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If you’ve been in the world of strength for any period of time, you’ve likely heard the term conjugate training thrown around a time or two. Conjugate is actually a planning model that was created in the former Soviet Union and popularized by Louie Simmons and the athletes of Westside Barbell. Conjugate periodization (also called concurrent) does not use specific training phases to train a single athletic quality at a time. Such as if you were using a linear periodization approach you would have a phase with the main goal being hypertrophy. Whereas conjugate trains qualities such as speed, strength, endurance, and hypertrophy in conjunction with one another, hence the name. The conjugate periodization discussed in this article is unlike the conjugate method that is implemented at Westside Barbell. The same principles are applied, however there are a few things that we have tweaked in order for it to work to our advantage. Let’s dive into it!
The Method Behind the Madness
A conjugate plan is generally broken down into four main workouts per week. This would leave you with two max effort workouts and two dynamic effort workouts for the upper and lower body. It works by using three main methods of training: the Max Effort Method, the Dynamic Effort Method, and the Repetition Method. These methods are the meat and potatoes of the conjugate method. They have been studied extensively and there are multiple page articles based solely on each of the methods. So in order to not make this a 20 page article, the basics that apply to using the conjugate method for strongman are talked about below. Now, before we look at how a typical cycle is set up, let’s discuss what these methods are and why we use them.
Max Effort Method
The max effort method is used to improve maximal strength, generally in the 1-5 rep range at or above 90%. An important aspect of the max effort method is to teach a lifter to strain. However, there are a few things to keep in mind when we perform max effort work.
Whether that's a 1, 3, or 5 rep max is dependent upon the goal of the training cycle. When higher rep max effort work is used, technique is very important, as it always should be! This is because when you exert yourself maximally and acquire fatigue, technique can break down opening up the possibility for injury. Once your form begins to breakdown, technical failure has been reached and the lift should be stopped.
The max effort lift is typically rotated every week to avoid accommodation. If the same stimulus is applied at or above 90% for more than three consecutive weeks, performance will decrease. The same exercise can be used week to week, however the stimulus (foot/hand position, number of repetitions, ROM,etc.) should be altered.Since you will be rotating max effort work week to week, it is important to choose exercises that will have the biggest carry over for you. The main events in a strongman competition are generally a deadlift and overhead press. Choosing variations of these lifts would be best for your max effort work. Choosing 4-6 variations and cycling through them is a great rule of thumb to follow. For upper variations, I’ve found things like log clean and press, axle push press, and a close grip bench press to be very beneficial. Conversely, for lower variations, deficit deadlifts, good morning variations, and sumo deadlifts, have all had great carryover to strongman events. Over the course of the last year, I’ve found that moving events, such as yoke walks, do not serve well as max effort movements. There are a few reasons for this but a major reason is that they are extremely taxing on your body. A maximal yoke walk can hit you harder than a pissed off grandma and leave your following training sessions lacking. Often, if a competition does have a moving event, it is for time or as long as possible. Moving events are often better trained for speed and could be utilized on your dynamic effort days (more to come on that below!).
Back down sets have been a great tool we’ve implemented after the max effort work to get in a little volume on the main lift. Some say these open the door for injury since you will be performing repetitive work after a max attempt. However, in strongman it's likely you’ll encounter a competition in which you have to attempt a max lift followed by the remainder of the contest. This allows you to get more comfortable performing the lifts in a pre fatigued state. I use Prilepins chart to program these and generally never go above 5 reps per set, 3 sets being the max used. The back downs have been left off the program template below to make it as easy to understand as possible. If you are interested in implementing them, be wary of increasing your overall volume too quickly and putting yourself at risk of injury.
Autoregulation is very important when it comes to max effort work as well. Autoregulation is adjusting your workload depending upon how you feel that day. For example: If you show up to the gym after a long day of work and are extremely tired but determined to still lift, you would only work up to a single at 85-90%. The max effort method is meant for you to grit and strain but doing so in a compromised state will inevitably lead to injury.
Another important aspect of the max effort method is that you should never fail an attempt at a max effort lift. Completing a grinding max effort lift builds as much mental strength and confidence as it does physical. However, if you continue to fail lifts due to big jumps in weight, your confidence will take a beating.
Finally, max effort lower and upper days should not be back to back. You should give yourself at least 72 hours between the two sessions to ensure that you are fully recovered. However if you cant space these sessions out, monitor how you feel and plan accordingly.
Dynamic Effort Method
The dynamic effort method is used to improve your rate of force development and explosive power. This is accomplished by lifting a sub-maximal weight at a high velocity. This is great for individuals who compete in strongman that excel at static events, but lack in moving events or aren’t able to be explosive in events such as stone to shoulder or a keg toss. A few of the basics of the dynamic effort method are shown below!
Percentages of a 1 rep max are used to calculate the weight for the dynamic work. From my personal experience 60-80% seems to be the sweet spot for dynamic effort work. For some this may be too heavy, however, when training partners or I have used loads under 55%, there was little carry over to our max effort work. I’ve found that using the 60-80% range allows for a moderate weight to be used while also allowing you to move it quickly. Experimenting with the percentages is the best way to determine what works best for you!
Accommodating resistance (bands and chains) is commonly used with dynamic work to ensure that a lifter is accelerating throughout the entire range of motion (ROM) and not slowing down when an advantageous position is reached. Although it is beneficial to have accommodating resistance, it is not necessary. The point of the dynamic effort work is to move the sub-maximal load with maximal intent, with or without accommodating resistance.
Short rest intervals of 45-60 seconds, sometimes even 30 seconds, are used with the dynamic effort method. This drives up the intensity of the lift and allows for the dynamic effort work to be completed quickly. This is a great tool to use before a contest to improve conditioning. Adding in EMOM’s or Every Minute On The Minute is a great way to keep rest periods short and intensities high!
Generally the dynamic effort method uses a barbell or similar implement for the required work. However, this doesn’t always have to be the case. Coming off of a contest, things like med ball throws, dynamic prowler pushes, and even box jumps can be used in place to give the body a break from a bar.
As mentioned above, training speed for moving events often has better carryover to events than training maximal weight. There’s a few reasons for this. First, like mentioned above, moving events are often who can move the given implement the fastest or who can carry it the furthest. Improving maximal strength will have a carry over to the event, however improving your efficiency and speed will have a tremendous carry over as well. That being said, which do you think you can train more frequently? A heavy ass yoke walk or a submaximal yoke walk for speed?
Repetition Method
The repetition method is used to increase muscle mass. It uses a typical bodybuilding rep scheme and is what most cookie cutter programs are based around.The repetition method is defined as lifting a sub maximal load until muscular failure is reached. However, I prefer not to do that because doing so increases your risk for injury. A great rule of thumb is to leave one to two reps in the tank when utilizing this method. A common alteration that I make to the repetition method is using timed sets as opposed to a traditional rep scheme. Since some strongman events are timed or max distance, these are a great way to add variation and increase muscular endurance.
If a lifter is new or even has been around the block a time or two, I’ll often replace the main dynamic lift with repetition work. I’ve done this for a few reasons, especially with strongman. Replacing “barbell” dynamic work with repetition work has led to greater gains in strength and hypertrophy over a few month “trial” for the athletes I’ve worked with. This does not mean we removed all dynamic movements from the program! The main repetition lift is often followed up by a dynamic movement. These dynamic movements can be tailored to the sport of strongman and have major carry over to competition lifts. This movement could be anything from a med ball throw to a stone to shoulder. If it has direct correspondence to the competition you are training for, use it!
Now that you are familiar with the methods that the conjugate system uses, there's a few additional tweaks that we can implement to make running a conjugate program geared toward strongman, that much easier. The first would be the addition of supplemental workouts. These workouts will essentially be small accessory workouts geared toward improving weak body parts, conditioning, and technique. These workouts should be based on individual weaknesses and tailored to you. I’ve had great success using these workouts to target areas that are commonly used in strongman such as the upper back, grip, and technique for various implements. These workouts shouldn’t make you look for a trash can but rather make you feel better when you leave the gym than when you came in.
Most periodization models use a deload to give the body a break. However, when implementing conjugate periodization there is no specific deload week. This is because the fourth week of every cycle the intensity of the dynamic work is reduced giving your body a break. This is also a great opportunity to give your body a break with the max effort work as well by using a movement that you suck at. It's a simple concept that I stole from Dave Tate of Elite FTS. By choosing a movement that you suck at, the maximum amount of load you would be able to handle would be lower than something you are great at.
Pro’s and Con’s of the Conjugate Method
Like all methods of periodization, the conjugate method has its benefits and shortcomings. Many of the shortcomings that are commonly touted refer to the conjugate method meant for geared lifters at Westside Barbell. These shortcomings commonly come from raw powerlifters attempting to use the method as performed by geared powerlifters. You can see how this could be an issue right? That doesn’t mean there are no cons to this periodization model. Check out the list below for some pro’s and con’s that I’ve encountered with the conjugate method.
Con’s
The max effort method is not ideal for beginners. If you are just getting into strength training and have chosen to follow a conjugate plan, the max effort method may need to take the back seat until you are technically proficient in the lifts. Hopping under a max load the second time you are under a barbell isn’t a great idea.
Variation is key while using the conjugate method. This means you may have to get a little creative if you only have access to a barbell and some weights. This isn't necessarily a con, just inconvenient.
Pro’s
Constant variation keeps training interesting. If you’ve ever followed a linear program for an extended period of time you’ll know that it can be monotonous at times. With the conjugate method, volume, intensity, and even the exercises that are used are constantly varied. This keeps the training interesting and excited to train.
Unlike power lifting, strongman isn’t specific to only three lifts. This means that strongman athletes need to be just that, athletes. Training with a conjugate plan allows for all the qualities that make a great athlete to be trained at the same time.
Hitting a personal record each week on both an upper and lower lift is great for building confidence. This has been especially true for individuals who mentally break down when they reach a certain weight. Consistently hitting PR’s on a variation of a lift does wonders for confidence when you finally perform that lift.
4 Week Conjugate Layout
Now that we’ve covered the basics of the conjugate method, let's take a look at how a four week cycle could be set up. Clicking the below table will take you to the table that this template was created on. There you can download the template and mess around with it as you wish!
The template above is how I typically set up a conjugate template if I don’t have a scheduled contest coming up. If you are closing in on a competition, you will need to be more specific on what exercises and events you choose to use as accessories and events. I included the type of accessory exercise that I have used, however this may not be ideal for everyone. The best thing to do is tailor your accessory exercises to your own personal weaknesses. If you struggle to think of any weaknesses you may have, look back at old training footage or ask your training partners their opinion. Utilizing the conjugate method can take time to fine tune to see what works best for you, but once you do, the sky's the limit!
If you are intrigued by all of this and would like to begin a conjugate program, but don't want to create your own, we offer custom programming HERE! Just click the link and you will be on your way!
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