If you haven't been getting stronger, here's why. (Beginners Guide)

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I achieved 50kg for 5 reps on weighted pullups, which is around a 60-65kg 1rm on weighted pullup (I also weighted 66kg when I did this). Most people think you get stronger purely by training hard, pushing to failure, leaving 0 RIR, but in my experience that's not the case.

I became a National Level athlete, Varsity Wrestler, but more importantly for this guide, I was able to do 50kg pullups with ease, 90 degree handstand pushups, 50kg dips (3x10), 20kg muscle ups, and so much more cool shit. I've trained for 5+ years, and made some pretty sick fucking progress during that time (I've also helped lots of people which is nice, which is why I'm saying "If you" instead of "How I").

Quick warning, if you do this wrong you'll just waste a ton of time, so please. Listen to this guide, and ask for help if you need it.

ONTO DA GUIIIIIIIIDE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Understanding 💫periodization💫:

If you've been on bodybuilding channels for a long time, you have no idea how literally every other type of fitness trains. It's not your fault, as bodybuilding takes up most of the internet, but please just don't have a crazy ego when I write these things.

PERIODIZATION is as it sounds. Periods, and to get stronger, you need periods of:

HIGH VOLUME, low intensity (I can hear the bodybuilding elitists typing now haha)
LOW VOLUME, HIGH INTENSITY (They're happy again!)

(Note, if you've plateaued and you're doing one or the other, do the other, and you should make good progress (assuming fatigue isn't super high, which is later in this guide)).

"But Brandon! Why do we have to change shit!"

A couple reasons, but you genuinely don't need to know that (haha). Just know that it works really fucking well haha (basically your brain and nervous system gets used to what you're doing, so to get a good stimulus you need to give it something different).

How I go about this:

Volume Phase (High Volume, Low Intensity):

Do higher reps than normal

"But Brandon what does that mean!"

Assuming you want to be GENERALLY strong (so not peak for 1rms, but the same principle applies, just with an extra step called a "peaking phase", which we won't go over here), start with sets of 8-10 for your compound movements, and your isolations can be more customizable.

Lower your intensity

"But Brandon I don't want to be a BIIIIIIIIIIIITCH!!!!"

Well you're in luck! This is the hardest, least enjoyable, most boring, but effective as FUUUUUCK type of training!

I want to beat something DEEP into your skull. More. Is. MOOOOORE.

More volume = learning the movement better, more practice with the movement, more touches, more potential to be strong.

Do this until you stop making progress again, or your progress slows drastically (for beginners, literally forever (basically), for more advanced guys this is usually 4-8 weeks)

DELOAD!!!!

This is where you purposefully reduce training stress because you're fatigued. Fatigue isn't "oh man just push through!", this is where you train so hard and so much that your body physically isn't as strong due to the fatigue. You physically CAN'T push. So you take a break.

Strength Phase:

Do lower reps than normal

"Buuut Braaaaandoooo-"

SHUT THE FUC- 🙂

Again, if you want general strength, doing a rep range like 6-8 (good for volume phase for more advanced guys), or 3-5 (better for getting strong as fuuuuck, but more specific, and less general), is the way to go.

Up intensity

"Let's goooo!"

Calm the fuck down Menzer, you're not going balls to the walls here. The best way to get stronger I've found that RPE 8-9 training (so 8-9/10 intensity, so getting 0-1 RIR in most cases, just not all the way to failure (still useful, especially for more beginners, please go to failure on most sets if you haven't trained for at least 3 years.)

Do this until you stop making progress, then cycle to a volume phase AFTER you deload.

And boom, you just learned what it took me 4 years to learn the basics to in like 3 minutes of reading.

I like doing these guides, because I had to go through so much bullshit, spend so much money, fuckup so much progress, and fall for so many bullshit training scams just to make any kind of decent progress. The thing is, I have shit genetics, shit appetite (not conducive to gaining muscle), so I really did have to do my research like a fucking nerd to learn this shit.

hope it helps :)

Cheers,

Brandon

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