It’s always important to have a relatively drawn-out plan
whenever you train. This is known as periodization, which, simply put, means a
planned training schedule for a period of time. This block of time can be
broken down into micro, meso, and macro cycles. By definition micro, meso, and
macro cycles are:
Micro Cycle: A period of a training block spanning 7-14
days.
Meso Cycle: A period of a training block spanning 2 weeks –
months.
Macro Cycle: An entire training block, which can span from
months to years.
Years may sound like a long period of time for which to plan
a training schedule, but think about Olympic athletes, who spend 4 years
preparing for one event. On the smaller macro cycle end, think about someone
trying to shed some pounds for beach season or trying to lose some weight for
their upcoming wedding. Micro, meso, and macro cycles are just fancy ways of
saying that your program is set up into different blocks and that you have a
planned out program to achieve the goal that you have in mind.
Depending on your end goal, these cycles will be made up of different
training modalities within the time frame of the specified cycle. I’ve touched
on different training modalities in the article You Can’t Beat Physiology.
There is no set specific length of time each cycle needs to be, but having a
systematic process to achieve the goal makes everything a little easier. You
can plan your cycles however you’d like which adds some depth, uniqueness, and
variety to your program. Here are a couple examples of how these cycles work:
1. Powerlifting
For the sake of this example, let’s assume that the lifter
is trying to put on a little size and improve his bench and deadlift numbers
for a meet that is a year away.
Macrocycle – 12 months leading up to a competition
Mesocycle 1 – offseason 2-month block, working on recovery
and maintaining general conditioning
Microcycle 1.0 – 7-day off period
to let the body recover from pervious meet, walking 2 miles a day outside
Microcycle 1.1 – 7-day cycle
consisting of light dumbbell (DB) and body weight (BW) exercises to get blood
moving throughout the body and into the muscles
Microcycle 1.2 – 7-day cycle
(repeated for 4 weeks), only performing moderate DB exercises and BW exercises
Microcycle 1.3 – 7-day cycle
(repeated for 2 weeks), performing moderate to heavy DB and BW exercises
Mesocycle 2 – Mass Accumulation/Bulking (4 months)
Microcycle 2.0 – 7-day cycle
(repeated for 15 weeks), consisting of a max effort upper and lower day and
dynamic effort upper and lower day (4 days), 2 recovery training sessions, and
1 rest day, while in a calorie surplus
Microcycle 2.1 – 7-day cycle,
deload/recovery week
Mesocycle 3 – Improving peak strength for bench press (2
months)
Microcycle 3.0 – 7-day cycle
(repeated for 7 weeks), consisting of a max effort upper and lower day and
dynamic effort upper and lower day (4 days), 1 repetition upper day,1 recovery
training session, and 1 rest day
Microcycle 3.1 – 7-day cycle, deload/recovery
week
Mesocycle 4 – Improving peak strength for deadlift (2
months)
Microcycle 4.0 – 7-day cycle
(repeated for 7 weeks), consisting of a max effort upper and lower day and
dynamic effort upper and lower day (4 days), 1 repetition method hip hinge pattern
day, 1 recovery training session, and 1 rest day
Microcycle 4.1 – 7-day cycle,
deload/recovery week
Mesocycle 5 – Peaking/Cutting Weight Leading up to the Meet
(2 months)
Microcycle 5.0 – 7-day cycle
(repeated for 7 weeks), consisting of a max effort upper and lower day and
dynamic effort upper and lower day (4 days), 2 recovery training sessions, and
1 rest day. During this phase lifter will be in a 250 calorie/day deficit to
improve body composition.
Microcycle 5.1 – 6-day cycle,
consisting of light DB/body weight exercises and recovery work to keep the body
moving and prepped for meet day
Meet Day – including weigh in, increased food consumption,
and performance of squat, bench, and deadlift
This is a general template and just one example of how to program
for a powerlifting meet. There are also many different ways to go about doing
so. Within the actual training days, there is your exercise selection and
training modalities to get the result you want.
This approach can also be used with non-performance based goals-for
example, someone wishing to lose a few pounds for their upcoming wedding or
beach season. This can even be a simpler program than the above example.
2. Getting ready for a wedding/beach season
Macrocycle – 12 weeks
Mesocycle 1 – Improve General physical preparedness (GPP) to
Increase Metabolism
Microcycle 1.0 – 4 weeks, calorie
intake stays consistent, performs high intensity interval training (HIIT)
targeting all major movement patterns within an exercise session x3 days/week,
performs 2 interval training days/week, and 2 off/recovery days
Mesocycle 2 –
Microcycle 2.0 – 2 weeks, deficit calorie intake of 200-300
calories/day from starting calorie intake, performs high intensity interval
training (HIIT) targeting all major movement patterns within an exercise
session x3 days/week, performs 2 interval training days/week, and 2
off/recovery days
Microcycle 2.1 – 2 weeks, deficit calorie intake of 200-300
calories/day from previous 2 week calorie intake, performs high intensity
interval training (HIIT) targeting all major movement patterns within an
exercise session x3 days/week, performs 2 interval training days/week, and 2
off/recovery days
Microcycle 2.2 – 2 weeks, deficit calorie intake of 100-200
calories/day from previous 2 week calorie intake, performs high intensity
interval training (HIIT) targeting all major movement patterns within an
exercise session x3 days/week, performs 2 interval training days/week, and 2
off/recovery days
Microcycle 2.3 – 2 weeks, deficit calorie intake of 100-200
calories/day from previous 2 week calorie intake, performs high intensity
interval training (HIIT) targeting all major movement patterns within an
exercise session x3 days/week, performs 2 interval training days/week, and 2
off/recovery days
Wedding Day or Beach Season
Whatever you goal
may be, this form of breaking it down into manageable steps and having a plan
can always be applied. It can be lengthier and complex, like the one in the
powerlifting meet example, or more simplified, like with the example trying to
shed a few pounds. Having a general written out template is helpful for seeing
the starting point and to get to where you want to go. I believe it is
important to plan out your training, even if your goal is simply to maintain
your fitness level.
If you have any questions about programming or this type of
program setup, leave a comment or email me at the address below.
Hope you enjoyed this article,
Ryan Goodell, CSCS
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