Hello Forum!
I’m halfway through The Bridge 1.0 and am starting to learn more about programming through BBM and RTS. I noticed that RPE 6 sets are counted towards volume in The Bridge 1.0, which threw me a bit. I’ve always thought that the only sets that counted towards volume were the “heavy” working sets — and further assumed that only RPE 7’s and above were all that really counted.
Understandably, Dr.’s Baraki and Feigenbaum have stated that productive training is typically in the ~70-80% of 1RM range. And a set of 5@RPE 6 would sit at about 76% of an e1RM.
That said, when programming in the intermediate stage, should always we be considering that last warm-up set as volume that contributes to the overall fatigue of the lifter? Where do we draw the line between a warm-up and a working set?
Thanks!
p.s. I’m patiently waiting for the Barbell Medicine Book. 
Hi, the first working set is whenever you get to the weight on the bar that feels like the correct RPE prescribed by that day’s programing.
Jordan recommends your warmup sets should equal the number of reps prescribed for that day’s working sets. This way you can gauge the RPE as you increase your warm ups and adjust your working sets accordingly. This is less applicable if your working set is supposed to be 10 reps at 500 lbs, as doing ten reps at 135, 225, 315, 405, 455 would be too much heavy volume and would negatively impact your working sets. If you are lifting really heavy, I’d do warm ups as 10, 6, 3, 2, 2 (or similar).
I think working sets likely due add slightly to the fatigue. I think you have to look at the nature of the workout that day to gauge how to best use a warmup.
For easy discussion I am going to use the TM because its days are easily dividable into volume, recovery, and intensity.
Lets say your 5RPM for the squat is 300 pounds. How should you warm up for them.
For example on volume day I think it depends on whether you are struggling with the volume as is or not. So on volume day you do 5 X 5 @ 90 of your 5RPM which would be 270 pounds. For you last jump you could go anywhere between 225 and 255. To me if you are struggling to recover from the volume on volume day, jump from 225 because you are just trying to get warmed up you don’t need your CNS to be 100% primed because you are only going at 90% of your 5RPM. By contrast if you want extra volume on your volume day make the last jump from 255 pounds because that will add just a little bit of extra fatigue to the work.
On recovery day you are probably only lifting 75% of your 5RPM for 2 x 5. You are trying to aid recovery and work the CNS. Since the weight is fairly low and unlikely to add much fatigue I would make a small jump, maybe from 215. You can get some conditioning work that way.
Lastly on intensity where you only doing 1 x 5 for the working set, your volume is low and the training effect is mainly to train the CNS. Therefore like on recovery day, I would try to make a small jump. Maybe go from 285 to hopefully a new PR 5RPM at 305. The added volume should not be overwhelming because the volume is slow low and you are getting an extra set at a heavy weight to train the CNS.
Basically I think you have to understand what the workout is trying to accomplish when you plan your warmup. I come from a running background and I read Jack Daniel’s Running Formula and the book left a huge impression on me. But the number one takeaway from the book is you need to do know what system you are training every workout. If you don’t know what you are training that workout you probably are not training smart. So I take that mindset from running and apply it to lifting, which is why I kind of like the TM because it breaks the day into different systems you are training. Volume day is trying to increase the size of the muscle. Recovery day is trying to increase nutrient and blood flow to the muscle and give easy training to the CNS. Intensity day is mainly training the CNS. The way Daniels organizing endurance training there were 5 systems to be trained–basic aerobic/heart/recovery, lactate threshold, VO2max, anaerobic, and endurance. Every training day had one and one of those systems as the primary thing to be trained that day, which is kind of how the TM is set up for lifting.