Variable Resistance

The normal method in weightlifting is "progressive resistance training".  Just as it sounds, the idea is to keep adding more weight as soon as a required number fo reps (or time) is reached.  While this works for beginners, anyone who has lifted for a while realizes that eventually you hit a plateau.  You can't keep adding 5 pounds a week to your bench press forever; otherwise, people would be bench pressing 2,000 lbs by now.

After this simple beginner model stalls out, then there are "intermediate" or "advanced" techniques.  This may involve periodization (two steps forward, one step back), different exercises, more or less sets, etc. 

As of late, I'm beginning to think the whole system misses the mark - primarily because the system does not match the biology of the human body. 

As said above, any type of linear training program eventually plateuas out.  This may show up in poundages staying the same, or it may show up in other less obvious (even unconscious) ways.  These other ways may be injury or sudden loss of motivation in lifting.  To me, injury and loss of motivation are really the body's way of showing its "displeasure" with the current activities being performed.

For example, I had some friends in my hometown who could lift gargantuan weights, who competed in powerlifting events and such.  But they never seemed to be lifting these heavy weights month after month.  Something would often happen: injury, loss of motivation, trying a new routine with lighter weights, etc. 

So if the body does not "want" linear progression, what does it want?  I believe the body is suited for "variable progression", the title of this post.  It goes back to out Stone Age ancestors, what type of "weights" did they lift, and how heavy were they?  Of course, they did not lift weights, but they did lift various things, such as carcasses, trees, rocks, etc.

For sure, they did not lift in a linear progression - a 20 pound rock this week, a 30 pound rock next week, etc.  What most likely happened is things were random - a 35 pound item one day, a 50 pound item another day, a 20 pound item the next week, etc. 

I would also think that this range of items had a "upper limit" in terms of weight.  In other words, would they have had to lift ever-increasing weights over time?  I doubt it.  More likely is that every now and then they would have to lift something extremely heavy.  But there's no reason to think this extremely heavy item would be heavier over time.

Hence, I am thinking of altering my weightlifting routine with all this in mind.  I am thinking of defining a range for each exercise, from a light poundage to a very heavy weight (for me).  Then I will randomly select a weight within that range for each lifting session.  For example, if the range on an exercise is 50 to 100 lbs, one session I will lift 65 lbs, the next 85 lbs, the next 50 lbs, etc., however it turns out.

I am not sure if I will randomize based on just my intuitive feelings, or if I will use some system to randomize.  One idea is one I had a few years ago, and that is to attach a poundage with each number on a die.  Before each workout, you roll the die and lift the associated poundage.

We'll see how it goes, but I'm betting my energy levels and resistance to injury will markedly improve under this routine.