I have a few questions regarding when/whether to switch or modify templates. By way of background: I’m in week 7 of Powerbuilding I after completing The Bridge 1.0 (which in turn followed NLP). I’m really enjoying the different exercises and rep schemes, and I’ve definitely gained some hypertrophy as a result. But my overall e1RM numbers have basically either stayed the same or (in the case of my LBBS), declined. I have missed one workout due to illness (and was a bit off for the following session) but otherwise have stayed the course. My sleep could certainly be better, but that’s not likely change much. Nutrition is decent. So my questions are:
In general, how long would you say one should stick with a particular template in the absence of tangible signs of progress before a change (new template or tweaks to the current) is in order?
For a template like Powerbuilding, which has both strength and hypertrophy elements, does it makes sense to stay the course if, say, hypertrophy is happening even if strength gains aren’t?
Relatedly, if there are gains in one lift but the others are lagging, does that warrant a wholesale change, some tinkering, or just sticking with the program?
Finally, whether I were to switch now or after completing Powerbuilding, do you have recommendations regarding the next logical step, specifically as compared between Strength I and Hypertrophy I? My goals are ultimately so see e1RM go up, but I have enjoyed doing hypertrophy training for the first time in forever.
Thanks for the post. To begin, I don’t think I would expect your e1RM’s to necessarily go up by a ton from the Bridge on the PB I template. Rather, I would expect them to hold roughly the same unless you were super responsive to the programming.
Depends on context here and the program’s design. For example, I probably wouldn’t change the powerbuilding or hypertrophy programs based on strength data. Conversely, for someone running one of our strength templates I probably would consider a change at 2-3 weeks of either decreased performance or plateau (based on e1RM and actual work sets). So, it all depends and these are very general rules of thumb.
I think so, yes.
Usually just managing the lift that’s not responding unless there’s reason to believe one of the other lifts is causing the issue…
Probably Strength II or Hypertrophy II if you can have the time and dependent on your goals
Thanks for the thoughtful response, Jordan. Recognizing there’s no one-size fits all approach, I’m assuming adding some more volume would be one response for dealing with a lagging lift (in my case the squat)? In the context of the latter stages of Powerbuilding I, what would this look like? Would doing another round of drop sets (i.e. taking -5%, hitting 6@RPE 9, then taking 5% off of that and hitting 6@9 again) be appropriate?
One strategy would be to increase volume, yes, but that is not necessarily what we would advise depending on context and goals. Given the context of PB I- I don’t think increasing volume would be the answer for increasing strength. Rather, I might ratchet up average intensity, practice more singles, or something like that. That said, PB I isn’t really the program I’d use to drive up squat strength maximally. I would expect doing the program 2x through your squat e1RM and actual working sets would increase, however not necessarily as much as we’d see with a dedicated strength program (for 1RM) .
In short, I think we need to have clear goals and use the appropriate tools to achieve that goal.
I know this thread is a little stale at this point, but when you said to look into either “Strength II or Hypertrophy II” do you mean Strengthlifting II? Does that template focus on OHP to the exclusion of bench or just prioritize the one over the other? How does it compare to Strength III?
