Introducing Resolute Power Building

Philip Pape 0:01

Now most lifters choose between getting strong or building size . Today , I'm introducing my new five-day power building template , called Resolute , that is intended to do both at the same time . You'll learn how three-week rep range rotations can keep you progressing without plateaus , why starting every session with your heaviest main lift maximizes gains , and how dedicating one full day to specialization can accelerate your overall development . Welcome to Wits and Weights , the show that helps you build a strong , healthy physique using evidence , engineering and efficiency . I'm your host , philip Pape , and today I'm sharing something that I've been developing for a while behind the scenes . It is called Resolute and it is my new five-day power building template designed to maximize both strength and size or muscle growth simultaneously . It's available exclusively inside Wits and Weights Physique University , but today I want to break down the principles behind it and why it works , and how you can apply these concepts to your own training . If you want Resolute , as mentioned , it's available only inside Physique University , which you can join for just 27 a month using the link for podcast listeners in the show notes , and if you use that link , I'll build out your custom nutrition plan for free . You'll be able to grab the template . Get any of our other templates , learn how to use them and get support as you make adjustments or substitutions or deal with your own personal limitations , whether it's equipment , physical or otherwise .

Philip Pape 1:38

So last month I had a call with someone I'm going to call him Mike . Mike had been lifting for about three years , so he was kind of on the intermediate level of training and he had been constantly switching programs , bouncing between programs every few months or so it wasn't like every week , but it was every few months . He would go from a power lifting program and get a bit stronger with his numbers , but then he wanted to improve his physique , so he'd switched to bodybuilding and he built some muscle there , but then some of his main lifts would stagnate . He didn't feel like he was really making overall progress and I think that problem isn't unique . It's the inevitable result of how not only how programs are designed , but how people think they need to apply specific programs at specific times . That may not be right for them and what they really want to do is what you really want to do is treat strength and hypertrophy , you know , not like oil and water , like they're completely separate things , but there there's a massive overlap .

Philip Pape 2:33

We talked about this in the strength versus hypertrophy episode , and people get stuck in their head that I'm either training for strength you know , powerlifting , max numbers , peak intensity or I'm training for size , and that you have to pick a lane every time . And I think the research shows that for practical purposes , for everyday people just trying to do both because we all have , we tend to have both of those desires . I mean , I will talk to people who just don't care about their strength whatsoever , but that's rare . The research shows that these are not opposing forces and that if you can get stronger , it's going to give you size . If you can build some size , it's going to help push up your strength ,

The Strength vs Size Dilemma

Philip Pape 3:12

and there's periodization between these . They're synergistic .

Philip Pape 3:15

But there's also a way to do them concurrently . In many cases , the stronger you are , the more weight you can use for the hypertrophy work . So wouldn't it be interesting , if you're getting strong while also applying that to hypertrophy , the more muscle you then have , the better your leverages , the stronger you become ? Most likely you are probably eating to gain a bit of weight as well , and so you can take the muscle size that you're building and feed it back into your main lifts and getting stronger . So instead of trying to optimize them separately , which for some people , will take longer , cause more frustration and also is almost too optimal , if you will , right For the everyday person who's just going to work out four days a week , maybe in their home gym , or maybe they only have an hour . You can design one system where they enhance the other as you go along , and I've learned this from some of the best out there , including my current coach , andy Baker . We see it in different applications of strength development , including in the powerlifting world , where they understand that becoming well-rounded and hitting your weak spots then translates to strength .

Philip Pape 4:17

So the program I put together is a little bit of a blend of the best of what I've learned from some of these other coaches . Again , it's called Resolute and in that plan the idea is that you can go for quite a while and push your main lifts at moderate strength levels while also making your hypertrophy work more effective , and then vice versa , back and forth virtuous cycle , and the whole thing is sustainable because you rarely need deloads the way it's designed , with resets and waves . So I think it's . You know , I'll admit it , I'm standing on the shoulder of giants here , but I've also put these things in practice myself and worked with clients who have tried them , and I'm taking the best of all these together and designing this with a both end approach . So we're going to talk about the main pieces of the program , and these are things you could do on your own . You don't have to join us to get the program

Three-Week Rep Range Rotation System

Philip Pape 5:11

or to get the template , but if you do , it'll be all prescribed , spelled out nicely , and I even include in the template a starter set of all the lifts . In other words , you could run those lifts , as is almost indefinitely , and I put it into Boost Camp , so you'll get a link where , if you want to use Boost Camp , the workout app , it's preloaded in there for 12 weeks , right ? So the main thing there is the first lift of the day .

Philip Pape 5:37

This is the three-week rep range , and I stole this idea from concepts like Jim Wendler 531 , from Andy Baker's KSC Power Building , which is an 852 . And what I'm doing here is having you work in rep ranges but also rotate those reps . So week one You're working in the six to eight rep range , week two in the three to five rep range , week three in the two to three , and I like the ranges in this case . It gives you a little bit more of that auto-regulation , rather than absolutely having to progress on a certain rep range . It gives you some auto-regulation , gives you a little more flexibility for some of the bumps and bruises and dings and recovery issues that we face . Also makes it a little bit easier to run during fat loss , because a lot of our students are trying to do this during fat loss .

Philip Pape 6:21

So it gives you a little more allowance to be able to push the weight up , even if you say , drop a rep as long as you're still in the rep range and you're pushing those rep ranges independently over the three weeks later . Right ? So the six to eight rep range , you're gonna push it up three weeks later . Right , so the six to eight rep range , you're gonna push it up three weeks later in terms of weight , you're gonna keep pushing it up until you drop below the rep range and then you're gonna do a reset . That's really it , and you're gonna do that independently for each rep range . So if your two to three reps is driving up but your three to five reps drops , the three to five reps gets reset , the two to three reps keeps going , right , and all of this is explained in words in the template itself .

Philip Pape 7:04

Now you might be thinking , okay , that's just periodization , but I don't think it is . I think traditional periodization moves you through phases linearly , right . You spend like four to six weeks in one rep range and then you move to another . I think five , three , one is built on that and part of the problem there is , by the time you cycle back to a rep range or a specific number of reps , you you might've lost some of the training or adaptations that you built there . Um , and for my client base and those of you listening , most of you are beginner , novice , intermediate , late intermediate as opposed to more advanced trainees , and I think this kind of weekly system will progress you better because you can get higher frequency . I hope I'm not losing you guys in explaining all this . Okay , it's all spelled out in the template . If you join Physique University , so if you stop providing a stimulus to a particular rep range , you're going to slowly start detraining in that rep range , which is not always a terrible thing if you're still getting the movement pattern in within other rep ranges . But this kind of splits the difference and helps you do both right . You do six to eight reps , then you do three to five , then you do two to three and now you're back to six to eight just three weeks later , and you've kept the movement pattern going in the meantime and the different rep ranges help the other rep ranges right . So you are never more than two weeks away from a rep range , your adaptations stay fresh , your strength stays kind of where it needs to be and at the same time you're building some size , and I think there's research that shows this kind of approach is really solid .

Philip Pape 8:31

Hey , this is Philip

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Philip Pape 8:32

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Philip Pape 9:41

All right , let's get back to the show .

Main & Developmental Lift Structure

Philip Pape 9:43

You know Mike Zordos and their colleagues showed that undulating periodization , which is varying the intensity in shorter timeframes , is gonna produce superior strength gains compared to a linear progression . This assumes you've gotten through your novice linear progression . It also produces better hypertrophy because you're using heavier loads more frequently , right ? So it's a combination of the heavier and lighter loads in the rotation .

Philip Pape 10:08

Every session in Resolute starts with a big barbell movement . When you're fresh , squat bench dead overhead . The four main lifts it's four days . That's four of the five days . So stay tuned . I'll explain what the four main lifts . It's four days , that's four of the five days . So stay tuned , I'll explain what the fifth day is . And that's kind of an intelligent design to push all those lifts up and to accessorize around them . You have only so much energy , only so much focus and strength in each session , right ? Some of you are doing this during fat loss , so you have even less , and a lot of programs will scatter this across multiple exercises where , like the squat , sandwich between leg press and lunge , or if you're talking full body or the bench , comes after three other pressing movements and it's again .

Philip Pape 10:47

It depends on your goal . If your goal is to work on weak spots and variations , that might need to come first before you hit the main lift . But resolute , it's power building . So we're prioritizing what matters most and that's the most neurologically demanding lift and that gets your , gets you in your peak fresh state . Then you're focused , you're firing all cylinders . You could do the warmup with that lift . You can develop that movement pattern , attack it right . It demands the most from your entire system and it then drives everything else right . A stronger squat means you can use heavier weights on lunges , for example . A bigger bench means the accessory pressing can carry more load . The main lift sets the ceiling for what follows , so it kind of primes you . I really love that approach and it's a very traditional approach because it works After the main lift , resolute introduces the developmental lift and this is a concept I've seen in many of the best and then dropping to a very light rep flat dumbbell bench .

Philip Pape 12:00

You're actually dropping the load just a little bit and doing sets of eight . So , just to be clear , it's sets of eight , so it's an interesting rep range , but it's a fixed number of reps so that you can focus on progressing exactly that lift with those reps over time as developmental variation . So , for example , after heavy squats you might do pause squats . Right right After bench press you might do close grip or incline . So it's very similar and it reinforces the main lift without competing with it , and that helps also with fatigue and recovery .

Philip Pape 12:31

The developmental lift , the whole point of it , is to address weaknesses in the main lift but also add volume in a way that enhances instead of detracting from the primary goal . Because if , for example , your bench stalls because of weakness in your tricep , the close grip bench as your developmental lift attacks that limitation and this is where customization can occur , right , if you're in Physique University and you're like you , look , I'm really trying to work on this part of my body Is this the best developmental lift ? We could say no , why don't you do this one instead ? Right , why don't you do a paused or a spotto press or a Larson press instead ? And a lot of programs . They either skip that approach or they just kind of move on to completely unrelated variations . And I'm not saying that's bad . Again , it depends on your goal . It depends on your goal . But I think this is a very intelligent approach . We're trying to put in there where it's like , instead of a redundant stress , it's a complimentary stress , so you get a little bit extra benefit , not so much fatigue built up , and you're attacking the main lift and supporting the main lift . So again , resolute's available exclusively inside Physique University , which you can join using the podcast listener link in the show notes . If you do , it's still 27 a month , but you'll get a free custom nutrition plan and then when you jump in free custom nutrition plan and then when you jump in , I can show you immediately where to find that training template .

Philip Pape 13:48

So another thing I think separates Resolute from a lot of the power building programs you see , is the fifth day is a specialization day dedicated entirely to back and arms .

Back & Arms Specialization Day

Philip Pape 13:58

And I think I love focusing on the back and arms because both from a physique perspective . They get neglected and people want to develop them . And from a health symmetry , supporting your other lifts , perspective , injury prevention , supporting your shoulders , for example . People don't realize that the value of the back being strong to support your shoulders . So I'm not talking about the big rope-like back development you get from deadlifts , I'm talking about a little bit more direct work on your lats , your rhomboids , your rear delts , right , kind of that mid to upper back area . And then of course , arms . We you know men and women all like to have stronger , bigger looking arms .

Philip Pape 14:37

And although you hit arms both directly and indirectly throughout the week , you then can specialize on the weekend and hit them really hard as the very last part of the session . You then can specialize on the weekend and hit them really hard as the very last part of the session . And so that's what I wanted to do with the power building here is really reserve some back and arm specialization for that last day , but you're still hitting the back and arms during the week . So you're getting a decent amount of volume , but it's spread out really nicely and then you get that , you get that Saturday or you get the the . You get the Saturday and Sunday off If you do it five days straight or you can take a day off in the middle . We have a couple of ways to do that . We can show you in the template itself in Physique University . If you join , there's not really a right or wrong because it's designed with fatigue recovery built in , even if you do them five days straight .

Philip Pape 15:22

So the reason I like back strength is it also translates to your pressing strength . Your arm development translates to everything , also translates to your physique and we know that performance is limited by your weakest component and it's often hard to figure out what that is . But for a lot of lifters , that's back strength , that's also their arms right . So you know , triceps are huge in a lot of movements and they often get a little bit neglected , even though they come along for the ride with things like pull-ups and chin-ups and close grip bench and even rows . Hitting them directly is helpful . So we don't want weak backs . Strong backs are extremely helpful .

Philip Pape 15:58

Benching is supported by your lats for stability . Squat supported by your back . In terms of you know , especially if you're doing , let's say , a safety squat bar , a lot of you are using that now . It actually really helps to have that strong back . Your upper back can round under load , so really strengthening that can help . So we're dedicating an entire session to back development and trying to remove that bottleneck and also help with the things people want , which is that that look right . And then we can't pretend that aesthetics don't matter , because they do . Big arms make everything look better , especially triceps . People think it's the biceps , but it's the triceps and they help fill out your shirt and they are the difference between for some people looking like you lift and not , and so we throw it in there Again . You can completely alter this if you want and say I'm going to do leg specialization , understanding that there's going to be a fatigue cost depending on how you change the program . So again , I'm trying to do this intelligently , with a purpose rather than random .

Philip Pape 16:51

And one of the things I wanted to think about here was deloads , because I think there's a lot of misunderstanding about how to use deloads and how and when and what

Deloads & Program Adaptability

Philip Pape 17:01

they are . I think a really well-designed program is such that you almost never need to use a deload unless you feel the fatigue building up and then I'll say intuitively , decide that you need that . The three-week waves and the resets Make it so that you have a very good chance of dissipating fatigue without needing deloads . Where the deload might be needed is if you're in a fat loss phase , don't have a lot of resources , you're not getting enough sleep , you're not eating enough right , you have too much stress . So these are all things that would cause a deload , simply because there are other variables outside the gym that are affecting your training .

Philip Pape 17:37

But also after you run this for , let's say , three or four waves , so nine or 12 weeks , you might find that you need to deload just because of built-up fatigue for your personal recoverability , or because the lifts are getting a little bit stale and you want to do a reset . And then you want to switch to substitute some of the variations and accessories or even the main lifts right , even the main lifts . And that's why I think I have written in there every nine to 12 weeks if necessary . And when you do a deload , there's a couple of different ways to do that beyond the scope of today's program . But for a lot of people that's gonna be dropping the intensity just a bit and cutting out some accessory work , right ? Not a wholesale , like elimination of days , although in a five-day power building program that is another option . You can drop to maybe three days for that week . You know , three or four days , just hit the main lifts and a variation and be done with it . There's a lot of different ways to do it .

Philip Pape 18:27

My goal is that you don't even need a deload , so we're not forcing you to take a deload . I'm not saying you have to take it . It's going to depend on are you recovering well , are you progressing , are you feeling good ? Why interrupt the momentum if all those things are good ? That's my point . And you'll know when your performance stagnates or declines . And that's why we measure biofeedback , we track our lifts . You know we look at our , make sure the volume is right for us .

Philip Pape 18:50

Even when you start a program like this , even if you're fully resourced and nourished , the way it's written may be too much for you or it may not be enough , right . I think the volume is pretty reasonable for the average person , but I can definitely see , again in a fat loss phase or something like that , where you would need to reduce it . So the the deload , you know you want to keep training your nervous system , keep handling those movement patterns , but you're going to give your tissue a little bit more recovery if you need it right If you need it . So I want you to think about program design here , because that's this episode is really about the design . Yes , I'm telling you about a template . I would love to have you in Physique University because I know if you join you're going to be extremely successful and learn finally how to lift the right way and progress and then actually get the result you want , which is building muscle and then losing fat .

Philip Pape 19:34

But program design-wise , a lot of lifters approach training like following a recipe . Right , it's like it's kind of interesting . It's like here is a program and I'm going to follow it and I'm going to get the result . But we talk about engineering systems all the time and the best systems here are adaptive . So all of my training templates they're called templates because they're frameworks . It's not just here follow this exact program . It's here's the template and why as a starting point . Now let's tweak , based on how you're responding , what you need , what you like , just like with food . It's like if I gave you a meal plan as opposed to a meal framework . Right , a meal framework might be here's your calories , here's your macros , here's your micro goals , here's all the foods you like . Now you can mix and match the way you want it .

Philip Pape 20:19

Now , when , when it comes to training , people like a little more guidance and a little more structure right off the bat , because it's a bit more challenging to understand from the overwhelming list of exercises how to put it together . So that's why I think these templates are a good launching off point and the system does a lot of the thinking for you , which is we kind of need that from a mental fatigue perspective , but then you , your thinking , or if we support you in doing that , is to adapt to your conditions and your recoverability . So it's not this like rigid protocol that's just going to break down from day one . And once you understand the principles which , by the way , in our training templates , one of the first sheets in there describes all the main principles and also some of the tactical things like warming up then you comply them to any template , any goal , right .

Philip Pape 21:02

If you want to focus more on strength , you could adjust the variation selection . Or you can have more variations of the same , more variations on the main lifts in there . You could have lower rep ranges . Right . If you want more size and you want to modify the rep ranges if you're dealing with an injury , right , you can swap out lifts . There's

Engineering Your Training System

Philip Pape 21:21

a lot of ways to modify it . So it's not just following a program . It's okay . I'm engineering my training around this template and building a skill that serves me for the rest of my lifting career .

Philip Pape 21:30

I love this stuff . Okay , so I'm excited about Resolute . It's not just a great program or technically template . It represents a , an intentional way of thinking about strength and size , not as competing goals , but how to collaborate and putting them together . And then throw in some of that fun but helpful specialization as well and make it adaptive , make it a bit auto-regulated and help you systematically address the things that are lagging but also allow the things that are progressing to continue progressing right .

Philip Pape 21:59

It's designed for real people , real lifters who have real lives , who are trying to combine everything into right . It's designed for real people , real lifters who have real lives , who are trying to combine everything into one in an intelligent , efficient way . It might not be the 99.999% optimal for each , but it's 95% optimal for both . So if you're looking for efficiency , that's where Resolute delivers and that's what thinking about systems brings to your training . And you'll get stronger , you'll build size . You'll get both probably faster than you thought possible . Probably faster than you've been able to in the past .

Philip Pape 22:28

So if you wanna stop choosing between them , if you wanna start building with a power building approach , resolute is waiting . We've got it already up and running inside Physique University . And if someone else is looking for a good program or a template template , text this episode to a friend who's been struggling . I think they'll thank you , for you know the ideas , the programming principles and you guys can probably put together this program yourself . I'll be honest . But we've got it all set up for you . So use the link in the show notes to join , get a free nutrition plan , come in and get resolute and until next time , keep using your wits lifting those weights and remember you don't have to choose between strong and jacked when you engineer a system for both . I'll talk to you next time here on the Wits and Weights Podcast .