Hello Dr. Feigenbaum and Dr. Baraki,
I have recently been helping some friends get into lifting. While I am not trying to be a coach, I’m all they got until they decide to take their lifting into their own hands or get a qualified barbell coach. I try and help them set up their technique, adhere to the program, and ask them The First 3 Questions.
However, when I started lifting I ran the Starting Strength LP. Since then I’ve put a lot of that knowledge aside or allowed it to evolve based on the content the two of you and Alan Thrall put out. Unfortunately, there are some things I do not understand about The Beginner Prescription, which I was referring to my two friends in question to. This makes it difficult for me to buy-in, despite wanting to and understanding your criticisms of the SSNLP. 1. It’s my understanding RPE is introduced more-so to make it a useful tool earlier on then it would otherwise be for a lifter so that they can have more control over their programming down the line and ultimately benefit from its use. Not because its anymore or less useful than just finding a starting weight and incrementally loading it by 10, 5, or 2.5 lbs (depending on the lift)
2. Why do work sets become increasingly heavier rather than being consistent across?
3. What’s the benefit of moving through a variety of rep schemes rather than a consistent one for beginners on a session to session basis? Is there a way to know if this is effective or not for the individual? For instance, sometimes squats are 4x3 or 7x3. I, as I’m sure many others do, appreciate your refusal of the dogmatism found elsewhere in S&C communities and always looking for how to improve.