Introduction

I am sure that you are asking yourself “Why should I read this book?” You
can find plenty of free information online these days. Free information from
lifters with much higher totals than myself.

I mean, I have only been powerlifting since October 2015. How much could
I really know from such a short amount of time in the sport? For one, I have
been coaching for over a decade. During this time I have gotten many
athletes, from high school through college aged, strong for their sports. I also
have made many people strong for life.

The procedure we follow is no different for a strength athlete than it is for

any athlete of any sport. We first must analyze the sport. We look at the
movements involved in that sport, the highest injury risks, the energy system
demands, the strengths and weaknesses of the athlete or athletes, and the
competition schedule.

From the information we collect we write up a program to address the needs

that we determined. When we look at it this way, I have over a decade of
experience coaching hundreds of athletes.

I obtained an undergraduate degree in health and wellness and a graduate

degree in kinesiology. I interned at Harvard University, the nation’s largest
Division 1 collegiate program. I have also been an athlete my whole life. I
played college soccer and trained in mixed martial arts for 10 years later.

I have been coached by the legendary Russian professor of powerlifting,

Boris Sheiko since I began this journey in 2015. Boris Sheiko was
undefeated in the 7 years that he spent as the national team coach in
international competition. His athletes won over 40 gold medals and no one
received less than a bronze medal.
I met Boris for the first time in June 2015. He came presented a seminar for
the first time on American soil. I came into the gym that morning and Boris
Sheiko had already arrived with Mikhail Kokylaev, a multiple world-
champion strongman and powerlifter.

The gym owner asked me if I could bring them down some waters. I grabbed
the waters and went down to the second floor. When I opened the door,
Boris was sitting in a chair with his back to me. He was wearing a jacket that
just said “Russia” on the back.

Mikhail Kokylaev, the largest human I had ever seen, was doing bodyweight
squats in front of Boris and they were speaking to each other in Russian. I
am not sure what it was about this moment, but right then I wanted to be a
powerlifter.

Boris’ presentation was very good. He does things very differently from
other strength coaches. To say that it peaked my curiosity is an
understatement. I took the information and digested it for a bit. I also did a
little research on my own about his programming.

I soon realized that there just was not a lot of information about his
programming in English. I reached out to Boris in August of 2015. I told
him that I was beginning my journey in powerlifting and I would like to have
him as my coach.

I had already signed up for a local meet scheduled in October. He helped me

with my peaking block and then we began our training together right after
that meet. I wanted to work with Boris for a couple of reasons.

For one, I was 32 years old and starting to compete in powerlifting. I had no
time to waste and wanted to make sure that I was putting my right foot
forward from the start. I also wanted to work with him to learn from him. As
the Director of Strength and Conditioning in powerlifting gym, I felt it was
my responsibility to be the best coach in powerlifting possible.
The final reason I wanted to work with Boris is because he challenged some
of my current beliefs. It is easy to learn from people that you agree with, but
to learn from someone that challenges those beliefs can truly make you
better.

Many people told me in the beginning that I would get hurt from all of the
volume. They said that these programs would not be suited for beginners.
All of their arguments made sense, but at the same time, I am just cocky
enough not to care. Boris spoke a lot of how important technique is and this
made sense to me as a beginner.

I have learned more from the time I have trained under Boris than I did in
grad school. At the time I started training with Boris, I was looking at Ph.D.
programs. This experience has taught me much more than I would have
learned by going back to school.

The following pages will contain the information that I have learned
throughout my coaching journey. I was told early on to mimic those that are
successful, attempt to understand what they are doing, and then put your own
twist on things. In the short time I have been coaching competitive strength
athletes I have had multiple national qualifying totals by my athletes.

I reserve the right to be wrong on some things. The more I learn, the more I
may change my mind about things. Some of the information that I will
present will run counter to what you currently believe. I encourage you to
read with an open mind and try to implement some of the things that I
suggest.

Many of the suggestions in the following pages come from my email

conversations with Boris, some came from the two seminars of his that I
attended, some can be found on his website, and some is from my analyzing
and interpreting my own program. Grad school gave me the tools necessary
to understand the concepts in front of me. Lastly, some of the information
comes from my experiences training athletes.
Some of the information contained in these pages are my own tweaks that I
have used successfully with my athletes. The longer I trained myself,
coached others, and the more people that I cached, I have been able to
improve upon the system that fits me as a coach and my lifters as athletes.

This is not to say that I do anything better than Boris Sheiko. I can only
continue to strive to someday be as great a coach as he is. These are just
things that I have fund to work better in my situation. These details are very
small however.

This whole book started as a document to myself. I was learning so much

that I wanted to make sure I had something for myself to review. Over time
the information contained within this book became substantial. I hope that
you can learn something both as a coach and an athlete in the following
pages.

Hope you enjoy. For more ongoing information about this subject matter, be
sure to listen to our podcast, Boston’s Strongcast and visit our website
www.precisionpowerliftingsystems.com

Hans Selye and Stress

The overload principle began with a German doctor by the name of Hans
Selye. Hans Selye is credited with coining the term stress in 1936 in his most
important work that was titled “A Syndrome Produced by Diverse Nocuous
Agents.” The syndrome that Selye was talking about was the General
Adaptation Syndrome (GAS).
Selye knew that the body was always trying to return back to its baseline.
This baseline is known as homeostasis. He believed that the human body
would release certain hormones that help it combat stress. He also knew that
the human body had limits to how much stress it was capable of handling.
This was the major theme behind his research.

He would often use the example of insulin to explain his findings. He

explained that if we supply the body with insulin that blood glucose levels
will decrease. However, in large doses we would see a rise in our stress
hormones, the catecholamines and glucocorticoids, and see an enlargement of
the adrenal glands, the area of the brain responsible for releasing these
hormones.

Selye also came to discover that the brain was not the only region of the
human body that became affected by stress. He discovered that stress
hormones affected nearly every system and organ within the human body.
This is where the discovery of stress, aging, and disease came into play. In
the end it is stress that kills us. However, what doesn’t kill us can truly make
us stronger.

The General Adaptation Syndrome has three phases: the alarm phase, the
resistance stage, and the exhaustion stage. In the alarm stage we encounter
the stressor for the first time. Upon encountering this stressor, we elicit a
stress response. This stress response is better known as the fight or flight
response.

When we encounter a stressor our body releases hormones such as cortisol,

epinephrine (better known as adrenaline), and norepinephrine. We also
release dopamine. Dopamine is responsible for giving us energy, our
memory, and our focus. These hormones can serve us greatly under stress by
supplying the muscles with extra blood, increasing our oxygen intake,
decreasing pain, and improving energy and focus. This is great when we are
performing a physical task.

Hopefully this stressor becomes eradicated and we move onto the resistance
stage. In this stage the body actually takes a step back and becomes weaker.
The body is trying to divert all of its energy into repairing whatever damage
the stressor has occurred. During this stage we may feel tired, weak, and
actually be more susceptible to illness.

Exercise is a stressor. When we exercise, we enter the alarm stage. Once we

finish, our body will attempt to return back to homeostasis as quickly as
possible. In this case we may be tired, hungry, and feel weak. If we eat
enough and sleep well, our body will repair the damage that occurred through
training. If we encounter this stress enough, not only will we return back to
our original baseline, but we will come back stronger.

The human body is an amazingly adaptive machine. It will prepare itself to

handle that same stressor again. It will do that by increasing the size of our
muscles and also increase the efficiency of our nervous system. This is why
the overload principle is so important as well as load variability.

We need to keep feeding the body new stressors so that it is forced to keep
adapting. If we just did the same thing every day the body will adapt and
handle that stressor with very little ease. It prepared itself by building
enough muscle and organizing the nervous system to handle that specific rep
scheme, weight, or exercise. Now, there is a fine line we need to walk here.
If we present the body with more stress than it can handle, just like Selye’s
insulin example, we can run into some problems.

This is known as the exhaustion stage. At this point the body loses its ability
to fight the stressor. This is where we can see declines in strength, illness,
and even injury. Our body has a series of checks and balances that help keep
us safe from ourselves.

If we are chronically exposed to stress we have a constant release of our

stress hormones. Too much exposure to these stress hormones can cause our
body harm. All hormones need to bind to receptor sites in order to send their
message. The body will decrease the sensitivity of these receptor sites to the
hormone to protect itself from too much.
The problem with this comes from not removing the stressor. If we are still
under stress when this happens our body will release even more of the stress
hormones to get its message across. This sets up a rabbit hole that we
continually fall down until we get sick or injured. This is why stress
management is a really important aspect of training.

To be the best athletes, or coaches for our athletes, we need to be the best
stress managers we can be. We want to make sure that the body is receiving
the correct amount of stress to come back stronger and avoid plateaus or
injuries. If we give the body too little stress it will not feel the need to adapt.
If we give the body too much stress we will enter the exhaustion phase and
fall down that rabbit hole.

This is why the overload principle is one of the most important principle in
strength training. If you have a good grasp on how much is needed to get
stronger and where the minimum and maximum lines are for volume and
intensity, you will see some great results in the gym.
Specificity

The coach should be giving his athletes a program that is specific to the sport
of powerlifting. The SAID principle (Specific Adaptation to Imposed
Demands) states that we adapt directly to the stimulus. If we want to get
better at squatting, bench pressing, and deadlifting, we need to perform those
3 movements.

There is nothing more specific to the sport of powerlifting than taking a max
single in each of those movements. However, if the athlete was to perform
max singles of all 3 lifts frequently, they would have a very short career as
the risk of injury increases as well as psychological burnout.

What we need to do is build the muscles, systems, and neuromuscular

coordination to be able to move maximum weights on the platform. This is
why the majority of our volume comes from the competition lifts. This is
also why we always use low bar squats, competition pause bench press, and
competition deadlift in training, even when we add variation.

The variations of the lifts need to be similar enough to the competition lifts to
carryover, but still vary enough to keep progress moving forward. This is
why I am personally not a fan of things like the Tsunami and Bamboo bars
for bench. The Tsunami bar whips around during the lift and the bamboo bar
is used to hang kettlebells from bands at the ends to make the bar harder to
control. The argument with this training method is that the oscillation created
by the bars increases stability and muscle activation.

The problem with these bars is that the more unstable a device is, the less
force that the athlete can apply to it. Coupled with the fact that the weight is
substantially lower on these bars than what the athlete is capable of lifting in
the competition lift, we fail to meet the overload principle. Most powerlifters
would not squat on a Bosu Ball, so why use these devices?

Pushing the prowler and dragging a sled may have their place for recovery,
but they are not the best options to increase sport specific work capacity or
strength. If the coach wants to increase sport specific work capacity, higher
rep sets such as the Pyramids mentioned in this text are a better option.

At a meet a lifter lifts once and waits as the flight goes in order to come back
for his next attempt. The athlete needs to be able to recover from singles at
90% and higher at this time as well. Altering the rest periods between sets in
training sessions can improve sport specific work capacity.

On most training days, the athlete will be completing 3 competition lifts in a

training day. This is similar to a meet. As long as the athlete is not taking
extended breaks between sets, his or her work capacity will develop enough
to succeed on competition day.

The coach should be programming exercises that will directly increase the
big 3 lifts of the athlete. Muscles like the biceps and calves do not play a
major role in powerlifting. However, the back muscles, leg muscles, triceps,
front delts, pecs, and abs do. These muscles should be trained frequently.

These muscles should also be trained how they are utilized in the lifts. The
back needs to stay tight in the lifts. Exercises such as good mornings, seated
good mornings, and hyperextensions will carry over to powerlifting more
than rowing and pulldowns. Triceps and pecs in a lying position will
carryover more to the bench press than performing these lifts standing.
However, the best way to train these muscle groups is with the correct
volumes and intensities and special exercises within the competition lifts
themselves.

Muscle groups like the biceps can be trained occasionally as this can help
with elbow pain that is common to those that squat in a low bar position.
Other muscle groups like the medial deltoids and rear deltoids can be trained
occasionally when the coach wants to give specific joint angles a break and
allow the athletes more commonly used muscles to rest. Changing angles of
movements within the joints can help the athlete remain healthy as well.

Lats can be trained frequently as they recover quite easily and are an
important muscle group to protect the spine. However, the lats do not play as
important of a role in raw powerlifting as people make out. Lumbar and
thoracic extension are much more important to the lifts and this would direct
the emphasis to the erectors.

As a coach make sure that you are maximizing your athlete’s time in the
gym. Do not spend too much time on exercises that will not carryover to a
bigger total. This can be the difference maker in the success of a program.
Determining Appropriate Volume

What is the ideal volume for a given strength athlete? In order to answer this
question we must first identify what volume is. Volume is the total amount
of weight lifted within a training day, a training week, a training month, and a
training year.
Over the years I have seen the pendulum of how much volume we need to do
in the gym, swing in both directions. For a time it was do as much as you can
and then do more. One popular fitness program even had a mascot of a
clown throwing up. It was celebrated to train this hard.

The other end of the spectrum where the coaches and athletes that preached
to do as little as possible in the gym. Their argument was that if they do
more, recovery will be more difficult and over time this could lead to
overtraining. This group is not entirely wrong. There is a point when the
athlete can hit a certain volume and see results actually slide backwards. This
point is known as the point of diminishing returns.

You can get stronger in the gym following this guidance, but could you get
even stronger if you were doing the appropriate level of work that stressed
your body to its max that it can recover from? My answer to that question
would be yes.

Dr. Mike Israetel has been doing some fantastic work on this concept in his
book “Scientific Principles of Strength Training.”. He coined the term
maximum recoverable volume (MRV). An individual’s MRV is the most
volume that they are capable of recovering from. The other end of the
spectrum is the athlete’s minimum effective dose of volume, this is known as
MEV. Ideal training is somewhere in the middle and this is known as the
MAV, maximum adaptive volume.

Determining someone’s MAV is no easy task and can be extremely

individualized. Not only that. It is constantly changing As coaches we are
only given blanket guidelines that tell us sets, rep ranges, intensity, and rest
periods that yield hypertrophy, strength, and power. From experience I will
tell you that these blanket guidelines are very inadequate.

They may be appropriate for the average gym goer, but they miss the target
for more competitive strength athletes. Without guidelines to follow to find
our appropriate training volumes it becomes nothing more than a guess. If
you guess right you will get good results. If you guess wrong you may still
get stronger, but could have made even greater gains in strength with the
appropriate volume.

In some cases you will overshoot which can lead to a decline in performance
and even injury. If we undershoot enough we can run into a scenario where
we hit a major plateau. No one wants to go into the gym every day to not get
better, or even worse get injured.

The problem with performing too little volume is that it does not supply us
with an appropriate stimulus that forces our body to adapt. If we went into
the gym and trained for 30 minutes 3 days per week, chances are we are not
able to get enough work into our training to be competitive strength athletes.
It would be nice if that was the case.

Not only is it not enough time to get the appropriate volume, it is not enough
time to practice our sport. Powerlifting is not the most advanced sport in the
world in terms of movements, but it still requires adequate practice to master
them.

At the other end of the spectrum we can do too much. The problem with
doing too much is that it can make it very hard to recover from. If we are so
beat up from previous training days that we see a decline in performance in
the gym, we may run the risk of not being able to supply the body with an
adequate training stimulus.

For example, let us look at an athlete that can squat 500lbs for 5 reps on a
good day. He goes into the gym every day and pushes the envelope of
training volume. The first couple weeks he may get stronger. However, as
fatigue accumulates he will hit a plateau followed by a decline in
performance.

During this decline, that he is attempting to train through, he can only hit 500
lbs on the squat for one to two reps. This is a weight he could hit for five
repetitions previously. This does not supply an adequate stimulus to his body
because he is capable of lifting more, much more.

Now, I am not saying that we should be fresh all of the time in the gym.
There are benefits to training with accumulated fatigue. However, we want
to accumulate the appropriate amount of fatigue to force the body to adapt,
but to also give it the ability to recover.

With that said, we want to be careful with how much fatigue we allow the
lifter to accumulate. The more fatigue that we accumulate, the more time it
takes for it to dissipate for the athlete to realize their new strength gains.

We want to also be aware of what Sheiko calls ‘“extrapolation.” We want

every repetition to follow the same bar path. This allows the lifter to develop
a stable movement pattern. If the lifter’s bar path is all over the place, this is
training an unstable movement pattern.

An unstable movement pattern does not hold up well under higher levels of
stress. This includes maximal weights on the platform. The unstable
movement pattern is already broken and does not have much room for error.
The stable movement pattern on the other hand can be stressed to a greater
extent because it has not begun to deteriorate. This is why technique is the
most important aspect of training in a Sheiko program.

Oftentimes an athlete will find a program on the internet and follow it. This
could be a program like 5/3/1, the Sheiko templates, the Cube Method, and so
on. In most cases the athlete will bounce around these programs until one of
them works and stick with it until it is no longer effective. At that point they
go back to the beginning and try to find another program that will work.

When these programs were effective for the athlete they were hitting the
volume and average intensity that was appropriate for the athlete to get
stronger. Over time the athlete adapts and increases in strength become more
difficult. This is why it is important to keep track of training volume and
average intensities.
There are problems when we do too little or too much volume. Where do we
start then to determine our appropriate training volume? The first place we
need to look is at the athletes themselves. We need to ask how long have
they been training? A beginner is going to have a much different training
volume than an advanced athlete.

We also need to analyze what they have been doing in the gym over the last
couple of months. This can help identify the current work capacity of the
athlete. If they were training using a lower volume program such as the 5/3/1
program by Jim Wendler, it would be inappropriate for them to be given a
high volume program right off of the bat. They would need to work up to
higher volumes in this case.

Analyzing the athlete’s current technique is also very important. If the

athlete has poor technique we do not want to give them a high volume of lifts
that induce fatigue and make technique even worse. The athlete’s technical
ability will also help us identify the appropriate training intensities. The
watchful eye of the coach can see where the lifts begin to break down in
training and make the necessary adjustments to the program.

Once we have an understanding of our athlete, I use the Russian Strength

Classification chart to categorize the athlete. This chart classifies the athlete
based off of their body weight and their total. This chart was first introduced
to me by the legendary Russian coach Boris Sheiko.

This chart was written for equipped lifters. However, there is not a chart that
I have found for raw lifters that works well in determining classification and
volume. This is used to determine appropriate volumes for the lifter and
works well for raw lifters also. I like this classification for a couple of
reasons.
The first reason is that it classifies the lifter within his or her sport. This chart
is updated every few years and takes into account all of the totals of the
athletes in each weight class. From this chart you can see where your athletes
stack up against the competition and from this classification we can set up a
better long term training plan for the athlete.

The second, and perhaps an even more important reason, is that there must be
some physiological developments to occur to lift a certain amount of weight.
If an athlete has a total that qualifies him as a master of sport, he more than
likely has a high amount of muscle mass as well as nervous system efficiency
to move those big weights.

If an athlete is classified as a first or second class lifter, he or she probably

needs to develop higher amounts of muscle mass as well as nervous system
adaptations to lift heavier weights. This athlete will also need to perform a
higher amount of general physical preparedness (gpp) exercises than the
athlete classified as a master of sport. This is to build the necessary muscle
mass to move heavier weights.

Once we have classified our lifter and learned about his or her training age,
we have analyzed their past training programs for at least one month, and we
have seen their technique, we can start laying out a plan in terms of volume.

Boris Sheiko has laid out recommended monthly volumes based upon the
lifter’s classification and they are as follows;

A beginner lifter should learn technique of the lifts alongside 3 to

4 exercises to build strength and general athletic abilities.
Recommended lifts are 350 to 450 lifts per month. In months 3 to
4 of their training, beginning athletes should complete 450 to 550
competitive lifts in a monthly training cycle.
Class 2 and 3 lifters, this is a novice lifter and the recommended
volume is 600 to 750 competitive lifts per month.
Class 1 and CMS lifters, these would be lifters competitive at the
local level and a CMS is a lifter that would be competing at the
national level and their recommendation is 800-1300 lifts per
month. This is a big range of lifts, but there is some variability
between athletes here. For example, women, juniors, and lifters of
lower body weights can handle higher amounts of volume in
training.
Master of Sport (MS) and the highest classification is master of
sport in international competition (MSIC). This is an athlete
competitive at the national level and world level respectively.
There is no recommended volume for these athletes as it is very
individualized. I have seen examples with 1200 monthly lifts as
well as examples with over 3000 monthly lifts.
As you can see, even novice lifters are recommended to perform high
numbers of repetitions within the competition lifts. As a powerlifter, the
majority of your volume should come from the lifts themselves. This helps
build appropriate neuromuscular coordination and makes sure our program
follows the law of specificity.

It is important to work your athletes up to these volumes. As you can see

over time, as the athlete gets stronger, his or her volumes increase. This is an
example of the overload principle being applied throughout the lifter’s career.
The intensities will also increase as the lifter’s total increase.

One thing to keep in mind is that these volumes are monthly averages. The
lifter will not complete that many lifts every month. Some months will have
higher volumes and other months will have lower volumes. This is often
dictated from the competition schedule. As competition gets closer the
volume will decrease. Volume accumulates greater levels of fatigue that we
want to dissipate before a competition.

The coach needs to have a keen eye when watching his athletes execute these
volumes. Sheiko recommends that all repetitions look the same. Each
repetition in training is practiced to hit new personal bests. If we perform 20
repetitions in training and each rep looks different, then we have trained 20
different movement patterns.

Sheiko refers to this as “extrapolation” as we have learned previously. This

bears repeating as it is very important. If every repetition looks the same then
we are training a stable movement pattern. If we train in constantly different
positions we are creating an unstable movement pattern. When we go to test,
or compete, and we put this unstable pattern under heavier weights we will
not have a lot of leeway until it breaks down because it is already broken. A
stable movement pattern can be loaded much heavier before it breaks down.
This is how we hit the highest weights possible.

These volumes also include every repetition performed at 50% of one

repetition maximum and higher. Sheiko believes that if every coach and
athlete counted reps in this manner that volumes would be similar between
programs.
Laying the Groundwork for a Mesocycle

Once we have decided on a monthly volume for the first mesocycle we need
to begin to lay out the plan. The first part of the plan should be to determine
how many days per week the athlete will be training. This will help us
identify what the average daily volume of the mesocycle will be.

I follow the recommendations that Sheiko has laid out in his seminars. A
beginner is recommended to train 3 days per week. This is someone with no
powerlifting experience. The goal of the first couple mesocycles is to teach
technique and increase the work capacity of the athlete so that they can
handle higher volumes of training.

One thing to keep in mind when deciding upon the number of training days
per week is the levels of acute stress. The fewer days that an athlete trains
the greater the daily stress will be to get the required monthly volumes. The
more the athlete is stressed on a given day, the greater the decline in
technique we may see.

If the athlete needs a lot of technical work it may be better to plan training
around a 4 day per week schedule. This lowers the acute stress of training
and can allow the athlete to stay fresh enough to master technique.

Sheiko increased my training days from 3 to 4 when I first started. He said

that my technique would improve faster by doing this. My monthly volume
remained the same and I did see a quicker improvement in my lifts.

A beginner should only perform one competition lift per training day. This is
so that we do not induce too much fatigue in the athlete that technique falls
apart. We want to set the beginner athlete up to perform each rep to the best
of his or her capabilities. No repetitions should be performed under fatigue
within this period.

After we complete the lift for the day we can add in three to four exercises
that will increase the athleticism and strength of the athlete. This can include
exercises such as box jumps, kettlebell swings, and exercises to build strength
in important and underdeveloped muscle groups. Number of lifts in the first
month should be between 350 and 400 lifts.

Months 2 through 4 for the beginner athlete should see the monthly lifts
increase to 450-550 lifts per month. The average intensity of these lifts
should remain low. The recommendation is that we keep the average
intensity between 50% and 60% of one rep max.

The general exercises from the first month should continue with some
progression. We can start increasing volume of the exercises used to build
underdeveloped muscle groups as well as increase the athleticism
requirements of the exercises such as progressing the box jump to a jump
performed without the assistance of the box.

As the athlete continues to progress, we can continue to increase their

monthly volume. After the first 4 months we can increase their volume to
between 600 and 750 lifts per month. We can begin to increase the average
intensity here as well as the athlete begins to master technique. The
recommendation for average intensity during this period is between 60% and
65% of one rep max. Due to the increase in volume of competition lifts and
the increase in intensity we need to drop the general exercises just slightly.

The recommendations for class 2 and 3 lifters follows the same guidelines.
Recommendation is 600 to 750 lifts per month with an average intensity of
60% to 65% of one rep max. These are also novice lifters that need to
develop the same attributes as the beginner.

Once an athlete becomes classified as a class 1 lifter and above they begin to
add training days to their weekly schedule. A class 1 lifter and CMS will
train 4 days per week. As the athlete advances and becomes a MS and above
they may train multiple times per day. Some of the more elite lifters train
upwards of 9 times per week.

Average monthly lifts for a class 1 lifter and a CMS is between 800 and 1300
lifts. The intensity rises to 70% of one rep max plus or minus 2%. There are
no recommendations for a MS or MSIC as their requirements become very
individualized.

The problem with these recommendations is that it is not always reasonable

for an athlete to train that many days per week. The majority of the athletes
that I coach have jobs and have a limited training schedule. I have numerous
CMS and MS that only train 3 days per week and have seen increases in their
totals. In these cases the acute stress becomes higher.

An athlete can be very competitive training 3 days per week. One of my

athletes that began as a beginner, has improved her total from 740lbs to
935lbs, training 3 days per week for a year and a half. Her volumes did not
change. Training 3 days per week we will just get a much higher acute
training stress than we will training 4 days per week. This has some pros and
cons that the coach must understand when writing the athlete’s program.

Some research suggests that greater acute stress is better for building muscle
and strength. However, this comes with a drawback. The greater the acute
stress, the greater the daily fatigue. This can be difficult for the athlete to
complete a high volume training day with good technique.

These volumes are not written in stone. They are only recommendations. As
a coach you may decide to keep an athlete’s volume lower, or you may
decide to increase it. In a later chapter we will discuss recovery, as this will
play an important role in how much volume an athlete is capable of handling.

There is also a wide array of individual differences in terms of the amount of

volume an athlete can handle. The larger amount of fast twitch fibers an
athlete has, the harder it will be for that athlete to recover.

Also, whether the athlete is drug free or taking performance enhancing drugs
play a role. Let us not kid ourselves and think that steroids do not play a
major role in the strength sports. They are widely used by many athletes,
male and female. If an athlete is taking performance enhancing drugs they
will have the ability to tolerate higher amounts of volume.

Increasing volume is one way in which we can keep increasing the stimulus
to keep the athlete moving forward. However, if the current level of volume
that the coach is prescribing is continuing to work, there is no need to
increase it for the sake of increasing it. As a coach you need to be able to
look at an athlete and determine if the volume is appropriate based upon their
performance in training. We do not need to increase volume month to month,
but over the course of a training year we should see some increases.

As the athlete continues to get stronger, the number of lifts can stay the same
because the total weight lifted will increase. For example if an athlete squats
500lbs a training day may look like the following:

250lbs x 5 reps
300lbs x 4 reps
350lbs x 3 reps
400lbs 5 sets of 2 reps
Total weight lifted: 7,500lbs
If this same athlete tests his squat and hits 515lbs for a 3% increase, the same
training day will look like the following:

260lbs x 5 reps
310lbs x 4 reps
360lbs x 3 reps
415lbs 5 sets of 2 reps
Total weight lifted: 7,770lbs

You can see in the previous 2 examples that the athlete lifted 270lbs more
using the exact same intensities as he used previously. Stretch this out over
an entire week, month, and beyond and this adds up.

As the athlete continues to move up classes on the Russian Strength

Classification chart the coach may decide to increase the monthly lifts of the
lifter. This is where coaching becomes an art and the experience of the
coach and how well he knows his athletes becomes important.

Often times with athletes we only test 3 weeks out from competition. If there
is a bigger gap between competitions, I may decide to increase monthly lifts
over time. This will decrease as we peak. If the athlete hits new maxes, we
can cycle back to the beginning and almost repeat those volumes over again
at the new, higher intensities. This is why there is a range from 800 to 1300
monthly lifts.

If training looks too easy from day to day and week to week, it may be time
to increase the volume. However, if the athlete is working hard through each
training session and the coach can see the accumulation of fatigue in the
lifter’s efforts and technique, then there may not be a reason to increase the
volume yet.

We can continue to use the same number of lifts and just change up other
training variables. These variables can include exercise selection and
intensity. We want to drain every bit of success out of every training variable
we can. This can assure greater long term success for the athlete.

If we increase the volume before the lifter is ready for the increase, we can
run into overtraining. The athlete could become overly sore and mentally
drained from too much volume. This can lead to poor performances in
training and not yield the results we are looking for. Increasing volume
continuously over time and before the athlete is ready can even lead to injury.

Volume accumulates the most fatigue within the athlete and it takes time to
dissipate. If we do too much we run the risk of increasing fatigue enough to
lower performance and if we do too little we will not accumulate enough
fatigue to force the body to adapt to its maximum potential. This is why
having a qualified coach is very important. This is also why cookie cutter
programs work for some, but not others.

Once we have decided on a monthly number of lifts and the number of

training days per week, we can identify an average volume training day. In
order to do this we must perform a little bit of math. For an example we will
look at a class 1 lifter that we have decided will train 4 days per week and
will complete approximately 1000 lifts within this 4 week mesocycle.

In 4 weeks there will be 16 training days. We take the 1000 lifts and divide
that number by 16 training days. This tells us that an average training day
will be approximately 62 lifts. 62 lifts will be this athlete’s baseline of
volume. This will be the volume that allows the athlete to maintain current
strength levels.

We then need to breakdown this volume based upon each individual lift. The
bench press is the easiest of the three movements to recover from so it will
make up roughly 50% of the total volume. The squat is easier to recover
from than the deadlift and will make up roughly 25 to 33% of the total
volume. The deadlift is the most difficult lift to recover from. Larger lifters
with bigger totals may not even deadlift every week. Malanichev only
deadlifts every other week. With that said, the deadlift makes up the rest of
the volume.
We need enough higher volume days to stress the athlete to grow stronger
and enough lower volume days to allow the athlete to recover. We will take
this number with us onto our next topic: load variability.
Load Variability

The principles of overload and specificity cannot be understated. However,

almost as important as those principles is load variability. The more
monotonous the training, and the more frequently it is used, the more that the
athlete gets used to it and the lower the overall training effect.

The human body is amazing at adapting to the stressors in which it

encounters. If we constantly do the same things every time that we go into
the gym, we will quickly adapt to it, and it will no longer be enough of a
stressor to force the body to adapt.

We need to have variation with exercise selection, intensity, and sets and reps
to keep the athlete progressing forward. It can be difficult to constantly
increase volume and intensity. The athlete will only be able to do that for so
long before he or she can no longer handle the volume or the weight.

The easiest variables to change are exercise selection, reps, sets, and
intensity. We want to vary the exercises enough, without changing them too
much. If we vary too much from the competition lifts the athlete will never
enhance their technique and they will not be as strong at the specific joint
angles required in each lift.

If we vary too little the athlete can become bored with training as well as run
into overuse injuries from training the same positions over and over. As
coaches we need to find a way to vary the competition lifts themselves to get
the best of both worlds.

This can be done in a number of ways. We can use pauses in the lifts,
accommodating resistance such as chains and bands, we can use pins, boards,
and blocks to alter the range of motion (ROM). The options are only limited
to the imagination of the coach. We will dive deeper into exercise selection
in the chapter on identifying weaknesses within the lifts. With that said, we
still want to make sure we are performing the competition lifts themselves
enough in training. Roughly 20% of the total number of lifts should be the
lifts as we would perform them on the platform.

One thing to keep in mind with exercise variation is the athlete’s competition
schedule. As a competition draws near we want to decrease the amount of
the variation we are performing within the competition lifts and increase the
volume of the competition lifts themselves.

During this time we will see overall volume decrease slightly and intensity
increase slightly. Average intensity will remain within the range of 68% to
72%, however the top sets performed in training will be completed with
heavier weights. This is to make the training more sport specific to
competition. The athlete will practice the competition lifts under heavier
weights in order to best prepare for his max effort attempts on competition
day.

We can also alter volume and intensity day to day, week to week, and month
to month. We want to program enough high volume days and weeks to stress
the athlete to adapt, and enough lower volume days for the athlete to recover.
The average volume days allow the athlete to maintain the strength that they
have developed.
We determined that the athlete being used as an example will have 62 lifts in
a medium (average) day. 10% higher would be a high volume day and 10%
lower would be considered a low volume day. This would mean that
approximately 70 lifts or more in a training day would be considered a high
volume day and 50 lifts or less would be a low volume day.

This lifter’s average weekly volume will be around 250 lifts. This would be
the baseline for this lifter. We want balance between high volume days and
weeks and low volume days and weeks. We do not want to stray too far from
baseline for too long, even within a 7 day period, unless the athlete is
performing a deload week.

A week that is too high in volume can accumulate too much fatigue for the
athlete to recover from. If the coach decides to program a high volume week,
it is wise to follow that with a lower volume week for recovery.

An extended period of time where the athlete trains below baseline can see a
decrease in performance. There needs to be balance to keep the athlete
increasing their performance and also to keep them healthy. Even a high
volume week will have days that return to baseline. For example, day 1 may
be a high volume day, day 2 high volume day, and then days 3 and 4 we
return back to baseline with medium volume days.

Making sure that the athlete is recovering and staying fresh enough to train at
a high level is important. There will be times when fatigue is high, but we
need to manage this wisely. This is why so many programs have designated
deload weeks.

I choose not to call these lighter weeks deload weeks due to the psychological
interpretation of the athlete. If we tell an athlete that they have a deload week
they will typically not put 100% of their best efforts into training.

Our goal during this week is to dissipate some of the fatigue that has
accumulated over the training block. Volume will accumulate more fatigue
than intensity. Also, the closer that we get to failure on a set, the more
fatigue that accumulates. We need to take all of this information into
consideration when creating a program.

It is not that too much fatigue will make us weaker. Instead, the more fatigue
that accumulates, the longer it will take to dissipate and realize our newly
acquired strength. There is a balance necessary between volume and
intensity to be able to realize the newly acquired strength during important
competitions.

During a lighter week I like to increase the intensity as the volume decreases.
However, this comes with a bit of caveat. I will program higher intensity
work that the athlete has already been exposed too. I will not typically
introduce an exercise or a volume of a particular intensity that the athlete has
not been exposed to.

For example, in week 1 of the training block the athlete may have completed
the following:

Squat (Intensity/Sets/Reps)
50% 1x5
60% 1x4
70% 1x3
80% 5x3

Week 2 may have included the following:

Squat
50% 1x5
60% 1x4
70% 1x3
80% 2x3
85% 3x2

On this training day the athlete is exposed to a higher volume of repetitions at

80% of one rep max on the squat and an increase to 85%.
During the deload week the athlete may perform the following;

Squat
50% 1x5
60% 1x4
70% 1x3
80% 5x2

The athlete is being exposed to less volume than in a previous weeks. If the
coach wanted to decrease the volume even more in that training day or that
training week, they could decrease the repetitions performed at 50% and 60%
to 3, or perform 4 sets of 2 repetitions at 80% of one rep max. The coach will
know what is appropriate here by watching the athlete navigate training. This
brings us back to extrapolation from earlier. If 3 reps are performed
consistently and easily by the athlete, 2 reps at that weight will not
accumulate much fatigue.

Remember that the more frequently the athlete performs an exercise at a

given volume and intensity the faster that he or she adapts and the lower the
training stress of that sequence. However, performing the same volume and
intensity as mentioned above can help the athlete maintain the progress in
strength that they have accumulated over the training block, while supplying
very little extra stress. This can allow us to add more stress somewhere else.
This could be on the other squat training day that week, or in following
weeks.

In addition to having enough lighter weeks in training, I like to program a

really light day once every 1 to 2 weeks. This day would consist of under 20
repetitions for the lifter being used as an example. These repetitions will
oftentimes be partial ROM lifts. For example we may only deadlift to the
knees or deadlift of blocks. I like to use the second deadlift training day for
these light days because the deadlift is more difficult to recover from than the
squat or bench press.
We are now ready to map out the mesocycle. The coach should begin by
making a chart. At the top of the chart should be the training days numbered
out horizontally. For the lifter being used as an example this would have the
numbers 1 through 4 written across the top. Each corresponding to the
training day within a given week. On the vertical axis of the chart the coach
should number the weeks from 1 to 4.

Once we have the outline of the chart we can use L to represent low volume
days, M to represent medium volume days, and H to represent H volume
days. I also like to use VL and VH for very low and very high volume days
respectfully.

Next, we want to determine which weeks we want to be medium volume,

high volume, and low volume weeks. This should constantly be changing
through mesocycles to keep pushing adaptations. The coach may decide to
have 70% or more of the monthly volume in 2 weeks and have lower volume
weeks for the other 2. This again is only constrained to the imagination of
the coach.

The coach should be taking the athlete’s schedule outside of the gym into
consideration when writing these weeks. If an athlete has exams in school
one week, it would not be wise to have them perform a high volume week.
The mind of the athlete may be on their exams and not 100% focused on
their training.

Weekly training can be broken up in the same manner as daily training with
small, medium, large, and max loads. A small training load would be a week
where less than 20% of the monthly lifts are performed. A medium training
week would see 21% to 30% of the monthly lifts performed. A large week
would have 31% to 40% of the lifts completed and a max week would be
greater than 41%.

A medium week or day is basically the baseline for the lifter. This is an
essence somewhere between the minimum effective dose of volume and the
maximum effective dose, if I am interpreting Dr. Israetel’s definition
correctly. A medium day supplies some level of stress, but the athlete will be
able to recover relatively quickly from this stress.

A low day would not be enough stress to elicit further adaptation from the
athlete over the long term. This is utilized more for recovery and technique
work than it is to overload the athlete. A high day and/or week is used to
push the athlete. This is known as an overreaching period as we are getting
closer to the maximum effective dose of volume.

We overreach with the athlete, followed by enough recovery, and over time
they continue to get stronger. These days and weeks need to be strategically
placed within the program as to not overtrain the athlete and decrease their
performance in subsequent training weeks.

An example of 4 weeks could look like the following:

Week 1- 22% of monthly lifts

Week 2- 25% of monthly lifts
Week 3- 38% of monthly lifts
Week 4- 15% of monthly lifts

In this example we see a slight increase in volume from weeks 1 to 2.

However, week 3 we have our largest volume week with 38% of the total
monthly volume being completed. We follow the large volume week with a
lighter week where we complete 15% of the monthly lifts. This lighter week
following the large volume week allows the athlete to recover and be
prepared for the following training block.

Once we determine the weekly breakdown of volume we can start breaking

down each training day. Using the example of 1000 lifts in this training
block we know we want roughly 220 lifts for week 1, 250 lifts for week 2,
380 lifts for week 3, and 150 lifts for week 4. As a reminder, 62 lifts is our
medium day. With those numbers we can break down the weeks to look like
the following:
 1 2 3 4

Week 1 M H M L

Week 2 H M M M

Week 3 H H M H

Week 4 M L L L

The coach can decide however he or she wants to break up the low, medium,
and high days. This is just one example that is only limited to the coach’s
imagination and the recovery abilities of the athlete. This can and will
change from training block to training block. There will be some individual
variability from athlete to athlete here as well as some athletes are better at
recovering than other athletes.

One small note about the above program. In order to get 38% of the athlete’s
lifts completed in one week, there will be a high level of acute stress on a
couple of training days. With athletes like this, as long as their schedule
allows it, I will give them a morning and an evening training session.

This basically is giving the athlete 2 training sessions on one day. Breaking
them up allows the athlete to recover a bit before performing the second part.
This ensures that each lift is executed with proper technique. Breaking up
the acute stress also reduces some of the risk. Performing over 100
competition lifts in one training day could be very difficult for the lifter to
complete.

After we have determined the daily and weekly breakdown of volume, we

need to look at the average intensity of training.
Determining Appropriate Intensity

The first thing that we need to look at when deciding on the average intensity
of the training block, is with the lifter themselves. The lifter's competition
schedule will be very important. As competition draws near we will increase
the intensity while we decrease the volume of their training.

This increase with intensity will still average out to be 70% of one rep max
plus or minus 2% Where we see the increase in intensity is within the top
sets of the training day. For example,

Squat (weight/sets/reps)
50% x 5
60% x 4
70% x 3
80% 5x3
27 total lifts for an average intensity of 70%

Squat (weight/sets/reps)
50%x5
60% x 4
70% x 3
80% x 3
85% 2x2
90% 2x1
21 total lifts for an average intensity of 69%

The second training session of squats has lifts performed at 85% and 90%,
compared to the first session that tops out at 80%, but the average intensity is
slightly lower. The second training session also has 6 fewer lifts. This is a
22% decrease from the first training session. This is what I mean by volume
decreasing slightly as intensity increases. The volume is going down and the
intensity of the top sets is increasing. However, the average intensity remains
in the same area.

It is very rare that the intensity exceeds 85% in training. This is because this
is the place where the athlete’s technique tends to breakdown. As
competitions and tests draw more near the lifter may attempt 90% in the
competition lifts in 1-2 training sessions.

This I have come to learn with my athletes is very individualized. I have

some athletes that do better in competition when they handle heavier weights
more frequently. These athletes may attempt 90% on their competition lifts
2-3 times within a block instead of 1-2.

I will also advance 85% on competition lifts if they look consistent and well
executed. This jump in weight may be up to 87.5% for similar sets and
repetition ranges. This is how I like to progress training as we get closer to a
meet.

The other times in training when the athlete lifts 90% or more, the coach
should alter the ROM. This includes using boards, or the Slingshot on the
bench press and blocks on the deadlift. This allows the lifter to maintain the
proper technique of the lifts with heavier weights. This helps us develop a
stable movement pattern.

The other important aspect to consider is the lifter’s training age. A beginner
lifter will want to have more volume programmed into his or her program to
build the appropriate muscle mass necessary to lift large weights.

Technique must also be taken into consideration. Athletes with poor

technique will need to use lighter weights to master their lifts. The heavier
the weight gets in training, the more fatigue that accumulates, and the greater
chance of seeing a decline in technical competency.
The last aspect we need to consider is with the height of the athlete. Sheiko
has laid out optimal heights and weights on his site www.sheiko-program.ru.
The chart is as follows:

Height Weight
145+/-3cm 52kg
149+/-3cm 56kg
155+/-2.5cm 60kg
160+/-2cm 67.5kg
164+/-2cm 75kg
168+/-2cm 82.5kg
171+/-2cm 90kg
174.5+/-2cm 100kg
177.5+/-2cm 110kg
186+/-6cm 110+kg

I have constructed my own chart to match IPF weight classes. As I gather

more data this may change, but for the time being it is as follows:

Height Weight
145+/-3cm 52kg
149+/-4cm 57kg-59kg
157+/-4cm 63kg-66kg
162+/-4cm 72kg-74kg
168+/-3cm 83kg-84kg
173+/-2cm 93kg
175+/-2cm 105kg
182+/-5cm 120kg-120+kg

When I first began powerlifting I weighed 165lbs or 75kg at 5’11”, which is

converted to 180cm. Looking at the chart, my optimal body weight should be
around 110 kg. My ratio of muscle mass to my height is very low and it
needs to be improved upon for me to be more competitive in the sport. Also,
my technique was very poor.
The intensity of a program laid out for me should be one where the goal is to
increase my muscle mass and my body weight as well as to improve my
technique. This would mean a program where the relative intensity will be
on the lower end and volume will be higher. In my case my monthly lifts
were around 700 and my average intensity was roughly 66%.

From October of 2015 to January of 2017 I increased my body weight from

75kg to over 95kg. My average monthly volume for lifts increased to around
800-850. The volume of GPP exercises was high to bring up key muscle
groups required for the lifts. When my GPP exercises are added to my
monthly lifts, I was completing an average of 2,200 repetitions per month.

Due to the high volume in my program, my average intensity fluctuated in

the mid to high 60% range. This also gave me weight that allowed me to
focus on technique while building new muscle mass. As my weight and
technique has improved, my average intensity has risen slightly to around the
70% mark. My program includes a higher number of repetitions completed
at 85% to 90% than it did before. My volume also continues to increase.

Boris analyzed the training loads of 38 world champions from 1993 to 2013.
From his research he learned that these world champions trained at an
average intensity of 69% to 72%. This may seem like a low number at first.
However, this includes all repetitions taken at 50% of one rep max and
higher.

This average intensity can be achieved in number of different ways. Some

examples are listed below:

Intensity(%RM) Sets Reps

50 1 5
60 1 4
70 1 3
80 2 3
90 3 2
There are 24 lifts completed in this example with an average intensity of
71.5%. Another example below:

Intensity(%RM) Sets Reps

55 1 5
65 1 4
75 1 3
85 4 2

In this example there are 20 lifts and the average intensity is 72%. The
second example actually has a higher relative intensity than the first example.
This is the case, even when the first example had repetitions performed at
90% and the second example only worked up to 85% of one rep max

Altering these set and repetition schemes is an important aspect of load

variability. We can keep relative intensity in a range that promotes strength,
while constantly changing up what the lifter encounters in training. This also
helps to make sure that we are not working the athlete too hard where they
may see a decrease in performance or get injured. The examples that can be
utilized for this range are endless and only constrained by the imagination of
the coach.

The repetitions may seem low for the intensities listed above. The National
Strength and Conditioning Association estimates that an athlete could
complete 6 repetitions at an intensity of 85%. Alexander Prilepin
recommends that an athlete completes 3 to 6 repetitions at 85%. Sheiko
recommends a number of repetitions. This is for a couple of reasons.

For one, the closer that we get to failure on a set the greater the accumulation
of fatigue. If we took the sets at 85% to 6 it would take the athlete the
longest time possible to recover from set to set and also from training day to
training day.

The other important consideration when determining number of repetitions at

a given intensity is technique. The closer that we get to failure on a set the
more technical errors that we will see. This will create an unstable movement
pattern. We want the athlete to execute every repetition with perfect
technique. The coach must take individual abilities into consideration here.

The coach must also take the recovery abilities of the athlete into
consideration. The first example listed above works up to 3 sets of 2
repetitions at 90% of one rep max. If we were attempting to deadlift from the
floor at this volume and intensity, the athlete may not be able to recover
before the next training day.

In these cases we need to be smart about exercise selection. If I want an

athlete to deadlift 90% of one rep max for 3 sets of 2, I will have him or her
deadlift off blocks. This decreases some of the stress required to lift that
weight and will allow the athlete to recover enough and to continue to train at
a high level.

If we deadlift off blocks or use a board for bench press, we need to program
another exercise that will work the portion of the lift that we failed to train
with those exercises. For a deadlift this would be the first part of the lift from
the ground to the knees. For the bench press we would need to program
exercises that will target the pecs and strength from the chest to the sticking
point.

Those bottom parts of the lift will require a decrease in relative intensity
because they are more stressful positions for the athlete. In the case of the
deadlift, we may decide that we want to perform a deadlift to the knees. This
is a partial ROM exercise where the lifter picks the weight up from the
ground up to the knees and then returns it to the floor. This allows the athlete
to focus on technique for this portion of the lift. It also works on
strengthening the muscles used to get the weight moving. In this case we
may program relative intensity as follows:

Intensity(%RM) Sets Reps

50 1 3
60 1 3
70 4 3

In this example there are 18 lifts completed with an average intensity of 65%.
If we combine the deadlifts off blocks and the deadlifts to the knees we have
42 lifts completed with an average intensity of 69% of one rep max. This
puts us right in the range that Sheiko recommends, based off of his analysis
of the 38 world champions.

The coach should be keeping track of all of the lifts completed at each
intensity as well. In the example of the deadlift off blocks and the deadlift to
the knees, we completed 8 reps at 50%, 7 reps at 60%, 15 reps at 70%, 6 reps
at 80%, and 6 reps at 90%. The next time we deadlift off blocks we may
decide to use an example such as:

Intensity(%RM) Sets Reps

50 1 5
60 1 4
70 1 3
80 2 3
85 3 2
80 2 3

In this example we complete 30 lifts, 6 more lifts than previous, at a relative

intensity of 72.3%, which is slightly higher than the previous example’s
71.5%. We also completed 12 reps at 80%, and 6 reps at 85% with 0 reps
completed at 90%. The coach can use this tracking to keep varying the load
that the athlete encounters.

Boris likes to plan large, stressful loads for his elite athletes every 10-14
days. He often uses a “pyramid” rep scheme to accomplish this. There are 2
types of pyramid repetition schemes that he uses. The first is the Ragged
Method. This looks like the squat example below that was taken from a
translated chapter of Sheiko’s book:
Intensity(%RM) Sets Reps
50 1 5
60 1 5
70 1 for each repetition number 3,7,5,8,4,9,6

In this example there are 52 lifts completed by the lifter at an average

intensity of 67%. The athlete would work up to 70% and perform sets of
3,7,5,8,4,9, and 6 at that weight. Resting between each set.

Sheiko will also program what he calls the Pyramid Method. This method is
more difficult for the athlete to complete. Intermediate lifters can perform
the same repetition schemes, except they should use 65% of one rep max
instead of 70%. I have executed squat pyramids as high as 73% in my own
training under Boris. An example of the Pyramid Method is as follows:

Intensity(%RM) Sets Reps

50 1 5
60 1 5
70 1 for each repetition number 3,5,7,9,8,6,4

In this example the reps work up to a high number and then they come back
down. The Ragged Method is easier for the athlete due to the alternating of
high and lower numbers of repetitions per set. The number of lifts and the
average intensity of these 2 examples are the exact same. The only difference
lies in the order of repetitions.

Options for the Ragged Method and the Pyramid Method are limitless, and
once again, only constrained to the imagination of the coach as long as the
correct volume and average intensity are selected.

The coach can also choose to program a short, intense pyramid. In this
sequence the lifter would work up to a higher intensity, usually 85% of one
rep max or higher, for multiple sets, and then the lifter would take more sets
at a lighter weight. An example of a short, intense pyramid is below:
Intensity(%RM) Sets Reps
50 1 5
60 1 4
70 1 3
80 2 3
85 3 2
80 2 3

The total number of lifts for the short, intense pyramid would be 30 lifts at an
average intensity of 72.3%. The short, intense pyramid scheme is a good
way to get some higher intensity work while keeping the volume relatively
high. It also allows the lifter to take his or her higher intensity sets while they
are still somewhat fresh. Completing a 3 sets of 2 repetitions at 85% after 4
sets of 3 repetitions at 80% would be very difficult. Splitting up the 80% sets
allows the lifter to maintain proper technique.

Now that we have a grasp on adequate volume and average intensity, we can
start constructing the lifter’s annual plan.
Constructing the Preparatory Cycle

The preparatory cycle (prep cycle) is basically our “off-season” program.

The coach should analyze the athlete’s competition schedule for the year.
While doing this, the coach will highlight the most important competitions.

Boris recommends that beginners compete 4 to 6 times per year to get used to
competing and intermediate lifters should compete 3 to 4 times per year with
1 to 2 major competitions selected.

In non-major competitions the athlete can take 90% on the platform and use
the experience to get used to competing. It can be treated as a heavy training
day in the program. The athlete can then come back into the gym on
Wednesday and start to build the volume back up gradually with a gradual
increase in intensity.

The athlete will want to have larger peaking blocks for the major
competitions. The coach should work backwards from all competitions. The
prep cycle will be the blocks of time that are furthest from the meet.

During this period in their training, the coach should program 20% of the
volume as the competition lifts, 60% of the volume as competition lift
variations, and the other 20% of the volume should be made up of GPP work.

This is the time that the athlete should be working on correcting any
weaknesses that they may possess. The variations utilized as well as the GPP
work should be exercises that will help the athlete address these weaknesses
before their next competition.

A prep period should last anywhere between 5 and 12 weeks in length. This
will vary from athlete to athlete based upon their training status and their
competition schedule. Beginner athletes may have longer prep cycles.

A prep cycle for advanced athletes is important as well. Not only do

competition lift variations address weaknesses, they help our progress
continue moving forward. If we only performed the competition lifts year
round we could run into a few issues.

For one, when an athlete is exposed to the same movement patterns over and
over again the risk of overuse injuries increases. This is why early
specialization in sport is such a heated argument for strength coaches with
parents.

The other issue with only performing the competition lifts year round is the
athlete can actually plateau in terms of correcting technique. The same issues
can arise with practicing the same movement over and over as they can with
using the same volumes and intensities.

Skills are learned better from practicing a multitude of exercises that are
similar to the task, but not identical. This is where the competition lift
variations come into play. We want the variations to be similar to our
competition lifts, but different enough to allow the athlete to build a bigger
movement competency base within the lift. The coach is giving the athlete a
problem to solve within the actual competition lift.

Adding variation is also fun and stops training from becoming overly boring.
When an athlete becomes bored with his or her training they will not see the
results that they desire. Keeping training fresh is important to the
psychological aspect of the lifter.

An athlete that trains 3 times per week will squat 2 days, bench press 3 days,
and deadlift 1 day. An athlete that trains 4 days per week will squat 2 days,
bench press 3 to 4 days, and deadlift 2 days. The rationale behind this
breakdown is half of the work will be upper body and the other half will be
lower body work.

The breakdown of monthly lifts would look like this: squat 25%, bench press
50%, and deadlift 25%. This would include all competition lifts and
competition lift variations for each lift. These numbers are rough estimates
and can change from block to block.

These numbers can also change from athlete to athlete. Some athletes
recover better than others. This is especially true for the deadlift. Larger
athletes, with larger deadlifts, can have a much harder time recovering from
the deadlift training day. This may require the coach to decrease deadlift
volume and choose wisely the periods of time that the athlete pulls with
heavier weights. Overloading with bands, chains, and blocks may be more
appropriate for this athlete.

A typical week for a 4 day per week training block will look like the
following:

Day 1
Squat
Bench Press

Day 2
Bench Press
Deadlift

Day 3
Squat
Bench Press

Day 4
Bench Press
Deadlift

You can see that the squat and deadlift days alternate. The order in which the
competition lifts are performed can also vary. The deadlift should always be
trained after the bench press to simulate a meet. However, we can alternate
the order to vary the load. For example, we may perform squats at 80% for 5
sets of 2 repetitions on week 1.

The coach may decide that he wants to vary the same load on week 2. In this
case the coach could have the lifter bench press first and then perform the
same 80% squats for 5 sets of 2 repetitions. This will make the squat session
more difficult due to the fatigue accumulated from bench pressing.

This would be a good day to also perform some bench press after the squats.
Sheiko programs are famous, or infamous, for having double lift sessions
within the same training day. For example, day 1 may have the athlete squat
first, followed by some bench press, and then the athlete returns to squats.

Breaking up the squat into multiple sessions on the same day has a couple of
advantages. For one, it allows the athlete to recover while they bench. This
allows them to maintain proper form for the entire training day. Technique is
often the first thing that goes under other high volume programs.

Breaking up the lift into multiple sessions on the same training day also
allows us to train various aspects of the lift. For example, we may deadlift to
the knees, bench press, and deadlift off blocks.

Breaking up the volume in this manner allows the athlete to concentrate on

each part of the lift at a given time. This breakup also can allow the coach to
program technique work first, allow the athlete to recover while performing
another lift, and then put that technique work to practice in the competition
lift.

This is similar to a coach for a basketball team drilling the team on a full
court press during the start of training. Then at the end of practice the coach
has them scrimmage using the full court press.

Let us look at an athlete that pitches forward out of the hole into the “good
morning” squat. This is when the athlete’s hips shoot back while the chest
collapses forward. The coach wants to drill proper technique for this portion
of the lift first in the training day. This could look like the following:

Squat with 2 sec Pause on the Halfway up

50% 1 set of 5
60% 1 set of 4
70% 1 set of 3
75% 5 sets of 2

After the athlete completes this portion, he or she will go bench press.
During this time the athlete is recovering from the squats. After the athlete
finishes the bench press, he or she will come back to squats. The coach may
want the athlete to put to practice what they had learned in the first session.
The coach may program the following:

Squat
50% 1 set of 5
60% 1 set of 4
70% 1 set of 3
80% 4 sets of 3

Programming the lifts in this manner can help the athlete master technique
much faster. This is also a good way to make lighter weights feel heavier to
the athlete. When the athlete gets to the second squat session he or she will
have accumulated some fatigue. This will make the weight feel heavier than
80%. The nervous system is not aware of how much weight is on the bar, but
it is aware of effort. This is one way in which we can increase intensity
without increasing bar weight. This is important for the recovery of the
athlete, a topic we will discuss in further detail later on.

We can break up our squat and deadlift days into 1 light/technique day and 1
heavier day. The bench press can have 2 light/technique days and 1 heavy
day, or 2 of each. The bench press is the easiest of the 3 lifts to recover from
so the coach has the most leeway here.

However, the deadlift is the most difficult to recover from. Some athletes
will not be able to pull heavier weights once per week. For these athletes the
use of blocks and accommodating resistance will be important.

As competition draws near we want to begin to decrease the variations within

the lifts to make the training more sport specific to lifting heavy weights on
the platform. The volume of the variations decreases while the volume of the
competition lifts increase. Intensity will slightly increase as well. This is
known as a peaking cycle.

Exercise Selection

The coach should be constantly analyzing the athlete’s volume and intensity.
The coach should also be analyzing the athlete’s technique. The coach
should be looking for weaknesses within the lifts as well.

Technique is the most important aspect of training. This means that

technique is even more important than the weight on the bar to get stronger.
The goal is to create a stable movement pattern. We want every repetition to
look the same. From the translation of Sheiko’s work, this is known as
extrapolation.

We want to train the same movement pattern over and over so that the athlete
becomes extremely competent in that movement pattern. We challenge these
movement patterns with different weights, repetition schemes, and variations
so that the athlete becomes a master at handling them. This allows the athlete
to build the neuromuscular coordination to lift heavier weights.

A stable movement pattern will take much more to breakdown than an

unstable movement pattern because the unstable pattern is already broken. If
we execute a set of 5 repetitions that all look different, we have then trained 5
separate movement patterns.

Sticking points within the lifts are not necessarily caused by weak muscles
like many believe. They are likely the result of poor neuromuscular
coordination. This is why most repetitions in training are performed at 85%
of 1 rep max or lower. Repetitions at this weight remove the sticking point
and repetitions at higher intensities also begin to breakdown technique.

If we are going to program weights above 85% of one rep max for the athlete
we must adjust the exercise to keep the technique the same. This can include
using blocks for deadlifts and boards for bench press. It is ok to progress
intensity if the athlete’s lifts at 85% look consistent and are well executed.

The athlete does need to practice lifting weights at 90% of one rep max and
higher as well. These percentages have been shown to increase strength in
athletes. However, this does not mean that we need to take the competition
lift at 90% or higher. We can also manipulate the exercise to make it more
difficult.

For example, a deficit deadlift performed at 70% is much harder than 70% of
one rep max due to the increase in ROM. Also, the second repetition of 4
sets of 2 at 85% of one rep max will be more difficult than 2 or 3 singles at
90% and technique will still be able to be maintained.

I mentioned earlier that some athletes respond better to handling more

weights at 90%. If this is the case, the coach just needs to alter the program
in a way that overall stress levels are similar. 3x1 at 90% may not be enough
to volume to replace a 3x2 at 85%. Here some back off sets at 80% may be
warranted to keep stress levels similar.
The coach should select exercises based upon the technical errors that he sees
in the lifter. For example, if the athlete has a problem of falling forward
when coming out of the hole in a squat, the coach may choose to perform
pauses in the squat, pauses on the halfway up in the squat, the coach may
decide to add chains, or perform pin squats. This is to develop the
appropriate neuromuscular coordination within the movement.

The coach can rotate these exercises throughout the training block to work on
the technique flaw while continuing to expose the athlete to various loads. In
this scenario the coach may also decide to add in more direct quad work as
weak quads is often a culprit of this technique flaw.

The coach also needs to keep in mind that each of the 3 lifts have positions
that are more difficult for the raw lifter. These positions are the same across
the board for all raw lifters. They are 2 inches to 6 inches above parallel on
the squat, below the knees on the deadlift, and a couple of inches off of the
chest in the bench press.

Each lifter will have individual weaknesses in strength and technique that
they will need to work on. The coach needs to analyze the athlete’s lifts and
determine where this breakdown occurs. Here are the areas of each lift that
the coach needs to pay attention to.

Squat
1. Unrack
2. Walkout
3. Setup
4. Eccentric
5. Concentric

Bench Press
1. Setup
2. Unrack
3. Eccentric
4. Position on Chest
 5. Concentric

Deadlift
1. Setup
2. Position breaking the floor
3. Position at knees
4. Position above knees
5. Lockout

In most cases if a lifter struggles in other positions in the lift it is due to

technique breaking down somewhere else. For example, many deadlifts get
stuck at the midway point of the thigh. In most cases failure to lockout the
weight is not due to weakness in this position.

More often than not the lifter had their back straighten too fast, this leaves the
knees soft while the torso is very upright. This is due to the athlete using too
much back and not enough legs off of the floor. When the coach analyzes
this he or she will look at the athlete’s starting position.

The fix in the above scenario may be to focus more on the start position.
This is where exercises such as deadlifts to the knees can be added in.
Blocks can be used to teach the athlete the proper positioning that he or she
should be in when the bar is below the knees. From here the athlete can put it
all together and correct the technique issue. This will allow them to get past
that previous sticking point.

We will look at common flaws in each of the 3 lifts and go over some of the
appropriate variations that can help improve the athlete’s positions.

Squat
In order to identify weaknesses in the lift, we must first identify what good
technique is. There are many different ways to teach the squat. This is the
way I was taught by Sheiko.

We want the feet to be firmly planted on the ground with strong arches in the
feet. The weight should be balanced over the middle of the foot with the big
toe, little toe, and heel serving as the tripod. The weight should remain
balanced over the middle of the foot throughout the entire lift.

Often times we hear the cue to “sit back onto our heels.” In some cases this
cue can help the athlete that has the weight shift forward onto their toes.
However, this is not the right cue for everyone.

Our heel is located behind our center of gravity as the heel sits behind the
shin. This means that if we sit back onto our heels there will need to be
compensations elsewhere in the squat. This is where we will see the chest
cave forward out of the hole on the squat.

The hips should be externally rotated and the glutes should be squeezed. Abs
should be tight with the back in slight extension. This gives our passive
structures, bones and ligaments, more leverage to help stabilize the weight on
our back.

The head should be straight or slightly extended with the eyes up. Many
times when I am in the gym, I see athletes squatting while looking at the
ground. The problem with that is twofold. For one, the body will follow the
eyes. This can lead to the athlete getting pitched forward out of the hole.
Number 2, it is easier to round our upper back with our head looking down.
Keeping the head up helps to keep the athlete more upright and makes it
easier for that athlete to keep their back muscles tight. They stay tight from
extending their thoracic spine, making the erectors very important.

The breath is very important. The breath allows us to brace harder, but is not
bracing in and of itself. A Russian study done in 1965 by a man named
Seropegin showed that breathing was most effective in strength athletes when
the lungs were ¾ full and the breath was held for a short amount of time.

Taking this into consideration the athlete wants to take a ½ breath into the
belly. The chest should not rise. If the chest rises, the bar actually moves
further away from the hips and increases the demands on our back. If you
squat with a low bar position, this would make it closer to a high bar squat.

Once we take this breath we want to push it out into our belts. This is how
we brace our abdomen. We want to keep bracing throughout the whole lift.
Upon completion of one rep the athlete can exhale and breathe again for the
next rep. This is because we get more power from short duration bouts of
holding our breath.

We want the bar to be positioned over the middle of the foot throughout the
entire lift. We want the knees to track the toes. We also do not want the
knees to travel over the toes too far. The knees should not be in front of the
toes for optimal performance in powerlifting. This is not due to it being
dangerous, but more for performance. We can alter stance width and toe flail
to keep the knees from coming over the toes too far.

Unracking the Squat

Sometimes there is no magical exercise to correct an issue. Many times an

athlete misses technique on the lift due to starting in a poor position. Many
times the athlete will push the head forward and look down to unrack the bar
for a squat.
This forces our upper back to begin in a rounded position. This will also
force our head position to be in front of our center of gravity. This will also
lead to the bar starting in front of our midfoot, our center of gravity.

This is where we will see the chest cave in and hips shoot back when the
athlete comes out of the bottom position of the squat. The correction here is
to fix the athlete’s start position and get them into slight thoracic extension.
This also gives our passive structures, bones and ligaments, greater leverage
to support the weight and stabilize our spine.

In the beginning of the coach working with an athlete, the coach may decide
to work on these important parts of the lift. The coach may decide that the
athlete will do 5 sets of 3 of only unracking the weight, stepping back, and
getting setup properly to squat. From there the athlete will return the bar to
the rack and repeat for the sets and reps. This is a very important, and often
overlooked issue with the technique of the athlete.

Knees Caving In (Valgus Collapse)

The knees caving in is a common technique fault we see in the squat. Often
times this is seen in beginners and tends to be more prevalent in female
lifters. This is most likely due to the increased Q angle between their hips
and knees.

We will most likely see the knees cave in when the athlete is coming up out
of the bottom position of the squat. This means that we want to strengthen
this bottom position of the squat. Pause squats can be utilized in this
scenario.

The athlete will pause in the bottom position of the squat for anywhere from
2 to 5 seconds. I tend to stick with pauses between 2 and 3 seconds. This is
enough of a change from the competition lift to build added strength in this
position. 5 seconds would lead to technique breakdowns unless we used a
weight that was too light to yield strength gains.
When the athlete pauses in this position he or she should be conscious of
driving the knees out over the toes. The coach should program an intensity
that allows the athlete to perform the movement with the knees being kept out
over the toes. If the weight is too heavy and the knees cave in, the athlete
will only be reinforcing his or her poor technique.

Direct work to strengthen the hip abductor may be programmed as well.

Squats with bands around the knees and marching in the belt squat, if your
gym has one, are good exercises to strengthen these muscle groups.

A few things about the knees caving in in the squat. This is not necessarily
increasing our injury risk. In fact, it is a pretty common occurrence on heavy
squats, even in elite lifters. Valgus collapse is usually only seen on the squat
and, to a lesser extent, the sumo deadlift, but not the conventional deadlift.
Why is this?

A big difference between the squat and the deadlift is the eccentric portion.
The squat has one, but the deadlift does not. This means that we need to
decelerate and control gravity on the way down in a squat.

Gravity pulls us into hip adduction and hip internal rotation. This is exactly
what is happening when we see the knees cave in on the squat. We need to
fight against this by externally rotating and abducting the hips. This is done
with our glute medius and other muscles of the hip.

At the bottom of the squat the gluteus medius has the least amount of
leverage to do its job. However, with a little bit of hip internal rotation, we
improve the leverage of the gluteus medius. This comes with a cost. This
actually gives our glute max less leverage.

This may not be a big deal and may be why we see a little bit of valgus
collapse, even in elite lifters. Our adductor magnus is the largest of our hip
adductors. It is actually the second largest muscle in the body behind the
glute max. It also has a strong hip extension moment arm. In fact, it even
has a stronger hip extension moment arm than the glute max when the hips
are flexed. In other words, at the bottom of the squat the adductor magnus
has better leverage to extend the hips than the glutes.

We prefer the adductor magnus to assist in hip extension than the hamstrings
in the squat. The hamstrings also flex the knee and if they contract too soon
the quads may not be able to extend the knee while fighting the co-
contraction of the hamstrings. The adductor magnus only crosses one joint so
there is no cost associated with it extending the hip.
When we see the valgus twitch we may just be seeing the adductor magnus
taking over for the glutes. A common fix for the knees caving in is to shorten
the stance width of the athlete. However, research has shown this to be
ineffective. Stance width and wearing a belt do not change adductor magnus
activation. This makes sense as the adductor magnus does not cross over
from hip to hip.

Females will be more likely to experience the knees caving in. This is due to
their Q angle, the measurement between the anterior superior iliac crest
(ASIS) and the patella tendon. The greater the angle, the harder it is to
stabilize the knee. This is why females are at greater risk of ACL injury as
well. However, for risk of ACL injury to increase we need to see the knees
cave in past the hip joint.

Also, how the femur sits in our hip joint can make keeping the knees out
more difficult. People with these anatomical variations just need to focus
harder on keeping their knees out. Sometimes you have to play the cards
you're dealt.

“Good morning” Squat

The “good morning” squat is when we reverse directions out of the hole and
we see our chest get pushed forward and our hips shoot back and up. The bar
travels a distance in front of the middle of our foot when we do this, making
the exercise look like a good morning.

One major culprit of this is weak quads. Contrary to some popular belief our
quads and our glutes are responsible for getting us out of the hole in the
squat. The body will always use muscles that cross only one joint first and
the ones that cross two joints are used to transfer force back and forth.

This is because there is a cost associated with using these biarticular muscle
groups. The hamstrings extend the hips, but also flex the knee, as mentioned
in the valgus collapse section. This increases the demands of the quads to
extend the knee.
When we shift back into the good morning squat position we are shifting the
weight to our hamstrings and our lower back. This position may also occur
due to our glutes being weak. If our glutes are not capable of extending the
hips out of the hole they may call for some help. Shifting to the good
morning squat gives the glutes the help of the hamstrings and low back to
extend the hips.

Remember, these weaknesses are associated with the lift itself. The body is
doing a poor job of coordinating the movement. The hamstrings should be
transferring force between the glutes and the quads to stand up. In this
scenario this is not the case. We want to strengthen these muscles within the
lift itself.

This is not an ideal position to be in to squat heavy weights. We want to stay

as upright as possible while keeping the weight balanced over the center of
our feet. To practice this we can also use pause squats.

Pausing in the hole allows the athlete to focus on creating tension in this
position. This brief pause also allows the athlete to focus on maintaining this
position as the exit the hole of the squat.

We can institute pauses in various locations of the squat. Often times the
athlete will push the hips back to initiate the squat and allow the chest to fall
forward and the bar to get in front of our center of gravity.

When this happens the weight of the bar will push the athlete’s chest down
more as they rise and they will perform a good morning squat. Pausing the
squat on the halfway down can allow the athlete to focus on maintaining the
weight over the center of gravity to initiate the squat. This variation also
teaches the athlete how to accelerate through the hole of the squat.

We can also pause on the halfway up. If the athlete attempts to hold these
positions with the bar in front of the center of his or her feet, the athlete will
fall over. This forces the athlete to make the necessary technical adjustments
in the squat.

This also allows the athlete to focus on his or her positions as they exit the
bottom position of the squat. On top of allowing the athlete to focus and
control their positions these exercises build our strength in these positions.

Holding the weight in the weak spots of the lift will strengthen our tissues in
these positions. This will help decrease the risk of injury for our athletes.
Alternating the locations of the pause also adds to load variability. The
various pauses also give the athlete an “experience” within the competition
lift. This leads to greater technical improvements much faster.

Another variation that helps the athlete correct this flaw is pin squats. The
athlete unracks the weight and performs the eccentric movement of the squat
like they always do. They rest the bar to the pins, reset their position and
focus on driving their chest up off of the pins. This exercise can be loaded
heavier than the pauses.

Chains can also help the athlete improve their technique on the squat. The
weight of the chains will deload onto the ground during the weaker portions
of the lift. The athlete will have a load they can handle in these positions.
This will allow them to keep their chest up when exiting the hole. As the
chains increase their resistance they force the athlete to continue to drive their
chest up.

For GPP exercises for the athlete that has the good morning squat, they
should focus on strengthening their glutes and quads as well as their back
muscles., especially their erectors. Exercises such as leg extensions, leg
press, seated good mornings, and good mornings are good for this.

Bench Press
Bench press is the simplest exercise of the 3 in terms of biomechanics.
However, it can be very difficult to learn for some lifters. First, we need the
legs to provide us stability. Make sure to check the rules of your federation.
The IPF requires the feet to be flat while other federations do not.

I recommend that beginners begin with their feet flat on the ground. This
makes it easier for the lifter to be stable. This is the first thing that the athlete
should work on. They should focus on pushing their feet through the front of
their shoes, driving their knees out, and squeezing their glutes.

One of the cues that really helped me understand leg drive was to “perform a
leg extension” when pressing. However, we need a stable base in order to get
dynamic leg drive. Being tight and stable is leg drive. The dynamic part can
be practiced after the athlete shows the coach that they can remain stable
throughout the lift.

The athlete should work on creating a bigger arch. The arch provides us with
a spring for the press and shortens the ROM to complete the lift. The force
from our legs helps us to maintain this arch. For this to be successful the
athlete needs to keep his or her shoulder blades pinched together on the
bench. This gives the athlete a firm base to transfer the force of the body into
the bar. This completes a solid arch.

With as wide a grip as possible (max in competition is 81cm) the athlete

wants to focus on stretching the bar and keeping the elbows under the bar.
The athlete should touch between the nipples and the base of the sternum.
Any further down than this to touch will make it very difficult on the
athlete’s delts to lift the weight. If we touch too high we run the risk of
injuring our shoulders.

The bar should have a slightly backwards bar path during the concentric
portion. This gives the pecs and delts greater leverage to lift the weight. The
athlete needs to be conscious of this and reset between each rep. The athlete
should breathe in the same manner as the other lifts. Small inhale and hold
the breath for the lift. Upon completion the athlete can exhale and take
another breath.

Weak off the Chest

In competition the bar must come to a complete stop on the chest before the
lifter gets a press command. Every rep in training should take this into
consideration. This is your competition lift.

Many time athletes just perform a touch and go bench press in training. That
same athlete enters a competition and cannot hit the same weights that they
could in training. This is because the athlete did not perform enough of their
competition bench press in training.

To make the athlete strong off of the chest the coach can program longer
pauses on the chest. This is similar to what we can do with the squat.
Anywhere between 2 and 5 seconds can be programmed. These are also
good for the lifters that let the bar sink into their chest when they are pausing.

In my opinion 2 to 3 seconds is enough to get the desired effects. Longer

than 3 seconds would require us to use lower weights and may tire out the
pecs too much for the athlete to adequately get through a high frequency
week.

Sheiko utilizes a 3,2,1 second pause repetition scheme in his programs as

well as a 4,3,2 second pause. This allows us to use a bit heavier weights to
pause and it also ensures that the athlete can maintain proper technique. It
also adds to load variability.

It is also important to build up the important muscles utilized off of the chest.
This starts with the pecs. Adding in some direct pec work is very important.
Also, when we touch lower on our chests it puts more stress on our front
delts to assist in getting the weight moving. This means it is important for
the athlete to build up his or her front delts along with the pecs.
Weak at Top of Bench Press

Oftentimes if an athlete misses the lift close to lockout, some technical failure
occurred beforehand. This is why it is so important for the coach to analyze
each segment of the lift. However, there will be times when the athlete is just
weak here. This means that the athlete needs to strengthen his or her triceps.

Direct tricep work should be in the athlete’s program. Also, adding in more
bench press repetitions that overload the top is important. We can overload
the top with bands and chains. The coach can also utilize Mark Bell’s
Slingshot to overload the top of the lift.

The Slingshot gives aid to the athlete at the bottom of the lift. This allows the
bar to accelerate faster and bypass sticking points. The other benefit of the
Slingshot is that it allows us to overload the top of the lift while going
through the full competition lift. The assistance from the bottom position
allows the athlete to accomplish this while saving his or her shoulders.

The bottom position of the bench press is the toughest for our shoulders.
This is due to the stress placed on the deltoids and pecs. Another reason why
strengthening those muscles is important. The Slingshot takes some of this
stress away. This becomes a good tool to get extra “heavy” work without
worrying about hurting the athlete’s shoulders.

Board Press is a good option here as well. The board press can also help save
the athlete's shoulders as it stops the bar a couple of inches above the chest.
Raw lifters will do better with fewer boards as there is more carryover to the
competition lift. However, the coach may use more boards if he or she feels
it is necessary to overload the top of the bench press with higher weights.

Another good way to strengthen the triceps within the bench press is by
altering the grip. Utilizing a close grip can help develop the athlete’s tricep
strength in the lift. The close grip bench press will not allow the athlete to
use as much weight as the board press or Slingshot bench press. This option
is better suited for higher volumes.

Deadlift

Unlike the bench press and the squat, the deadlift has two variations that have
some differences. There is the conventional deadlift and the sumo deadlift.
The conventional deadlift is performed with the feet around hip width and
the hands outside of the legs. The sumo deadlift is performed with the feet
out wide and the hands inside of the legs. This allows for a more vertical
torso and shorter ROM.

The shorter ROM, may have you thinking that everyone should use the sumo
deadlift. However, this is not entirely true. With that said, let us look at the
two variations in more detail.

Each deadlift places demands on the back, hips, knees, and ankles. The
variation we choose will alter these demands. No matter which variation the
athlete decides to use, technique is very important and the variations
mentioned following this section will work for both lifts.

One major difference between the sumo deadlift and the conventional deadlift
is on the demands that they place on our spinal extensors. The greater lean
that we have of the torso; the greater the spinal flexor moment arm, making it
more difficult for us to remain in an extended/neutral position. The
conventional deadlift requires a 5% to 10% greater lean of the torso than the
sumo deadlift. This makes the conventional deadlift tougher on our back
muscles, especially our spinal erectors.

We are going to skip the hips for now and come back to them later on. In the
conventional deadlift our shins are pretty vertical. At most we may have 10
degrees or so of dorsiflexion at the start. This is extremely small and the
quads are probable fighting the hamstring co-contraction more than the
weight of the bar to extend the knees. Unlike the squat, quad strength is most
likely not a limiting factor in the conventional deadlift.

However, the sumo deadlift places different demands on the knee extensors.
The sumo deadlift setup is going to have significantly more knee flexion.
This places a greater demand on the quads. The sumo deadlift is basically a
high squat. The greatest quad demands in the squat are coming up out of the
hole. Since the sumo deadlift begins higher than the sticking point for the
squat, the demands on the quads will be less than the squat, but greater than
the conventional deadlift.

Now let us look at hip extension demands in each lift. Research has shown
that the hip extension demands for the sumo deadlift and the conventional
deadlift are the same. You may be thinking “how can this be if the hips are
closer to the bar in the sumo deadlift?” To answer this question we must first
understand the definition of a moment arm.

A moment arm is the length between a joint axis and the line of force acting
upon the joint. The moment arm for the hip extensors in both deadlift
variations is the femur. Femur length does not change. No matter where you
place your feet, femur length remains a constant. The distance you lose in the
sagittal plane (plane of motion that cuts the body into left and right), you pick
up in the frontal plane (plane of motion that cuts the body in half from back
to front). In either variation the further your hips get behind the bar, the more
difficult it is for your hip extensors.

With that said, the conventional deadlift does require approximately 25% to
40% more mechanical work than the sumo deadlift. This is due to the greater
distance the bar needs to travel. With the feet wider and the hands typically
closer, the bar travels less of a distance for the sumo deadlift than it will for
the conventional deadlift. Does this make it easier though?

I do not think it is as simple as lifting the bar less distance makes it easier.
The sumo deadlifts are going to be more difficult off of the ground and the
conventional pull will be most difficult around the bottom of the knees.
People miss lifts because they are not strong enough through these weak
points. If you have weak spinal erectors, then the sumo deadlift will feel
easier than the conventional deadlift because it hides these weaknesses by
allowing you to have a more vertical torso.

On the other hand, if you have a weak squat and can’t break the bar off of the
floor in a sumo position, chances are you have weak quads and the
conventional pull will be easier for you, even though it requires 25% to 40%
more mechanical work. If you participate in CrossFit, the mechanical
workpiece may be important since it will make higher rep sets easier to
complete and for a faster time.

Hip anatomy and mobility will also play a role. Ultimately you need to find
which variation works best for you. The one that works best now may not be
the one that works best later on down the road. Find a good coach and learn
how to use both variations. I actually like the sumo deadlift as a squat
builder. It helps build the quad and upper back strength required in the
bottom of the squat.

Mess around with both variations and see which one works best for you. This
should be done over a few months to give each one a fair amount of time to
train. Make sure you have a good coach watch you, because technique in both
are very important. You may do better in the sumo deadlift, but it is a very
technical lift. You do not want to miss out on big strength gains because you
are performing it incorrectly. The hip extension demands are the same, the
conventional deadlift requires more back strength, and the sumo deadlift
requires more quad strength. Understanding those differences can help you
pick which one may be best for you. If you have had back issues in the past,
stick with a sumo pull, as it places less shear force on the spine due to the
more upright torso.

In both deadlift variations the athlete should have his or her shins as vertical
as possible. There may be as much as 10 degrees of ankle dorsiflexion in the
conventional deadlift. However, the sumo deadlift should always have the
shins vertical.

The shoulders should cover the bar. The shoulders can be an inch or 2 in
front of the bar, but no more. We never want to see the shoulders get behind
the bar. This will lead to that athlete’s hips popping up and knees extending
before the bar breaks off of the floor. This will put greater demands on the
lower back and less demands on the legs.

The athlete’s head should be in slight extension with eyes up. The athlete
should be looking at the same spot from setup all the way through the lift.
This does not put us in a dangerous position as some believe. When the
athlete has weight in front of their body, it helps to counteract that by keeping
the head in slight extension. Not hyperextension, but extension. This stiffens
the muscles of the back and helps the athlete lead with his or her chest.

Weakness Off of the Floor

Often times an athlete believes that they are weak off of the floor, but the real
problem lies with their technique. The biggest technical mistakes that I see
off of the floor is when the athlete tries to move the weight too quickly at the
start.

Many athletes and coaches will argue that the bar should be accelerated from
the floor as fast as possible to bypass the sticking point. However, we can
only move as fast as we are capable of maintaining position.

If the athlete tries to move too fast off of the floor the knees will straighten
too quickly and the hips will shoot up before the bar breaks the floor. This
puts the weight onto our lower backs instead of the legs.
This may get the bar past the initial sticking point below the knees, but the
athlete will develop a sticking point higher up, around mid-thigh. This may
lead the athlete and coach to work more block pulls, but if they are in the
correct position during these, it will not carryover to the poor position they
are in in the deadlift.

This explanation often leads to confusion. Boris explained this well at one of
his seminars that I attended. He stated that weightlifting was fast power and
powerlifting was slow power. The athlete needs to be patient off of the floor
and be sure that they remain in a good position to use all of their muscles
together. Once they have achieved the good position off of the floor the
athlete should accelerate the bar through lockout. However, only moving it
as fast as they are capable of maintaining positions. Remember
extrapolation.

There are many variations the coach can utilize to help the athlete get
stronger and work on technique from the floor. The first way is by only
focusing on that part of the lift. This is the deadlift to the knees. The athlete
deadlifts the bar up to the knees, pauses for a brief second (unless a longer
pause is specified), and then returns it to the floor.

Deficit deadlifts are also a good variation to improve an athlete’s starting

position and build strength off of the floor. Sheiko prefers larger deficits than
what other coaches may recommend. This stems from his focus being on
technique rather than strength.

Sheiko told me in an email conversation that he prefers 8-10 cm on the deficit

rather than 4-6cm. Anything over 10 cm is too much. The back of the
athlete will be rounded from this deficit height, but not enough to be worried
about it. The goal is to make the deficit large enough so that the athlete has
to fight really hard to improve the start position. Once the coach removes the
deficit, it will be easier for the athlete to achieve a proper start position.

The weight for the deficit needs to be on the lower end. This is due to the
athlete’s back being slightly rounded and also because the deficit increases
the intensity of the lift. Keeping the intensity between 65% and 75% of one
rep max for 4 or 5 sets of 2 is optimal.
Weakness at the Top of the Deadlift

Often times when the bar gets stuck near lockout, there is a technical
breakdown earlier in the lift. If the torso straightens too fast by leaning back
too much in the lift, the lifter will be upright with the knees bent slightly.
This can lead to a missed lift at competition and will make the lift more
difficult at mid-thigh because the hips and back are already locked out.

The other technical flaw that the coach may see is when the knees straighten
too fast at the initiation of the pull. This shifts the weight from the legs to the
lower back. The lower back by itself is not capable of lifting as much weight
when the legs are included in the lift.

Once the knees are straight, the lifter will have to lean back with the torso
aggressively. This can lead to the bar getting stuck at mid-thigh, or the lifter
rebending the knees to lock the weight out. Both of these are missed lifts in
competition.

Analyze the technique of the lift first, before diagnosing the lifter with a weak
lockout. Program the appropriate variations to fix this issue first as in most
cases this will clear up the issues the lifter is having close to lockout.

As a raw powerlifter the most difficult position of the conventional deadlift is

a couple of inches below the knees. Programming exercises that make the
lifter stronger in these positions is important. The lifter needs to stabilize
himself in this position and the lifter needs to accelerate the weight.

Starting the deadlift on blocks at this sticking point is a good exercise to train
the second half of the pull. Getting the weight moving from a dead stop
teaches the lifter stability in this position while getting them to accelerate the
weight to lockout.

The deadlift off blocks can be performed with heavier weights of 90%, and
occasionally even heavier. This position is easier on the back and the lifter
can recover more easily from blocks than they could lifting heavier weights
from the floor.

Chains and bands can also be a good way for the coach to overload the top
portion of the deadlift for the lifter. Chains and bands will teach the lifter
how to accelerate the weight through the lift. Chains and bands are also
easier in the more difficult positions of the pull.

This allows the lifter to overload the top of the deadlift, throughout the entire
ROM, and the lifter can recover more easily from this than they would be
able to with heavier bar weight. Intensity should be between 65% and 75%
of one rep max.

Sheiko has used bands and chains with my deadlift to get higher volumes of
work. I most often perform this variation with 65% or 70% of one rep max
plus the accommodating resistance, for 5 sets of 4 repetitions. I do not feel
too beat up the following day and training does not get hindered in any way.
Sometimes the bands can be rough on the hands for that much volume, but
nothing that the lifter should not be able to handle.

If the athlete needs positional work within the lift, the coach can use pauses
much like they can use pauses in the squat. The coach can program pauses in
the deadlift below the knees, above the knees, or even both. With the deadlift
there is no need for a pause longer than a second or 2 as anymore can make it
tough for the athlete to recover.

Good Mornings can also be utilized to strengthen the muscles necessary for
lockout. These are often programmed relatively heavy in my program.
Usually for 5 sets of 5. Seated good mornings are programmed the same
way as well. Strengthening the back is extremely important.

This is especially true of the spinal erectors as lumbar and thoracic extension
forces are necessary for the squat and the deadlift. On top of standing and
seated good mornings the athlete should be performing hyperextensions and
reverse hyperextensions to strengthen these muscles. These exercises can be
programmed with higher volumes. This can be 4 to 5 sets of 8.

The abs are really important to be strong as well. They help the athlete
transfer force from the lower half of the body to upper half. This is not only
important for the deadlift, but the squat and bench press as well. The abs can
handle a little more volume than other muscle groups and should be a focal
point 1 to 2 days per week for 4 sets of 10 repetitions.
Accommodating Resistance

The coach definitely does not need to use bands and chains to get his athletes
stronger. Plenty of people have put up huge totals without the use of
accommodating resistance. However, a recent meta-analysis shows that the
use of bands and chains can lead to faster gains in strength when compared to
conventional training. As stated in the previous section, accommodating
resistance is a good way to trick the nervous system into lifting heavier
weights while not overstressing the athlete’s tissues and nervous system.

Variation is also a means of recovery. When the weight deloads at the

bottom portion of the lift, making it easier, some of the athlete’s motor units
can actually take a break and recover. This can allow the athlete to recover
and be ready to crush the next squat training day.

Accommodating resistance goes beyond just making the athlete stronger.

Bands and chains can be used to help teach technique. Having chains
hanging from a bar will teach that novice lifter to stay tight because the
chains are constantly swinging back and forth. With that said, we want to
make sure we have a link or two on the ground at lockout so that we do not
have too much swinging happening. Bands and chains also teach novice
lifters how to accelerate throughout the range of motion.

Also, it can help maximize technique because the weight deloads in places
we tend to see technique breakdown. For example, many beginners will have
the hips pop up out of the hole turning the squat into a good morning.
Deloading some weight at the bottom can help them keep their chest up while
getting some higher intensity work.

The chains or bands deload at the bottom and increase in weight or tension as
the lift approaches lockout. This matches the strength curve of the lift, as it is
most difficult at the bottom portion and easiest as we get closer to lockout.

With that said, we all have weak spots within that ROM. We call these our
sticking points. As a raw lifter, the sticking points will be the same for
everyone, as there are more disadvantageous joint angles in each lift. For the
squat below parallel is not the problem, but actually a couple of inches above
parallel is where the bar will slow down. So don’t cut your squats high! The
bench press tends to be a couple of inches off of the chest, and the deadlift
has a sticking point right below the knee. The more speed the bar reaches
those sticking points with, the better chance we have of it moving beyond
that sticking point.

Bands and chains can help the lifter overcome weaknesses at any point
during the lift. If you miss at the top, the bands and chains are constantly
adding more tension and weight throughout the movement and forcing you to
accelerate the bar through that weakness.

More advanced lifters have a slower, more controlled eccentric portion, but
not too slow, of the lift and a faster concentric portion of the lift when
compared to novice lifters. Bands and chains are forcing the athlete to learn
how to do this. The athlete needs to stabilize against the bands and chains
when the weight is heaviest at the top. This leads to a slower and more
controlled eccentric portion, and due to the deload at the bottom, it teaches
the athlete to move the weight faster throughout the concentric portion of the
lift.

Louie Simmons of Westside Barbell brought accommodating resistance to

the mainstream. Lifters and coaches need to keep in mind, the Westside
Barbell primarily trains geared lifters. Geared lifting is a different sport than
raw powerlifting. Geared lifters need to focus on overloading the top portion
of the lift more than raw lifters.

A geared lifter may have a 600lb raw squat, but can squat over 800lbs in
briefs and a suit. The gear will help pop them out of the bottom of the squat,
so they need to be really strong at the top and really good at accelerating the
weight throughout the ROM. Technique is critically important here as well.
Less bar weight and more accommodating resistance makes sense for them.
As a raw lifter you need to be strong enough to accelerate the weight out of
the bottom, but will never have to overload the top of the lift like a geared
lifter. The raw lifter needs just enough accommodating resistance to achieve
that acceleration, but not so much that it changes the movement and
decreases intensity too much at the difficult portions of the lift.

If the athlete squats 600lbs and uses 200lbs of straight weight with 400lbs of
band tension, the overload at the bottom of the squat is not enough to
strengthen that position. It would only be 33% of 1RM. If the athlete is weak
at the bottom as a raw lifter, it doesn't matter how much he can lockout at the
top, because he will never even get past that first sticking point.

Looking at the force velocity curve the coach can gain insight into this.
Maximal strength is at the left end and speed is all the way down to the right.
Force makes up the vertical axis and velocity makes up the horizontal axis.
As force decreases, velocity increases and vice versa. If the athlete only
strength trains (blue line) his speed will go down and if he just focuses on
speed (green line) his maximal strength will decrease. The athlete wants to
train in a way that allows him to shift this chart to the right.
The athlete should work with weights that provide adequate velocity and
force. Weights that are too light will move fast, but hinder maximal strength.
Weights that are too heavy will move too slowly for the athlete to be able to
accelerate that weight through the sticking points. According to this curve the
coach wants to program weights that are no lighter than 65% and no heavier
than 82% of 1RM. This is where the ideal spot is on that curve to develop the
biggest total.

The coach wants the athlete to develop maximal intent to move the weight
fast and not just move the weight fast. If the aim is just bar speed, we run the
risk of using intensities that are too low to get stronger. Remember that the
overload principle applies here. Speed days for Westside are lighter and allow
the lifters to recover from the very intense max effort days that they have,
because if they are in their gear, they are lifting more than they are capable
raw. This wrecks the nervous system, and light days are critical.
Bar weight between 65% and 75% of 1RM is good for accommodating
resistance. This puts the athlete in the correct position on the force velocity
curve to get stronger while learning to accelerate the weight past the sticking
points.

One chain per side between 15lbs and 20 lbs is adequate enough for all 3
lifts. The chain weight should not be too light and it should not be too heavy.
The coach and lifter may need to use best judgement in these cases. Sheiko
does not like giving his athletes weight recommendations in these cases and
prefers them to go by feel.

Accommodating resistance should never be more than 20% of the total

weight being lifted as this can change the movement too much. Bands can be
utilized on the bench press and deadlifts, but can be tough on the hips of the
lifter during squats. Sheiko has never programmed squats with bands for
myself.
Constructing a Peaking Cycle

Ideally a peaking cycle should begin 4 months out from competition. This is
the time period when the volume of competition lift variations decrease and
the volume of the competition lifts themselves increase. Top sets of the
competition lifts will be executed at higher intensities, but average intensity
will still fall within the same range. Again, this time period is very
individualized to the lifter.

The intensity increases due to the decrease of competition lift variations. The
variations are not able to be completed with intensities that are as high as the
lifts themselves. For example, a pause squat increases the intensity of the
competition lift. This is why pause squats are usually performed between
65% and 75% of one rep max.

Under ideal circumstances the peaking block is 5 to 12 weeks long followed

by a 4 week test and taper that leads the athlete into competition. However,
this is not always the case. The athlete’s yearly competition schedule as well
as the athlete’s technique and training age need to be taken into
consideration.

If we have an athlete that competes frequently, we need to identify the most

important competitions throughout the year. For these competitions we will
program a full 12 week peaking block. For the less important competitions
the peaking block may be as little as 5 weeks.

If we were to program full peaking blocks before every competition we could

run into some problems. In this case there would not be a true offseason to
allow us to strengthen our weaknesses.

This could lead to the athlete’s progress hitting a plateau. This could also
lead to the athlete not hitting his or her highest total in the most important
competitions of the year. The coach needs to identify the most important
competitions for the year and work backwards from there.

The peaking block should lead us into a test and taper for the competition.
The test and taper is always 4 weeks in length. It begins with the test of the
3 competition lifts and follows with a 3 week deload to allow the athlete to
super compensate before the competition.

The goal during this time period is to let fatigue to dissipate and to perform
enough volume at a high enough intensity to allow us to maintain the
attributes that we have developed during the training block and to get the
athlete accustomed to handling heavier weights. This is why we see a
gradual decrease in volume and intensity leading up to the competition.

The test for the 3 competition lifts will be completed 17 to 22 days out from
competition. This week of training will be a full 4 day training week. After
this week we will begin to see the drop off in volume and intensity.

The following week will only consist of 3 training days while intensity
begins to gradually drop off. The week of competition the athlete will only
train 2 days as volume and intensity continue to decrease. Below is an
example of one of my 4 week competition cycles:
Week 59 (December 15-25)
Competition: January 15, 2017

Day 1
1.Squat 55% 4 reps x 1set, 65% 3 reps x 1set, 75% 2 reps x 2sets, 85% 1 rep
x 3sets (14)
2.Bench press 50% reps x 1set, 60% 4 reps x 1set, 70% 3 reps x 1set, 80% 2
reps x 4 sets (20)
3.Squat 50% reps x 1set, 60% 3 reps x 1set, 70% 3 reps x 1set, 80% 2 reps x
3sets (15)
4.Pecs 8 reps x 4sets
5.Goodmorning 8 reps x 3sets Total: 49 lifts

Day 2
1.Bench press 50% 3 reps x 1set, 60% 3 reps x 1set, 70% 3 reps x 1set, 80%
2 reps x 2sets, 85% 1 rep x 3sets(16)
2.Deadlift 50% reps x 1set, 60% 3 reps x 1set, 70% 3 reps x 1set, 80% 2 reps
x 4 sets (17)
3.Bench press 55% 3 reps x 1set, 65% 3 reps x 1set, 75% 2 reps x 3sets (12)
4.Front delts 6 reps x 4sets
5.Abs 8 reps x 3sets Total: 45 lifts

Day 3
1.Squat 50% reps x 1set, 60% 3 reps x 1set, 70% 3 reps x 1set, 75% 2 reps x
4 sets (17)
2.Bench press 50% 3 reps x 1set, 60% 3 reps x 1set, 70% 3 reps x 1set, 75%
2 reps x 4 sets (17)
3.Pecs 6 reps x 4sets
4.Hyperextensions 6 reps x 3sets Total: 34 lifts

Day 4
1.Deadlift 50% reps x 1set, 60% 3 reps x 1set, 70% 2 reps x 2sets, 75% 1 rep
x 3sets (13)
2.Inclined shoulder press seated 2 reps x 4sets
3.Lats 6 reps x 3sets
4.Abs 8 reps x 3sets Total: 13 lifts
Total a week:141 lifts

Week 60 (December 26-January 1)

Day 1 TEST
1.Squat 50% reps x 1set, 60% 3 reps x 1set, 70% 3 reps x 1set, 80% 2reps x
1set,
85% 1 rep x 1set, 90% 1 rep x 1set, 95% 1 rep x 1set, 100% 1 rep x 1set,
103% 1 rep x 1set (16)
2.Bench press 50% 3 reps x 1set, 60% 3 reps x 1set, 70% 3 reps x 1set, 80%
2reps x 1set, 85% 1 rep x 1set,
90% 1 rep x 1set, 95% 1 rep x 1set, 100% 1 rep x 1set, 103% 1 rep x 1set
(16)
3.Pecs 6 reps x 3sets
4.Abs 8 reps x 3sets Total: 32 lifts

Day 2 TEST
1.Bench press 50% 3 reps x 1set, 60% 3 reps x 1set, 70% 3 reps x 1set, 75%
3 reps x 4 sets (21)
2.Deadlift 50% reps x 1set, 60% 3 reps x 1set, 70% 2 reps x 2sets, 80% 1 rep
x 1set, 90% 1 rep x 1set,
95% 1 rep x 1set, 100% 1 rep x 1set, 103% 1 rep x 1set (15)
3.Front delts 6 reps x 4sets
4.Triceps 6 reps x 4sets
5.Hyperextensions 6 reps x 3sets Total: 36 lifts

Day 3
1.Squat 50% reps x 1set, 60% 3 reps x 1set, 70% 3 reps x 1set, 75% 3 reps x
5 sets (27)
2.Bench press 50% 3 reps x 1set, 60% 3 reps x 1set, 70% 3 reps x 1set, 75%
3 reps x 5 sets (27)
3.Pecs 8 reps x 4sets
4.Abs 8 reps x 3sets Total: 44 lifts

Day 4
1.Bench press (middle grip) 50% 3 reps x 1set, 60% 3 reps x 1set, 70% 3
reps x 4 sets (18)
2.Lats 6 reps x 4sets
3.Hyperextensions 6 reps x 3sets Total: 18 lifts
TOTAL A WEEK:130 lifts

Week 61 (January 2-8)

Day 1
1.Squat 50% reps x 1set, 60% 3 reps x 1set, 70% 3 reps x 1set, 75% 2 reps x
2sets, 80% 1 rep x 3sets(16)
2.Bench press 50% 3 reps x 1set, 60% 3 reps x 1set, 70% 3 reps x 1set, 80%
2 reps x 4 sets (17)
3.Pecs 6 reps x 3sets
4.Hyperextensions 6 reps x 3sets Total: 33 lifts
Day 2
1.Bench press 50% 3 reps x 1set, 60% 3 reps x 1set, 70% 3 reps x 1set, 75%
2 reps x 2sets, 80% 1 rep x 2sets (15)
2.Deadlift 50% reps x 1set, 60% 3 reps x 1set, 70% 2 reps x 2sets, 75% 1 rep
x 2sets (12)
3.Abs 8 reps x 3sets Total: 27 lifts

Day 3
1.Squat 50% reps x 1set, 60% 3 reps x 1set, 70% 2 reps x 2sets, 75% 1 rep x
3sets (13)
2.Bench press 50% 3 reps x 1set, 60% 3 reps x 1set, 70% 3 reps x 1set, 75%
2 reps x 3sets (15)
3.Goodmorning 6 reps x 3sets Total: 28 lifts

Day 4
REST
Total a week: 88 lifts

Week 62 (January 9-15)

Day 1
1.Bench press 50% 3 reps x 1set, 60% 3 reps x 1set, 70% 2 reps x 2sets,
75% 1 rep x 2sets (12)
2.Deadlift 50% reps x 1set, 60% 2 reps x 3sets (9)
3.Abs 8 reps x 3sets
Total: 21 lifts

Day 2
1.Squat 50% reps x 1set, 60% 2 reps x 2sets, 65% 1 rep x 2sets (9)
2.Bench press 50% 3 reps x 1set, 60% 2 reps x 2sets, 70% 1 rep x 3sets (10)
Total: 19 lifts
Total a week: 40 lifts
REST

COMPETITION !!!
GOOD LUCK !!!

In this example we start with week 59. This is 4 weeks out from competition.
An average week for me is roughly 200 lifts. You can see in this week that
my volume drops to around 140 lifts. This is due to the testing of my lifts to
be completed in the following week.

Remember that volume accumulates more fatigue than intensity. We want to

drop volume enough to let the lifter attempt his or her test with reduced
fatigue. We also want intensity to remain high enough to maintain strength.
We can begin to lose acquired strength gains 10 days after not using it. This
is why we gradual reduce intensity as the competition draws near as well.

The intensities prescribed in week 59 are intensities that I used in training in

previous weeks. However, the volume of those intensities is less. As the
week goes on we see an even greater drop in intensity and volume. 75% of
one rep max for doubles is very easy for the squat and bench, and singles at
that intensity is very easy for the deadlift.
The lighter sets allow the athlete to recover, but they also keep the athlete
fresh. The athlete can focus on maximizing technique and utilize their
visualization practices here. It is a time to get mentally prepared to handle
bigger weights the following week.

The following week is the test. This test gives us a good idea of openers and
the athlete’s current abilities in the competition lifts. The warmups are laid
out for the athlete as well as the top set. In my example the top set is set for
103% of one rep max.

A 3% gain may be a tough jump during a test. This can be altered based
upon the previous sets. I have also hit 103% and it felt easy, so I took
another set at a heavier weight. The warmups listed are to ensure that the
athlete is properly warmed up for the test. This warm up scheme works well
for most lifters, in my experience. The coach can also prescribe 1 to 2 sets
between 100% and 105% of one rep max.

If for some reason the lifter fails before 100%, or if 90% or 95% looks very
tough, they will instead take 80% for 2 sets of 2. In this case the coach
should go back and reanalyze the program. Also, the athlete should be
analyzing their role in their recovery. Have they been eating enough,
sleeping well, staying hydrated, and managing stress?

The tests are broken up into 2 separate days. The athlete will be fresher on
meet day than they will be for this test. The deadlift is attempted on day 2
after some bench press. This is used to more simulate a meet.

The week of the test still has 4 training days. However, days 3 and 4 are
lighter and the total volume for the week is actually 10 lifts less than the
previous week. The athlete still uses his or her previous training maxes for
the duration of the taper, even if the athlete hits new personal bests.

Using new training maxes during the taper would be too much of a stimulus
to the athlete with a competition approaching. These numbers can be used
after the competition when training picks back up.

The following week we see the training days drop to 3 and the intensity
gradually decreases. This trend continues into the week of the competition.
In the week the athlete has 2 training days and intensity continues to
decrease with the volume. Deadlifts are performed on day 1 because they are
more difficult to recover from. Some may choose to skip deadlifts this week
altogether.

After the competition the athlete will have a rest day for day 1 and then
gradually ease back into competition. After the most important competition
the athlete can take a week off from lifting and just perform some “active
recovery.”

We will see almost the reverse of what we did for the taper to ramp it back
up. We will see 3 training days week 1 and intensity will gradually increase,
usually starting with 65%. The following week the training days will be back
up to 4 as the intensity gradually increases. Hopefully the athlete is using
new maxes here and getting acclimated to the new training weights.
Selecting Competition Attempts

There are many different ways to select openers and attempts for a
competition. I like knowing exactly what my athletes are capable of hitting.
I am very analytical in my thinking and this makes more sense to me than
guessing what they are capable of lifting.

Openers should be a weight that the athlete is comfortable hitting, and one
that they can hit under any circumstances. This gets the lifter into meet since
you need to record a good lift in all 3 of the competition lifts.

This also allows the lifter to conserve energy for the heavier attempts.
Competition day is a very long day. If the athlete opens too heavy they may
miss their 3rd attempt, or the lifts after will suffer. 88% to 92% of one rep
max is a good range for an opener. The coach may decide to be more
conservative and take as low as 85% for an opener. This should be an easy
attempt for the lifter.

When selecting attempts we need to keep in mind comfortable jumps for the
lifter. If we open at 90% of one rep max and decide to take 97% of one rep
max for a second attempt, this may be too big of a jump. In this scenario
opening at 92% and completing a 5% jump for the second attempt may be
more comfortable for the lifter. Once we are at 97% we will have a similar
jump, or even slightly smaller for our 3rd attempt.

The coach needs to remember that this sport is about lifting the most weight
combined between the squat, bench press, and deadlift. The attempts need to
be selected to allow the athlete to lift the biggest total.

With that said the coach may decide to be more conservative on a 3rd attempt
squat than the athlete may like. This could be the same weight that the
athlete lifted during their test or slightly below. This will help them conserve
energy and gain confidence as the meet continues.

If the athlete is competing in a national level or international level

competition the coach’s strategy may change. The coach should know the
other competitor’s best lifts and have an idea of what his athlete needs to hit
to be competitive and place in the competition. In this scenario the coach
may choose to push the limits of the athlete a bit more. Ultimately this
comes down to how well the coach knows his athletes.

Selecting warmups is also important for the athlete. The athlete needs to be
warmed up enough to hit big weights, but not warm up so much that the
athlete fatigues. The following has worked well for myself and my athletes.

Squat and Bench Press

55% x 4, 65% x 3, 75% x 2, 85% x1. Anything the lifter wants to do before
this is fine. This is just a template to follow from these percentages onward.
If the lifter wants something more structured leading up to 55% they can
perform 30%x 5, 40-45% x4 before the reps at 55%. If the athlete is opening
heavier than 92% the coach will want to program another single for a warm
up at 88%-90% of the 3rd attempt.

This brings the athlete to the platform to complete 90% to 92% of one rep
max. The warmups may slide slightly up and down to accommodate the
jumps. The athlete may also perform sets with the empty bar and lighter
weights to loosen up before the meet. The coach may decide to put an extra
set in the warmups based upon the individual athlete.

Deadlift

The warmups for the deadlift are a little different. Most athletes can handle
bigger jumps on the deadlift. Also, we want to lower the intensity of the
warmups a bit here so that the athlete does not tire out.

50% x 3, 60% x 3, 70% x 2, 80% x 1, 85% x 1, this brings us to the first

attempt at 90% to 92% of one rep max. Again, these can slide up and down
to make the jumps from set to set more appropriate. If the athlete wants a
more concrete warm up plan before 50% they can take 35%x3, 45%x3, and
then move onto 60% and skip the 50% warmup. This all comes down to the
comfort of each individual lifter.

These are just basic guidelines to follow on meet day. The coach should
know the needs of the lifter and change what needs to be changed. The coach
should also know the lifter and the competition enough to make good
selections for attempts.

The goal at the meet is to go 9 for 9. Sheiko told me that he even has a
grading scale for his students in competition. 9 for 9 gets a well done. 8 for
9 is good, 6-7 for 9 is average, 4-5 for 9 is bad. Going 9 for 9 will yield the
highest total for the athlete.
Sample Program

This is a sample 12 week program. I tried to include some variations that are
not common to most programs. Feel free to swap them out with other
variations mentioned in this book. Also, the volume can be manipulated as
needed per your own lifter classification. Volume of these blocks are under
900 monthly lifts. This is a good start for most people to this type of training.
You can just subtract sets as needed. Lastly, feel free to add in whatever
accessory work that you feel that you need.

Week 1
Day 1
Squat 50% 1x5, 60% 1x4, 70% 1x3, 80% 5x3,
Bench Press 50% 1x5, 60% 1x4, 70% 1x3, 80% 5x3,
Pecs 5x8
Medial Delts 5x6
Hypers 4x8

Day 2
Deadlift to Knees 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70% 1x3, 75% 4x2,
2 sec Pause Bench Press 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70% 1x3,
75% 4x3,
Deadlift off Blocks 60% 1x4, 70% 1x4, 80% 4x4,
Lats 5x8
Tris 5x8
Abs 4x10

Day 3
2 sec Pause Halfway Down Squat 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70%
5x3,
Bench Press 50% 1x5, 60% 1x5, 70% 1x5, 75% 5x4,
Squat with Chains 50% 1x4, 60% 1x4, 70% 4x4,
Rear Delts 5x6
Abs 4x10

Day 4
Deadlift to Knees + Full Deadlifts 50% 1x4, 60% 1x4, 70%
1x3, 75% 5x3,
Incline Bench Press 5x4
Front Delts 5x6
Week 2

Day 1
Squat 50% 1x5, 60% 1x4, 70% 1x3, 80% 2x3, 85% 3x2,
1 Board Press 55% 1x5, 65% 1x4, 75% 1x3, 85% 2x2, 90%
2x1,
DB Bench Press 5x6
Pecs 5x6
Abs 4x10

Day 2
2 sec Pause Bench Press 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70% 5x3,
Full Deadlift + Deadlift Below Knees 50% 1x1+3, 60%
1x1+3, 70% 1 x 1+2, 75% 5x1+2, %
Bench Press 50% 1x5, 60% 1x4, 70% 1x3, 80% 4x3,
Lats 5x8
Tris 5x8
Hypers 5x8

Day 3
Squat with Chains 50% 1x5, 60% 1x5, 70% 5x5,
Bench Press 50% 1x5, 60% 1x5, 70% 1x5, 75% 5x4,
Pecs 5x8
Front Delts 5x6
Seated Good Morning 5x5

Day 4
Deadlift 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70% 1x3, 80% 5x2,
Incline Bench Press 5x5
Medial Delts 5x6

Week 3

Day 1
Squat 50% 1x6, 60% 1x6, 70% 5x6,
Bench Press 50% 1x5, 60% 1x5, 70% 1x5, 75% 5x4,
DB Bench Press 5x6
Pecs 5x6
Hypers 5x8

Day 2
Deadlift to Knees 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70% 1x3, 75% 4x2,
1 Board Press 60% 1x3, 70% 1x3, 80% 2x3, 85% 2x2, 90%
3x1,
Deadlift off Blocks 60% 1x3, 70% 1x3, 80% 2x3, 90%
2x2,
Lats 5x8
Tris (lying) 5x6
Abs 4x10
Day 3
Squat 55% 1x3, 65% 1x3, 75% 1x3, 85% 4x2,
Bench Press 50% 1x5, 60% 1x4, 70% 1x3, 80% 5x3,
Squat 50% 1x5, 60% 1x4, 70% 1x3, 80% 4x2,
Medial Delts 5x6
Biceps 5x8

Day 4
Deadlift with Bands 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70% 5x4,
Incline Bench Press 5x5
Lats 4x6
Good Morning 5x5

Week 4

Day 1
2 sec Pause Halfway Down Squat 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70%
1x3, 75% 4x2,
1 Board Press 60% 1x4, 70% 1x4, 80% 4x4,
Squat with Chains 50% 1x4, 60% 1x4, 70% 4x4,
Incline Bench Press 5x5
Abs 4x10
Hypers 4x8
Day 2
3 sec Pause Bench Press 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70% 5x3,
Full Deadlift + Deadlift Below Knees 50% 1x1+3, 60%
1x1+3, 70% 1 x 1+2, 75% 5x1+2,
Bench Press 50% 1x5, 60% 1x4, 70% 1x3, 80% 2x3, 85%
3x2,
Lats 5x8
Tris 5x8
Front Delts 5x6

Day 3
Squat 50% 1x5, 60% 1x4, 70% 1x3, 80% 2x3, 85% 3x2,
80% 2x3,
Bench with Bands 50% 1x4, 60% 1x4, 65% 5x4,
Pecs 5x6
Medial Delts 5x6
Seated Good Morning 5x5

Day 4
Deadlift off Blocks 60% 1x4, 70% 1x4, 80% 4x4,
Seated DB OHP 5x6
Biceps 5x8
Reverse hypers 4x8
Week 5

Day 1
Squat 50% 1x5, 60% 1x5, 70% 1x5, 70% 1x7, 70% 1x9,
70% 1x8, 70% 1x6, 70% 1x5
Bench Press 55% 1x5, 65% 1x4, 75% 1x3, 85% 4x2,
Pecs 5x8
Abs 4x10
Good Morning 4x5

Day 2
2 sec Pause Bench Press 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70% 1x3,
75% 4x2,
Full Deadlift + Deadlift Below Knees 50% 1 x 1+2, 60% 1
x 1+2, 70% 1 x 1+2, 80% 4 x 1+1
Bench with Bands 50% 1x4, 60% 1x4, 65% 4x4,
Lats 5x8
Tris 5x8
Hypers 5x8

Day 3
Squat 50% 1x5, 60% 1x4, 70% 1x3, 80% 5x3,
Bench Press 50% 1x5, 60% 1x4, 70% 1x3, 80% 5x3,
Front Delts 5x6
Biceps 5x8

Day 4
1 Board Press 55% 1x3, 65% 1x3, 75% 1x3, 80% 2x3, 90%
3x1,
Deadlift with Bands 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70% 1x3, 75%
5x3,
Rear Delts 5x6
Abs 4x10

Week 6

Day 1
Bench Press 50% 1x5, 60% 1x4, 70% 1x3, 80% 2x3, 85%
3x2,
Squat 50% 1x5, 60% 1x4, 70% 1x3, 82.5% 4x3,
1 Board Press 60% 1x3, 70% 1x3, 80% 1x3, 85% 4x3,
Pecs 5x8
Abs 4x10
Hypers 5x8

Day 2
Deficit Deadlifts 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70% 4x2,
3,2,1 sec Pause Bench Press 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70% 1x3,
75% 5x3,
Deadlift off Blocks 60% 1x3, 70% 1x3, 80% 2x3, 90%
3x2,
Lats 5x8
Tris 5x6
Seated good morning 5x5

Day 3
2 sec Pause Halfway Down Squat 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70%
5x3,
Bench with Bands 50% 1x4, 60% 1x4, 70% 5x4,
Rear Delts 5x6
Biceps 5x8

Day 4
Deadlift to Knees 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70% 1x3, 75% 5x2,
Incline Bench Press 5x6
Medial Delts 5x6
Week 7

Day 1
2 sec Pause Halfway Down Squat 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70%
1x3, 75% 4x2,
1 Board Press 60% 1x3, 70% 1x3, 80% 1x3, 85% 2x3, 90%
3x1,
Squat 50% 1x5, 60% 1x4, 70% 1x3, 82.5% 4x2,
Pecs 5x8
Abs 4x10
Hypers 4x8

Day 2
3 sec Pause Bench Press 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70% 5x3,
Deadlift 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70% 1x3, 80% 4x3
Seated DB OHP 5x6
Lats 5x8
Tris (lying) 5x6

Day 3
Squat with Chains 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70% 1x3, 75% 5x3,
Bench Press 50% 1x5, 60% 1x4, 70% 1x3, 80% 5x3,
Front Delts 5x6
Seated Good Morning 4x5
Day 4
Deadlift w/ Pause 5cm From Ground 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3,
70% 1x3, 75% 5x2,
DB Bench Press 5x6
Medial Delts 5x6

Week 8

Day 1
Squat 55% 1x3, 65% 1x3, 75% 1x3, 85% 4x2,
Bench with Bands 50% 1x4, 60% 1x4, 70% 5x4,
Squat 50% 1x5, 60% 1x4, 70% 1x3, 80% 4x2,
Pecs 5x8
Abs 4x10
Good Morning 5x5

Day 2
Deficit Deadlifts 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70% 4x2,
Bench Press 50% 1x5, 60% 1x4, 70% 1x3, 80% 6x3,
Deadlift off Blocks 60% 1x3, 70% 1x3, 80% 2x3, 90%
3x2,
Lats 5x8
Biceps 5x8
Hypers 4x8
Day 3
Squat 50% 1x5, 60% 1x5, 70% 1x5, 70% 1x7, 70% 1x9,
70% 1x8, 70% 1x6, 70% 1x5
2 sec Pause Bench Press 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70% 1x3,
75% 5x2,
Medial Delts 5x6
Tris 5x8

Day 4
Deadlift 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70% 1x3, 80% 4x3
Incline Bench Press 6x3
Pecs 5x6

Week 9

Day 1
Squat 50% 1x5, 60% 1x5, 70% 1x5, 75% 5x5,
Bench with Bands 50% 1x4, 60% 1x4, 70% 5x4,
DB Bench Press 5x6
Tris 5x8
Abs 4x10

Day 2
Bench Press 50% 1x5, 60% 1x4, 70% 1x3, 80% 2x3, 85%
4x2,
Deadlift 50% 1x5, 60% 1x4, 70% 1x3, 82.5% 5x2,
Lats 5x8
Medial Delts 5x6
Hypers 4x8

Day 3
Squat 50% 1x5, 60% 1x4, 70% 1x3, 80% 2x3, 85% 4x2
1 Board Press 60% 1x3, 70% 1x3, 80% 1x3, 90% 2x1, 95%
2x1,
Front Delts 5x6
Biceps 5x8

Day 4
Deadlift off Blocks 60% 1x3, 70% 1x3, 80% 1x3, 90%
2x2, 95% 2x1,
Incline Bench Press 4x5
Rear Delts 5x6

Week 10

Day 1
Squat 50% 1x5, 60% 1x4, 70% 1x3, 80% 1x3, 85% 2x2,
90% 2x1
Bench Press 50% 1x5, 60% 1x4, 70% 1x3, 80% 1x3, 85%
2x2, 90% 3x1,
DB Bench Press 4x6
Front Delts 4x6
Abs 3x10
Day 2
2 sec Pause Bench Press 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70% 4x3,
Deadlift 50% 1x5, 60% 1x4, 70% 1x3, 80% 1x2, 85% 2x2,
90% 2x1,
Lats 4x8
Tris 4x8
Hypers 3x8

Day 3
2 sec Pause Halfway Down Squat 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70%
1x3, 75% 5x2,
Bench Press 50% 1x5, 60% 1x4, 70% 1x3, 80% 5x2,
Biceps 5x8
Abs 3x10

Day 4
Deadlift 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 75% 4x3,
Incline Bench Press 4x5
Rear Delts 5x6

Week 11

Day 1
Squat 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70% 1x3, 80% 2x2, 85% 3x1
Bench Press 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70% 1x3, 80% 5x2,
Pecs 3x6
Abs 3x8

Day 2
2 sec Pause Bench Press 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70% 4x3,
Deadlift 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70% 1x3, 75% 2x2, 80% 3x1
Lats 4x8
Tris 3x6

Day 3
2 sec Pause Halfway Down Squat 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70%
5x3,
Bench Press 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 75% 4x3
Biceps 4x8
Hypers 3x8

Day 4
Rest

Week 12
Day 1
Squat-TEST 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70% 1x3, 80% 1x2, 85%
1x1, 90% 1x1, 95% 1x1, 100% 1x1, 103% x1?
Bench Press-TEST 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70% 1x3, 80% 1x2,
85% 1x1, 90% 1x1, 95% 1x1, 100% 1x1, 103%x1?
Pecs 4x6
Abs 3x10

Day 2
2 sec Pause Bench Press 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70% 1x3,
75% 4x2,
Deadlift-TEST 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70% 2x2, 80% 1x1,
90% 1x1, 95% 1x1, 100% 1x1, 103% x1?
Lats 4x8
Good Morning 3x8
Day 3
Squat 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70% 1x3, 75% 5x3,
Bench Press 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70% 1x3, 75% 5x3,
Tris 4x6
Front Delts 4x6

Day 4
Deadlift to Knees 50% 1x3, 60% 1x3, 70% 1x3, 75% 4x2,
Incline Bench Press 4x4
Biceps 4x8
Abs 3x10
List of Exercises

Squat

Squat

Tempo Squat 2-1-2

Tempo Squat 3-0-3

2 sec Pause Squat

3 sec Pause Squat

2 sec Pause Halfway Down Squat

2 sec Pause Halfway Up Squat

Pin Squats

Squat with Chains

1.5 Squats
Bench Press

Bench Press

CG Bench Press

1 Board Press

Tempo Bench Press 2-1-2

Bench with Chains

Bench with Bands

Bench with Slingshot

2 sec Pause Bench Press

3 sec Pause Bench Press

3,2,1 sec Pause Bench Press

4,3,2 sec Pause Bench Press

Feet Up Spoto Press

Spoto Press

Duffalo bar Bench Press

Deadlift

Deadlift

Deadlift to Knees

Deficit Deadlifts

Deadlift to Knees + Full Deadlifts

Full Deadlift + Deadlift Below Knees

Deadlift w/ Pause 5cm off Ground

Deadlift w/ Pause Below Knee

Deadlift w/ Pause Above Knee

Deadlift w/ Pause Below and Above Knee

Deadlift with Chains

Deadlift with Bands

Deadlift off Blocks

Deadlift w/ Slow Eccentric