Let's continue from where we left off. Here are my final two factors of progression. They are not discussed in Ditillo's work, but I believe that they are of equal importance.

‍The Fourth Factor of Progression

Tempo is the fourth factor of progression. Tempo is the speed (in seconds) at which a repetition is performed.

The Fifth Factor of Progression

Rest is the final factor of progression. Rest is the amount of time between sets; or the amount of time between individual repetitions; or even the amount of time between groups of repetitions.

Choosing Your Progression Method

The most important thing to take away from the five factors of progression is that there are no absolute rules governing their use. Instead of rules, we have guidelines that boil the decision down to the type of goal that you want to achieve. Certain methods will work better for certain goals than others. Before planning a training program you must first decide on the goal that you want the program to achieve. Once you know the goal, it is easy to decide on the method....

...that is, if you can stomach the work!

‍

So, to summarize:

‍

Any time you choose to manipulate only one of the factors (reps, sets, load, tempo, or rest) to guide your progress, you are using a “Single Progression” method.

Any time you choose to manipulate TWO of the factors at a time, you are using a “Double Progression” method.

Any time you choose to manipulate THREE of the factors at a time, you are using a “Triple Progression” method.

I don’t know when there would be much sense in using a Quadruple or Quintuple Progression method where four or all of the factors are used at one time. But technically, you could try to.

In the next post I will provide an example of a good goal for which to use a Single Progression method, and what this program might look like.