Strength Training – Weekly Ramp Progression (3 Days)

About the plan

12-week strength training plan for people who have moved past the stage where load goes up every session and need a bigger unit of progression: here it is the week. The three days form a single block — Monday is the heavy ramp with five ascending sets of five reps in squat, bench press and row, Wednesday is the light ramp that serves as active recovery and repeats the squat at a lower load plus overhead press and deadlift, and Friday is the record set day with three reps above Monday's load followed by a back-off set of eight reps. Every week you add 2 kg (about 4.4 lb) to the upper-body exercises and 5 kg (about 11 lb) to the lower-body ones over the previous week's working load, and the ramp recalculates itself from it. Weeks 4 and 8 repeat the load instead of raising it, and week 12 tests the max on all three lifts. It is the natural bridge for people who have finished a per-session progression plan and don't want to work with percentages of a max yet.