When I did 531 I did the 4th week as a deload with decreased weight and lower volume on the assistance. Since I am a bit of a program jumper, I like to take a solid week off between programs with maybe some walking. I am also a big fan of deep tissue massage. I have one every 4 weeks.
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One of the best things about 531 is the built in deload.
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I generally take a week off every 4-8 weeks, trying to āscheduleā these for when I am busy or feel less motivated. Sometimes I do light cardio and sometimes I donāt. Weirdly, I notice 80% of my gains during my deloading days. I did not really take any deloading time when I was younger, more flexible and lifting lighter.
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I have a relationship with deloads that has changed over time. When younger, lifting heavier, doing a bit more volume, and taking pretty every set up to that point where Iād let my form completely break down just to get that +1 in the training journalā¦ every 4th week Iād have a forced deload where Iād just lift the same exercises but at 50% of the weight. I seemed to continue to progress that way.
Nowadays, even though I appreciate and understand the deload more than I did then, I still donāt take them as much. Iāve started to believe that unless youāre quite regimented pushing hard for blocks on certain programs - or have a strict goal in mind, many people (certainly myself) often arenāt strong enough (or training hard enough) to actually warrant a full 7 days back-off. In feeling that, Iāve fully adopted the ālife hands you deloadsā mantra.
Over the course of say 8 weeks for example, there might be a day or two I had to miss for a wedding, a weekend session I skipped because the missus planned a day out, a little training muscle tweak or period of overreaching where I decide to take 3 days off. Or my recent favourite one, just do a single light session on a main lift because it feels twice as heavy all of a sudden, or youāre starting to dread the weight instead of feeling hungry for it. Taking half the load off a squat or deadlift variation as a ā1 day back-offā can sometimes rejuvinate my entire training. Just this week I took an extra couple days off because it was Easter Bank holiday and my gym was closed. Iām sure over the course of that if you put it all together it adds up to a a pretty standard deload, but I certainly wonāt be planning them again.
With all that said. A week off after a HARD training block with a specific goal rather than just plodding along grabbing +1s here and there, a deload is essential. As someone else pointed out, itās often where you notice the gains all come through, the pump returns, the drive returns, and the mental reset alone can make it worth it. I just donāt really train like that anymore.
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