Periodisation is a complicated word in the heads of many, and in fact if you are talking about a 100m Sprinter getting ready to compete in the next Olympic games, there is a high level of complexity to it, because this athlete will have several competitions in this 4 year period, qualifiers, World Championships, Indoor competitions, Outdoor competitions…and amongst all that we have to consider that the human body has a limited capacity to peak its performance level throughout the year.
When you’re talking about gym training though, periodisation is much easier, especially at lower levels (beginning, intermediate). Honestly, most of you reading this won’t need much in order to progress, although you will have advantages in the long term if you use it, as you can see here. In fact all my trainees get very quick to a 2x body weight deadlift, 1.5x body weight squat and so on just by following a logical progression of decreasing reps and increasing weight over time. But first, what is the concept of periodisation?
PERIODISATION – creating a long term plan for your training so that you can peak to your desired goal or goals within a desired time frame. With that understood, it is good to know that there are several kinds of periodisation. What are the types of periodisation?
It can be Traditional, Block Periodisation, Undulating, Conjugate and etc. Each one has their pros and cons. For most people, a simple Traditional (also called Linear) periodisation will solve their problems.
So here goes a simple system:
Weeks 1 to 6: 3-4x 10-12 reps, 2-3′ rest (you can use that in all exercises)
Weeks 7 to 12: 3-4x 8-10 reps, 2-3′ rest
Weeks 13 to 18: 4-5x 6-8 reps, 3-4′ rest
Things to consider in this periodisation model: No need at all to train to failure. But it is MANDATORY to push yourself. Every time you finish all sets at the higher end of the rep range in a given workout, you will increase the weight (the bare minimum increase you can do) in your next training session and go back to the lower end of the rep range.
Example: 3×12 @ 10kg (whatever exercise). Next training you will come back and do 3×10 @ 11kg (or 12kg if you have 2kg increments. You got the idea).
Proceed like this for the stipulated amount of weeks you are going to run the program. I dare to say during the first 6 months of training you basically don’t need isolation movements, except for calves and hamstrings. Biceps, Triceps, Lateral/Rear Delt Raises and Abdominals are dispensable at this moment (nothing wrong with doing them. They are just NOT NECESSARY for your development).
After you get to a certain strength level, things get more serious and less simple. I will show you a simple example of how to manipulate your Central Nervous System to get used to a certain load, so you can increase it over time.
Week 1: 4×4
Week 2: 4×5
Week 3: 5×5
You will keep the same load (let’s say 100kg for your Squat) throughout those 3 weeks. In the 4th week, you will deload. In here you also have an opportunity to break a PB. But keep in mind, I’m talking about a 1 set thing. Break your PB and go home satisfied. Start your week 1 @ RPE7, then week 2 @ RPE8 and week 9 @ RPE 9. That will give you room for improvement, and also for having a bad day of training in between.
A huge mistake people make is to start their new training cycle training way too hard. Guess what, you will hit the wall quick too. And then what you do after completing those 3 weeks is, you restart the program at 4×4 at a slightly heavier load. Simple and efficient.
Another example I can give you is this here:
Whenever you get stuck at a certain weight in a given exercise, reduce it a bit and do 6×6. Let’s say you are doing Squats with 100kg. That’s how the program looks like:
Week 1: 6×6 @ 100kg
Week 2: 6×6 @ 102.5kg
Week 3: 6×6 @ 105kg
Week 4: 5×6, 1×4 @ 107.5kg
So in week 4 you were not able to complete the 6 sets of 6. This is how you proceed:
Week 5: 8×8 @ 100kg
Week 6: 8×8 @ 102.5kg
Week 7: 7×8, 1×6 @ 105kg
After not being able to complete the 8 sets of 8 in week 7, you will go this way:
Week 8: 10×10 @ 100kg
Week 9: 10×10 @ 102.5kg
Week 10: 10×10 @ 105kg
And so you go. Whenever you can not complete the 10 sets of 10 anymore, you will go back to 6×6, but this time I am absolutely sure you will be able to lift way heavier loads than you were lifting before. I have seen people add 15-20kg to their working sets by doing this king of periodisation.
FAMOUS TRAINING PROGRAMS
Having the internet made a ton of material available for us nowadays, it is very easy to find famous training programs online, and they are good. I can give you a few examples:
The Strong Lifts 5×5 Program is a popularity champion, and will definitely bring you some good results, especially if you are beginner/intermediate. There is also the famous Jim Wendler’s 5/3/1 (this is a pdf with the whole program, by the way) which is a very comprehensive and well thought program. This one here is one of my favorites, but it is BRUTAL.
The SMOLOV SQUAT ROUTINE. This is not for beginners nor intermediates, and in fact I would be careful to use it even with advanced athletes. You have to train at so high intensity AND volume, that after you finish it, you really have nowhere else to go in your training.
You will definitely be overtrained to a certain extent and will need a good deload period. Plus this is only a squat program, so all your other lifts will be put to second place. Use it EXCLUSIVELY in case you REALLY need to improve your squat.
Also another all time favorite of mine is Charles Poliquin’s Super Accumulation Program. But beware, this is brutal on your WHOLE BODY. I have run this program, and I will tell you: You will have 2 weeks of PURE PAIN. My Squat, Bench and Deadlift increased on average 15kg after I finished the program step by step.
DOWNSIDE TO FAMOUS TRAINING PROGRAMS
The stronger you get, the more specific your training has to be, and most likely the less “brutal work” you need to do in fact. The absolute load on the bar is and will always be king. That is why when you compare a guy who deadlifts 300kg @ a relative strength of 1.5x his body weight, and a guy who deadlifts 180kg @ a 3x body weight, you will invariably see that the guy who deadlifts 300kg needs more rest between sets and sessions that the smaller guy.
That is the reason why the stronger you get, the less those programs will be efficient for you. But there is value to them, and they can get you far in the beginning. It is important to understand that those will only take you so far, and after that, you gotta start doing some studying on your own, or hiring someone more competent to plan your training for you.
With all that said on periodisation, I hope you guys liked it. Stay strong and good trainings to you all!