Throughout our current block, Block 2: October 4- October 29 of our 13-week phase, we’ve seen a dramatic decrease in time under tension and overall volume of accessory movements. This allows us to hit higher weights and further increase maximal muscular strength, rate of force production, and work capacity. The intention for block 2 is to continue building the foundation for our final block, meaning progressively increasing the load to our main lifts as we hit 4×3 @ 85% this week and 3×3 @ 90% next week. As we continue to increase the load of our main lifts, it is crucial to take additional warm-up sets and to increase our resting intervals so the working muscles can recover prior to the next set. Try not to rush through the station as the number of working sets decrease! At the dumbbell accessory station, you should be challenging yourself with weights where could only do 1-2 more repetitions once the set is completed. There is a direct transfer of increases in strength in our accessory movements to the main exercises.
Prepare for a deload week, November 1-5, as we finish up Block 2 and enter Block 3. Deload week will give our body the opportunity to actively recover with a decrease in intensity and volume prior to ramping the intensity back up in the following block. Deload weeks are crucial for our body to further adapt to training and prepare for future training stimulus. Block 3 will last four weeks, focusing on explosive strength and rate of force development, with the last week, November 29- December 3, being a test week. During test week, we will test our 1 Repetition Max for squat, bench, deadlift, and our vertical jump on the jump mat.
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Vann, Christopher G.1; Haun, Cody T.2; Osburn, Shelby C.1; Romero, Matthew A.3; Roberson, Paul A.4; Mumford, Petey W.5; Mobley, C. Brooks6; Holmes, Hudson M.1; Fox, Carlton D.1; Young, Kaelin C.1,7; Roberts, Michael D.1,7 Molecular Differences in Skeletal Muscle After 1 Week of Active vs. Passive Recovery From High-Volume Resistance Training, Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research: August 2021 – Volume 35 – Issue 8 – p 2102-2113