Male Physique Template FAQ
1.) What if my sets of the day are zero or NEGATIVE?
A: This means that you’ve been rating the training as consistently very hard and the volume has been
adjusted very low. If the sets are negative or zero, just don’t train that exercise at all on that day, and
your fatigue should drop very quickly. This occurrence is going to be very rare.
2.) How do I enter in the reps for a workout?
A: Type in the reps into the “Rep Results” column with commas. For example, if you got 3 total sets of 8
reps then 8 reps then 6 reps, type in “8,8,6” into the “Rep Results” cell for that exercise.
3.) How do Deload reps work?
A: Do half the reps that you did in Week 1. So if you got 8,8,6 reps in week one on an exercise, you’ll do
4,4,3 reps on the deload for that exercise. If the resultant number is not a whole number, round DOWN
and use that number, for example; 7 reps in week 1 means 3 reps in the deload week.
4.) Can I pick the same movement for both adjacent options in a program?
A: For example, if you have quads listed twice in a row or multiple times in the same week, can you
choose high bar squats for all of them? Yes, but using two different variants is highly recommended. It
will prevent fatigue accumulation from occurring as rapidly and likely enhance the total amount of
muscle grown. However, if you’re confident you can survive the monotony and benefit from it (if you’ve
done “squat every day” style programs recently and benefitted from them, for example), you can
choose the same variants within the week. To be clear, we advise against this for most lifters.
5.) What is “3/fail, etc…” and what does it mean?
A: As described in the “how to” document, x/fail means you stop the working set as soon as you reach x
number of reps away from muscular failure. Another way to put this is that you should rack the weight
and end the set when you have x reps left in the tank. For example, if the instruction is 1/fail, that
means that you should be lifting until you only have one rep at most left in the tank, with good
technique. Typically, 3/fail will see a significant slowdown in bar speed towards the end of the set, but is
not usually perceived as very difficult to crank out. 2/fail is where straining and shaking may occur and is
going to feel very tough. 1/fail is very close to all you have to give and is going to feel like a near maximal
effort. Remember that failure means when your technique fails, not all out failure as in when you can no
longer perform a rep altogether. Good form/technique should always be used for safety purposes.
6.) I can’t lift in the exact days specified in the workout. Can I switch the days around to meet my
needs?
A: You can, but we’d highly recommend that you stick to the scheduled pattern of days already in the
routine. Shifting is an ok idea, but the more you shift, the less we can guarantee the safety and
effectiveness of the program. Shifting a day or two occasionally out of necessity is ok, but consistency
with the training days and times will ensure similar conditions for each training session and better
results over time.
7.) I don’t know my 10RM values to enter, how do I find them?
A: While there are some good websites for calculating 10RM’s from maxes, they only offer a rough
guess. The good thing is, a rough guess is all you need for the program to work well. Just estimating your
maxes works, but you have to be honest with yourself. Don’t put what’s really your 7RM as your 10RM,
or you’ll be in for a world of hurt and less than optimal training. The less ego you bring in, the better,
and if you’re not sure on your maxes, erring on the conservative side is usually a good idea. Also
remember that we want you to input your 10RM that takes into account the order in which that
exercises appears. Your 4-moves-deep 10RM is going to be much lower than your fresh 10RM, so please
be honest with yourself about the weight difference between those two. YES, the lower weights can be
quite humbling, but the purpose of this program is to grow your muscles, not your ego.
8.) Why does the weight jump more from week 1 to week 2 than any other weeks?
A: In essence, you get much more used to the movement in the first week so we need to really blast it to
keep up with adaptation and your new MRV (maximum recoverable volume). When you first do a new
move you haven’t done in a while, the novelty of the angles of force can cause quite a bit of muscle
damage and adaptation. This is a good thing and allows us to get away with great results on an easy first
week. On the second week, your physiology has already adapted significantly to the different exercises,
and the bigger weight jump promotes a continued overload stimulus and progress toward bigger
muscles.
9.) Where can I find videos of the exercises listed?
A: As soon as you choose your exercise from the dropdown menu in the spreadsheet, its corresponding
video should pop up as a link in the cell immediately to the right (colored light blue).
10.) Why isn’t this program for lifters that JUST STARTED working out?
A: What we term “beginner” or “novice” is only AFTER 6 months of training with weights. These
templates for hypertrophy are quite high in volume, and the needed volume tolerance (work capacity
and recovery ability) needs to be built with a developmental program first before jumping into even our
beginner program. If you’ve been training for less than 6 months, trying out an easier program or
working with a personal trainer are the best kinds of advice we can give.
11.) I feel fine and don’t think I need to deload. What should I do?
A: Deload. If by some chance the program was way too easy for you and even the last hard training
week was a breeze, you can always come back next mesocycle and raise the week 1 set numbers to your
liking (the autoregulation formulas will adjust by themselves), but you’ll need to be at your best to
survive that program, so make sure to take the deload even if you feel “ok.” The idea after a deload is to
feel GREAT, not just OK. Making sure you’re using the autoregulation ratings correctly can go a long way
toward keeping the training close to your maximum adaptive volume (MAV) - not too hard or too easy.
12.) What do I do if the volume is not rising fast enough and I think I can do a lot more work?
A: If, after the first week, you really think that the volume of this routine will be too low, it’s likely going
to be more than enough work in the later weeks, especially if you’re properly rating these workouts as
“easy” and giving them 1’s on the rating scale. We’ve designed the program to move up to VERY high
volumes in the last week if you consistently feel unchallenged. Keep your eyes down the road and
remember what may seem easier now will get much harder in the subsequent weeks. Leave some gas in
the tank. If you go through the whole macrocycle (all 3 mesos) and find that most of them had too few
sets for you, feel free to run another one with different exercises and manually increase the first week
numbers. This will make the routine as tough as you want.
13.) Should I be gaining weight, losing weight, or maintaining weight on this program?
A: Depends on what you’re going for. If you’re looking to gain muscle, you should be looking to slowly
increase your bodyweight over most or all of the first 10 weeks of the plan and then maintain that
weight for the 3-4 weeks of the resensitization mesocycle. If you’re looking to lose fat, you should be
losing weight slowly during most or all of the 10 weeks of the first 2 mesocycles, then maintaining your
lost weight for the third.
How can you go about these goals in a logical and informed fashion? Take a look at our Renaissance Diet
Book, diet auto-templates or diet coaching for a more detailed approach.
14.) Do I have to do the exercises in the order presented?
A: No, but it’s highly recommended. Exercise volumes and intensities were programmed with the
original orders in mind, so switching them significantly can impact results. If you have to switch exercise
orders here and there, it’s no big deal (like when the rack is being taken up by people curling in it for too
long). But if you’re thinking of repeatedly doing the exercises out of order when the program says
otherwise, it’s not recommended.
15.) For bodyweight exercises like pullups and dips, what exactly is the instruction on putting in 10RM
weights?
A: When entering your 10RM for pullups, you add in your bodyweight (initial data entry sheet of the
excel document), then when you read the results from the assigned weights in the mesocycle sheet (the
actual program), you need to subtract your bodyweight. For example, if your 10RM on dips is your 150lb
bodyweight plus the 25lb plate you hang on your belt, you type in 175 into the 10RM entry cell. When
you read the weights off from the actual workout, subtract your 150lb weight from the result and you’ll
get the weight to put on your belt. Something like 10, 20, 20, 25 lbs by the weeks 1,2,3,4.
It’s possible that your weight on pullups and dips reads LESS than your bodyweight. In that case, you
have two options that are entirely up to you. You can:
a.) Use the assisted version of the exercises instead and take the needed weight as assistance.
b.) Just ignore the weights for your bodyweight movements and just use your bodyweight each
time. Especially recommended if you can do 6 or more dips/pullups by yourself.
c.) Use bands or boxes to help you do the pullups. Just make sure you make the exercise a bit
tougher each week by using a bit less resistance.
16.) How do I warm up?
A: As mentioned in the “how to” document, this is not a program for lifters completely new to training.
A previous 6 months of training (ideally with a trainer from any local gym) is required, and along with
technique and work capacity development, proper warmup techniques should be learned. Warmups
differ from person to person, but generally involved using a very low weight for a set of 10 reps, then a
moderate weight for around 5 reps, a heavy weight for 3 reps and the working weight for a potentiation
single, after which the working sets begin. To your liking, you can warm up more extensively than this
for the first lift of the day and less than this for all subsequent lifts.
17.) What do I do if I feel a sharp pain or get hurt during training?
A: In all cases, stop the routine and avoid physical activity for the rest of the day. If the pain is intense,
seek medical attention. When in doubt, consult a medical professional. Injuries are NOT worth pushing
through, and there is no shame in calling it quits in the interest of prioritizing your long-term health and
success.
18.) Do I have to train using the number of days a week the template says?
A: Because you selected the number of days per week that you want to train when you purchased the
template, that’s what it’s going to be designed around. If you’d like to train more or fewer days
(anything between 3 and 6 times per week), please feel free to purchase those additional templates.
19.) What does the rep range have to be?
A: It depends on the phase. On your first set of an exercise, you’ll need to adjust your initial 10RM
weight if your first set is too high or too low in reps. For all sets after the first of each exercises, any and
all reps are fine. Please take a look below:
Mesocycle 1: 6 reps or less is too few, 20 reps or more is too many
Mesocycle 2: 10 reps or less is too few, 30 reps or more is too many
Mesocycle 3: 3 reps or less is too few, 12 reps or more is too many
If the reps are too few, bump your initial 10RM down by 10 to 20%. If the reps are too many, bump it up
by 10 or 20%. Make sure you’re entering your 10RMs in to the purple “3.)” column, and NOT into the
first week’s weight column. All weekly weights are calculated for you from the 10RM column, so you
don’t ever have to edit them directly, you only edit the 10RM column if needed.
20.) What if the training is too hard?
A: In most cases, rating the exercise as -1 will lower the volume progressively until you’re well within
your ability to recover. If you feel very overwhelmed and the volume isn’t dropping fast enough, please
take half a week off and manually lower the volume (set numbers) for the later weeks to your abilities. If
the weights are too heavy, you will likely need to adjust your initial 10RM estimates.
21.) What if I’m not sure what the exercises are?
A: You can watch the videos and try new exercises, but we recommend sticking mostly to exercises you
know, at least for the first couple of mesocycles. In the later cycles, you can try some exercises you don’t
know as well, but make sure to focus on PERFECT technique throughout.
22.) What if I don't have time to finish the workout?
A: If you can’t come back later that day, just scrap it and move forward without making the lifts up.
When you block off training time, make sure it’s enough to complete the workout.
23.) What if I miss a day?
A: Push up all the rest of the days of that week and get that day in the next time you train. If you miss
more than a day, just train light the rest of that week and re-start your current week next week.
24.) What about cardio?
A: You can do cardio along with the plan, and any kind of cardio you like works. Here are some tips on
timing and best results:
- If you are looking to gain weight, limit your cardio a bit so that you can more easily put on muscle.
- If you are doing cardio, the best times to do cardio are as follows, listed from BEST to WORST:
-- Non-training days
-- Much later or earlier than your weights workout on training days (preferable 6 hours or more apart).
-- Before training
-- After training
25.) I do another sport as well; How can I integrate that sport training with the templates?
A: Other than limiting your physique training to 4 days or less, splitting the training apart as far in the
day as possible and making sure to manage fatigue well, there’s not too much specific advice to give. If
you’re very interested in getting the most out of your mixed-sport program, thinking about hiring a
consultant might be a good idea.
26.) What if I'm not getting stronger every week?
A: You shouldn’t be. Because of the rising fatigue with the rising volumes, you’ll feel more and more
beat up as the routine progresses from week 1 to week 4 and possibly just maintaining your rep
strength. After the deload you’ll be much stronger, especially for reps because that’s how you’re
training. If you want to be strong for low reps or singles, consider the Powerlifting Strength Templates.
27.) What if my gym doesn't have <inset piece of equipment> or I can't perform this lift at my gym?
A: Please only choose exercises that are possible for you to do with your current gym situation.
28.) What if my coach doesn't agree with the program?
A: Please don’t do any programs your coach does not agree with. If you train under a coach that does
not agree with the programs you’re running, he or she should be writing your programs or pointing you
in the right direction to get approved programs.
29.) What if I can't do a certain exercise?
A: Please only choose exercises that you can do with no pain or orthopedic limitations.
30.) Can I do my WOD after this?
A: You can, and you can do it before as well. If possible, taking a 20 minute break or longer can help you
give the most to both workouts, and an even longer break of half a day between them can be the best
option.
31.) What types of nutrition days on the RP Diet do these plans correspond with?
A: Very simple. If the training is 10 working sets or less (not including abs) per day, it’s a light day. If it’s
between 11 and 19 sets per day, it’s a moderate day. Anything of 20 sets per day or more is a hard day.
If you do other workouts that day, this may no longer apply and you need to incorporate those into the
nutrition determination.
If you’re not familiar with the RP Diet Templates, please check them out here.
32.) What if I have muscles I want to emphasize or work more, or deemphasize and work less?
A: First of all, make sure you have the right template. Don’t get the legs-specialization template if you
want to focus on your upper body, for example. Additionally, if you want to emphasize or deemphasize
something within the specialization template, please do so by adjusting set numbers. For example, If you
have the shoulders/arms template but just want to focus on your arms, reduce the shoulder movements
by 1-2 sets per exercise in week 1 and increase the arm work by 1 set (no more) per exercise. After that,
the auto-regulation should take care of the rest, especially if you don’t rate shoulders with too many +1s
to intentionally keep their workload low.
33.) Can I use this template to prepare for other sports like Crossfit or Powerlifting?
A: You bet. Our best advice when mixing training is two-fold:
1.) If you do CrossFit or another sport, choose the 3 or 4 day training options and not the 5 or 6 day
training options. This lets your body have the room to recover from BOTH of your training
commitments.
2.) When you rate your soreness and strength on the template, it adjusts the volume and gives you
more or less work depending on how you’re recovering. Be VERY honest in filling out the ratings
and if you’re sore from CrossFit or any other training and you feel it during your physique
workouts, rate that in accordingly! This way, your training of both can remain balanced and you
won’t find yourself beat up and under-recovering.
These are BIG recommendations because if you try to add too much stuff to one program, you’ll fatigue
much more than you can handle and you might find yourself overreached and with worse performance
in all areas. As long as you make sure to effectively balance your workload and your recovery (by being
honest with yourself and properly rating the physique template workouts), you CAN use these templates
to build muscle for many other endeavors. Just be logical about it and don’t try to triple up on
everything! If you have a coach/coaches for other sports, our best advice is to talk over your physique
template use with them.
34A.) What should the rest times between sets be?
A: In both mesocycles 1 and 3, take enough time between sets to pretty much fully catch your breath.
That’s 2-5 minutes for most people, and unlikely to be less than minute. Big compound moves like
squats and deadlifts will require more rest than isolation moves like dumbbell curls. In mesocycle 2,
however, we want you to rest only as long as it takes to barely catch your breath between sets. So for
normal (non-superset) sets, we recommend that you take just enough time to not be gasping for air…
something like 30 seconds to 1:30 for most. For the supersets, there’s no rest between the first and
second move (within the superset), but there is short rest (30s to 1:30) between each superset. If your
template has a label “heavy” before that workout even on Mesocycle 2, stick to normal 2-5 minute rests
between sets and not the shortened rests you’ll do for the other days of that mesocycle.
34B.) How do I perform the supersets?
When supersetting the moves you chose in your red-outlined supersets during Mesocycle 2, simply
complete one set of the first (top) exercise and immediately do a set of your second exercise with no
break. Both sets should be done to the from/fail margin in that week’s training. After completing the
reps for the second move, rest 30s to 1:30 to catch your breath and then repeat the process for the next
set, and so on until you finish the total number of sets written.
35.) How do I know what exercises to pick?
A: ANY of the exercises in the drop-down menus are effective, and you should be picking new ones
every mesocycle or two to avoid doing the same exercise in too many consecutive mesocycles. You can
always circle back to the older exercises, just not in the mesocycle right after you just did them for
several mesocycles already. You can choose your exercises on preference or on which part of your body
you most want to focus on (leg presses take stress off your back and hit your quads more specifically
than squats, incline dumbbell presses hit your chest more than standing barbell presses, etc…). There is
no special way to do it that’s much more effective than a random selection of exercises from each
category, so you can just go down the list and try new moves if you don’t feel like planning anything
super in-depth. One tip we can give is this: pick the isolation exercises (like leg presses or triceps
extensions) more on mesocycle 2 and the compounds (like squats and dips) on mesocycle 3, with an
even mix of the two on mesocycles 1.
36.) What if I’m not gaining or losing weight?
A: Your diet and cardio should be the first place you look. Please check out our store at RP for more help
with learning about diet and possibly getting some diet templates to help you along.
37.) My friend also bought the template, but his looks different than mine. Why?
A: It could be for any number of reasons, since each template is customized to a large extent to the
needs to the individual. You and he may have entered in different values for your level of experience, or
weekly workout frequency.
38.) Can females use these templates?
A: It can be done, but it is not recommended. We already have highly successful, tried-and-true Female
Physique Templates for this very purpose!
39.) How often should I update my 10RM figures?
A: Every time you start a new mesocycle, you should have notes of your accomplished reps from the last
one. In most cases, the weights you’re using for certain reps will go up with each mesocycle, so you can
bump up your 10RMs when designing each next meso of training. Our best advice here is to be honest. If
you actually got stronger, great… put that higher number up. But if you’re not sure, stick with older
10RM values until it’s obvious they are now 12 or 15RMs and it’s time for an update.
40.) What if some parts of my body are growing a lot but others are more stubborn?
A: Our first suggestion is for you to train those stubborn bodyparts LESS by reducing their set numbers.
Often, not enough recovery is the problem. If you don’t see improvements within that mesocycle, try to
ADD sets to those bodyparts (make sure to go easy on some others to prevent overreaching) and see if
that works. Do your best, but remember that some bodyparts just plain old grow slower no matter what
you do, so be realistic in your expectations and efforts.
41.) Can I use this template to prep for an upcoming physique or bodybuilding show?
A: You bet. Just make sure the deload lines up with the last week before your show so that you can
recover, replete glycogen, and look your best onstage.
42.) Can I superset the exercises?
A: For most times and unless explicitly instructed, we don’t recommend it. If you’re in a rush, you can do
it now and again, but if you can avoid it, stick to straight sets where indicated instead.
43.) Can I use a belt, wraps, knee sleeves or other assistive equipment?
A: Only if you need it. A belt is usually not needed for most lifters until they are squatting or deadlifting
more than 315lbs, and wraps and knees sleeves are almost never needed for those working on their
physiques.
44.) I’m still sore and it’s time to train that muscle group again. What should I do?
A: Train. But make sure to rate that day’s exercise for that sore muscle group as a -1 so that your
program is adjusted down the line to make you just the right amount of sore and not too sore.
45.) What does the rating system actually change in my training?
A: The ratings systems change the number of sets you’ll be doing later in the program, usually in the
next half-week. So for example, if your chest got super sore and didn’t heal very much by your next
chest training session, rating that session a -1 will reduce the set numbers for chest in the session after.
Which means that next week, the soreness will be much less and you’ll be more recovered for that
second week’s chest workout. If you weren’t remotely sore or fatigued, the sets will go UP in the next
half week and you’ll be much more appropriately challenged. The idea is that if you rate consistently,
this program finds your Maximum Adaptive Volume for you and keeps you training in that range, which
is the most training you can do and still benefit from (the best amount of training).
46.) I’m selecting the ratings, but not all of them seem to be changing the sets of future exercises.
A: Not all of the training days have ratings selections (the first and last days of the main program and the
deloads), so don’t worry about those. In addition, while all exercises are altered by ratings, not all of
them alter the set numbers of future exercises. If your sheet works as planned, most of the ratings will
alter sets down the line. However, when some of them don’t, but others do, this is not a program error
and is entirely by design. No need to worry about any of this. Just train, rate honestly and to the best of
your ability, and repeat!
47.) My weights seem very light. Is the template formula broken?
A: Almost certainly not. For mesocycles 1, the weights will be between 8 and 12 reps on average, but
can be higher and lower than that. The reps for some of the exercises on mesocycle 3 can be downright
crazy, with as many as 30 reps in some sets. Muscle growth is highly influenced by volume (sets x reps x
weight), so the higher rep numbers often cause the most growth. Your job is to buckle down and crank
em out… and if they are high numbers of reps, so be it!
48.) How do I make sense of my weights on assisted pullups or dips?
A: Type in only the amount of assistance you need (not your bodyweight). The weights will INCREASE
and the movement will actually get easier as the routine progresses. To compensate for this, do more
repetition as the weight gets lighter. When you get stronger after several mesocycles, you can type in
lower and lower weights until you’re doing unassisted pullups and dips.
49.) Who can answer additional questions not covered here?
A: Because this is a template and not a coaching service, RP’s consultants unfortunately don’t have the
resources to answer individual questions. However, our Facebook group “RP Clients“ has lots of
enthusiastic clients and template customers (over 25 thousand, and growing every day!) that are excited
about sharing their experiences with others and helping new group members on their way. Please feel
free to join this group and post your questions.