I often go on about progressive overload so I thought I should share a bit about how that works and what it should look like in your program.
It is easy for anyone to write out a program. That program can be both amazing and equally as bad! The results will show it for what it is. It is the personalised programs offering steady, progressive overload that stand out as being great. The ones that get you the results you want while allowing for adequate recovery and are planned around you and your schedule so they are sustainable, long term, are amazing.
A common mistake when writing out a program is not leaving enough rest days! Especially when the person writing it is especially keen on their training. The program may only have one full rest day to allow your body as a whole, including your central nervous system (CNS), to recover but its the rest between each session for each muscle that also counts and is often overlooked. Your body needs to recover and the heavier you lift and/or the more times you lift the weight the longer that will take. As an example:
- Look then at the program as a week block to begin with for ease of fitting it into a pattern around a working week (humans being creatures of habit, pattern forming helps with adherence).
- Program 15 sets of squats and squat alternatives into the week across 3 squat days (5 sets a day) with ample rest between each day.
- On the first week the effort level can be relatively low (6/10ish). On the surface this will work well for someone wanting to perform volume work. Over a larger, 6 week block this is then easily possible to progress. If you start on an effort level of 10/10 you will then have nowhere to go as you are already performing at 100% capacity. When starting with 100% effort your body will not progress week on week and allow you to continue to add sets to each exercises for each subsequent week.
- From a week of 6/10 effort you are then able to overload the following weeks.
- Moving into week 2, to make the effort level rise, you could add an extra set to each exercise. You could decrease the rest time. You could slow down the rep time (similar effect to adding a set as it increases overall time under tension (this does however allow for more control of the movement and control of muscle contraction)). You could also increase the weight lifted which tends to be the most popular option.
- Remember that you don’t have to be performing at 100% all the time, or even at all to initially progress.
- As you increase the effort level, especially towards the 9 and 10 out of 10, you should stay conscious of your form ensuring it does not slacken so as to enable you to perform the required sets/reps/weight.
- If you increase your number of sets but subconsciously speed up the reps, this is not overloading. If during week 3, 6 sets of 8 reps takes you 180sec movement time and in week 4, 7 fast sets takes you 180sec movement this is poor progressive overload when programming for volume as the time under tension has stayed the same, in spite of there being an extra set included.
- Similarly to the point above, if we squat 100kg to full depth of 50cm for 6 sets of 8 reps (6×8=48reps). 48reps x 50cm=24m total distance moved. 100kgx24m = 2,400Kg/m or 23,544N/m.
- Now, if we add 5kg and cut just 10cm from the depth of the squat, which doesn’t actually look that much when played in a video (getting closer to our 100% effort the individual now feels less confident in getting to depth). We then add an extra rep to each set (6 additional reps total). This means we have overloaded the weight and the reps! Our equation will now go something like this: (6×9=54reps) 54reps x40cm=21.6m 105kgx21.6m=2,268Kg/m or 22,249N/m.
- Cutting 10cm from every rep is quite extreme, especially if the individual is somewhat aware of getting to depth, but the point here still stands. Even though we increased weight by 5% and increased the reps by 12.5%, the overall work done has decreased due to form being compromised.
- During progressive overload, work done should ALMOST always go up. If you are altering time under tension (TUT) then work done doesn’t necessarily need to increase but TUT should.
Finishing a block of progressive overload on an effort level of 10/10 prior to a deload/tapered week is quite standard practice but not essential.
If you feel even more confused after all that then I apologise and to simplify it, with linear progression, start with a 6/10 and make it harder by adding sets/reps as the weeks go on while maintaining perfect form and an identical pace until you find yourself failing sets/reps. Have a week off, change the exercises and start at 6/10 again.
If you need a hand then get in touch but otherwise, GOOD LUCK!
