If I’m not going to compete (only against myself), is there advantages or disadvantages to peaking? I have never “peaked” as such, but as I understand it, it is a way to push your 1RM maxes up as much as possible for a certain date, often a meet. Wouldn’t that be good even when not competing, as a way to focus on bringing max strength (1RM) up, for instance before starting a new training phase/template - if increased strength is the goal? Or would it be better to just keep going, meaning running training phases/templates back to back?
I think there is value in periodizing training based on goals. Increasing the intensity while decreasing training volume tends to be useful for most trainees interested in strength training, though the duration of the training phase will vary based on context.