Deload Paradigms

[RapidFail]

I'd be interested to hear how people here approach deloading.

Personally I'm a fan of a 4:1 ratio - 4 weeks of hard training, followed by a deload week, where I usually do the same number of workouts (usually 4) but each lasts around 30 minutes instead of the usual 60. I tend to do the same number of exercises, but for 2 sets each instead of 3-5 and I try to stay at least 5 RIR for all sets for compound exercises, although I still usually take isolation lifts close to failure. I tend to use a combination of less reps and around 10% less load.

I've followed programs with a 3:1 ratio before but found this was overkill - I wasn't training hard enough to warrant a recovery week every 4th week. I've been doing the 4:1 ratio for over 2 years now. I've sometimes planned to go for a longer mesocycle, but generally find that fatigue catches up from me and I'm both physically and mentally ready for a break after 4 weeks of hard training.

I don't think I'd need to deload as often if I were younger (I'm 38) and if I didn't have such a physical job (I average 9-14k steps per day and sometimes have to do relatively heavy lifting).

[TAWS6]

6 weeks on
4-5 days off

I could probably go 12 weeks without needing a de load but the less I’m in the gym now the better

[MyEgoProblem]

Week 5 is always a down week for me.
So i pivot. Change movements, change reps and drop intensity.

Then back to another setup.

[BeginnerGainz]

Doesn’t matter.

Take a break when you feel like you need it. Or at least take your foot off the gas a little if you’re feeling a little beat up.

[air2fakie]

I skip workouts occasionally when I have stuff to do, or am away from home, etc. No paradigm necessary.

[TolerantLactose]

If you're training for strength, you might need a deload when you've deliberately peaked to a max out (not necessary 1rm attempts).

[CW47]

I initially was deloading every fourth week. Then moved to every seventh week. Even at that point I really didn't feel I needed it a lot of the time, and at other times I needed a break earlier.

So now I don't ever do planned deloads. I take rest days when I feel like I need them or adjust my programming volume very slightly to allow for better recovery.

Sometimes it's actually a good thing to accumulate fatigue. Stopping that from happening by arbitrarily taking deloads at set intervals can be counterproductive.

Of course, those with a LOT of experience will likely be able to do planned deloads because they're very tuned into how their body reacts to training. This really isn't the case for the average lifter though.

[radrd]

I'm in the same boat as others that don't plan deloads. Life stuff comes up often enough that time off happens whether I want it to or not. If I make a major change to my routine, it also often amounts to a deload because I spend a session or two dialing in my working set weights, number of sets, and making sure I've picked the right exercises.

[EliKoehn]

Every two or three months I usually have one week which by coincidence ends up being mostly out of the gym. On those occasions, I usually just capitalize on that as a break and resume normal intensity once the availability returns. I don't know if I can trust feeling too beat up since those perceptions often fall far short of actual redline.

[RapidFail]

As I suspected, it looks like I'm in the minority with my pre-programmed deload. They just seem to work best for me - I'm always hungry for training after a deload week and tend to be pretty over it after the 4th week of hard training.

In answer to the person who asked - I usually go straight back to the weight I ended the previous mesocycle at after a deload week. I also tend to introduce new exercises in my deload week.

Once or twice a year I'll take a week off entirely when I go on holiday with my family. I try to do this after 3-4 weeks of hard training and I'll do a light week to ease my way back, otherwise I end up getting ridiculously sore. Last time I did 3 sets of RDLs with 2-3 RIR straight after a week holiday I ended up with DOMS for 6 days!