What does progress typically look like for an advanced lifter?

[SilentShots]

Rip, I first ran SS in 2011 during high school, but I now have a question regarding the progression of an advanced lifter. Nowadays I'm 20, 5'6", 170 lbs (though I've topped out at 185 in the past), and compete at 165 lbs/70 kg in raw powerlifting.

My best lifts on the platform (raw) (during meets last October and December) are a 475 squat, 280 bench, 215 press, and a 505 deadlift. My current gym lifts are maybe 5-15 pounds above those.

However, progress for the last 18 months of lifting has seemed to come either quickly on just one lift or grindingly slow on all four. For example, my deadlift shot up from 425 to 495 from May to July last year but has only made a few pounds of progress since. Similarly, my squat exploded from the mid 400s to high 400s last fall while everything else remained nearly constant. And last spring, my press quickly rose 40 pounds from 185 to 225 (in the gym). In between all these one-lift wonders, my lifts made hardly any progress.

Does this phenomenon merely reflect my status as an advanced lifter, now unable to successfully undergo the stress-recovery-adaptation cycle for multiple lifts at once? Or is it a fault of my programming? I've more-or-less run a bastardized version of 5-3-1 for over a year now with sets across (and no AMRAPs) on the big lifts.

Should I shut up and just be happy with any measly increase? Or is this sporadic progression normal?

[Mark Rippetoe]

Practical Programming for Strength Training | The Aasgaard Company

Chapter 8.

[elVarouza]

Since you mentioned you're into powerlifting I'd recommend moving up at least one weight class. Average height for a good lifter in the 198/205lbs is around 5'7". That'll help your total more than anything.