Following his advanced deadlift program and advanced squat program, Jonnie Candito’s advanced bench press program is a bench-focused program for athletes looking to bust through stubborn plateaus. The program is explained in great detail in this PDF. I have pulled out some of the most important parts in the below overview [Read more…]
Best Powerlifting Peaking Programs for 2023
Peaking powerlifting programs are designed to help "peak" an athlete's one rep max (1RM) in preparation for a powerlifting meet. Peaking programs can also be known as tapering programs because the amount of volume is tapered down as the programs progresses.
Below you will find peaking routines for individual lifts as well as for all three powerlifting competition lifts.
Popular peaking powerlifting programs:
- Cast Iron Strength 12 Week Peaking Program
- 6 Week Soviet Peaking Program
- Russian Squat Program
- Candito 6 Week Program
- Dan Alexander Powerlifting Peaking Program
- Ed Coan 12 and 14 Week Peaking Programs
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The latest programs are also available below.
Candito Advanced 9 Week Squat Program Spreadsheet
Released in 2016 by Jonnie Candito, this is a 9 week advanced squat program. Similar to his advanced deadlift program and advanced bench press program, this emphasizes progression on the squat and places significantly less emphasis on the bench and deadlift. This is geared toward lifters that have plateaued on their squat or are looking to focus on it for other reasons. [Read more…]
3 Peaking Template Spreadsheets by Barbell Medicine
Following up on the popular Bridge Program, the crew at Barbell Medicine introduced a free peaking program for athletes preparing for a powerlifting or strengthlifting meet. [Read more…]
12 Week Peaking Program by Cast Iron Strength
This program, billed “the best fucking 12 weeks of powerlifting you’ll have all year” is a powerlifting peaking program best suited for meet preparation. This is not designed for running back to back, as it accumulates a significant amount of fatigue throughout the duration of the program. [Read more…]
Weightrainer Peaking Programs #1 and #2 Spreadsheets
Weightrainer.net published these two peaking programs: one designed especially for the bench press (#1) and another program (#2) for squat, bench, or deadlift.
The two programs are pretty similar, but here are some key differences: [Read more…]
Dan Alexander 10 Week Powerlifting Peaking Program
10/1/19 Edit: Fixed the rounding and added support for lbs and kgs! 🙂
Dan Alexander’s 10 week Powerlifting Peaking Program is designed to improve the 1RM of the squat, bench, and deadlift by 5%. Spread across the three lifts, this can result in a sizeable boost to a lifter’s total on the competition platform.
This program is a hybrid of Korte’s 3×3 program and Verhoshansky’s Soviet peaking routine. [Read more…]
Tom McCullough 14 Week Peaking Powerlifting Program
Edit: Updated to support lb or kg rounding.
This 14 week peaking powerlifting program is similar to many other old school peaking programs on Lift Vault: 1x weekly session per lift, descending reps, increase intensity and a 5-10% 1 rep max increase at the end of the cycle. [Read more…]
Classic 9 and 12 Week Powerlifting Peaking Program Spreadsheets
As old as time itself, these peaking programs can be run for squat, bench, and deadlift when preparing for a powerlifting meet. Both seek to improve your 1 rep max by 5% after the end of the cycle.
The differences between the 9 week and 12 week peaking cycles can be seen below: [Read more…]
Scott Warman 10 Week Bench Press Peaking Program
Scott Warman’s 10 week bench press peaking program is a bit different than many bench peaking programs in that it focuses on improving the 2RM by 10 lbs. 1RM improvements are saved for meet day. [Read more…]
Fred Hatfield (Dr. Squat) 9 Week Peaking Program Spreadsheet
Update: KG and LB rounding now supported.
Developed by Fred Hatfield (aka Dr. Squat), this 9 week peaking program is based on two workouts per week: one heavy, one light.
It can be run for a specific lift or all three lifts.
The 1RM increase is 10%, making it an ambitious peaking program, although it does allow for a deload period half way through the program for recovery. [Read more…]
Classic 11 Week Deadlift Peaking Program Spreadsheet
This is truly a no-frills 11 week peaking program for the deadlift. Since it does not program in any accessory work, it will be up to the individual lifter to program in accessories to compensate for their individual weaknesses.
Format:
- Deadlift 1x weekly, 11 weeks
- Rep range declines from 10 to 1
- % of 1RM increases from 63% to 110%
Ed Coan Program: 12 and 14 Week Peaking Program Spreadsheets
Ed Coan, arguably the GOAT of powerlifting, has a few popular programs floating around, including the Coan Phillipi Deadlift Routine. Here are two popular powerlifting programs in 12 and 14 week versions. Rep schemes for each program are included below the spreadsheets. [Read more…]
Gene Bell Jr.’s 12 Week Squat Peaking Program
Used by Gene Bell Jr. to prepare for a powerlifting meet, this program consists of one weekly squat workout over the course of 12 weeks to increase the 1 rep max by over 6%.
Format:
- Squat 1x weekly
- 12 weeks in length
- Most work is done in 60-80% range, with final 4 weeks starting at 92.5% and working up
6 Week Soviet Peaking Powerlifting Program
Update: Spreadsheet now rounds weights to the nearest 5 (lb) or 2.5 (kg).
This 6 week program is designed to help peak the bench press, squat, or deadlift. It is based on training twice each week: once heavy, once light. After 6 weeks, it aims to increase your 1 rep max by 5%.
It was designed by Soviet coach Yuri Verkhoshansky and described to John Abdo, who brought it back to the USA. It has been described as “intense.” [Read more…]
12 Week Bench Press Peaking Program Spreadsheet
This is another old school bench press peaking program spreadsheet. It attempts to add 20 pounds onto the lifter’s 1 rep max by the end of the cycle, which is pretty ambitious. [Read more…]
6 Week Power Bench Press Program Spreadsheet
Written by John Robbins and published by Dennis B. Beis in an early 1990’s issue of Natural Bodybuilding, the 6 week power bench press program is a peaking program designed to end the 6 week cycle with a new 1 rep max. [Read more…]
Daily Undulating Periodization (DUP) Training Program Spreadsheets
Daily Undulating Periodization or DUP is a scientifically proven method to get stronger, making it ideal for athletes, powerlifters, and anyone looking to gain strength.
KIZEN 6 Week Bench Peaking Program Spreadsheet
Hot off the presses (ha!), this is the free 6 Week Bench Press Peaking Program spreadsheet by KIZEN Training. I highly recommend signing up for the free course at KIZEN that accompanies this program and guides you every step of the way.
[Read more…]Russian Squat Program + Routine Spreadsheet (Original and Masters Versions)
Whether it is run for the squat, deadlift, bench, or all three (known as the Extended Russian Power Routine), the Russian Squat Program (aka Russian Squat Routine or RSR) is a brutal peaking program that will help boost maximum strength when prepping for a meet.
Smolov Program and Smolov Jr Bench and Squat Program Spreadsheets
Ah, yes. The infamous Smolov program for squats and Smolov Jr for squat and/or bench press. If you’re willing to build these lifts at any cost (e.g. a record attempt) then this might be the ticket!
[Read more…]