steady state vs foundation programming (reps and sets)

hello all!

like others have done, first a big thanks to the entire community here for all the support. i've been lurking around since 2009 and have thoroughly enjoyed gst. with all of the new coursework, it's been even more exciting and rewarding.

on to the topic...just out of curiosity, what is the rationale behind the programming outlined in the foundation series? i'm talking about the progression of reps and sets, not the exercises themselves. i only ask because before foundation, i was mostly following steady state protocol. after years in the gym of just pushing myself to failure regularly, steady state actually made sense and seemed to work well for me with btgb. now with the foundation programming, as i tihnk everyone has experienced, the templates for the reps/sets will not always "work" in that there will be a point where one is not able to complete the prescribed reps/sets for the week. it seems people have variations on dealing with this, but from what i understand in previous threads, the general advice is to do what you can for each week in the microcycle, take the deload week, and then start the microcycle again. however, it seems that if one fails at week 1, 5, or 9, there will be three weeks of pushing to failure (until form is lost), which seems like it would be hard mentally and physically, possibly leading to "CNS burnout." i believe avoiding CNS burnout was at least one part of the rationale in using steady state (i believe allowing the joints to "catch up" was also a big part), but i'm just curious as to why that doesn't apply to the foundation elements. perhaps coach just observed over time that pushing the athletes that much in beginning elements wasn't detrimental to progress?

just to clarify, i am NOT at all trying to stir up a big debate about what might be a better template for progressing, nor trying to say that i know of a better method (i don't). it's just that when i really got into btgb, started reading carefully the information on the forums, and eventually implementing steady state, i saw the merits in steady state, so i kind of miss it!

thanks!

How would steady state programming work for Foundation?

If you have eg) an insufficient planche lean, what's the point of holding 30 seconds there for three months? Or running a full lean with short sets for much longer (weeks/months) than most people will need to spend getting planche leans correct?

Steady state will probably make a re- appearance later, when the elements are demanding enough to warrant it. It just doesn't really suit Foundation level work.

SSC works  a lot for advanced elements, for foundation the linear progression is the best choice since the BAS and the SAS proposed are not too demanding for your joins. maintain the same variation for reps and sets permits high joints adaptation and strength gain.

I remember that Coach said that Allan held the same program for 8-11 months, but simply he was able to complete it in less time.

I also love SSC; however, as has already been mentioned, it is often most beneficial for more advanced elements. After years of working with adult beginners, I now consider the SSC to be an intermediate level training tool.

Yours in Fitness,

Coach Sommer

Coach Sommer said:

I also love SSC; however, as has already been mentioned, it is often most beneficial for more advanced elements. After years of working with adult beginners, I now consider the SSC to be an intermediate level training tool.

Yours in Fitness,

Coach Sommer

So, probably not going to make an appearance in F3/4...  How about in Hungarian?

my main thought was to try steady state training at sticking points or plateaus, but i'll save it for when it's actually the prescribed training protocol in the intermediate elements and stick to the templates in foundation now. thanks for the replies, everyone!

k123 said:

my main thought was to try steady state training at sticking points or plateaus, but i'll save it for when it's actually the prescribed training protocol in the intermediate elements and stick to the templates in foundation now. thanks for the replies, everyone!

I might have to do this.  I'm having real trouble progressing on arch body holds and hinge rows.

Bipocni said:

So, probably not going to make an appearance in F3/4...  How about in Hungarian?

Nice try.  

You already know as much about Hungarian as I am going to tell you at this time.  

Yours in Fitness,

Coach Sommer