This week is a deload week for me. My coach usually programs one every training block and even after years of doing this I still think I don’t need one and still get surprised at how good I feel when I do.
Last week was the end of a heavy training block where I hit rep and volume PR’s in the squat, and matched PR’s in deadlift and bench press. I was on a high, on a role, ready for more, feeling strong. So what do we do this week, we cut everything back, move some light weight and get a pump. It seems counter intuitive to me, like I am wining the race and then sit on a park bench and watch as the other runners pass by.
I never really think I need the deload, BUT I really do. Already half way through this week I am feeling; light on my feet vs heavy legs, I am keen to get in the gym vs anxious about the workout to come, I have little to no soreness vs groaning with every body movement, and most of all I am looking forward to the challenge of the next block, looking forward to going heavier and harder again.
Just a simple change in the program to give some extra recovery really feels like magic. I have tried all sorts of ways to deload over the last few years from; heavy weight but very low volume, light weight with higher volume, lighter weight and lower volume, body weight only, even doing nothing but some light cardio. And whilst I like some of these approaches better than others, the truth is they all work pretty much the same. I always come back feeling energized and ready to take on the next training block.
So lets talk deloads. Who’s doing them ? How are you doing them ? What really works ? Who’s not convinced ?
This is often how I feel about deloads. But my experience with using them currently tells me otherwise. I don’t believe it would be possible to keep progressing week to week without some sore of periodisation which includes a deload. If I were to keep my training always well within my ability to recover then I don’t believe it would be at a level of intensity to create an adaption response and progress.
OK and when the returns diminish what then ? Recover which is essentially a deload ? Whether you program them or listen to the body, or even just take a week off when you have a cold, is it not still a deload ?
Thats a good point and question. The purpose of the deload for me is to stop me going too far. I could have gone heavier this week but the likelihood that I would exceed my recovery is very high.
The purpose is to give my (old) body some extra recovery and allow me to push harder in the next training block.
I’ve personally found that if in a very intense training block by week 5-6 I’m ready to back off a little. At least on certain body parts. If I find legs aren’t recovering I might skip legs that week or just some pump work with completely different exercises. This could go for any body part that’s not recovering properly by the next session. A deload doesn’t have to mean across the board.
Brother… been doing this for over 30 years and STILL haven’t figured it all out. The journey is the destination. I did see in MMA when I sparred less, I actually performed better and recovered quicker. I see the same with lifting… It’s just so hard to pull in the reigns when you love it so much
I’m not sure that deload is the most accurate description, but ever since I read CT’s Jacked Athlete series I’ve adapted that methodology into all my training now. Every 4th week I switch entirely to a 4 way bodypart split wherein I use minimal BB work and instead choose all DB, cable, and machine movements. I don’t deload per se, because I still push RPE close to a 10 on my last working sets; however, it has proven quite crucial for recovery purposes as far as giving the ol’ CNS and joints a much needed breather.
I do feel similar results to what you’re laying out here though. I feel my sleep quality gets back on track, my muscles really start to pop and show the results of the last 3 week training block, and I get a nice mental break too. It almost feels like a week off. Another bonus is that it motivates me to push that much harder during my 3 week training block, knowing I have a “fun bro week” coming up. Literally any time I write up a new program, or start a prewritten one, I automatically adjust it to this 3:1 structure now.
As far as a true deload, like doing the same skeleton of my program but with lower volume and/or lower weight, I never really saw the point. Maybe 2-3x a year when I’m feeling like I really need it, I just take a week off. I’ve just felt it was much better to daily undulate intensities over a week, so that I’m never training squat AND deadlift heavy in the same week for example. And on a given day I’m never training primary movement and assistance movement in same intensity zone either.
This is great point and shows really high understanding of your body and how it performs. Not everyone has this level of maturity though, do you think for them just setting a fixed schedule for an easier week is still a good way to go ?
I like this idea. Essentially you are deloading on your heavy compound barbel movements but still stimulating the muscles. I would deff call this a deload or maybe a re-load is a good term. Its like recovery and priming yourself for the next block.
Setting a certain period of training and a set deload block imo is great. If you’re training hard 4-5 days a week the CNS will certainly get over taxed and you’ll need to stop the cumulative fatigue.
I’ve found on some training blocks/plans I can just keep pushing. Others I start to feel the fatigue creep in and need a full or partial deload. I’ve also found better growth training harder and taking rest when needed. Training in a linear fashion doesn’t get me the stimulus I need to grow.
Running Fortitude Training, there are definitely some guidelines you can follow, but it’s still auto-regulatory by nature. A Progressive Blast will typically last 3-6 weeks until you get to the point of functional overreaching, basically when you start to feel fatigued and run down. A blast could be extended by taking an additional rest day or lowering a Volume Tier.
For instance, fatigue is starting to hit me, but I’ve got a couple of days off coming up before I finish this week’s sessions over the weekend. Because I’m at about the 5 week point, I know my clock is ticking. I will evaluate how I’m doing on Tuesday and make a determination on whether it’s deload time or I stretch it out one more week.
The intensive cruise, which serves as the deload, will last 1-2 weeks (roughly 1/3 of the time your blast lasted), dropping down a Volume Tier, perform and perform only Muscle Round Cluster sets. This period will still see me train to failure and progressively overloading, but will also see a big reduction in total training volume and frequency. I will train likely only 4 times over the course of the 2 week Progressive cruise, The last 5 days or so of the Cruise will see me resting entirely from the gym.
I definitely find that this time helps me come back recovered and stronger than ever and extremely fired up and motivated to train!
This is a great way to keep yourself primed but let the body recover a bit. Do you find with the high intensity training that you are doing, that you ever need to do a complete re-set and have a few weeks doing something different ?
I’ve done deloads in the past, but never really because of performance drop, they just kind of lined up with life so I took a week off.
I think deloads are really only beneficial if the training program is intentionally going beyond your recoverability as a means of progression.
If you know you cannot recover from more than say 20 sets per training session, and you move up to 25, you WILL see performance drop. Same when you go up to 30 sets. But I thought performance drop was bad? It is.
But when you intentionally overload your recoverability, then deload on a schedule, I imagine one’s ability to recover is improving during this system.
I still prefer a method of training that regulates recovery such that deloads aren’t needed, though. Every tool has it’s place.
Wow, this is such a seemingly obvious point, but one that’s way too easy to forget. Thanks for the reminder.