Twelve weeks of three-day Heavy-Light-Medium built around the squat, bench, and deadlift, with Olympic-lift variants for the pull. Six weeks of accumulating volume, six weeks of tapering volume into rising intensity, ending on a meet, mock meet, or testing day.
Programmed by Andy Baker. Co-author, Practical Programming for Strength Training and The Barbell Prescription.
Twelve weeks of programming you can pin to the rack. Here is what is in the PDF, in the order you will read it.
Power-building means the main lifts go up while the assistance work fills the shirt. Three things make that possible.
Three sessions, each rotating the stress across squat, press, and pull. Monday hammers squat and bench while the pull stays light. Wednesday flips it: light squat and press, heavy deadlift. Friday is the medium day across the board. The body never eats two heavy days in a row on the same lift.
The first six weeks accumulate volume at moderate loads, climbing 2% per week. The back six taper volume on the heavy day while intensity continues up. By week 11 the heavy squat and bench are 5×1 at 95%. Week 12 is the test.
Power Snatches and Power Cleans on the light and medium days train the speed and hip extension that drives a heavier deadlift. The PDF spells out how to estimate loads if you have never trained the Olympic variants, and gives full Barbell Row and RDL substitutions if you skip them entirely.
The 8s week, taken straight from the program. Week two drops to 3×5 on the main lifts, week three to 3×2. Loads, rotation rules, and the full reset protocol live in the PDF.
Heavy Squat · Heavy Bench
Light Pull
Light Squat · Light Press
Heavy Pull
Medium Squat · Medium Press
Medium Pull
Verbatim from week 1. Percentages are of current 1RM. Loads, rotation rules, and pulling substitutions in the PDF.
Coach · 2005 — Now 
Volume-cycled Texas Method for more sustained progress. The intermediate template from Practical Programming, refined for real lifters.
Two programs in one: a ten-week 3 or 4-day split, plus a five-week peaking block for meet prep.
Seven-week upper/lower powerlifting cycle for meet prep or general strength. Easier to recover from than most Texas-Method derivatives.
The Baker Barbell Club is the recurring side of the same coaching practice. New programming every week, written by Andy, delivered Sunday. 400+ members. $27 a month. Cancel any time.
You will get an email with a download link to the PDF after checkout. Save it to your phone, your laptop, or print it. There is no login, no app, and no expiring access.
The PDF spells out full substitutions. You can Power Clean twice a week in weeks 1–6 if you do not Snatch, or skip the Olympic variants entirely and run RDLs on Friday plus Barbell Rows on Monday for roughly 25 total reps. The pulling chapter walks through every option.
Yes. Rack, barbell, bench, plates, and lifting straps cover everything. Optional posterior-chain work (back extensions, glute-hams, reverse hypers) is exactly that, optional.
Yes, in moderation. Twenty to forty minutes of low-impact cardio (sled, incline walking, bike, elliptical) on rest days is fine. Skip running, jogging, and sprints. Do not do cardio on Sundays the day before heavy squats.
Hold the prescribed volume and reduce load, do not cut sets. If 5×5 at 300 is gone, run 5×5 at 280–290 rather than 5×3 at 300. Recalibrate the loads for the rest of the program from the new working weight.
Yes. The Wednesday after testing, run a Light Day with no heavy deadlift, then a Medium Day. The next Monday, restart the program from week 1 with new 1RMs.
This is a self-contained 12-week peak you own. The Baker Barbell Club is ongoing programming, written fresh every week, delivered Sunday, $27 a month with 400+ members. Many lifters run this peak and use the Club for what to do after the meet.