I hope to compete in a PL meet about one year from now (assuming coronavirus begins to behave).
i am thriving on thrice weekly 3x8reps at 70% of e1RM. The first set is about RPE 6.5 - 7 and the final set rpe 8ish.
I seem to be progressing really quite well and there’s a lot less stress and angst compared with fahves at 80%-81% which typified my novice progression with SS approach.
here is my query- if I continue like this for say 10 more months, doing 8s for the most part, will I be expecting too much of a 4-6 week peak? Would it be wise to add a single at rpe8 to start off each session, or even once a week? Or maybe mix in fahves here or there at 77-80%?
interested in your nuanced thoughts and just unsure how much I can rely on the “peaking phase” to realise latent strength for maximal lifting having never done that before. I have looked at your cool peaking template and it makes good sense but I wondered about how it’d work if someone had been working almost exclusively in higher rep ranges (8s) for a while.
for the most part I follow the programming wisdom of: if it’s working don’t fix it. However, 70% is quite nonspecific to PL and so progressing at your 8s may not have great transfer to PL. I would recommend doing a 1-3rep set at RPE 7-8 every week or two for each PL. That will give you a better idea of how your 1rm is moving, allowing you to deduce if the 8s have high transference for you.
I think 10 months is quite a long training block, I would plan on including a 1-3 week pivot blocks every 3-8 weeks. Another option is to use these pivots to touch higher intensities or include a couple ~4week higher intensity blocks in the next 10 months.
The BBM Novice Peaking Template is 3 weeks and meant for someone who was hitting 5s going into it. Based on that I think you should use a block perodization along the lines of:
8 weeks of 8s (maybe include some accessories in the 8-16 rep range)
2 week pivot (maybe include some 2-5@7s, but get the bulk of your training from lifts you don’t normally train)
8 weeks of 8s (maybe include some accessories in the 8-16 rep range)
2 week pivot (maybe include some 2-5@7s, but get the bulk of your training from lifts you don’t normally train)
8 weeks of 8s (maybe include some accessories in the 8-12 rep range)
4 weeks of 5s (maybe include some accessories in the 7-9 rep range)
4 weeks of 8s
4 weeks of 5s
3 week BBM Novice Peaking Template. (43weeks total, which from the info you gave, I think is close to how long you have until the comp)
Another bit of widely accepted programming wisdom is: Follow the rules before you break them. You may eventually find that a block of 8s (with or without the occasional 1-3@7-8) sets you up great going into a meet, but the traditional approach would be to have the bulk of you training in the 3-5 rep range for at least 4 weeks going into a peak for a meet, try that first.
If you want better advice from the BBM team then post in the moderated section of the forum
Thanks so much. You took great time to answer my query! Thank you. I’m progressing well but really value voice of experience.
8weeks of 8s is fine by me and I will ofcourse work in pivot periods.
Thanks for your advice, esp regarding inclusion of heavier work (5s) and reassurance about peaking towards the end. I will also be mindful to include some RPE8 singles as I journey.
I’m already noticing considerable hypertrophy as a result from a few weeks of 8s, and less psychological resistance to training.
I myself use block periodization. Usually 11-12 week training cycle. I start with 8s @60%. As the cycle goes on, volume goes down to 7s, 6s, 5s etc until I’m doing just singles @90-92%.
so while I don’t think you should focus on “progressing” your 8s, as you get stronger your 8s will certainly go up. Also throwing out there that for the first 7 weeks or so I have tons of variations. Paused and tempo squats , paused deadlifts, pulling from a plate deficit , pin press etc. and then for the last 4-5 weeks specificity comes into play and I’m just doing the main lifts.
That’s useful to know. As time goes on I will beat that kind of strategy in mind as I approach my very first meet and need more exposure to 90% + loads. It makes a lot of sense. Awesome, thanks.
I think if you are estimating you are 12 months out from your next PL meet and you have something that is working–stick with it. 8 is a decent enough number for hypertrophy. To peak at the meet you’ll have to incorporate a peaking phase, but you are so far out its not worth worrying about especially as you are making good progress according to your original post.
Alternatively, you can continue to do your 8’s and add in 1 rep at RPE8 before two of your bench workouts each week. 1 rep at RPE 8 is less taxing in my opinion than another set of 8 at RPE 8 so assuming that your volume is not high and you are not near you maximum recoverable volume throwing that in twice a week in addition to your current routine could allow you to work on your CNS training while still mainly training for hypertrophy.
Thanks for the advice! The single at RPE8 is a good idea and keeping a little ongoing exposure to heavier intensities will be a good thing. Thanks so much for your thoughts and encouragement.