For
the purpose of this blog I’d like to dive into a topic which should not be unfamiliar
to most, and that is progressive overload. Whilst the name somewhat gives away
what progressive overload actually means, I feel as though it is important to
further the understanding of this topic in order for you to get the most out of
utilising this tool, as well as not bastardising the concept. By definition,
progressive overload refers to an increase in workload from a previous time
point. Something to consider though, is that there are a number of ways to
actually increase workload and it is important to not mistakenly employ all of
these concepts at once. The idea that more is better, is only true to a certain
degree when referencing resistance training as there are many factors that can
ultimately see you going backwards in the weights room without meaning to.
Types of overload:
I think it is important to define exactly what can be considered overload, so
you have the toolbox available to progress and employ different techniques.
1) Firstly, we have the most basic
and well known concept, intensity.
Intensity refers to the weight on the bar or to the percentage of your maximum
effort. If you are to increase the weight on the bar, you are increasing your
intensity of the lift.
2) Next we have volume which can be referencing the number of repetitions per set
or the total number of sets. By adding a rep or 2 per set, or adding another
set, you have increased your volume of the exercise. Drop sets come under the
volume category as well, and whilst a great idea, can see a huge increase in overall
load so do not abuse this concept.
3) A not so well understood concept,
is volume load. This is a mixture of
both intensity and volume and leads to a calculation of weight lifted
multiplied by repetitions performed. By increasing your volume load, you are
aware of your sets, reps and intensity and can increase based off of your
previous volume load. This technique is probably better than a straight
increase in volume or intensity because it allows you to track the overall work
you performed in a session rather than simply just trying to go heavier, or do
more repetitions.
4) A commonly overlooked method is rest periods. You have no choice but to
rest between sets, but are you timing your rests? If so, great, but have you
ever considered simply working faster as an increase in overload? If not, try
doing a 5×5 with 4 minutes rest between sets and then the following week, rest
for 3:45, eventually working down to 2:30-3 minutes between sets.
5)Frequency refers to the number of total training sessions per week
as well as the number of times a certain muscle or movement is trained per
week. By increasing your frequency, you are decreasing your rest periods
between sessions and doing more per week. This alone is an enormous increase in
overload and should be planned for accordingly. By going from 3 sessions a week
to 4 for example, you are now doing 33.3% more volume per week if all sessions
are equal. That is massive and definitely something that needs to be considered
from a recover-ability stand point.
6)Tempo work is something that a lot of body builders employ and with
great success for hypertrophy. Something to consider though, is the
neurological strain this style of training employs and learning when and how to
use it effectively. Demanding your muscle tissue to fire for prolonged periods
of time places added requirements on the nervous system to facilitate this
demand, thus leading to greater levels of fatigue. If you put it this way,
consider a set of 6 squats to take roughly 30 seconds to complete. Now demand a
4 second eccentric phase, and that same set of squats is now taking twice as
long. If this is the case, you probably can’t perform the same 4 sets as you
normally would, as you have now worked 100% longer to complete the same 6
squats. You wouldn’t randomly jump to 8 sets of squats from 4 the previous
week, so doing 4 sets of tempo work instead of your normal sessions is probably
not going to be a good idea.
What I’d recommend:
Personally, I feel as though the best bang for your buck, sustainable and
measurable method of progressive overload is to calculate your total working
volume, or volume load, and then add to it week to week. This encourages an
increase in intensity, or volume, or even frequency. What it doesn’t do, is
leave you in the dark without a sustainable method and it doesn’t let you do it
all at once. You can clearly see the effect an increase in frequency will have,
or an increase in repetitions per set, and gives you a chance to be in the best
level of control of your output. I often hear people say they went heavier, did
2 more reps and then trained just as hard 2 days later, whilst having no idea
of what impact all that will have on their ability to recover and progress long
term. The tortoise and the hare approach is the only way to continue lifting
long term and to receive the results you desire. If you can calculate your work
for week 1, add 1-2% to it each week and repeat that for 5-6 weeks, before you
back off for a de load week, you will be successful. Having 1 week per training
block where you “overreach” and potentially employ a few of the above
techniques will be a good idea for experienced lifters, but not something I
would recommend for beginners. Doing 1 extra set per exercises using a tempo
method for example, or doing a drop set etc. These are great ideas and can see
you increasing fatigue and really earning a de load week, but again, not for
beginners. Understand your volume load and crunch the numbers from there. That
is enough and with patience, results will follow.