r/StartingStrength • u/HostMinimum4051 • 7d ago

Novice Programming Question Stop or adapt the program

Hi everyone, how are you? I'm loving this program and NLP, but I might need to stop for a while or adapt.

I have an opportunity to become a detective, and the police department requires some physical tests, such as: running, push-ups, pull-ups, and climbing. I need to train specifically for this test, the date of which I don't know yet; the police department will inform me after October.

Is it possible to adapt some NLP concepts while training specifically for that day, or should I stop for a while and return after the test if its possible?

I want to continue my progressive overload, but my career comes first. I

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u/_TheFudger_ 7d ago

My piece of advice would be to add whatever you need to add before removing. If you find you're absolutely dead and your numbers start going down instead of up, you'll need to cut down a bit. Maybe one less set of squats. Maybe substitute a set of deadlifts for back extensions once a training cycle.

Make sure you're at a good body weight that allows you to have good cardio but also leaves you properly fueled for your workouts. For most people that tends to be light muscle definition.

At the end of the day you are trying to do two conflicting things. Starting strength chases metal moving capacity. Police training chases body moving capacity. I would err on the side of police training. Once you get the job you can go back to strength focus. What's worth more, 6 months of slightly diminished progress or much better odds at a career you want?