The Why, When, and How Of Programming A Deload Week

Within powerlifting programming, there are pretty strong opinions both ways in regards to the need to program deload weeks. Some say it is a waste of a week where you could be training hard, while others program deloads on a structured and/or reactive basis. I am in the camp of having regularly scheduled and/or reactive deload weeks. From experience, I see a lifter’s longevity increase from deload weeks not only due to physiological reasons, but maybe even more so due to the mental and psychological benefits it provides. In my latest Youtube video I cover the 6 reasons, physiological and psychological, of why I program deload weeks. I detail how to determine the frequency of deloads needed on an individual lifter basis. I break out Google Sheets once again to give a conceptual template of how to program deload weeks, including me screen recording myself programming a deload week as an example. I explain how to individualize the extent of the deload not only to a particular lifter, but to each one of their lifts separately. And lastly, I take a look into how deload weeks can be one of the best tools for determining how to taper and peak into a meet. Click the link above to view!