| name | Strength Training Plan |
| description | Use when someone starts lifting, hits a strength or hypertrophy plateau, restructures a lifting program, or wants to build strength or muscle — designing a progressive resistance program with splits, compound movement patterns, sets/reps, progressive overload, and deloads from barbells and dumbbells. General fitness guidance, not medical advice. Owns resistance/strength training only. Do NOT use to program high-intensity interval conditioning or circuits (use fitness-program), a steady-state aerobic-base or Zone 2 block (use zone-2-cardio-plan), or a mobility/flexibility routine (use mobility-routine). |
Strength Training Plan
Design a structured, progressive strength program based on training age, available days, and equipment. Default to a barbell-and-dumbbells gym environment; note escapes for home and minimal equipment. This is general fitness guidance, not medical advice — consult a qualified coach or sports medicine professional for injuries or complex needs.
Establish Training Age and Frequency
Beginners (under 12 months consistent training) respond best to full-body sessions 3 days per week. Intermediates (1–3 years) benefit from 3–4 days using an upper/lower or push/pull/legs split. Advanced trainees (3+ years) typically need 4–5 days to drive progress. Match frequency to recovery capacity — more is not always better.
Core Movement Patterns
Every program should include all five patterns: hip hinge (deadlift, Romanian deadlift), squat (back squat, goblet squat), horizontal push (bench press, push-up), horizontal pull (row), and vertical pull (pull-up, lat pulldown). Vertical push (overhead press) is the sixth and should be included when shoulder health allows. These are the pillars; accessories are optional.
Progressive Overload Protocol
The default progression scheme for beginners: add weight every session (linear progression). For intermediates: add weight every week or every other week. Track every working set. When the prescribed reps are hit across all sets with good form, add 2.5–5 kg to upper body lifts and 5 kg to lower body lifts next session. If progression stalls for 2 consecutive weeks, deload (reduce load by 10–15% for one week) before pushing again.
Rep and Set Ranges
For strength (1RM focus): 3–5 sets of 3–5 reps at 80–90% effort. For hypertrophy (size focus): 3–5 sets of 6–12 reps. For endurance or work capacity: 2–4 sets of 12–20 reps. Mixing ranges across a program is normal — compound lifts heavier, accessories lighter.
Warm-Up and Session Structure
Start every session with 5 minutes of light cardio or general movement, then 2–3 warm-up sets of the first compound lift (50% and 70% of working weight). Keep sessions to 45–75 minutes. Compound lifts first when fresh, isolation accessories last.
Recovery and Deload
Schedule a deload week every 4–8 weeks of hard training: reduce volume by 40–50% while keeping intensity moderate. Sleep 7–9 hours per night — it is the single most effective recovery tool available. Protein timing matters less than total daily protein; focus there first.
Quality Bar
A finished program must:
- Match weekly frequency and split to the trainee's training age and stated recovery capacity, not to ambition.
- Cover all five core movement patterns across the week (add vertical push when shoulders allow).
- Specify a concrete progression rule and a stall trigger — what to add, when, and what to do when it stops working.
- Assign explicit sets, reps, and effort per lift, tied to the trainee's goal (strength, hypertrophy, or work capacity).
- Schedule deloads up front, not reactively.
- Fit each session inside 45–75 minutes with compounds before isolation.
What NOT to Do
- Do not prescribe a 5–6 day advanced split to a beginner — frequency outruns recovery and progress stalls.
- Do not write open-ended progression ("just add weight when you can"). Name the increment and the stall rule.
- Do not skip the hinge or vertical pull because they are uncomfortable; rebalanced programs build imbalances.
- Do not bolt conditioning intervals, an aerobic base, or a mobility flow into this program — hand those off to fitness-program, zone-2-cardio-plan, and mobility-routine.
- Do not give injury rehab or medical advice. Refer out.
