Benefits of recovery week?

[Yips]

Consistent lurker but infrequent poster here, and thanks to this website discovered Rippetoes 3 x 5 program, which I am currently adhering to.

My strength gains have been better than my size gains but that is partially my fault as I haven't been eating enough.

Weight progress (Sets accross and reps of 5)

Front squats: Bar ---> 60kg*
Deadlifts: 60kg ---> 110kg
Press: 30kg ---> 50kg
Flat D/B Bench: 15kg ---> 28kg
Pendlay Rows: 50kg --> 65kg
Dips: Unweighted ---> 13.75kg (Reps of 8)
E/Z Curls: 18kg ---> 25.5kg

*Don't have access to squat rack at the moment, and couldn't squat for the first 5 weeks due to a groin complaint.

That's my progress after 10 consecutive weeks of weight training, which I'm relatively happy with. However, after much deliberation and reading a few articles by Ian King, I decided to take this X'mas week off weight training.

I feel that 12-weeks of continous weight training is as far as you should take it. Then you should take a full recovery week and avoid strength training.

The above is an extract form an article where Ian discusses ways to overtrain and generally fuck up in the gym. Upon reading this article and going through my log book, I thought it would be a good time to take my recovery week.

Is a recovery week worthwhile or even necassery? Or would a deload have been a better alternative? Do you utilise recovery weeks?

Any help/advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

[poysyn]

Consistent lurker but infrequent poster here, and thanks to this website discovered Rippetoes 3 x 5 program, which I am currently adhering to.

My strength gains have been better than my size gains but that is partially my fault as I haven't been eating enough.

Weight progress (Sets accross and reps of 5)

Front squats: Bar ---> 60kg*
Deadlifts: 60kg ---> 110kg
Press: 30kg ---> 50kg
Flat D/B Bench: 15kg ---> 28kg
Pendlay Rows: 50kg --> 65kg
Dips: Unweighted ---> 13.75kg (Reps of 8)
E/Z Curls: 18kg ---> 25.5kg

*Don't have access to squat rack at the moment, and couldn't squat for the first 5 weeks due to a groin complaint.

That's my progress after 10 consecutive weeks of weight training, which I'm relatively happy with. However, after much deliberation and reading a few articles by Ian King, I decided to take this X'mas week off weight training.



The above is an extract form an article where Ian discusses ways to overtrain and generally fuck up in the gym. Upon reading this article and going through my log book, I thought it would be a good time to take my recovery week.

Is a recovery week worthwhile or even necassery? Or would a deload have been a better alternative? Do you utilise recovery weeks?

Any help/advice would be greatly appreciated.

I take a week off if I feel the need to..it is certainly not a bad thing every now and then..

 

[Guinness5.0]

I tend to favor a deload. If you are careful about not overdoing it in the gym (or underdoing it in terms of food/sleep), a full week off is not really necessary as a beginner. That's not to say that a week competely off is never warranted, but as a newb I would tend to think that a light week or two where you still lift would be the better approach.

To me, a full week off is more appropriate when you have spent a long period working heavy and hard and NEED the time to recover. I personally feel that at the beginner level you would be better served by backing down a shade every now and again rather than getting out of the gym for that long.

It's not a 'make-or-break' proposition either way - if you need a break mentally or just think you should take the week off, then take it off. Don't do it just because of the arbitrary recommendation of an author.

 

[anotherbutters]

Get yourself a copy of Practical Programming. No, really.

Whenever you train, you're doing two things - increasing your strength and incurring an amount of fatigue that you have to recover from. A recovery/deload (same thing) week is only going to be necessary if you've developed so much fatigue that you need a week to recover from it. If you're still setting records, then by definition you're not fatigued and don't need a week off. Carry on and set more records!