Progression - Principles, Measuring Training Age, & Deloads Flashcards
What is the Principle of Progressive Overload?
“in order to keep getting bigger and stronger you need to gradually increase the training stimulus.”
What happens when we get closer to our limit? (use picture as well)
“the closer we are to our limit; the slower progress will be and the more complex programming is needed in order to make further progress”
“the bigger and stronger you get, the slower your progress will be. You will need to do more and more to get lesser and lesser progress the more experienced you become”
How do you measure training age? (use picture as well)
“The key to progressing from novice to intermediate to advanced is providing overload.”
“novices should be able to increase their performance workout to workout, intermediates from week to week, and advanced trainees from month to month.”
“…there aren’t three distinct categories, it is a continuum, but these rules of thumb are useful in that they express how progress slows the more progress you make.”
“beyond the “advanced” level described by Rippetoe, for very high-level athletes the progress will be even slower. Elite natural bodybuilders may only add 1 lb (~0.45 kg) of lean body mass to their stage weight in the next competitive year; elite level powerlifters may only add 15-30 lbs (~7-14 kg) to their three-lift total from one season to the next (5-10 lbs per lift), and some of the highest level Olympic lifters may only add 17-25 lbs (~8-11 kg) to their two-lift total in a four year Olympics cycle.”
How do deloads help?
“Deloads can prove beneficial because they help to reduce fatigue and thereby allow the expression of improved performance. As covered in the Fitness-Fatigue Model, when we accumulate fatigue, we aren’t able to perform to our full potential. In strength training this is when we can’t lift as heavy or do as many reps as we normally would, which is necessary to drive further training adaptations.
Accumulated fatigue is a common cause of training plateaus, but with a deload we can expect to reduce fatigue, which then allows you to train harder, and start making progress again as a result, in the time after the deload.
Likewise, deloads also reduce the risk of injury. When we train, the entire body is loaded including bones and connective tissues, not just the muscles. When we accumulate fatigue, we have greater risks of experiencing pains and injuries. The deload helps to prevent injury by allowing the connective tissues of the body to recover.”
What is a common cause of training plateaus? p.65
“Accumulated fatigue”
How can a novice deload?
“A good rule of thumb is that if you are unable to complete the target sets and reps and load for two sessions in a row, reduce the intensity by 10% while using the same number of reps and sets. The 10% lighter load should feel easy and will allow recovery. Then, the next session you return to the load you used in the session prior to the deload and attempt to pick up the progression once again.”
How can you deload after the novice stage?
“Different weeks will have differing levels of stress, and “deloads” should simply be built into your periodization as a way of progressing while managing stress. If you have high, medium and low training stress microcycles (weeks), deloads are simply your low stress training weeks.”
“Generally speaking, a week such as this should be roughly half of your normal training volume (normal being the volume representative of a medium stress week), with an intensity similar to what you are used to handling. I find a great way to accomplish this, is to just drop a set or two from each exercise, and reduce the rep range or rep target by two repetitions. Doing so puts the volume right about where it should be, and the stress per set (RPE) is less as well. Meaning, while the loading is similar to what you might be used to, you are simply doing it for less reps and a few less sets so you are further from failure. For example, 3 x 10 x 200 lbs becomes 2 x 8 x 200 lbs. Volume load is just about half, and the RPE for each set should be about 2 points lower.”
What are some recommendations to deloading after the novice stage?
“the following example is not meant to imply that only five by five should be performed; this is just an example of how to progress if on a given day five by five was programmed”
