Four ways to do more
| Lever | Last week | This week |
|---|---|---|
| Weight | 3 × 5 at 100 kg | 3 × 5 at 102.5 kg |
| Reps | 3 × 5 at 100 kg | 3 × 6 at 100 kg |
| Sets | 3 × 5 at 100 kg | 4 × 5 at 100 kg |
| Quality | 3 × 5 at 100 kg, RPE 9 | 3 × 5 at 100 kg, RPE 8 |
All four are progress. The last one is the one people miss: the same weight, moving faster, with more left in it, is a stronger lifter.
Which lever when
- First months: weight, nearly every session. Enjoy it while it lasts.
- After that: reps or sets through the week or the block, then weight.
- Later still: over a whole block. Week 1 and week 8 should look different. Session to session might not.
Four rules
- 01
Pull one lever at a time
More weight and more sets in the same week is how a good block becomes a stall.
- 02
Small steps
2.5 kg on a squat is plenty. 1.25 kg a side.
- 03
Write it down
You can’t overload what you don’t remember.
- 04
Lighter weeks count
Backing off for a week is part of the plan, not a break from it.
Slower progress isn’t a sign you’re doing it wrong. It’s a sign you’ve been doing it right for a while.
From the Compound founder. Notes on training, not medical advice.