Quick Hits: Rep Schemes – Wave Loading

The manipulation of reps, set, and load/intensity is an important consideration when designing fitness programs. The good ole 3 x 12 rep scheme may work if you’re a novice, but it’s simply doesn’t provide the stimulus needed for hypertrophy or strength gains for those with more lifting experience.

The idea of wave loading takes advantage of rep and load manipulation to increase training volume despite the onset of fatigue by progressively stimulating the nervous system to recruit more motor units using increasingly heavier loads.

The concept involves grouping a series of sets together into a wave. Each subsequent set within the wave is heavier than the previous one and acts to further stimulate the nervous system. Because of the post tetanic potentiation effect of the loading scheme, you’re able to progressively increase the load in comparison to the same set in the previous wave. You stop the wave when you are no longer able to increase the load compared to the previous wave, your form suffers, or you fail to achieve the prescribed number of reps in any set within a wave.

That description of technique may sound a bit hard to understand so here is an example of a wave loading scheme for the squat exercise that will stimulate strength and hypertrophy as it contains a combination of hypertrophy, functional hypertrophy, and relative strength rep ranges within the wave.

Wave 1
275 lbs for 12 reps
315 lbs for 7 reps
355 lbs for 3 reps

Wave 2
290 lbs for 12 reps
325 lbs for 7 reps
370 lbs for 3 reps

Wave 3
300 lbs for 12 reps
335 lbs for 5 reps — STOP exercise

If you’re able to complete four or more waves, you’re being too conservative in your load selection. Make sure to adjust rest periods appropriately for the rep range you are using.

Please keep in mind that there are many ways to design a wave. There are many more ways to wave load but the general principle is still the same. Your wave could be longer (5 sets in a wave) or shorter (2 sets in a wave), but ultimately the execution is very similar and takes advantage of the increasing stimulation of the nervous system to facilitate improved strength or hypertrophy gains. The type of wave scheme you utilize depends upon the goal of the training cycle. Use wave loading with one multi-joint exercise (bench press, deadlift, squat, chins/pullups) during a workout.