Increase frequency+Decrease volume to progress?

Hi guys,

Would love to get your opinions on this!

I've been following the GB Foundations course for approx 1.5 years now and LOVE it. I have made progress yet still really struggle on certain elements. 

For instance, I am on SLS/SE1 and SL/PE9 yet for everything else I'm still in and around PE2-3. Is that normal after over 1 year??

I know most of you will probably say I'm not following the course correctly or working hard enough but I genuinely am! Trust me!! I follow the videos now and my form was similar even before they came out. I seem to go up a level, then can't hit the reps so back down, then up, then back down etc. In particular, I seem to struggle progressing on push-ups, hollow holds and rows. 

I'm not too concerned as I'm not in a rush and love this type of training but think I might respond better to more frequent daily training at half the volume instead of my 4 days per week of 2 core/lower + 2 upper split.

Eg training all 7 elements 5-6 days a week, yet only doing 2 sets of each. So it would be 2 sets done 5 days/week instead of 4-5 sets done 2 days/week.

I was in my best shape when I trained like that years ago (a la Pavel grease the groove). Thoughts??

Cheers!

Dave, Ireland

Hello David.

 I am also on PE 2 on some of the exercises after almost a year, so its not just you

I think a high frequency can have good effects, several studies have confirmed this. I have experienced this previously in powerlifting. With up to 4-5 times a week with squats and benchpresses. Increased my strength dramatically compared to the normal 4 times a week upper, lower body split!

I am no expert in programming but It comes down how you shuffle the 3 major variables, frequency, load and volume.  .Higher frequency should come with lower volume and load... or vice versa..At the end of the week you do the same amount of work, or a bit more.  And your body adapts to it... 

Think its a good idea to change things up a bit once in a while, increase the frequency, volume or load in different ways... Greasing the groove or ladders,  is also a way to squeeze in more work, or cutting breakes in half...

Just my thoughts about it..

 

From a periodization and programming point of view a beginner athletes (and I consider beginner for  1-2 years) does not need to modulate the intensity for sure not with basic exercises like PE1-2-3 etc. performing the same exercise 2-3 times a week it is enough. also remember that for beginner the deload week it is no longer necessary. Are you following step by step the programming of the foundations? in case of BW training where we do not know the % / kg we are using in function of the 1RM it is too hard to schedule a undulated programming through the week and through a month, for this reason the linear programming works best in this case.

I would like to know more about your set/reps since you begun the PE2 for hollowbackpress. so please post here  your sets/reps of the last 3 months of training.

Thanks for replying guys,

Yeah no problem Alessandro. Admittedly August and September were a little off program due to work/family commitments! They were limited to 3 sets so I focused on just improving the reps towards 15. All mobility was performed as usual between sets. All done twice per week. 

Aug wk1- 3x9
Aug wk2- 3x10
Aug wk3- 3x11
Aug wk4-Deload 3x5 (as per old system)

Sept wk1- 3x12
Sept wk2- 3x12
Sept wk3- 3x20* incline pushups (as elbow sore)
Sept wk4-Deload full week off (holiday)

Oct wk1- 4x6 (following new system)
Oct wk2- 4x9
Oct wk3- 5x9
Oct wk4- 4x9

Nov wk1- 5x9
Nov wk2- 4x9

Straight away I can see consistency was lacking a little so will focus on that but feel free to share your thoughts. Would it be normal and expected to spend the next few months bouncing up and down between 4x9 and 5x9? 

Thanks!

Dave