PERIODIZATION

Let’s talk about periodization. It’s just a fancy way of saying you vary the intensity of your training over time.

This is important because there’s a ceiling to progression that most people eventually hit. You can’t just train at 100% all the time and expect to keep getting results. It helps you also avoid plateaus, recover better, reduce the risk of overtraining, and lower your chance of injury.

Here’s an example:

Let’s say your 10-rep max on an exercise is 100lbs.

Your first training block sets might look like this:

Week 1: 80x10

Week 2: 80x12

Week 3: 90x10

Week 4: 90x12

Week 5: 100x10 (max effort)

Then you deload and start another block:

Week 1: 70x12 (deload)

Week 2: 90x10

Week 3: 90x12

Week 4: 100x12

Week 5: 110x10 (max effort)

You can also periodize by volume:

Week 1: 3 sets

Week 2: 4 sets

Week 3: 4 sets on 2 exercises

Week 4: 4 sets on 3 exercises

Week 5: 4 sets on 4 exercises

What’s a deload?

It means dialing things back to about 70% effort. That can mean reducing the weight or just lowering your intensity. For compound/primary lifts, I usually use percentages. For accessory movements, intensity works fine.

Also, intensity doesn’t always mean load (weight on the bar). In fact most of the time, it’s not.

Another way to periodize is to focus on a specific goal. That could be strength, hypertrophy, a certain lift, or even a particular body part.

Who doesn’t need to worry about periodization (yet)?

Beginners and newbies, or someone coming back from an injury.

This is because they haven’t accumulated enough intensity or developed a strong connection to the lifts, it’s not a priority.

How do you know if you’re feeling overtrained?

Watch for these signs: constant fatigue, stiff or sore joints, muscle soreness that doesn’t go away, chronic tiredness, stalled lifts, or recurring injuries.

Periodization doesn’t need to be complicated. But it does need to be intentional. You can only push hard for so long before your body pushes back.

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