HOW TO USE LOW VOLUME AND BETTER RECOVERY TO SET NEW REP PRS

HOW TO USE LOW VOLUME AND BETTER RECOVERY TO SET NEW REP PRS

By Shane Robert

 

Training Smarter When Life Gets Busy

 

There are times in a training career when we can’t do the kind of volume that we might want for certain lifts, or even each lift. There are a myriad of reasons why this might be so. Time is probably the biggest one; sometimes we simply don’t have the time available to devote to training like we prefer.

 

It could be that you have other training priorities that take more of your energy and attention, for instance, someone learning the Olympic lifts or putting more time into assistance movements for greater hypertrophy. Recovery, or lack of, is another example. Job stress, new kid, becoming older, etc. are all times in our lives when we might not be able to keep up with higher volumes. Injury, of course, can be a similar time in a training career. Anyone who has experienced overuse injuries like tendonitis knows how impactful volume is on that condition (it sucks).

A Better Way to Hit PRs

 

Despite these roadblocks, it’s fun to be able to continue to break PRs in training. Instead of trying to beat your head into the wall and constantly push for, and likely fail, new 1RM PRs, it makes sense to try for a variety of different rep PRs. The traditional model for something like this is to do sets of the same rep, 10 for instance, starting with higher sets and, over some weeks, lowering the volume until you peak to a new max set. Similarly, you can keep the sets and reps the same and just add weight each week until you can’t. There are many different ways to plan this type of training. Unfortunately, they all potentially require higher volumes than you may be able to handle.

 

Low Volume, High Efficiency

 

The program below is my attempt to address this issue. There are 6, 3 week blocks that, if run consecutively, will give you 18 weeks of training and 6 new rep PRs. The exercise selection starts with harder variations of the lift, while keeping a day of the main variation to prevent technical decay, and whittles its way toward all main movement variations at the end. The percentages start on the low side and progress each week, and each block, slowly and steadily. Since the movement variation is meant to be harder than the main movement, the lower intensities ensure 3 things:

 

1. Getting more benefit from less volume 

2. Smooth and explosive movements

3. Easier recovery

 

The format mostly follows the tried and true medium, light, heavy format for most of the blocks. It will work best with standard, grindable lifts like squats, presses, and deadlifts. In the example below, I lay out a squat cycle using exercises that are generically beneficial for a low-bar squatter. If you are doing a different variation or a completely different exercise, simply replace it with another equally challenging movement. Keep true to the core concept: starting with harder variations (for you) and work your way toward movement specificity by the end. Doing so will not only build strength but also help prevent overuse.

The 18-Week Squat Plan

 

Each 3-week block is designed to work standalone or as part of a full 18-week cycle. Rinse and repeat with 5–20 lbs added each time. If you do commit to the full 18 weeks, you’ll see that you get to set new 12,10,8,6,4,2 rep maxes and accumulate a lot of high-quality work in the process, all but guaranteeing new 1RMs. With much less fatigue.

BLOCK  1 - Peaking to a max 12

 

BLOCK 2 - Peaking to a max 10

 

BLOCK 3- Peaking to a max 8

 

BLOCK 4 - Peaking to a max 6

 

BLOCK 5 - Peaking to a max 4

 

BLOCK 6 - Peaking to a max 2