Question own my Post NLP Programming

[eavdr10]

Hey Michael,

Was wondering if you can take look at my programming? I just wrapped up NLP, and due to new work hours I am moving to a new 4 day program that will get me in and out a little quicker.

Volume will be 5x5
Intensity will be 2x3-3x2-5x1, starting with 2x3, 2 fails move to 3x2, 2 fails move to 5x1

All Lifts will be Linear progressed, and I plan on starting Intensity at where I left off on NLP for my last attempts at 3x5 as 2x3 should be handled well, at least for a few weeks.

Sunday
Squat Intensity
SLDL Volume
Chins

Tuesday
Bench Intensity
Press Volume
Dips if possible or Triceps Extensions 4x10

Thursday
DL Intensity
Squat Volume
Barbell Rows 4x10

Friday
Press Intensity
Bench Volume
Dips if possible or Tricep Extensions

Hows this look? Is this enough to drive gains? I will probably be going to One pound LP on Upper lifts, and 5-2.5 on lower. I don't compete, I have dropped my carb intake to lose some belly fat, not calories, but carbs. Im just hoping to slowly and methodically keep getting stronger. Id love to just keep running NLP, but I'm 39, my squat was approaching 400 lbs on 3x5 and i was just really feeling beat up, and the progress stopped.

[Michael Wolf]

Looks OK to me. I'd probably try to do chins twice a week, and do dips 1x and triceps 1x, rather than vaguely "dips if possible or triceps extensions." 2-3 sets, don't overdo it.

Also don't wait for 2 fails to move ID down in reps. Try to move it down right before you're actually going to fail. One of the differences in Intermediate vs Novice is how costly fails are in terms of fatigue and recovery. They're still not TOO bad, but they do cost more than during the LP so you want to start doing more to avoid them. In the LP, we don't want it to be over till we know for pretty damn well sure that it's over - so we say at the end, fail twice in a row at the same weight, AFTER a re-set, so you really know for sure it's done. But theoretically if we could somehow know in advance, we'd avoid the end of LP fails and just move to something a little slower progressing. The cost isn't yet so high that it's not worth it, but once you've done that, no need to keep failing. Move from 3 to 2 to 1 when you just barely make your reps one week.

[eavdr10]

Awesome!! Thanks for the input!! Some days i get to the dip bar and go for one and I'm just too fried to even do a single dip, so i figured tricep extensions are a lot less taxing so id do those rather than not do anything, but i will certainly take your advice with alternating.