A common theme of some of the most effective strength training programs is the concept of variation. In novice athletes, extremely basic progressive overload programs will work very well. 1-3 sets of 5 on the basic  barbell movements with 2.5-5lbs added each session can work for several months before a plateau is seen. It would be unnecessary and inadvisable to use intermediate level programming for this population. No need to introduce novel stimuli at this point with these athletes.

At the intermediate level where strength gains are harder to come by, some more variation in training will be required. Manipulation of training intensity and volume is an easy and effective way to stimulate further strength gains. Undulating periodization, be it weekly or daily, are some great options to consider. Daily undulation involves manipulating volume and or intensity on a day to day basis within a microcycle. A perfect example would be from University of Minnesota head strength coach, Cal Dietz’ “Tri-Phasic” approach. This program works particularly well for training 3 times per week with full body workouts. A hypothetical set up for the main barbell movements is displayed in the following table.