Training by Feel

A spreadsheet cannot feel your hamstrings.

Excel is a useful tool, but it assumes you recover at a perfectly linear rate—that you never have stress at work and always sleep well. Biology is messier than that.

Autoregulation is adjusting your training load based on your actual readiness that day. It replaces "do this because the program says so" with "do this because your body can handle it today." It is not about being lazy. It is about matching the stimulus to your current state.

The Tools

RPE (Rate of Perceived Exertion)

RPE assigns a number to how hard a set was. It originated in clinical settings but was adapted for lifting by Mike Tuchscherer.

• RPE 10: Maximal effort. Could not do another rep. Technical breakdown likely.
• RPE 9: Could have done 1 more rep.
• RPE 8: Could have done 2 more reps.
• RPE 7: Could have done 3 more reps. Bar speed is fast.
• RPE 6: Warm-up weight. Bar moves like it's empty.

Why use it?

On a bad day (poor sleep, high stress), 140kg might feel like RPE 9. On a good day, it might feel like RPE 7.

• Fixed % program: Program calls for 140kg. You grind it out, fry your CNS, and hurt your back because you weren't ready for it.
• RPE program: Program calls for a top single at RPE 8. You feel weak, so you only load 130kg. It feels like RPE 8. You got the right stimulus without the excessive fatigue.

VBT (Velocity Based Training)

RPE is subjective—your ego can lie to you. VBT is objective. It measures bar speed in meters per second.

Velocity correlates with intensity. As the weight gets heavier, the bar moves slower. This relationship is remarkably consistent for each individual.

• ~1.0+ m/s: Speed work.
• ~0.75–1.0 m/s: Power / dynamic effort.
• ~0.5–0.75 m/s: Strength-speed (hypertrophy range).
• ~0.3 m/s: Grind speed. This is your limit (RPE 10).

Instead of prescribing "3 sets of 5 at 80%," you prescribe "3 sets of 5, stop if velocity drops below 0.5 m/s."

• If you're explosive, add weight.
• If you're sluggish, take weight off.

The velocity dictates the load.

Practical Application

You don't need an expensive VBT device to start autoregulating.

The RPE Top Set:

• Warm up and work up to a heavy single or set of 5.
• Rate how it felt.
• Adjust:

Easier than RPE 8?* Add 2–5%.

Harder than RPE 8?* Drop 2–5%.

Spot on?* Stay there.

Plus Sets (AMRAPs):

• Program: 3 sets of 5 at 100kg.
• Last set: As many reps as possible.

Got 5 reps?* Keep the weight next week.

Got 8 reps?* You undershot. Add 2.5–5kg.

Got 12 reps?* Add 5–10kg.

Rigid percentage programs work well for beginners because their day-to-day variance is low. For intermediate and advanced athletes, daily readiness fluctuates a lot. Autoregulation is the feedback loop that keeps the stimulus consistent even when the organism isn't.