Where to go next?

Training Q&A [Moderated]
1

Hey Docs,

I’m currently uncertain of the next pathway to take with my training. 23, 5’10", 184 lbs, 34 inch waist, about 18% bodyfat (a little under 15 according to my scale, 18 according to military testing standards, both are inaccurate I’m sure. Just a rough estimation based upon eyeballing)

Training history: 2.5 years of consistent resistance training. A little over 1.5 years of consistent program training.
Prior programs:

  1. Starting Strength NLP
  2. Various 531 templates from 531 forever (that didn’t work at all unfortunately)
  3. 4 Day Texas Method
  4. HLM based upon Andy Baker’s youtube playlist
  5. More recently The Bridge 1.0 followed by 3.0 then a really stupid “hypertrophy block” of 531 BBB that didn’t work well. Threw the book away after that.
  6. Currently on the 8th week of the second cycle of The Bridge 3.0 My lifts went up great on my first run through of 3.0. Currently my Bench, Deadlift, and Press are progressing very nicely. My Squat went up for the first few weeks but since week 4 my e1rm has more or less stagnated. Week 5/6 it went down then up on week 7 but has fallen again week 8. Week 4 it was at 352 and now at week 8 it is essentially the same at 351. Before, my e1rm has progressed by 5 lbs each week. Up to week 7 my bench and deadlift have gone up 20 and 22 lbs respectively. My initial thoughts are to stay the course for the rest of the program but I’m not sure how to interpret these results in terms of picking my next template.

My goals are to get stronger and build muscle/look more aesthetic. The obvious choice seems to be the PB templates especially since I started a reasonable cut yesterday in order to get down to 175 with hopefully significantly less fat. My only reservation about PB 1 is that I read the volume of the second block is lower than the second block of The Bridge 3.0 that I am currently on while the intensity is largely the same. I don’t know how true that is because I don’t own the template of course. I wouldn’t mind training 4 days per week either for the main lifts. My rest periods are 3 minutes for the main lifts and 2 minutes for the accessory lift. No issue recovering between sets. This brings me to wonder if perhaps powerbuilding 2 or maybe even 3 would be a good choice instead of 1. I just don’t know to be perfectly honest. I don’t want to run a template that is way too much volume but I also don’t want to see my e1rms trend downward for an entire training block. For the record I don’t have really any intention of competing in powerlifting so my actual single @ 10 isn’t too high on my list of priorities but I do want to see my e1rm trend upward. If my training took place predominantly in the 3-8 rep range until maybe once or twice per year where I run a strength focused period then peaked and hit a 1 rm I would be perfectly content. Again, I just don’t know what that training would look like and my best guess is the powerbuilding templates.

Long term I only want to be about 10 lbs heavier than I am now but at a lower bodyfat percentage and I want to “look good naked”. I want to get as strong as my genetics will allow naturally at that bodyweight.

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I’d go PB I or PB II depending on how many days you want to train, e.g. 3 vs 4 days per week. The total volume of the program can’t really be viewed in a vacuum, as the sum of the program is greater than its parts (e.g. proximity to failure, average intensity, specificity, etc.). PB II would be where I’d lean if you’re keen to train 4x/wk.

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Hey Jordan appreciate the response. I have follow up question that’s partially related if you don’t mind.

I’ve noticed I still have a tendency to “chase weight” which is possibly a habit I picked up from NLP and rip programming. For my top singles at rpe 8, would it be appropriate to “earn” the weight by waiting to add 5 lbs until the rpe goes below 8? I saw this on Mike T’s Instagram story a month or two ago about hitting the top single that perhaps is overshot a little at an 8.5 then the next week it is perceived as an 8 followed by a third week where the same weight is rated as a 7.5. All the while the e1rm is obviously trending upwards and working sets are still being based upon performance during that session.

4

I think the best progressive loading strategy involves modifying weight as you are able to do so, e.g. not under- or over-shooting. That said, picking a conservative strategy may work well if you’re consistently overshooting.

An additional thought that may help, lifting 5 or 10 more pounds in a single session (or multiple sessions) isn’t going to make the difference between you getting markedly (>100lbs) stronger or bigger. I’d prefer most folks coming from SS to undershoot, if forced to choose.

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