05/31/2026
New Month, New Week, New Cycle! ⚡️
The Achilles Cycle starts this week at Stackhouse! This new 11-week cycle runs June 1 through August 16. This one builds directly off the work we did in Medusa, but the focus shifts. Where Medusa peaked athletes for Murph through structural resilience and gymnastics volume, Achilles is about hypertrophy, density, and positional strength development, bookended by clear re-tests so we can measure exactly what 10 weeks of work produces.
CYCLE OVERVIEW
Strength Framework - The shift from Medusa is significant. We move away from contrast-style loading and descending rep schemes toward flat-load volume work designed to build hypertrophy, positional strength, and muscular endurance under sustained tension. The emphasis is on owning the load across every set, not building toward a heavy final set. That is a different skill than most athletes practice, and it requires honest self-assessment from day one.
Olympic Lifting Framework - Achilles continues the Olympic lifting progression from Medusa but makes one significant structural shift: the focus moves from hang positions to full lifts from the floor. This is a natural technical progression. Athletes who spent Medusa developing hip extension and positional awareness in the hang are now ready to add the pull from the floor and build a more complete lift. The loading structure across the cycle mirrors the strength work, moving from higher-volume complexes in Block 1 toward lower-volume, higher-specificity singles in the final weeks.
Gymnastics Framework - The gymnastics approach in Achilles is distinctly different from Medusa. Rather than a linear strict-to-kipping arc, Achilles uses gymnastics as a hypertrophy and interference tool. The primary method is blending strict gymnastics volume with dumbbell, kettlebell, band, and medball work in circuit and superset structures. This creates accumulated muscular fatigue that builds density and cross-sectional strength in a way that pure barbell or pure gymnastics work does not replicate on its own.
Let’s get to work!!
