Say I do 3 sets of 10 squats on Monday at RPE ~6. Then, on Thursday I do 5 sets of 3 squats at RPE ~9. I decide to add 2 more sets of squats on monday. Does these interfere with each other, or is the stimulus different enough that I’m overloading another variable (volume vs intensity) and therefore fresh to squat heavy/volume-y?
One thing I didn’t understand about SSLP is that it felt like I was at RPE 10 every single day. Since the volume isn’t very high and there is emphasis on keeping it low, I assume that beginners experience very little neurological(?) fatigue but quite a bit of volume fatigue. Is that right?
Final question- in the first example, let’s say instead of upping my sets to 5 on monday I up my RPE to 9. The weight is still lighter, but the final reps now FEEL heavier. Does that affect the training stimulus/how these sets interfere? If so, how?
In what way do you mean interfere? They overlap with respect to driving muscle hypertrophy, but are disparate in some of the adaptations for their strength improving effects. Depending on context, this may be preferred or, alternatively, sub optimal.
To be clear, overreaching is based on workload- but is not specific to the variable(s) being increased.
No. Fatigue breaks down into two main categories, central and peripheral fatigue. Peripheral fatigue refers to dysfunction at the level of the muscle from muscle damage, depletion of energy, or accumulation of fatigue by products. Central fatigue refers to decreased neural signaling to the muscles.
Both volume and intensity drive both types of fatigue, as they cannot be separated.
It probably is more effective at driving hypertrophy and strength adaptations than RPE 6 sets due to increased motor unit recruitment.
My name doesn’t actually mean “fast question”. It’s just an online alias related to a video game I coach for a living. But now that I see it out of context, that makes sense
I meant from a strength standpoint. For example, would a trainee who couldn’t recover from either 10x3 or 3x5 twice a week have a better chance of recovering from the both, since the stimulus is a little different? Potentially, if recovery was better, there could be better strength gains in the long term than just reducing total volume and staying specific to the single rep range?
Both types of training drive both types of fatigue I’m sure, but I assume higher rep work drives peripheral more strongly while higher weights drives central? If my assumption is correct, then which one is more common to reach? For example would the majority of trainees doing my example program be more likely to reach central or peripheral fatigue first? Regarding LP programs that have you at RPE 9-10 on every lift every day, are newer lifters more immune to this? I’ve heard something along the lines of "novices can’t recruit as many muscle fibers, therefore they’re not as likely to reach [central] fatigue, but I’d be interested what your thoughts are on the matter.
So would RPE 6 never be appropriate for sets of 10, if it’s just straight up more effective?
In this scenario, a trainee who “couldn’t recover” from either setup wouldn’t likely recover from a mix between the two with respect to force production. That being said, it’s highly unlikely someone “couldn’t recover” from any setup if given enough time to acclimate.
Both types of training drive both types of fatigue I’m sure, but I assume higher rep work drives peripheral more strongly while higher weights drives central?
Nope, not really if same relative intensity.
So would RPE 6 never be appropriate for sets of 10, if it’s just straight up more effective?
It’s just more of a warm up set than a work set for strength and hypertrophy purposes.
So if sets at similar RPE induce similar fatigue, what’s the point of training at different rep ranges at all? For the beginner template, we are using 3 sets at rpe 6, 7, and 8. If rpe 6 is hardly a working set than the beginner template is effectively using 1-2 working sets?
To develop strength (force production measured in specific contexts) in different domains and the specific adaptations that pertain to each rep range.
We do not use 3 sets @ 6, 7, and 8 in the Beginner Template. Rather, most of the protocols have individuals working up to a top set at RPE 8 or 9 and then some other similar intensity back off work at the appropriate volume for their level of training. For a beginner, a set at RPE 6 likely drives more adaptive processes than in a trained lifter, however we’re still using it for a warm up set.
