What is training periodisation and why is it important?

Have you ever jumped in your car, planning to drive to a destination you have never been before…without a map or directions? You just turn on the engine, and drive, with no idea where you are going just hoping that, somehow, you make it to your destination if you drive long enough? I doubt it. When you want to reach a certain point – you usually know how you are going to get there. The same thing applies to your training. If you want to achieve any particular body composition, strength, performance etc. goal, you need to know how you are going to get there! Just going to the gym a few times a week, doing the exercises you feel like, or following a basic plan for 12 weeks before starting a new, unrelated, plan – just won’t cut it. Here’s why. The key to muscle growth and body composition change is progressive overload. In order to progressively overload, you need to understand what you have been doing, to know how to plan your next steps. If you are not a coach or experienced when it comes to program design, this can be quite challenging! This is why so many do not achieve the results they are after! Even when using programs they have bought online. Because, the second key to change, will be individualisation. Your program needs to suit you, your goals, your body and what you can achieve. If you are working out at home with limited equipment, as many are at the moment, the basic home programs you may find online will be just that – basic. You need particular strategies to ensure you are still progressing, despite limitations.

Similarly, if you train in a gym but you have a structural balance issue, past injury or something which limits your movement – a basic program could make these issues worse or lead to injury. So, this leads back to periodisation. If you want to achieve the best results you can, ideally, you will be working with a coach who is doing your programming for you. At the very least, you are working with an individualised program which is taking into account your previous, and next, phases leading up to your goal and beyond.

Essentially, training periodisation refers to the ‘structured’ phases of a training program to optimise training adaptations. As your body gets used to a certain stimulus (training principles: reps, volume, load, intensity etc.) you need to change up your training. We usually recommend making changes every 4-6 weeks. 4 weeks minimum to allow progression in your plan, and 6 weeks maximum to mitigate both adaptation and boredom! You want to ensure each training phase carries on from the next to ensure progressive overload; but, this doesn't necessarily just mean MORE sets, or MORE reps, or MORE load. You can progress in countless ways! We work between two phases in our periodisation plans with ourselves and our clients:

Accumulation phase: stimulates metabolic adaptations (ideal for fat loss and hypertrophy)

Intensification phase: stimulates neurological adaptations (ideal for strength and hypertrophy)

The rep ranges and types of training programs you use each phase, will depend on your chosen periodisation plan. Again, there are many different periodisation models that can be used for training programming. Some of these include: Linear: Start with higher volume and build into higher intensity. This will mean starting with higher rep programs and decreasing reps, while increasing load to end on strength focused training.

Reverse linear: The opposite of linear. Start with higher intensity and finish with volume. This is idea for fat loss or the final phases of competition prep! You will start with lower rep, heavier load programs and build to higher rep, lower load training. Conjugate: works different strength qualities in the same week. This is ideal for athletes, intermediate to advanced individuals. DUP (daily undulating periodisation) is used to target all strength qualities or a range of strength qualities. For example, a heavy lifting day, a moderate day and then a light circuit day. This style of training facilitates adaptations around body recomposition (fat loss and muscle building consecutively).

Undulating: (undulating between intensification and accumulation) ideal for females to work with the menstrual cycle as you can plan each phase to optimise strength vs fat loss. This will also be suited for more intermediate to advanced clients and long-term periodisation as you are able to work both strength and fat loss or metabolic pathways, over a longer period of time for each.

Concurrent: one phase builds onto the next: For example: 5x5 into 5x6-8 into heavy light into 6-12-25. All of these programs carry over and each phase increases overall.

SO! If you are wanting to start a fat loss journey over the course of 12 weeks: a reverse linear program with 3 x 4 week phases will work perfectly! You can ensure each 4 week phase increases volume as you go for progressive overload.

If the goal is competition prep over the course of 9 months, you would break this down into three blocks, and 9 phases. So, you may start with strength building for three phases using a linear periodisation. Then, you may move into undulating to maximise muscle building for 4 phases, and finish with a 2 phase fat loss program using reverse linear to increase volume into stage and optimise your cut! Knowing your destination, is the first step! So, start writing down where you want to go - and how you are going to get there ;)