De-Load, the Overlooked Technique

[Elite2010]

i de-loaded this week, well boring lol

[Danger92]

Gonna give this a shot tommarow in the past i would say im spent im gonna take a week off i would take 1 workout off feel like a lazy bum then get right back to it but this will atleast get me in the gym

[BEhave]

Good thing this is stickied

[punxnotdead309]

I never put de-loading into consideration. I went 8 months full out without a break (no wonder I got injured), so I'll be sure to follow this when I return

[older1]

I usually switch up my routine a bit every 6 weeks. I usually take 4 days off before starting the new routine. Is this long enough of a de-load or should it be a full week?

[VoxExMachina]

I usually switch up my routine a bit every 6 weeks. I usually take 4 days off before starting the new routine. Is this long enough of a de-load or should it be a full week?

It depends on many factors, such as the intensity at which you are training, the frequency you train each body part, etc. That said, taking a full week instead of only 4 days is probably a smart move if you're only doing it every 6 weeks.

[older1]

It depends on many factors, such as the intensity at which you are training, the frequency you train each body part, etc. That said, taking a full week instead of only 4 days is probably a smart move if you're only doing it every 6 weeks.

ok,thanks for info.

[BelgianBillie]

Hey,

I was wondering, if you do a deload week, after that week, what happens? Do you just continue doing the weights and reps you did in the workout before the deload week? Or do you start at a lower weight and build up again? How much lower would you have to start percentage wise you think? I am afraid that afte rthe deload week i will not know what weight to start at and ruin a couple of workouts. Since i do 3 full body workouts with different intensities and exercises each workout (per week) I fear i can ruin a couple of weeks of workouts to figure it out.

Also, related, how would one eat during that deload week? Business as usual?

[chazzy1864]

Hey,

I was wondering, if you do a deload week, after that week, what happens? Do you just continue doing the weights and reps you did in the workout before the deload week? Or do you start at a lower weight and build up again? How much lower would you have to start percentage wise you think? I am afraid that afte rthe deload week i will not know what weight to start at and ruin a couple of workouts. Since i do 3 full body workouts with different intensities and exercises each workout (per week) I fear i can ruin a couple of weeks of workouts to figure it out.

Also, related, how would one eat during that deload week? Business as usual?

Start back over where you left off. ON a side note, you'll probably find that you come back a little stronger, since you let your body recuperated.

Eating is your call. Depends on how you want to do it. I would probably reduce calories a little bit to minimize fat gain, but not much. Deloading is a time for your body to fully repair itself and get the rest it needs.

[Topcat1990]

I have only be training for 4 weeks, started squatting at 40kg bumped it up to 80kg so far ( started a tad low), last time I did the squats (80kg) I felt a deep pain, not intense, but uncomfortable and strange in my leg/hip joint, possibly tendons.. anyway I want to keep progressing in my press (which ive stalled on constantly) and rows etc, but also want to deload, should I deload squats/Deads only,or everything?

help appreciated.

[jimmykim100]

I'm eating and sleeping right with no injuries. However, my upper body strength regressed (decreased push-up maximums and bench press) despite the fact that my legs' strength are increasing. So should I deload only upper body part or whole body?

[VoxExMachina]

I have only be training for 4 weeks, started squatting at 40kg bumped it up to 80kg so far ( started a tad low), last time I did the squats (80kg) I felt a deep pain, not intense, but uncomfortable and strange in my leg/hip joint, possibly tendons.. anyway I want to keep progressing in my press (which ive stalled on constantly) and rows etc, but also want to deload, should I deload squats/Deads only,or everything?

help appreciated.

If you are having a specific issue with an overworked or injured muscle, tendon, etc. then treat it as you would any injury and lay off any exercises which aggravate it. Although you may be then working at a lighter weight for that body part, it's not really "de-loading" in the sense of this thread.

In your particular case it may be a matter of simply pressing too hard, too fast. You should probably bump your weight down a bit on squats, or drop the frequency at which you are doing them. It's unlikely you need a full-body de-load after only 4 weeks.

I'm eating and sleeping right with no injuries. However, my upper body strength regressed (decreased push-up maximums and bench press) despite the fact that my legs' strength are increasing. So should I deload only upper body part or whole body?

Since part of the reason for a de-load is to allow your central nervous system (CNS) to recover, then I suggest de-loading the entire body at once for a week or so every so often.

However, it's normal for some of your lifts to increase at a greater rate than others. A sign a de-load is in order is if the majority of your lifts are beginning to suffer.

[Nikhiln25]

This is a great post and I actually learned a lot from this. I'm still however fairly new to training so I don't think I will need to de-load for another month or two

[Macrobolic]

Wow, just saw this stickie and thank goodness someone posted it. Very important, yet often overlooked part of lifting. OP=repped.

[thundercrack]

wow never ever heard of deloading, very useful cheers

[Ryanmckd]

Question, after deload should you go straight back to as heavy as you were going before or work your way up?

[Koaia]

I'm deloading this week. I'm 10 weeks into my second cycle of the Madcow's intermediate 5x5. I'm experimenting with halving the volume and keeping the intensity high by doing triples for the first four sets and doing a single for the top set.

Squat 5x5 ramped to 290 = 5425.
* Deload: all triples but single on top set = 2675

Bench 5x5 ramped to 250 = 4675.
* Deload: all triples but single on top set = 2305

Row 5x5 ramped to 220 = 4100.
* Deload: all triples but single on top set = 2020

[VoxExMachina]

Question, after deload should you go straight back to as heavy as you were going before or work your way up?

Your first workout after a deload should be the same as you would have done if you hadn't de-loaded. So yes, as heavy as you were lifting before the de-load.

Often, you come back stronger after a de-load and many PR's are set here. For some, however, it takes a few workouts to get back into the groove. Either way, it's all good. Your tendons, joints, and CNS need periodic rest.

[Rennpferd]

Great post. My best experience has been to take an off week at irregular intervals; to surprise my system with rest.

[amplitude486]

Is taking a week off completely more effective than taking a deload week? I mean, you would still be going through the motions and stressing your muscles/joints...

[Deesensee09]

im fairly new and this post was really informative. thanks!

[tyltong123]

Introduction:

There are countless posts on the best way to train biceps, the optimum split for getting huge, how to bench press properly, or any of a million other questions on how to become bigger, leaner, or break through plateaus.

But one technique that helps achieve all of these goals is very seldom discussed: De-Loading. A de-load is a planned reduction in volume or intensity (usually for one week, or one cycle of your training split), whose purpose is to allow the body to dissipate accumulated fatigue, allow you to fully recover, and prepare you for further gains. Also, remember that weight training does not just tax your muscles. It also puts stress on your joints, ligaments, connective tissues, and central nervous system.


Why should you De-Load:

• To allow your joints, tendons, ligaments, and other supporting tissues to repair.

• To allow your central nervous system (CNS) to recover

• To give yourself a mental break from the intensity of heavy lifting

• To reduce the risk of under-recovery (overtraining)

• To prepare you for greater gains

Experienced lifters know that you can't go 100% all out in the gym all the time. Your body can't take it, and you can't keep up that mental intensity forever. If you try to, you often wind up getting injured, start just "going through the motions" in your workouts, stall out in your progression, and perhaps even give up completely.

If you de-load at regular intervals, you will find that over time you will make better progress, reduce your injuries, and keep yourself in the game mentally.


When to De-Load:

This depends on your experience & intensity level, your age & recovery ability, the program you are following, and many other factors. If you are new to lifting, you lack the ability to overtax your CNS, muscles, and connective tissues as much as a very experienced lifter, so you may only need to deload once every couple of months. If you are older and have a reduced ability to recover from weight training, then you may need to deload as often as every couple of weeks. In general, you need to set your frequency of deloading according to how hard you train and how quickly you recover. Somewhere in the range of every 4-8 weeks will work well for most people.

Signs that a de-load may be in order:

• You feel tired, persistently fatigued, have a decreased desire to train, or other symptoms of under-recovery (overtraining).

• Your weight progression is stalling and you can't seem to increase most lifts

• You are experiencing aches, sprains, tendinitis, etc.

• You train regularly

Note that last point again: If you train regularly, then you should de-load regularly as well. In fact, a regularly scheduled de-load should come before you start exhibiting any of these symptoms.


How to De-Load:

A de-load is a planned reduction in either volume or intensity, usually a week long (or one training cycle of your split). How you do it is up to you. The main thing is to back off your total effort to about 50-60% of what you would do during a normal training week. A few examples of how to train during a de-load week:

• Do your normal routine and normal volume (sets & reps) but reduce the weight you use to about 50-60% of what you normally work out with for each exercise.

• Use the same weight as you normally would, but drop your number of total volume (sets x reps) to 50-60% of your normal volume. (Note that you should stick to an 8+ rep scheme here.)

• Train muscle groups that normally don't get a lot of attention

• Use light weight and focus on refining your form and technique

• Decrease your lifting and increase your cardio

... or any combination of the above. The main thing is to make sure that at the end of the workout you still have a decent amount of "gas in the tank". Personally, I prefer to de-load by dropping my weights to 50-60% of what I normally use, stick with the same volume, and focus on refining my form, technique, and mind-muscle connection.

If you want, you can even just take a week off entirely. If you know you are going to be on vacation, for example, just plan your training around it so that you can use that time as a de-load period. You'll be training smart and not feel the need to try to find some way to work out when the rest of your family is relaxing.


Summary:

The goal of a de-load is to allow you to become stronger, faster, and bigger, by incorporating a planned "active recovery" phase into your normal workout program. If you do it correctly, you should be able to make more gains that you would without de-loading, reduce your risk of injury, give yourself a mental break, preemptively address hidden recovery issues.

.

I don't know if i'm doing it correctly. I normally go real heavy and do 6-10 reps for depending on what i'm doing but once every 3 weeks i would go light and do 12-15 reps and really concentrate on squeezing the living hell out of my muscles. is that considered deloading or should i take it easy once in awhile

[chazzy1864]

I don't know if i'm doing it correctly. I normally go real heavy and do 6-10 reps for depending on what i'm doing but once every 3 weeks i would go light and do 12-15 reps and really concentrate on squeezing the living hell out of my muscles. is that considered deloading or should i take it easy once in awhile

No.
Deloading is doing the same routine you normally would, and halve your weight, but do the same reps.

or you can halve your reps with the same weight.

Or you can keep your weight and reps, but halve your sets.

[mlapid]

good write up! thanks!

[USMCxJ]

good on you OP for spreading knowledge!

but let's acknowledge and thank the origin of this knowledge..

the powerlifters/strongmen/other str athletes..

[blonger710]

Wow, great work... I think the first one is the best one
It is a little less "oblivius" in my opinion... But still, nice work mayn!

[W1LL]

I think guys should keep in mind that deloading is a planned event. not a "oh i feel more sore than usual so i'll lift less or not at all this week" ... event.

yes being more sore than usual is a sign that you're overdue for a deload, but it is primarily used in powerlifting and olympic lifting circles where the lifters can easily have an idea of their workout a month from the time they do it. they lift weekly in micro cycles. a super basic cycle is 3 weeks of progressive volume or intensity followed by a week of deloading where you lift less weight than usual.

the reason why this is primary in powerlifting and olympic lifting is because those guys damn near breath, eat, and sleep out of their log book. bodybuilding these days has become such a "feel" form of weight lifting. I feel great today so i'm gonna do 8 sets of squats, I feel soso today so i'm only gonna do 4 sets today. total up the volume of each workout you could have 3300lbs one day and 8000lbs the next. figure out a whole year of that up and down way of lifting, draw a line down the middle and you'll see a flatline of progression. guaranty this will not happen if you log your volume for 3 weeks, pull back slightly the 4th, then continue going forward in progression. just think about it.

[xdominic]

thanks for the de-load post!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Topcat1990 View Post
I have only be training for 4 weeks, started squatting at 40kg bumped it up to 80kg so far ( started a tad low), last time I did the squats (80kg) I felt a deep pain, not intense, but uncomfortable and strange in my leg/hip joint, possibly tendons.. anyway I want to keep progressing in my press (which ive stalled on constantly) and rows etc, but also want to deload, should I deload squats/Deads only,or everything?

help appreciated.
If you are having a specific issue with an overworked or injured muscle, tendon, etc. then treat it as you would any injury and lay off any exercises which aggravate it. Although you may be then working at a lighter weight for that body part, it's not really "de-loading" in the sense of this thread.

In your particular case it may be a matter of simply pressing too hard, too fast. You should probably bump your weight down a bit on squats, or drop the frequency at which you are doing them. It's unlikely you need a full-body de-load after only 4 weeks.

I think he is right amount "too much, too fast."

I'd play close attention to your form on your Deads and Squats if you're new to training and you're getting "deep, leg+hip pain." Make sure your hips and back are lined up properly, keep your core muscles tight through out the whole motion.

also make sure to do ample amounts of stretching for your hip flexors, low back, gluts and hamgstrings. Researching physical therapy regimens helped me find good stretches for after your workout.

I've been lifting a long time, but I've recently had some serious issues with tendonitis/bursitis in my hips and pelvis - while mainly from the job/sports I participate in, my therapist and i have found that i had been doing some really little wrongs during my training that really exacerbated my existing injury.

[clubxi710]

hello all,
i am susan here, i am newbie here, it is really great post, i came to hi say hi all keep posting.
thanks a lot

[mathcirca]

Helpfull, thanks.