(The following was originally an email sent out to my subscribers on 3/6/23. If you aren’t on the mailing list, you can join by filling out request form on the homepage. Free tips, tactics, and strategies sent directly to your inbox).
Usually when we talk about periodization we are talking about manipulations in volume and intensity over a period of days, weeks, and months (but also includes things like exercise selection, etc).
Power lifters going into a meet will often follow a schedule that progresses them from periods of higher volumes and lower intensity to periods of lower volumes and higher intensity.
In general, training days looks similar.
Sessions start with the big compound competitive lifts or their close variations and then follow up with assistance work to support that lift.
But that’s power lifting – and I see little to no reason to try and rewrite the book in that arena.
In general we know what works and we argue about the minutia.
But what about hypertrophy specific training (i.e. bodybuilding)?
Like with power lifting periodization can play a role although it tends to be a little less formulaic in practice.
In my hypertrophy-oriented programming we still periodize the lifts to a degree.
The Bodybuilding Track in my online group coaching program follows 6-week loading blocks, followed by 1-week deloads.
During those 6-week loading blocks a lot of our lifts will traverse from higher rep ranges to lower rep ranges as we steadily increase loading.
These progressions are often VERY simple.
It might be starting a Leg Day with Squats and working up to a top set in the 6-9 rep range for 3 weeks.
Then in the following 3 weeks we work up to a top set in the 3-6 range.
That’s it.
Max effort sets within a range. Add load or reps in the following week and try and stay within that range.
But I will also periodize things by manipulating the order of exercises in a session.
Oddly enough I learned this little trick back in college from a……power lifter. But it works GREAT for bodybuiding.
And most bodybuilders do it anyways, even if unintentionally.
It works really really good for those of you with limited equipment.
Let’s look at a Chest Day. And let’s say I start the session out with Flat Barbell Bench Press followed by Incline Bench Press and then some flys. We’ll ignore the flys for now.
In our example I have the lifter programmed like this for the next 6 weeks.
Bench Press 3 x 3-5 (3 sets of 3-5 reps)
Incline Bench Press 3 x 5-8 reps
We will try and hold 3 hard sets in those rep ranges for each exercise for 6 weeks. Each week we will attempt to progress via the addition of reps or the addition of load.
In the next 6 week block, flip it.
Incline Bench Press 3 x 3-5
Bench Press 3 x 5-8
After 6 weeks flip it back. Or swap out one of the exercises for a dumbbell variant, etc.
It’ll feel like a totally different stimulus even though it really isn’t.
And of course the loading will change wildly between blocks. 5-8 rep Inclines after Flat Bench will be substantially lighter than 3-5 rep Inclines before Flat Bench.
This forces periodization (or changes in absolute intensity) without reducing relative intensity!!!! And volume generally does not change at all.
It can keep you progressing in both strength and size and also reduce the risk of fatigue related injuries.
You can do that with any body part sequence.
Here is a 6-week conventional Quad workout:
Back Squat 1 x 5
Leg Press 2 x 8-12
Leg Extension 3 x 12-15
And here is a Pre-Exhaust styled workout of those same exercises:
Leg Extension 3 x 12-15
Leg Press 2 x 8-12
Back Squat 1 x 5
The exercise order forces variations in intensity mainly. In the above example, the lifter who begins his Quad workout with Squats for 5 x 365 might be doing 5 x 275 (or less) in a Pre-exhausted state.
This type of strategy is NOT variety for the sake of variety.
It’s strategic in that it allows you to train MAXIMALLY more or less all the time without burnout, unecessary fatigue, or constantly resetting weights around strength plateaus.
High effort training is required for maximal hypertrophy, but high efforts must be managed in order to be sustainable.
If you want to follow intelligently designed bodybuilding programming with strategic periodization built into the program – give The Baker Barbell Club a try.
Look for the Bodybuilding Track once you’re inside.
