Repeating Weights from 12 to 8 to 4

G

gearlube

New Member
Hi All. I am on my second week now of the 12's. I am doing12/8/4. My question is around the repeating of the weights. I uderstand the zigzagging where you may do 20 30 30 40 50 etc on the weights. But I guess more of my question is around when you go from say your 12 RM to your 8RM. This isn't as much of a big deal with the higher weights but when you have 12 RM of 20lb or 25 etc you end up repeating a lot.

So for example:
Bench Press - Days Under the 12's RM
Day 1 - 90
Day 2 - 100
Days 3 -110
Day 4 - 120
Day 5 - 130
Day 6 - 140

So I get all this. However I am not clear when starting the next version. Basically to go to the 8's week I am upping my weights according to calculators. So if you do that goign up in increases of 10 lb which Bryan explained as the smart thing instead of 5's lb you end up repeating a weight you did on 12's now only on 8's....Please explain.

Bench Press - Days Under the 8's RM
Day 1 - 115 (Lower than original week of 12's)
Day 2 - 125 (Lower than original week of 12's)
Day 3 - 135 (Lower than original week of 12's)
Day 4 - 145
Day 5 - 155
Day 6 - 165

I thought this whole process was about moving up in weight each week not back. :confused: If I do it in 5lb increments then I only overlap on the 1st day. But I thought with the whole routing your supposed to increase 5lb for smaller body parts and 10lb for larger ones like the chest. Thanks.
 
Last edited:
gearlube said:
Hi All. I am on my second week now of the 12's. I am doing12/8/4. My question is around the repeating of the weights. I uderstand the zigzagging where you may do 20 30 30 40 50 etc on the weights. But I guess more of my question is around when you go from say your 12 RM to your 8RM. This isn't as much of a big deal with the higher weights but when you have 12 RM of 20lb or 25 etc you end up repeating a lot.

So for example:
Bench Press - Days Under the 12's RM
Day 1 - 90
Day 2 - 100
Days 3 -110
Day 4 - 120
Day 5 - 130
Day 6 - 140

So I get all this. However I am not clear when starting the next version. Basically to go to the 8's week I am upping my weights according to calculators. So if you do that goign up in increases of 10 lb which Bryan explained as the smart thing instead of 5's lb you end up repeating a weight you did on 12's now only on 8's....Please explain.

Bench Press - Days Under the 8's RM
Day 1 - 115 (Lower than original week of 12's)
Day 2 - 125 (Lower than original week of 12's)
Day 3 - 135 (Lower than original week of 12's)
Day 4 - 145
Day 5 - 155
Day 6 - 165

I thought this whole process was about moving up in weight each week not back. :confused: If I do it in 5lb increments then I only overlap on the 1st day. But I thought with the whole routing your supposed to increase 5lb for smaller body parts and 10lb for larger ones like the chest. Thanks.
Click to expand...

How about this:

Bench Press - Days Under the 12's RM
Day 1 - 100
Day 2 - 110
Days 3 -120
Day 4 - 120
Day 5 - 130
Day 6 - 140

Bench Press - Days Under the 8's RM
Day 1 - 135
Day 2 - 145
Day 3 - 145
Day 4 - 155
Day 5 - 155
Day 6 - 165
 
Thanks Tom. Have really been keying on the word zigzag and have read lots of good information which aligns with your reply. Going to adjust for those.
 
The other thing to keep in mind is that what we are looking for is progression over the course of the cycle. That is why zig-zag is ok. Because as long as you are progressing over the course of the entire cycle, you will still experience growth (assuming diet, etc is all in check)

Repeating weights for multiple sessions is fine also. We use progression to stay ahead of RBE but RBE will not kick in for a particular load immediately. You can often use the same load for at least a couple sessions before RBE is a concern and as the loads get heavier, it takes longer for RBE to become an issue. As an example, you should be realistically able to use your 5 RM for two weeks or a little more before RBE will begin to become a concern.
 
Totentanz said:
The other thing to keep in mind is that what we are looking for is progression over the course of the cycle. That is why zig-zag is ok. Because as long as you are progressing over the course of the entire cycle, you will still experience growth (assuming diet, etc is all in check)Repeating weights for multiple sessions is fine also. We use progression to stay ahead of RBE but RBE will not kick in for a particular load immediately. You can often use the same load for at least a couple sessions before RBE is a concern and as the loads get heavier, it takes longer for RBE to become an issue. As an example, you should be realistically able to use your 5 RM for two weeks or a little more before RBE will begin to become a concern.
Click to expand...
RBE is Repeated Bout Effect?
 
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