Deloading is an important tool that allows the body to recover to work optimally and maximize strength gains. This article goes over how to incorporate deloads into your fitness routine so your body can get the recovery it needs for your training to have the most impact.
The Science Behind Deloading
Deloading is a period of recovery that you incorporate in your training. Deloads are simply working out at a lower volume and lower intensity intermittently. In general, deloads last a week, which gives your body & nervous system a chance to recover.
Deloading runs off a principle called general adaptation syndrome (GAS). This principle describes the physiologic changes your body goes through as it responds to stress. These changes occur in the following stages: Alarm (the stress event itself), resistance (body tries to repair itself after the initial shock of stress), & exhaustion. A healthy body will move between alarm and resistance, however, if the stress from the alarm does not leave, the body can move into exhaustion. In strength training, recovery allows the body to cycle between alarm and resistance in a healthy way. If you workout really hard, your body does not recover from the stress of a workout and can move into exhaustion that manifests as overtraining and central nervous system fatigue.
Serious athletes will take GAS to maximize their training through supercompensation. The theory of supercompensation states that when you’re in the alarm stage and resistance stage, you overreach on purpose to go a little past your fatigue management and follow it with a deload period to see better physiological adaptations (e.g., strength gains). It’s based on the idea that higher stress levels take a more significant toll on the body, forcing it to adapt better to effectively handle similar stress in the future. Supercompensation is nuanced and isn’t necessary for recreational lifting.
There are many different types of body fatigue that deloading helps alleviate. Overall central nervous system (CNS) fatigue feels like overarching body fatigue. When you have CNS fatigue, you’ll notice decreased performance over time. Overtraining occurs when the body is pushed too hard for too long, and looks like a plateau in strength and muscle gains, inability for the body to lose fat, and feels like overall fatigue on a daily basis, achy joints, difficulty sleeping, and a lack of motivation to train. If you continue to workout hard when you’re overtrained, you will develop major issues. If you are experiencing one of these overtraining symptoms, consider deloading immediately. If you wait, you could develop overtraining syndrome, which is a very large hole to dig yourself out of. Remember, stress is good, but chronic anything is generally not. Daily life stressors also affect your capacity to train and directly impact overtraining as well.
Different Types of Deloading
Reactive deload
Also known as “listening to your body”. This deload is based on how you feel and when you need a break. It can be effective if you can accurately identify when to deload, but it requires strict self-monitoring.
Proactive deload
Deloading is planned into your program to help prevent CNS fatigue regardless of how the body feels. This type of deloading is common for powerlifters.
When to Incorporate It Into Your Workout Schedule
The timeline for incorporating deloads depends on your program and what your goals are. It’s important to remember that pushing yourself is not always the answer. Incorporating times of scaling back can really push progress forward.
Common Deloading Mistakes & How to Avoid Them
The most common deloading mistake is doing more than what’s programmed in a deload week. Another mistake people make is never deloading. Your body needs periods of recovery from hard training. It’s best to do it when your personal and/or work life outside of the gym is stressful as well. Your body can only handle so much stress. If you’re in a deload week, don’t replace intensity with HIIT. If you’re an endurance athlete, just cut the endurance activity in half for the week or you can take the week completely off. If haven’t deloaded before, do one and see how you feel when you come back to regular training – you should feel amazing.
Deload vs. Rest
A rest day is no training at all. If you’re resting, just walking or doing active things throughout the day that aren’t intense is important. Deloads should be structured. Think of it as a technique week. You’re still doing workouts and main lifts, just less reps and less weight. Both rest periods and deloading are important to keep your body working optimally.
Signs You Need to Deload
- Insomnia: Your cortisol is probably through the roof at night when we need it lowest to sleep
- Achy joints: You’re pushing your joints too much too often
- Moodiness/irritability
- Decreased performance and feeling week overall
- Excessive muscle soreness from workouts you’re usually accustomed to
- Lack of motivation to train and for other things in life
- Susceptibility to getting sick: This is a sign the CNS too taxed
How to Plan a Deload Week for Maximum Gains
We suggest a proactive deload by building it into a program. If you are powerlifting, you can plan a deload every 4th week. If you are a recreational lifter, every 12th week is a good cadence.
During your deload week, cut your volume and intensity in half. For example, if you normally do 10 sets of squats during the week, do 5. If you’re doing 12 sets of pressing during the week, do 6. Or, you can do the same workouts you’ve been doing and just cut the weight in half for the same amount of reps, and knock 1-2 sets off. Generally speaking, you should be lifting around 30-60% intensity of a one rep max for compound lifts.
The Benefits of Deloading
A study showed people who trained hard for 4 weeks vs people who trained for 3 weeks and deloaded 1 week got the same muscle and strength gain results. If you consider the long term effects of deloading, your body will see the same strength gains without taxing the body.
Want to learn more about deloading? Listen to episode 205 of the Stronger Than Your Boyfriend Podcast: The Science Behind Deloads.
Sources Cited:
Ogasawara, R., Yasuda, T., Ishii, N. et al. Comparison of muscle hypertrophy following 6-month of continuous and periodic strength training. Eur J Appl Physiol 113, 975–985 (2013). https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00421-012-2511-9
