Trying to Make Sense of it All

Research

Being a student and constantly searching for information I knew that resources were endless but I had no idea the scale to which people have been posting fitness content. I have been having trouble finding what is accredited and what is BS. On top of that everyone is different and what works amazingly for one person may not have the same results for another.

I am a big believer in practicing what you preach and I have not had nearly enough time to practice all the information I have been finding. I plan to slowly try out different ideas and make my own personal assessments. That being said I have found some resources that I think are worth while to test out which is half the battle. 

This generation loves their quick information. Google and social media are at the tips of our fingers and all the information is right there. This being said it is important to choose what you digest and are always critically thinking. One form of social media that I have been hooked on lately is Tik Tok. They are great for wasting time but there are some amazing content creators that provide easy to digest information and are seeking to improve others. My page is filled with physiques, lifting, and coaching which are constantly trying to push the next best thing or the tried and true ways of training.

Here is a short list of content creators that I feel are exemplary

Squat University

Red Performance

JPG Coaching

Peaking

Looking more closely at powerlifting especially as I begin prep for a meet in April I have been very curious about how to effectively Peak. I want to get the absolute most out of each of my big 3 lifts on competition day and have had my coach do the programming the last couple times. I have not quite wrapped my head fully around what peaking entails. 

What I knew initially was that I had to prepare my nervous system for maximal load and begin to slowly ramp up the intensity. It is no longer a strength focus but to output as much force as quickly as possible. Most of the programming begins to drop reps down to below 4 reps and increase the load based on the percent of 1 rep max. The goal tends to be practice singles often and have the body adapt. This being said it is ideal to do this once per week for each lift and keep the supplementary work load at a moderate to low intensity. All of the focus and resources should be put on the singles and recovery.  

The one thing that I am unsure of no matter how much I look at resources is what is the optimal length of a preparation. Some prep for 12 weeks while others see a 6 week prep period. I have a feeling that it is sub optimal to prep for less that 6 weeks because the body needs time to adapt. 

The one common thing between almost every resource I have found is that there is a deload period 4-7 days before meet or singles. The week prior to there is a work up to a top single for each of the lifts on separate days going to nearly maximal effort. This seems to be to allow the body to have adequate time to recover and expose the body to the top end of stimulus that it will see during the singles.

I certainly have a lot more research to do.

In the mean time here is an example of a peaking program I was able to find

Cast Iron Strength 12 Week Peak Program

Personal Update

Throwing a small change up and decided to touch on my own personal training to give some context to my own training and personal passion.

I am currently in my first week of meet prep for a competition coming up in April. I now have singles programmed at a low RPE to get use to warming up to a single and begin working on all the meet commands. For context there are commands at powerlifting competitions to make lifts successful. There are 3 judges and everything is standardized to ensure that lifts are legitimate. I have been working with a physiotherapist on top of my powerlifting coach to work on stability as much if not more than strength for the last couple months to ensure that my body is in a good place to being increasing intensity.

Any time intensity is increased there is a heightened change for injury. This being said it is my passion and I want to perform the best I can. It is important to listen to your body and seek out additional support when needed.

I will continue with little updates as we approach the meet date!