you just push and hold. This is the main drill: the sore tissue works hard without anything rubbing or bending. It often eases the pain for a few hours afterwards.
Push-down-and-hold 4 holds of 30 sSame set-up, other hand underneath the fist, push down against it and hold.
Thumb push 3 holds of 20 sLoop a rubber band around your fingers and thumb, and press the thumb outwards against it. Or just push the thumb sideways against your other hand. Half effort — this one works the sore thumb-base area directly, so keep it comfortable.
Hammer tips 2 × 12 each wayHold a light dumbbell (2–4 kg) by one end, thumb on top, like holding a hammer. Forearm resting on your knee. Tip the top of the dumbbell up towards the ceiling, then lower it slowly. Then turn the hand over and do the same the other way.
Palm turns 2 × 10Elbow tucked into your side, same dumbbell. Slowly turn the palm up, then the palm down.
Plate pinch + finger opens 3 × 20 s · 2 × 15Pinch a small plate flat between thumb and fingers and hold it. Then put a rubber band around all five fingertips and open the fingers wide against it.

Phase 2 Weeks 3–4

Wrist curls 3 × 15Forearm on a bench, palm up, hand and dumbbell hanging off the edge. Let the wrist bend down slowly, then curl it back up. Start 4–6 kg, add a little each week.
Reverse wrist curls 3 × 12Same set-up but palm down. Use less weight (2–4 kg).
Upside-down kettlebell hold 3 × 20 s each handHold a kettlebell upside down by the handle — ball in the air, 8–12 kg. Just keep it still in front of you. It wobbles; the small wrist muscles fighting the wobble is the exercise.
Hands-flat rocking 2 × 10, then 2 × 10 hands turned outOn all fours, hands flat under the shoulders. Rock the shoulders forward past the hands and back again. Then turn the hands outwards and repeat. This is bodyweight coming back onto the wrist, gently — you control how far you rock.
Fist holds 3 × 15 sPress-up position on your fists (knuckles down, wrist dead straight), on a mat. From the knees is fine to start.
Pinch carries 3 × 20 mPinch a plate in each hand, arms at your sides, walk.
Empty-bar front rack hold 3 × 15 sTake the empty bar out of the rack in the front rack position: bar resting on the front of the shoulders, elbows lifted high, only the fingertips under the bar. The hands should carry no weight at all. This is the first step of getting the rack position back.

Phase 3 Weeks 5–6

Wrist roller 2–3 trips up and downRoll the hanging weight all the way up, then let it back down under control.
Press-ups 3 × 8From the knees first if needed. Only go to full press-ups if the fist holds and rocking from phase 2 were pain-free.
Wall-facing handstand hold 3 × 20 sOnly once press-ups feel fine. Come down the moment the wrist complains.
Loaded front rack holds 3 × 10 s @ 40–60 kgSame rack hold as phase 2, now with weight on the bar. Out of the rack, stand tall, hold, put it back.
Ball dribbles 3 × 15 s each handBounce a medicine ball fast off the floor with a flat palm, like dribbling a basketball.
Keep the wrist curls and upside-down kettlebell holds from phase 2 going twice a week.

Pain rules

Green — pain 0–3 out of 10 while doing it, gone by the evening, and no worse the next morning. Carry on, and add a little next week. A mild, familiar ache during the rehab drills is normal and fine.

Amber — pain 4–5 out of 10, or the wrist feels worse the next morning. Stay at the current level and do not add anything this week. Take the drill that stirred it up back a step (for example: full press-up back to fist hold).

Red — sharp pain, catching, pins and needles, pain at night, or visible swelling. Stop that exercise and get the wrist looked at.

If the wrist is not clearly better by the end of week 3, book a physio appointment and show them this plan. The elbow click with a feeling of release is not a worry on its own — the forearm and lat work in the Mobility section is aimed at exactly that area.

Homework 5 min · rest days

Push-up-and-hold + push-down-and-hold 3 × 30 s each
Both wrist stretches 30 s each
Rubber band finger opens 2 × 15
Rub the forearm muscles on the thumb side, from the wrist up to the elbow 60–90 s
Band lat stretch (see Mobility section) 45 s each side

Rules inside sessionsStraps on all deadlifts and pulls until week 4 — the strap takes the bar so the thumb does not have to grip hard. No hook grip until week 4 — that is the grip where the thumb is trapped under the fingers, and it presses straight onto the sore spot. Back squat: hands slightly wider than usual, thumb resting over the bar not wrapped round it — the back carries the bar, the hands only steady it.

03Day 1 — Squat + Legs + Sled

DAY 1 · SQUAT + LEGS + SLED

~75 min

WWrist rehab + warm-up12 min

Then 3 minutes easy on any machine, then 2 rounds of: 6 bootstrappers · 8 light goblet squats · 8 glute bridges · 10 leg swings each leg.

ABack Squat~22 min

Log — heaviest set each week (kg)

BSuperset — Bulgarians + Press~16 min

Do a set of Bulgarians (both legs), rest 90 seconds, do a set of presses, rest 90 seconds, repeat until all sets are done.
Bulgarian split squat: back foot up on a bench behind you, front foot far enough forward that the front knee stays over the ankle. Dumbbells hang at your sides (this keeps the wrist straight). Lower the back knee towards the floor, drive up through the front heel.
Dumbbell press (weeks 1–2): standing, dumbbells at the shoulders with palms facing each other — the wrist stays straight in this position. Barbell press returns in week 3 if the wrist rules are green.

Log — Bulgarian dumbbells (kg per hand)

CSled pushes~10 min

Push with straight arms or on your forearms — never with the wrist bent back. The walk back to the start is your rest.

DOptional finish10 min

10 easy minutes on the BikeErg, breathing through the nose. Skip if short on time.

Note

04Day 2 — Olympic Lifting

The snatch starts in week 1 because the wide grip keeps the wrist nearly straight. The clean comes back in stages: rack holds → front squats → cleans from the hang → the full squat clean and split jerk in week 6. Each stage only goes ahead if the wrist rules are green — if a stage hurts, repeat the week before it and shift everything back a week.

DAY 2 · OLYMPIC LIFTING

~75–80 min

WWrist rehab + warm-up12 min

Then the 4-minute front rack prep from the Mobility section. Then barbell warm-up, 2 rounds with the empty bar: 5 muscle snatch · 5 overhead squats · 5 snatch-grip push press from behind the neck · 5 snatch balances.

ASnatch~22 min

Log — top snatch weight (kg)

BClean rebuild~22 min

Log — front squat / clean top weight (kg)

COptional bike sprints8 min

Only if the barbell work went well and you have energy left. Fine to skip every week.

Note

05Day 3 — Deadlift + Engine

Deadlift first while you are fresh, then the week's interval session, then core work. The interval session changes every week — the full list is written out in the Engine section.

DAY 3 · DEADLIFT + ENGINE

~80 min

WWrist rehab (short) + warm-up8 min

Push-up-and-hold and push-down-and-hold, 3 × 30 s each · hammer tips 2 × 12 · palm turns 2 × 10. Then 3 minutes easy on a machine, then 2 rounds of: 10 walking lunges · 10 good mornings with the empty bar · 5+5 single-leg kettlebell deadlift (back foot just touching the floor for balance).

ADeadlift~18 min

Stand up, put the bar down, reset your position, pull again — no bouncing reps. Straps on every set until week 4 (and after that only if the wrist rules are green). Rest 2 minutes between sets.

Log — working weight (kg)

BEngine intervals~35–40 min

Log — score / splits

CCore — every minute on the minute12–16 min

Hanging from the bar is fine for the wrist (it pulls the joint long rather than squashing it). If the thumb niggles on the bar, do hanging knee raises instead that round. Carries build grip strength back without bending the wrist.

Note

06Day 4 — Easy Engine + Upper Body OPTIONAL

DAY 4 · EASY ENGINE + UPPER BODY

~60 min

AEasy machine work30–40 min

Rotate: BikeErg → rower → SkiErg → curved runner (walk-jog) → Assault Bike, 6–8 minutes each. Easy means you could talk in full sentences the whole time, mostly breathing through the nose. If you are not sure whether it is too fast, it is too fast — slow down. The length grows over the weeks, the pace never does.

BUpper body circuit~18 min

3 rounds, rest as needed:

Strict pull-ups 6–10Add a rep each week if you can.
Dumbbell bench press 10Turn the dumbbells slightly inwards if that feels better on the wrist.
Single-arm dumbbell row 10 each arm
Seated dumbbell curls 12 then band or cable triceps press-downs 15
Side plank 30 s each side

NoteIf a week only allows three sessions, this is the day to drop. If you are tired, do the easy machine work and skip the circuit.

07Engine — pacing and the 6 sessions

The engine plan copies how endurance athletes train: most of the time easy enough to talk, one properly hard session a week, and almost nothing in between. The easy work builds the base (heart, lungs, recovery between efforts); the weekly hard session builds the top end. The 10-minute bike test in weeks 1 and 6 shows whether it worked.

The four paces

Pace	How it feels	Talking	Effort /10	Used for
Easy	Could do it all day	Full conversation	3–4	Warm-ups, the easy minutes after intervals, Day 1 finish
Steady	Comfortable, working	Full sentences	5–6	Day 4 machine block
Strong	Hard but controlled	A few words at a time	7–8	Day 3 intervals, weeks 2–4
Hard	Near flat out	Single words	8–9	Week 5 intervals, bike sprints, the bike tests

The six Day-3 interval sessions, written out

Week	Workout	Pacing
1	TEST: 10 minutes on the Assault Bike, as many calories as possible. Then 15 min easy: 5 min row · 5 min ski · 5 min bike.	Pick a pace you can hold for all 10 minutes and sit on it. No fast start.
2	4 rounds: 6 minutes at Strong pace, then 2 minutes Easy. Round 1 rower · round 2 SkiErg · round 3 bike · round 4 your choice. Then 10 min Easy on any machine.	Same distance or calories every round.
3	5 rounds: 5 minutes Strong, then 90 seconds Easy. Rotate machines each round. Then 10 min Easy.	Same pace as week 2 — the shorter rests are the progression.
4	3 rounds: 10 minutes at a pace between Steady and Strong, then 2 minutes Easy. Any machines, split however you like.	One notch easier than the 5-minute pace. You should finish each 10 minutes able to speak a sentence.
5	8 rounds: 90 seconds Hard, then 90 seconds very Easy. All on one machine (Assault Bike or rower).	Hard but repeatable — round 8 should match round 1.
6	RETEST: the same 10-minute Assault Bike test as week 1. Then 15 min Easy.	Same bike, same damper setting, same warm-up as week 1, so the two scores compare fairly.

08Mobility — front rack prep

The rack problem is not only the wrist. Tight lats and triceps stop the elbows lifting, which tips the bar off the shoulders and onto the wrists and thumb. These four drills go before every barbell session (Days 1 and 2), in this order.

Before barbell work 4 min · Days 1 & 2

Band lat stretch 45 s each sideLoop a band high on the rig. Hold it with a straight arm, step back and hinge at the hips until you feel a stretch from the armpit down the side of your back. Keep the ribs down.
Upper-back extensions 10 slowKneel with both elbows on a bench, hands together (or holding a dowel). Sink the chest towards the floor and let the head drop through the arms. You should feel it in the upper back and under the arms.
Wrist stretches 30 s each wayThe same two stretches from the wrist rehab.
Empty-bar rack rotations 8 total, slowBar in the front rack position. Lift one elbow up and inwards as high as it goes, lower it, then the other. One at a time, slowly. From week 3, add 6 light Sotts presses (press the bar up from the bottom of a squat, snatch grip) if the wrist is green.

Evenings 5 min · any day

Lat and triceps rub 60–90 s each armLie on a ball or roller and work the line from the armpit, down the back of the arm, to the elbow. This is the same line as the forearm click — expect tender spots.
Both wrist stretches 30 s each
Deep squat hold, heels down 60 sHold a light plate or post if needed.
On rest days, the 5-minute wrist homework (see Wrist Rehab)

09The 6 weeks at a glance

WEEK 1 Base

Squat 5×5 @ 85 kg
Snatch — technique: muscle snatch + overhead squats
Clean — clean deadlifts 80 kg + empty-bar rack holds
Engine — 10-min bike test
Wrist — phase 1

WEEK 2 Base

Squat 5×5 @ 92.5 kg
Snatch — power snatch doubles 35–40 kg
Clean — clean deadlifts 90 kg + first front squats (bar–30 kg)
Engine — 4 × 6 min
Wrist — phase 1

WEEK 3 Build

Squat 5×4 @ 100 kg
Snatch — power snatch 42.5 kg + snatch balance
Clean — front squat 4×4 @ 60 + hang muscle cleans
Engine — 5 × 5 min
Wrist — phase 2

WEEK 4 Build

Squat 5×3 @ 107.5 kg
Snatch — full snatch 45–50 kg
Clean — front squat 4×3 @ 75 + hang power cleans 55–60
Engine — 3 × 10 min
Wrist — phase 2 · hook grip back if green

WEEK 5 Heavy

Squat 4×3 @ 115 kg
Snatch — singles 52.5–55 kg
Clean — front squat 3×3 @ 85 + power clean & push jerk 65–70
Engine — 8 × 90 s
Wrist — phase 3 · press-ups return

WEEK 6 Heavy

Squat 3×2 @ 122.5 + optional single 127.5–132.5
Snatch — heavy single
Clean — squat clean & split jerk single 75–85 kg
Engine — 10-min bike retest
Wrist — phase 3

If a week goes wrongWrist flare-up, illness, work — repeat that week and push everything back one. Do not jump ahead to stay on schedule; the weights only work if the week before them happened.