Here is a sample my 12 week program designed to help me return to barbell training after a 1-2 month break. This is essentially the program that I’ll be using to rebuild over the summer. However, I’ll be making some slight modifications along the way to accommodate my recovery and any training schedule limitations throughout the program.
The program is a fairly straight forward linear build for squats, upper body pressing, and deadlifts. Week 1 starts quite light at 50% as I think it’s appropriate to start conservatively and rebuild gradually. If you don’t have an accurate 1 Rep Max for the lifts programmed, then I recommend starting at a weight in the 5-6 RPE (rate of perceived exertion) range and increasing the weight each week by roughly 5-20 lb, as long as you don’t exceed a 7-8 RPE in the first 6 weeks. Either way, for the first 6 weeks you should stay conservative in your weight selection and it’s always ok to dial things back if needed. The percentages prescribed should be used as a guide (especially in the first 6 weeks) and you should allow yourself to make adjustments based on performance and recovery. Allow yourself some room to let performance dictate intensity.
One thing to note on intensity is that you can always make the lift more challenging by controlling the tempo or putting more effort into the execution of the lift. For example, if 50% feels comically easy to start with, make things more challenging by putting more effort into each repetition, instead of rushing to add more weight to the bar. This is a great time to address technical issues as you re-build your lifts.
I mentioned earlier that I may be making some changes to the program based on recovery or schedule. This means that I won’t be married to the 3 days/week or 4 days/week schedule in either phase. That’s the schedule that I personally typically train with, but if I need an extra day or two to recover at times I’ll take it. Similarly, If I’m recovering well between sessions I may start the next ‘week’ of training early.
Feel free to use this program as a template to guide your training over the coming months and make adjustments as needed to fit your schedule or your training needs. Or, you can use the program as is and I hope you see some great results!
If you have questions about the program, you can reach me at cody@blendedathletics.com or connect with me on Instagram @saltwaterstrength.
Link to the program: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1RMnhPzEqWXzafIMxnBCTyOJgvHuA5gY8E-7piSWRWXo/edit?usp=sharing
(make sure to save a copy of the document if you want to make any notes in it)
