Training blocks, week by week

A training block is a multi-week plan. Instead of deciding what to do each time you walk into the gym, you follow a structure that repeats: the same training days come back every week, and the numbers on them change gradually as the weeks go on.

In Ironstead the main editing surface is the Matrix, and it has a specific shape. Weeks run DOWN the side as rows, W1 at the top, and days run ACROSS the top as columns. Each cell is one day in one week, holding what you do there. The block below is four weeks of a Push, Pull, Legs split.

Because the days repeat, you build a rhythm. Because the numbers move week to week, the plan keeps asking a little more of you over time. Week four here is a deload: it is tagged and its numbers step back so fatigue can drop before the plan would continue.

Each column is a training day, and a day is a template: it holds the defaults that every week starts from. Open a day and pick "Edit day" and you are looking at exactly those defaults, one row per exercise.

One exercise line inside a day is a slot. A slot holds the exercise plus its default sets, reps, an optional weight, an optional effort target, a rest time, and a coach comment. Every week inherits these defaults until a rule or a manual edit changes a specific cell.

Slots carry a role so the shape of a session reads at a glance. The role is a label, not a rule, and you can change it any time.

• Main: the priority lift of the day, usually done first while you are fresh.
• Accessory: supporting work that builds the main lift or a target muscle.
• Finisher: lighter work near the end, often higher reps or a burnout set.

Ironstead gives you two ways to edit the same block. On a larger screen you use the Matrix: the full grid of weeks as rows and days as columns. Tap any cell to edit it, or fill a value down a whole day or week at once. Fill-down comes with quick "Fill down +2.5" and "Fill down +5" options that add load as they copy.

Select a week header and you get week actions: Duplicate week, Insert week below, Reset week and Deload week. Select a day header and you get day actions: Reset day and Edit day, which opens the defaults editor for that column.

The Matrix on a large screen is where you build a block. On the phone you use Day Flow, the on-the-go tool for quick adjustments: swap an exercise, tweak a weight, or mark a deload from the gym floor, without opening the full grid. It works one day and one week at a time. Day pills switch the day, week pills switch the week, a slot card shows each exercise with its sets and reps, and "+ Add base exercise" appends a slot. A banner reminds you when a week is a scaled deload. It is the same block; only the view changes.

You rarely type every week by hand. The "Progression" screen lets you set a progression rule per exercise, and the app fills the weeks from it. There are three strategies: Linear load adds a set amount of weight each week with an optional cap, Volume ramp adds sets each week, and Deload scales a week down.

A rule always ramps FROM the slot default. If the exercise has no default weight, a load rule has nothing to ramp from, so you set the default in "Edit day" first. A cell filled by a rule shows a Rule badge, and deload weeks are excluded from rules automatically.

Edit a rule-driven cell by hand and it detaches from the rule: it keeps your number even if you later change the rule. When you want it back on the rule, "Re-sync" reattaches it and the cell recomputes. The grid below shows a Linear load rule with a deload in week four.

A deload in Ironstead is a real scaled week, not a cosmetic marker. You set it on the deload sheet: scale the load to a percent of the base week, drop a set or two, and ease the effort target down. A before and after preview shows the result, and the week is tagged DELOAD in the Matrix.

Loads themselves can be written a few ways. A weight can be absolute kilograms, a percent of a max, or bodyweight. A percent load picks a basis: your one rep max, a training max, an estimated one rep max, or a linked lift, and the app resolves the kilograms.

When a percent load has no recorded max to resolve against, Ironstead does not invent a number. The slot shows a "needs max" chip, and before a coach assigns the block a review lists every such load so nothing goes out as a guess.

When a coach assigns you a block, it appears under Training Blocks. The active block shows a week by day grid, and tapping a cell starts that workout. This is your day to day home for the plan.

Nothing is locked. Flip on the Edit mode switch and you can tap any cell and change it: a weight, a rep count, an exercise. Your changes stay with you and never overwrite the coach template. If a weight feels wrong, a machine is taken, or time is short, you adjust on the spot and keep training.

The fastest way to understand a block is to build one. The Blockbuilder Academy is a free, interactive walkthrough: you set the shape, build your days, add a progression rule and a deload week, then review the whole grid and import it, all in your browser with no account needed to try it.

When you finish, you can bring the block into your Ironstead account. Importing for yourself brings the block into your block library as a template you can reuse. Importing is a coach action, and coaching yourself counts.

1. 1
   Set the shapeName the block and choose how many weeks it runs and how many days you train each week.
2. 2
   Build your daysName the training days, pick the exercises yourself, and set the defaults each week starts from.
3. 3
   Add progression, then reviewAdd a progression rule and a deload week, watch the numbers fill in, then review the whole grid and import it.

Questions about blocks

Can I create my own multi-week block as a trainee?

Not directly. Trainees create single-day templates and edit the blocks a coach assigns. Multi-week blocks come from a coach. If you want to run your own program, you can coach yourself: as your own coach you build and import blocks for yourself.

Do I have to follow an assigned block exactly?

No. An assigned block is fully editable. Turn on Edit mode under Training Blocks, tap a cell and change any weight, exercise, set or rep count whenever a session calls for it. Nothing is locked, and your edits do not change your coach template.

What does a deload week do?

A deload is a real scaled week. Ironstead computes it from the base week: it scales the load to a percent, drops sets and eases the effort target, so fatigue drops. Progression rules skip the deload week automatically. It is optional and you set the scaling.

Can loads be percentages instead of kilograms?

Yes. A slot can use an absolute weight like 80 kg, bodyweight, or a percent of a max. A percent load picks a basis, your one rep max, a training max, an estimated one rep max or a linked lift, and the app resolves the kilograms. A single block can mix them.