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16, 20, or 24 Weeks

CYCLIC MASSOCYCLE

A mass phase with reset windows built in. The surplus keeps producing muscle instead of just producing you.

Four-week loading cycles run on repeat. Each one closes with a five-day maintenance deload. Weekly drift markers, bodyweight, waist, and photos, decide whether a ten-day deficit reset fires before the next cycle begins. That structure is what keeps the surplus productive past the point where a straight bulk stops working.

Week 1 of the first loading cycle is on the house. The rest of the cycles, the setup phase, the deficit reset engine, and the length options live in the book.

Free Sample

Loading Cycle 1, Week 1

Four training days. Volume day primary opens at 80 percent Calibrated Max, RPE 8.0. Hypertrophy days run at fixed set and rep prescriptions with one rest-pause round on final isolation sets.

Monday

Volume Upper
  • Bench Press Opens at 80% Calibrated Max, RPE 8.0 target. Primary axial compound.
  • Weighted Pull-Ups 4 sets of 5 at RPE 8
  • Incline Dumbbell Press 3 sets of 8 at RIR 2
  • Chest-Supported Row 3 sets of 8 at RIR 2
  • Face Pulls 3 sets of 15 at RIR 2
  • Dumbbell Shrugs 3 sets of 10 at RIR 1 to 2
  • Lateral Raises 3 sets of 12 at RIR 1 to 2
  • Triceps Extension 2 sets of 10 at RIR 1 to 2
  • Biceps Curl 2 sets of 10 at RIR 1 to 2

Tuesday

Volume Lower — Odd Week: Squat Primary
  • Back Squat 4 sets of 4 to 6 at prescribed RPE. Primary axial compound.
  • Conventional Deadlift 3 sets of 5 at 65% Calibrated Max, RPE 6.5. Technique work.
  • Unilateral Quad Smith Bulgarian Split Squat, Step-Ups, or Single-Leg Leg Press. 3 sets of 8.
  • Lying Leg Curl 3 sets of 10
  • Standing Calf Raise 3 sets of 12
  • Weighted Ab Work 3 sets of 10

Thursday

Hypertrophy Upper
  • Incline Dumbbell Press 4 sets of 8 to 10 at RIR 1 to 2
  • Pull Variation Cable Lat Pulldown, Kneeling Rope Pulldown, or Dumbbell Row. 3 sets of 10.
  • Push Variation Cable Chest Press, Single-Arm Cable Chest Press, or Seated Dumbbell Press. 3 sets of 10.
  • 3D Complex Three rounds of Scaption Raise into Side Lateral into Rear Lateral. 10 to 12 reps per movement, no rest between the three. 90 to 120 seconds rest between rounds.
  • Triceps Extension Warmup set, then 3 working sets of 12 at RIR 1 to 2. Final set carries one rest-pause round.
  • Biceps Curl Warmup set, then 3 working sets. Final set carries one rest-pause round.

Friday

Hypertrophy Lower
  • Squat Pattern Leg Press, Goblet Squat, or Landmine Squat. 4 sets of 10 to 12 at RIR 1 to 2. No barbell back squat.
  • Hip Thrust 3 sets of 10
  • Seated Leg Curl 3 sets of 10. Final set carries one rest-pause round.
  • Unilateral Quad Different selection from Volume Lower. 3 sets of 8.
  • Standing Calf Raise 3 sets of 12. Final set carries one rest-pause round.
The Wall

The Rest of the Cycles Live in the Book

The setup phase, all loading cycles, the deload transitions, and the drift detection engine that decides when a deficit reset fires.

  • Setup phase: 11-day Week 0 tracking + 3RM testing
  • Four-week loading cycle progression, Weeks 1 through 4
  • Maintenance deload protocol after every cycle
  • Drift markers and the deficit reset engine
  • 16, 20, or 24 week selection criteria
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Common Questions

Before You Start

16, 20, or 24 weeks. How do I pick?

Off-season length and monitoring discipline. Sixteen is four cycles, the lightest monitoring load, and the safest first-time choice. Twenty is the median for lifters with an established mass phase history. Twenty-four is six cycles and only for athletes who have run this framework before and hold the Sunday check-ins without slipping. If you know you'll skip weeks, don't pick 24.

What's the difference between the deload and the reset?

The maintenance deload fires automatically at the end of every four-week loading cycle. Five days, reduced volume, fatigue dissipation. The deficit reset is separate and only fires when the drift engine detects bodyweight plus waist or photo signals for two consecutive weeks. Ten days, symmetric deficit, continues normal training. Not the same tool.

Can I run this without the weekly check-ins?

No. The drift detection engine cannot function on partial data. Skipped weeks mean deficit resets fire late or not at all, and the block reverts to a standard bulk with worse tools. Eight to ten minutes on Sunday morning is the cost of running a mass phase intelligently. If you won't commit to that, run a different block.

The surplus feels small. Why only 250 to 400 calories over maintenance?

Aragon and Schoenfeld's 2013 review put the ceiling for trained natural lifters at 0.25 to 0.5 percent bodyweight per week of lean tissue. Push more calories past that, you don't build more muscle. You build more fat and buy yourself a longer diet to remove it. The surplus size is set to the biology, not the appetite.

Go Deeper

POWERBUILDING 365 Podcast

Mass phase design, surplus calibration, and the check-in habits that actually keep the drift engine running, covered on the show.

Listen to the Podcast