Strength plateau - begging for help at this point

[OZ-USF-UFGator]

It depends on what you are training for. It sounds like you want to see the strength gains thus my suggestion. Andy Baker is Legit and his programs work as well. To me it sounds close to what you have been banging away at already (though at less frequency) and why I think you need a change.

Its also hard to beat "free" vs. $25.

Jordan also gives "The Bridge" away free on his website. I read that and it seems legit, too. Lots of people on this board who have had results with it, but the downside is that the bridge is a bit more esoteric than using percentages to plan a workout. But again, it's free and looks like a quality program.

[Bryan Dobson]

Its also hard to beat "free" vs. $25.

Jordan also gives "The Bridge" away free on his website. I read that and it seems legit, too. Lots of people on this board who have had results with it, but the downside is that the bridge is a bit more esoteric than using percentages to plan a workout. But again, it's free and looks like a quality program.

Between barbell medicine and Reactive training systems you will have months of reading in the articles sections while you learn to use rpe. You can also buy into seminars and subscribe to podcasts,By the time you finish the training cycle, if you read a bit on those sites, you will understand what you need to do to keep progressing.
The danger is you will feel like you arent straining enough while training, but that’s the key for many of us.

[Dalton Clark]

I didnt know what else to do, hes quite literally one of the strongest kids in my gym and he has seen pretty good results training this often. I asked him why he trains this much, as it was amazing to me that someone strength training trains everyday (let alone 9 total sessions a week) and his response was "I just love to train". He seems intelligent and i figured just lifting and hanging around the kid would get me stronger but i still dont see the practicality of lifting this much. I was also amazed to see that someone who is putting up pretty advanced lifts was running essentially a linear progression program and is just trying to add weight on the bar each week? I was under the impression that this is not likely doable for anyone thats not a novice?

Below is the hypertrophy block he has me doing right now

Attachment 6088Attachment 6089Attachment 6090

Just because someone is one of the strongest kids, doesn't mean he is the best source of programming advice. It is quite likely that he is very genetically gifted athletically if he is able to do this kind of programming and see results. Your numbers are "could be intermediate" territory but we also don't know unless you are incapable of adding weight to the bar on a weekly basis.

[RatDog]

Just because someone is one of the strongest kids, doesn't mean he is the best source of programming advice. It is quite likely that he is very genetically gifted athletically if he is able to do this kind of programming and see results. Your numbers are "could be intermediate" territory but we also don't know unless you are incapable of adding weight to the bar on a weekly basis.

Can you explain to me what exactly is not optimal about the program? He said its his hypertrophy block so he intentionally does a lot of volume and accessory work to build mass, then he transitions into a strength block doing a 5x3 and 4x4 on the main lifts while keeping the accessories... so i dont think the main work for SBD is incredibly demanding its just a lot of work with all the fluff hypertrophy exercises

[Bryan Dobson]

Can you explain to me what exactly is not optimal about the program? He said its his hypertrophy block so he intentionally does a lot of volume and accessory work to build mass, then he transitions into a strength block doing a 5x3 and 4x4 on the main lifts while keeping the accessories... so i dont think the main work for SBD is incredibly demanding its just a lot of work with all the fluff hypertrophy exercises

Block periodization as part of an annual plan is a good basis to train against. There are divergent opinions on the effectiveness on blocks focusing on one attribute vs concurrent blocks-
Concurrent blocks that include some high intensity work on the main lifts seems to be easier to maintain the ability to display a 1rm through the year compared to pure attribute blocks. For example after a pure hypertrophy block it will take several weeks in a strength block to display a true 1rm due to the loss of skill in the hypertrophy block. (Disclaimer,I used Andy Baker’s inexpensive monthly power building club for a 3month hypertrophy block this past summer.) I didn’t display new maxes until after a 3month strength block. But one attribute brings up the next, I truly believe There has to be long term organization.

When you are not making 1rm progress but as you state you are getting bigger the conclusion I draw is that your main lift and variation practice and volume is too low.
To make things even more complicated In the strength blocks, The person you are training with could respond differently to intensity and volume than you do. There are personality and physiological differences.
There are rare people who can literally knock out 1high intensity all out set and make gains during a strength cycle. And there are those who do better with low to moderate intensity most of the time so that they are capable of accumulating more volume. Then there are margins of in between.

[Dalton Clark]

Can you explain to me what exactly is not optimal about the program? He said its his hypertrophy block so he intentionally does a lot of volume and accessory work to build mass, then he transitions into a strength block doing a 5x3 and 4x4 on the main lifts while keeping the accessories... so i dont think the main work for SBD is incredibly demanding its just a lot of work with all the fluff hypertrophy exercises

It isn't that it is not optimal to someone. It is that it is - most likely - not optimal for most lifters. This is a lot of volume from what little I was able to read of the thumbnails. As in, more than even most intermediates need to make substantial progress from what is done at Atlanta Barbell. If this is some massive dude who has been lifting diligently and intensely for years and years. . .he is probably further along than you are in his advancement. We need more information about where YOU are at. Taking an intermediate/advanced lifter's routine and believing it applies to you is foolhardy. Of course, if you are getting bigger that implies it works for something.

[RatDog]

It isn't that it is not optimal to someone. It is that it is - most likely - not optimal for most lifters. This is a lot of volume from what little I was able to read of the thumbnails. As in, more than even most intermediates need to make substantial progress from what is done at Atlanta Barbell. If this is some massive dude who has been lifting diligently and intensely for years and years. . .he is probably further along than you are in his advancement. We need more information about where YOU are at. Taking an intermediate/advanced lifter's routine and believing it applies to you is foolhardy. Of course, if you are getting bigger that implies it works for something.

then what do i do? Im on the deload week right now so I have a week to make my decision on what to do. I have taken into consideration all of the programs mentioned by previous posters, especially the RTS and bridge but also johnny canditos 6 week program. But I have also taken into consideration doing 5/3/1 again but its literally snail gains. I understand that patience is a virtue in the game of powerlifting, but I need to get on a program I can see consistant results with soon because im lacking motivation to get stronger. It feels like im in a "paralysis by analysis" point because no matter what theres always someone telling me "do THIS program" however its always accompanied by some other person saying "no THAT program is suboptimal, do THIS program." Im really confused as to why there is no clear cut answer as to how a late intermediate should go about training to make the transition to advanced. I also looked into coaching with barbell medicine and the going rates were upwards of $300 a month. Im not sure if this is standard pricing but not only is it completely out of my reach of financial capabilities but the thought of even considering it is laughable at best. This is becoming a headache, I sincerely appreciate all your advice and patience... I really just want to get stronger but am overwhelmed and feel like im at a dead end.

[skid]

5/3/1 is not a good program. IMO Candito's is the best intermediate out there. Give it 6 weeks and I pretty much guarantee you will see results even if you are not an intermediate. Tom Narvaez a former SSC coach who no longer posts here rated all the intermediate programs and gave it top marks (number 21 on his list of programs)

Powerlifting Programs PowerliftingToWin

[Dalton Clark]

then what do i do? Im on the deload week right now so I have a week to make my decision on what to do. I have taken into consideration all of the programs mentioned by previous posters, especially the RTS and bridge but also johnny canditos 6 week program. But I have also taken into consideration doing 5/3/1 again but its literally snail gains. I understand that patience is a virtue in the game of powerlifting, but I need to get on a program I can see consistant results with soon because im lacking motivation to get stronger. It feels like im in a "paralysis by analysis" point because no matter what theres always someone telling me "do THIS program" however its always accompanied by some other person saying "no THAT program is suboptimal, do THIS program." Im really confused as to why there is no clear cut answer as to how a late intermediate should go about training to make the transition to advanced. I also looked into coaching with barbell medicine and the going rates were upwards of $300 a month. Im not sure if this is standard pricing but not only is it completely out of my reach of financial capabilities but the thought of even considering it is laughable at best. This is becoming a headache, I sincerely appreciate all your advice and patience... I really just want to get stronger but am overwhelmed and feel like im at a dead end.

Any of the suggestions are good as far as specific programs. I am not going to provide one because there is no "one size fits all" program for intermediates. Whether you are a late intermediate remains to be seen. I wouldn't think that you are too far into true "intermediate" status with your current lifts - particularly the squat. The definitions we use here are an intermediate can make weekly progress. I'm a fan of Andy Baker's templates, HLM programming in general, and the 4 day Texas method. Unfortunately, I'm still a novice since my squat won't lie down and die. I just think that - if you want to pursue lifting long term - you need to learn how to make these kinds of programming decisions yourself. Following a template will only get you so far. The more advanced someone gets, the more their program deviates from a template. That is why there are so many programs out there - everyone has developed something that has worked for someone. This is why books like Practical Programming for Strength Training are extremely important reads. They don't just give you a plan to follow but introduce you to the concepts of how to make a program based on what you are seeing and what variables you can manipulate.

[RatDog]

5/3/1 is not a good program. IMO Candito's is the best intermediate out there. Give it 6 weeks and I pretty much guarantee you will see results even if you are not an intermediate. Tom Narvaez a former SSC coach who no longer posts here rated all the intermediate programs and gave it top marks (number 21 on his list of programs)

Powerlifting Programs PowerliftingToWin

okay, I will consider c6w then as I have heard great things about it. I have heard its quite lack luster in bench though, what are your experiences with this and how may I remedy it?