Block 9 – Strength Development 2

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If you haven’t already please go back and read over the explanation of block 8 as a lot of the concepts are covered more in detail in that post and I will not be retreading old ground in the explanation of this block of training.

Block 9 is a continuation of block 8 with an intensification on the rep ranges. You will be using the same basic layout

Session 1 – Squat and bench

Session 2 – Deadlift and bench assistance

Session 3 – Squat assistance and bench

Session 4 – Deadlift assistance and bench assistance.

The microcycle (week of training) will remain the same through the whole block (4 weeks) of training with the only change being a suggested increase in the load being used from week to week. We are recommending that you try and add 2.5% every week to your top sets and down sets. This can be rounded up or down to your nearest whole plate. To try and cover the most amount of people’s situations we will be rounding up using 2.5kg or 2.5lb increments.

If you enter your heaviest top sets for each lift in the sheet above where it asks for your heaviest set from the past 6 weeks in the sheet above then the spreadsheet will suggest loads for each week.

As in the previous block of training (block 8) we are suggesting that you try and peg the load to the suggested RPE. You can use the modified RPE chart below to try and find the correct weight or intensity for the suggested rep range and RPE (rate of perceived exertion).

The Program

4 days a week.
2x squat days
2x deadlift days
4x pressing days
Core and back assistance
A moderate volume of work
A linear increase in intensity week to week
RPE suggested allowing autoregulation (the program will change work out to work out based off how you are progressing).
Competition specific variations and change to different variation from pause variations to try and stop stagnation from the last block of training. As before more variety in pressing to reflect the higher frequency of work.

Volume and intensity

Week	1	2	3	4
Total Lifts	256	256	256	256
Average Intensity	74%	77%	79%	82%

As discussed in the post from block 8 the idea of the block is to expose the lifter to the same stimulus in terms of exercise selection, frequency, volume, reps, exercise order, etc. To see how they respond. The only variation should come in terms of the load as the lifter adapts to the workouts, gets stronger and requires an increase in the load to keep the RPE the same.