The training system
A block you can read, a load you can defend.
The product is the system, not a playlist of sessions. Testing sets the starting loads. A written block names the work for twelve weeks. Logging decides the next kilogram. Retest closes the loop. This page is the specification.
Loop
Four stages, then the same four again
← results feed the next block
Nothing in the loop is optional. A person who wants to skip the test does not start. A person who will not log sets is moved to Open Floor only after the first block, and even then the sheet still exists. The retest is booked at the same time as the first session of the block, so it is not “when we get round to it”.
Week 4 and week 8 are deloads. Volume is cut about 40%. Intensity is held or dropped 5%. They are trained sessions. They are not holidays. The point is to keep the next four weeks repeatable.
Prescription
How a working set is named
Every main lift on the sheet has four fields: load in kilograms, repetitions, target RPE, and rest in seconds. We do not write “3 sets of 5, go heavy”. Estimated 1-repetition maximum (e1RM) is calculated from the baseline and updated only at retest, not mid-block, unless two consecutive sessions miss reps.
| Zone | RPE | % e1RM | Use |
|---|---|---|---|
| Skill | 5–6 | 50–65% | Primer, new pattern, deload technique work |
| Work | 7–8 | 70–80% | Main sets in accumulation weeks |
| Peak | 8.5–9 | 82–90% | Late block, tested lifts only |
| Test | as prescribed | — | Baseline and week-12 battery. Not used in ordinary sessions. |
RPE is a 1–10 scale written after the set, not before it. If the written RPE and the performed RPE disagree by two points for two sessions, the load rule for that lift is frozen until the next deload review.
If → then
Load rules
These rules are the same for Base Strength, Desk Reset, Hybrid 12, and Open Floor. Return-to-Load uses smaller increments and a pain-stop rule that overrides everything else. Conditioning Engine uses time and watt or pace targets instead of kilograms on the engine piece; the strength piece still follows this table.
If
All reps are completed and last-set RPE is ≤ 7.
Then
Add 2.5 kg next session on that lift (1.25 kg on upper-body lifts under 40 kg).
If
Reps are completed and last-set RPE is 7.5–8.5.
Then
Keep the load. Repeat it until RPE falls to 7.
If
A rep is missed, or last-set RPE is 9–10.
Then
Keep the load. Do not add. Log the miss.
If
Two consecutive sessions miss reps on the same lift.
Then
Drop 5–10% and flag the lift for rewrite at the next deload.
If
Sleep was under 5 hours, or you are ill, or a joint pain is sharp.
Then
Cut volume 40% or skip the lift. Do not “push through” a joint.
If
It is week 4 or week 8.
Then
Volume −40%. Intensity held or −5%. Still log every set.
Week shape
How the week is split
Most tracks use two or three studio sessions. A fourth session, if it exists, is a written engine piece at home or outdoors and is still logged. The letters A, B and C are patterns, not days of the week. You book the slots that fit; the sheet does not care whether A happens on Monday.
| Day | Main | Secondary | Engine |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | Squat pattern | Upper press + trunk | None, or 6 min easy |
| B | Hinge | Upper pull | 12–18 min prescribed |
| C | Single-leg or overhead | Arms / upper back | Mixed conditioner 8–12 min |
Two-day tracks drop C and trim the engine on B. Hybrid 12 keeps all three days because the run volume sits outside the hour and must be protected by a full strength week. Return-to-Load is two 1-to-1 sessions; the letters still exist, but the loads are smaller and the stop rules are tighter.
Paper
What the written block contains
A block is a stapled pack, not a chat message. Page one is the calendar: session letters, deload weeks, and the retest date. Pages two to four are the templates for A, B and C with empty log rows. The last page is the stop list: pain rules, illness rules, and the two numbers from baseline that we will compare at week 12.
Loads for week 1 are filled in after the assessment, not before. Mid-block changes happen only at deload reviews, except for the miss-twice rule. We do not rewrite a whole block because a single session felt hard.
You may photograph the sheet. You may not train from a remembered version of it. If the paper is missing at the rack, we print another copy from the file. The file is the source.
Retest
The loop closes on the same tests
The retest is not a new invention. It is the baseline battery, in the same order, with the same warm-up, on a booked slot in week 12 (or week 8 on the shorter tracks). We compare kilograms, repetitions, time, and any left–right gap we recorded. We do not add a “how did you feel about the block” score to the report.
If a number moved and the log is clean, the next block starts higher. If a number did not move, we change the dose — frequency, volume, or exercise selection — not the slogan. Details of the battery itself sit on the assessment page.