---

id: cube_method_strongman
name: Cube Method Strongman
aliases: [Cube strongman, Josh Thigpen cube, cube method SM]
category: program
system: strongman
goal: Build competition-ready peak strength and event proficiency through an undulating 3-week wave that rotates heavy, explosive, and volume emphasis across primary lifts — while integrating event training that follows the same 3-week wave pattern — targeting a specific contest at the end of the 12-week cycle
goals: [strength, power]
level: intermediate
duration_weeks: 12
frequency_per_week: 4
periodization: conjugate
origin: classic
progression_model: >
  Three-week undulating wave repeated four times across the 12-week cycle. Each primary
  lift rotates through three emphasis types across three consecutive weeks: Week A (Heavy)
  — work up to a new 1RM, 3RM, or 5RM; Week B (Explosive) — 6–8 sets of 2 reps at 60%,
  maximum bar speed; Week C (Volume) — 5 × 5 at 70–75%. After three weeks, the wave repeats
  with slightly higher loads in each category. Only one lift is taken heavy per training day;
  all other lifts on that day are in the explosive or volume phase of their own wave. Event
  training follows the same three-week wave: heavy event day, explosive event day, volume
  event day, rotating across weeks. No two primary lifts are in the heavy phase on the same
  training day.

exercises:
  - ref: conventional_deadlift
    role: primary
    frequency_per_week: 1
    technical_notes: >
      Monday: primary deadlift following the three-week Cube wave. Heavy weeks: work to a
      new 5RM → 3RM → 1RM progression across the four wave cycles. Explosive weeks: 8 × 2
      at 60% of current 1RM, focusing on bar acceleration from the floor — this is the
      primary neural development session. Volume weeks: 5 × 5 at 70%. The Cube's deadlift
      rotation is designed so that heavy, explosive, and volume sessions each provide a
      distinct stimulus; no single quality is overemphasized across consecutive training days.

  - ref: back_squat
    role: primary
    frequency_per_week: 1
    technical_notes: >
      Wednesday: back squat following the Cube wave, offset by one week from the deadlift
      (if deadlift is in the heavy week, squat is in the explosive or volume week). This
      offset is the defining feature of the Cube Method — maximum effort work never occurs
      on two primary lifts in the same week, so no single week has two CNS-intensive
      sessions. The squat develops the lower body strength base for carry events.

  - ref: overhead_press
    role: primary
    frequency_per_week: 1
    technical_notes: >
      Friday: overhead press (strict barbell) following the Cube wave, offset from both
      deadlift and squat. Heavy weeks for overhead press coincide with explosive weeks for
      lower body — the system self-regulates CNS demand across the week. Competition overhead
      events (log press, axle) are trained on Thursday as a separate event session; the
      Friday barbell press is the structural strength driver.

  - ref: log_lift
    role: primary
    frequency_per_week: 1
    technical_notes: >
      Thursday: event overhead session. The log follows its own three-week wave parallel to
      the barbell press: Heavy log week — work up to a heavy single or double at 90–95% of
      anticipated competition weight; Explosive log week — 5 × 2 at 60–65%, maximum drive
      speed; Volume log week — 5 × 4 at 70–75%. Log heavy week is aligned with barbell
      press explosive or volume week to manage total overhead CNS demand within the same
      7-day period.

  - ref: farmers_walk
    role: primary
    frequency_per_week: 1
    technical_notes: >
      Thursday: event carry session. Farmer carry follows the Cube wave for events: Heavy
      week — 2 × full competition distance at competition weight; Explosive week — 4 × 20 m
      at 60–65% with maximum acceleration out of the start (first-step speed is the primary
      emphasis); Volume week — 4 × 30 m at 60%, high total distance. The Cube's event wave
      prevents carry events from plateauing by rotating stimulus across sessions.

  - ref: atlas_stones
    role: primary
    frequency_per_week: 1
    technical_notes: >
      Wednesday event session (alternated with yoke, or combined): Atlas stones also follow
      the three-week wave. Heavy week — full stone series at 90% of expected competition
      weight with tacky; Explosive week — reduced weight, focus on hip-extension explosiveness
      and transition speed from lap to platform; Volume week — 4–5 loading rounds at 70%
      with tacky. Tacky is used on all Atlas stone sessions from Week 1 of the program.

  - ref: yoke_walk
    role: primary
    frequency_per_week: 1
    technical_notes: >
      Thursday: yoke following the Cube event wave. Heavy week — 2 × full competition
      distance at competition weight; Explosive week — 4 × 10 m at 70% with maximum start
      acceleration (the explosive event day targets step-frequency and starting power, not
      sustained pace); Volume week — 3 × 25 m at 65%, emphasizing consistent stride rhythm.

  - ref: good_morning
    role: secondary
    frequency_per_week: 2
    technical_notes: >
      Monday and Wednesday: 3 × 8–10 after primary lifts. The Cube Method was developed
      from Thigpen's powerlifting background, which places significant emphasis on posterior-
      chain accessory volume. Good mornings build the spinal erector and hip extensor
      capacity that supports all pulling events and carry event posture. Higher volume in
      the Volume training weeks; reduced volume in Heavy training weeks.

  - ref: romanian_deadlift
    role: secondary
    frequency_per_week: 1
    technical_notes: >
      Monday: 3 × 8 after deadlift. Hamstring and glute development for the pull phase
      of all deadlift and stone events. The Cube includes posterior-chain accessory work
      on the same day as the primary deadlift to capitalize on the pre-loaded activation
      state. Load conservatively — the purpose is accessory development, not additional
      maximum effort work.

  - ref: pullups
    role: secondary
    frequency_per_week: 2
    technical_notes: >
      Wednesday and Friday: 3 × max reps or weighted. Upper-back structural development.
      Thigpen's original Cube Method includes significant lat and upper-back volume as
      structural insurance against spinal shear injuries in deadlift-heavy training.
      Pull-up volume provides this without additional barbell volume stress.

sources:
  - title: "The Cube Method"
    author: "Thigpen, J."
    year: 2013
    publisher: "JoshThigpen.com"
    credibility: practitioner
  - title: "Cube Method for Strongman"
    author: "Thigpen, J."
    year: 2015
    publisher: "JoshThigpen.com / EliteFTS"
    credibility: practitioner
---

# Cube Method Strongman

The Cube Method was developed by Josh Thigpen, a professional strongman competitor and powerlifter, as a systematic answer to the question: "How do you train maximum strength, explosive power, and volume in the same week without overtaxing any single quality?" The answer is rotation.

The Cube Method's core principle is that **each primary quality — maximal strength, explosive power, and volume — is trained on a 3-week rotation**, and **no two primary lifts share the same emphasis in the same week**. On any given training day, one lift is in the heavy phase while the others are in explosive or volume phases. This ensures that the CNS demand of maximum effort work never stacks across the weekly schedule.

The adaptation to strongman is notable: the event training follows the **same 3-week wave as the barbell lifts**, creating a parallel periodization structure. A heavy deadlift week coincides with an explosive event day; a volume squat week coincides with a heavy log day. The result is a systematic rotation through every stimulus type across all training modalities.

## Who This Is For

- Intermediate athletes with 1–3 years of strongman training
- Athletes competing at regional or national amateur level
- Athletes who have exhausted linear progression and need structured undulating periodization
- Athletes with consistent access to all competition implements
- Minimum baseline: Deadlift ≥ 2× BW, Overhead Press ≥ 1.0× BW, Squat ≥ 1.75× BW

## The Three-Week Cube Wave

| Week Type | Barbell Lifts | Event Training |
|-----------|--------------|---------------|
| Week A — Heavy | Work to 5RM / 3RM / 1RM (progresses each cycle) | Full event at 90–95% competition weight |
| Week B — Explosive | 6–8 × 2 at 60%; maximum bar speed | Event at 60–65%; start speed and acceleration focus |
| Week C — Volume | 5 × 5 at 70–75% | Event at 65–70%; maximum distance or loading volume |

The wave repeats four times across 12 weeks. Each repetition of the heavy week targets a slightly higher load.

## Four-Day Weekly Schedule

| Day | Focus |
|-----|-------|
| Monday | Deadlift (Cube wave) + Posterior chain |
| Wednesday | Squat (Cube wave, offset) + Events (stones) |
| Thursday | Log + Farmer + Yoke (event Cube wave) |
| Friday | Overhead Press (Cube wave, offset) + Pull-ups |

## Offset Assignment Across the 4-Cycle Program

| Cycle | Deadlift | Squat | Overhead Press |
|-------|----------|-------|----------------|
| Cycle 1, Week A | Heavy | Explosive | Volume |
| Cycle 1, Week B | Explosive | Volume | Heavy |
| Cycle 1, Week C | Volume | Heavy | Explosive |
| Cycle 2, Week A | Heavy | Explosive | Volume |
| *Pattern repeats for Cycles 3–4* | | | |

*The offset ensures maximum effort work never falls on the same day for two primary lifts.*

## Competition Event Wave (Parallel Track)

| Cycle | Event Week A | Event Week B | Event Week C |
|-------|-------------|-------------|-------------|
| Log | 90–95% singles | 60–65% × 5 explosive sets | 5 × 4 at 70% |
| Farmer | Full distance at comp weight | 4 × 20 m at 60%, start-speed focus | 4 × 30 m at 60% |
| Yoke | Full distance at comp weight | 4 × 10 m at 70%, start-speed | 3 × 25 m at 65% |
| Stones | Full series at 90%, tacky | Reduced weight, transition speed | 4–5 loads at 70%, tacky |

## Key Rules

- **Never stack heavy days.** The entire Cube system depends on the three-lift offset. If two primary lifts fall into the heavy phase on the same week, one must be shifted. The offset is not cosmetic — it is the fatigue management mechanism.
- **Explosive days are not deload days.** 8 × 2 at 60% with maximum bar speed is a CNS-intensive session. The rest interval must be 90–120 seconds minimum; if bar speed decays across sets, end the session.
- **Event heavy days use full implements at full distance.** The event heavy day is a competition simulation, not a heavy barbell session with implements. Full distance, full weight, full contest standard.

> Preceding program: `strongman_intermediate_block`. Competition-specific preparation: `strongman_competition_prep`.