The Difference Between Periodization and Programming

Ah the good ole talk about periodization and programming. This conversation is the equivalent of the birds and the bees you'd have with your prepubescent teen, but in the fitness world. The industry is split between its support or disapproval for the inclusion of both periodization and programming, or just one more favorably. 

In the strength and conditioning world, you'll have coaches who will scream their support for periodization until they're blue in the face. On the other hand, you'll have coaches who think periodization is a waste of time and any time spent on it is unnecessary. I believe periodization is an integral part of the planning process, that serves the athlete/client’s best interest. Now before I lose your attention, let me add some value to your life. After all coaches should always have a willingness to learn and improve their own systems. That’s how we move in a good direction in life.

Anytime we want to go somewhere in life, we need to know the destination and how to get there. This is exactly what periodization is in a nutshell. Periodization is a G.P.S. to our destination. The definition of periodization is the planned manipulation of acute variables in a cyclical subsequent manner.

As Strength and Conditioning coaches all this mean is we plan what type of skill/physical qualities/stimuli are important, and manipulate those qualities so our athletes peak when it's optimal. We can use phases that best suit the athlete’s timeline in order to ensure a successful season.

When we plan these phases, we need to be sure that the subsequent phases build the prerequisites for the next phase of training. This idea is called phase potentiation. we take something inadequate and build it up so it can be expressed at much less costly expense. Sounds like a pretty cool way to plan a system, right?

The beauty of this system is it doesn't need to be rigid. In fact, I believe the marriage to this inflexibility is why so many coaches shy away from periodization. These coaches make a plan with no account of daily stressors, and no way to assess daily readiness that everything falls apart. Periodization should be the north star shining bright on a path in complete darkness.

Periodization is a guideline. It paints the bigger picture. The 3 main cycles are Macrocycles/Mesocycles/Microcycle's. The 3 sub-phases inside of these are Preparatory/Competition/Transition. Macrocycles can be thought of as yearly or a season. It is possible to have multiple Macrocycles for multi-sport clients. Mesocycles can be thought of as 1-3 months (blocks), and multiple blocks make up a Macrocycle. Microcycle's can be referred to as one single session, or weeks. we'll get to sub-phases in a minute.

Now that we have a definition of periodization, and the main cycles we need one last piece of the puzzle. Sub-phases help determine where our athletes are in the year. Whether it's pre-season or (preparatory), in season or (competition), and Transition or (post season). Each one of these sub-phases will look way different as the needs for the athletes will vary.

With this ever-changing demand comes some unpredictability for how the athletes will respond to the stimuli. Periodizing and sub-phasing are our insurance policies to optimize our athlete’s success year-round, and they get with the program. We can monitor each phase and make adjustments as the training goes on. That's what makes a successful program. 

So far, we've only talked periodization. Programming is built into Periodization. Programming is the microscope we use to really look at periodization. Programming uses strategies and methods designed to help acquire the stimuli/quality we're after. We can think of programming as the work we'll actually be doing. This is the system that builds the goal.

Our goal with programming is manipulation of our acute variables. These acute variable are Frequency, Reps, Intensity, Exercise selection, Sets, Duration, Rest, Volume, Tempo, R.P.E,R.I.R, Accumulation, Intensification, Realization, and Progressive overload. Whew say that 10x fast haha.

Now if you just read that last paragraph you probably just got overloaded. Programming has a lot going on. Remember that Periodization is our G.P.S.. That means Programming is the vehicle we use to navigate the ever-changing terrain and environment. If we're going to encounter metaphoric snow, we better have good snow tires to meet that need. If on our metaphoric journey we're experiencing back woods we better have 4-wheel drive and a good suspension.

Not using Periodization and Programming synergistically is like using snow tires when you're in the backwoods. As a coach you lacked necessary information to prepare for the demand or task. I'm not saying it's impossible to be successful without the use of either one of these, but it is much more difficult to prepare for different phases.

As Strength and conditioning coaches, we want our athletes prepared for all season and phases of life. When we understand where they're in a season we can program parameters and methods to address weaknesses they may have, or bring up already apparent strengths.

I don't like to think of periodization or programming as exclusive. I love the perfect symphony they create. Periodization is the overview of the weekly/monthly/yearly schedule, while programming is the work being done in a specialized manner. Periodization and programming serve coaches and athletes best coupled together as they ensure a proper management of all things training. We want our athletes to continue to grow under our guidance.

Now that you understand these two principles you can plug the coordinates in and determine how to start going on your adventure. Whatever you do keep getting in those reps AMRAP as many reps as possible. 

-Coach Austin Structured Strength Systems-