Training article
Periodisation Explained
Why the programmes above change week to week instead of staying the same
General information about training and eating, not personal advice. It is not medical or dietary advice and it cannot account for your circumstances. If you are pregnant, have a medical condition, take medication, or have a history of disordered eating, talk to a GP or a registered dietitian before changing how you eat or train.
Periodisation is just a plan for how training changes over time, instead of doing the same sets and reps indefinitely. One common style is a wave — four weeks with a different rep and intensity focus each week, then a deload, then repeat.
Because it stops working. The body adapts to a specific type of stress, so training the same rep range at the same relative intensity produces smaller and smaller returns over time. Deliberately shifting between building volume, intensifying load, and peaking for a heavier single gives the body different stimuli to adapt to, and the deload week lets fatigue clear before it becomes a problem rather than after.
Track your top set or estimated 1-rep max at the start of each new wave cycle. Small, steady increases cycle over cycle are the sign the structure is doing its job — a flat or declining trend over two full cycles is usually a sign to check recovery, food, and sleep before changing the programme itself.