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What is Progressive Overload
Flexsingh • Dec 15, 2022
What is Progressive Overload
Progressive overload is a principal that involves continuously placing more demand on the musculoskeletal system in order to improve the strength, size and endurance of muscles.
Whilst this covers many variables, there are 3 main ones you need to focus on.
- INTENSITY
Intensity refers to how much weight you are lifting. This is usually expressed as the absolute load or as percentage of your one rep max.
Increasing the amount of weight you lift every session is a form of progressive overload. - VOLUME
Volume is simply the amount of weight lifted, or distance transversed.
If you bench pressed 100kg for 3 sets of 10 reps. You'd calculate volume like this:
volume = weight x (reps x sets) - DENSITY
Density is simply the amount of volume you lift within a set time. So if that 100kg bench press took you 10 minutes, you would calculate it as follows:
3000 / 10 = 300kg / minute for density
One of the ways to increase density is to complete the same exercise in less time.
Other factors such as tempo, metabolic stress etc play a part in progressive overload, but the 3 mentioned above are the main ones to focus on.
Progressive overload is crucial if you want to see improvements in muscle growth and strength.
Simply put, progressive overload is the process by which you make an exercise harder the next time you train that same muscle group.
For example, if you one week you managed to Bench 3 sets of 10 reps of 100kg, the following week you should aim to increase either the reps, increase the weight or increase/decrease the time in which you completed those sets.