Making a Plan - Micro, Meso, and Macro Cycles

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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How the Aerobic System Aids in Recovery

People who lift regularly often fall into a rhythm, only performing strength exercises and weight training. This rhythm can hinder progress for a variety of reasons. One reason is that you will have an underdeveloped aerobic system in relation to your other athletic/performance attributes. What many often don’t realize is that having a good aerobic system aids in the recovery process between bouts of weight training over long periods of time. 

Here is an interesting way to think about the process: when we train, we create micro damage to our muscles. Technically speaking, each time you train you are damaging your body a small amount. This sounds somewhat sadistic, depending on how you think about it. People willingly damage their muscles a little bit in order to reap the benefits of the body’s adaptation to this damage.

Now, cue your recovery system. A large component of your body’s recovery system relies on its ability to get blood flow to the area of need, the damaged muscle. Those who train via weightlifting often have a bit of muscle tissue. Lifting weights is, by nature, an anaerobic activity. Therefore, you do not get the nice effects of angiogenesis (blood vessel growth) that you would get from training aerobically. This results in the creation of muscle that is relatively anaerobic in nature, but very strong and powerful. All muscles, however, need to recover. Muscles get what they need for recovery through blood flow that carries nutrient building blocks to repair damage done to the system. I’m not saying you need to turn into a cardio bunny, but adding an aerobic conditioning component to your training regimen would be a good idea.

Some aerobic activities include:

Walking up an incline on a treadmill

Running

Interval training

Riding a bike

Hiking

Playing a game of basketball

…And many more

All of these activities have one thing in common: they elevate your heart rate for an extended period of time. This kind of activity taps into your aerobic system and causes your body to adapt. One of these adaptions is increased blood flow, mediated through angiogenesis. Once you tap into this process your muscles will be getting adequate blood flow to recover more optimally between sets and between bouts of strength training. The better you can recover, the harder you’ll be able to train. 

Even if you are a strength athlete-a powerlifter, for example-you can benefit from aerobic training. You probably won’t need to be going for long runs, which could encroach on some of your strength gains, but a lower intensity activity such as walking on an inclined treadmill will achieve the desired effect. This lower intensity aerobic work will then give you the ability to hit the weights hard on the next training day.

 I like to get my heart rate to sit between 120-140 generally when doing my aerobic work. If you’re not that strict about your training, just get your heart rate elevated for 20-30 minutes while performing an aerobic activity. Recover better, train smarter, and do some aerobic work every once and a while.

Ryan Goodell, CSCS

For consultation/personal training/coaching inquiries email: ryangoodell@weightsandstuff.com

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2 Myths, the Truth, and How to Deal with Muscle Soreness

If you’re training hard, starting a lifting regimen, or performing an activity that you haven’t in years (running, for example), you will more than likely encounter some muscle soreness. This soreness is referred to in the nerdy science community as delayed onset of muscle soreness, or “DOMS” for short. I often hear misconceptions about what DOMS is and what should be done about it. Let’s address these by going over some commonly believed myths.

Myth #1: Muscle soreness is caused by a buildup of lactic acid in your muscles.

This is one of the most common misunderstandings about DOMS that I hear. While lactic acid does build up in your muscles during physical activity, it clears out of your muscles in a matter of seconds to minutes. Lactic acid is used by your muscles to regulate contraction, and will start to shut down the muscle when it begins to accumulate. This safety mechanism-called a lactate threshold-protects your muscles from overexertion, preventing you from getting to the point where you will injure yourself. The lactate threshold is the point at which your body cannot clear the lactic acid as fast as it is being produced and it begins to build up. Fortunately this threshold can be adjusted with training, giving you the ability to perform exercises at a higher intensity for a longer duration of time.

Myth #2: If you’re sore you should rest and not move. 

I’ll keep this one simple and say this is the exact opposite of what you want to do. More on this below.

So what is the truth about DOMS?

DOMS really just refers to micro tears in the muscles themselves. That soreness you are feeling is legitimately damage to the muscle, which makes you feel achy and sore. Here’s where it gets interesting: Even though there is micro structural damage to the area, it’s not necessarily a bad thing. It just depends on what you do and how you treat it, so here are some rules when dealing with muscle soreness…

Rule #1: DON’T TAKE ANTI-INFLAMATORIES! 

Having micro tears in your muscles causes an inflammatory response. Here’s the catch though: this inflammatory response is a GOOD thing, so don’t interrupt it by taking anti-inflammatories. Inflammation is part of the natural healing process, which progresses from inflammation to proliferation to remodeling. I won’t get too much into that process because then we’d be going down the rabbit hole of details. All you need to know is that you can’t skip over that step and expect your body to do what it needs to do. 

*Note: This is for general muscle soreness and not any other medical conditions that may include injury.

If you shouldn’t take anti-inflammatories, then what should you do?

Rule #2: Keep moving!

 MOVE, MOVE, MOVE! You need to get blood flow to the muscles that need to repair themselves! Sitting around on your bum isn’t going to help you here, nor will it help you out in many other circumstances. Get up and take action. 

Moving around drives blood flow to the area in need of repair. My favorite way to explain this is to imagine that you are trying to repair a building. The building needs materials to be repaired, so a delivery truck needs to bring some materials. The delivery truck is your blood, the materials are all the nutrients that you are eating, and the building is your muscles. The only way to get the blood/trucks to the building is to get the blood moving. How do you get the blood moving? Move around, walk, perform light activity…anything that gets the heart rate up a little bit and gets the blood pumping throughout your body. The muscles will begin to heat up, loosen, and blood/nutrients will be getting to the area to help repair and recover your precious muscle, making them grow and become stronger than before. 

Rule #3: Don’t over-train! 

If you’re already sore, don’t try and continue to train the next day and compound on the soreness for those muscle groups. You will not give your body enough time to repair and you will be digging yourself into a hole that is increasingly harder to get out of. Having better recovery practices, which I have talked about in Do You Have Good Recovery Practices, will help you more efficiently bounce back between bouts of training. The more experienced and well-trained you are, the better your body will be able to repair, adjust, and adapt to the training load you place on it. This is why training sessions get progressively harder over time and your workload can increase. However, ramping up your workload and increasing your ability to recover between bouts of training takes time. Don’t rush it; it all comes with time and proper training programs.

I hope that this has been informative and has helped you better understand the reasons behind DOMS and how to combat it. I’d love some feedback, so if you could leave a comment about what you think about the article it would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Ryan Goodell, CSCS

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