Periodization: Linear vs Blocked – Sport Science Insider

Types of periodization are a hot topic within strength and conditioning and sports performance.  Some coaches argue that linear periodization is the best thing since sliced bread, whilst others swear blind that we should all be using block periodization or undulating or whatever other method they happen to like.

The truth is though, that it matters way less than you might think.  In this guide, we’re going to look at what periodization actually is, the three most common types of periodisation (with program examples) and how to taper periodised programs, before concluding with an analysis that might quite surprise you.

Periodization is simply the changing of training stressors over time.

So unless you literally just do the exact same session every single time you enter the gym, you’re doing some form of periodised training.

Of course, it’s only natural that athletes and coaches want to order and structure these changes into some kind of logical sequence, which leads us to divide training into specific timeframes.

The macrocycle:  Which is the largest timeframe, and can be anything from 6 weeks up to 4 years (an olympic quad plan).