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Candito Linear Programming
By Jonnie Candito
The goal with this program is to provide a very simple layout with linear progression. That means the program will not change week to week, simply steadily increasing weight without altering other training variables. This lack of variation can be used to your advantage as simply a mental a break from percentage based programming, or as a novice program to take advantage of beginner gains. However, there is some variation within the week for not just specific physical reasons, but also due to the fact that the psychology of a lifter plays a huge role in how effectively strength can be developed.
Another purpose for this program is to give you a more flexible regimen. My 6 week periodization program does have a more specific schedule, and I understand that some people might not have an opportunity to complete a full cycle uninterrupted.
Also I want to say that with any program I make for you, I have actually used it prior to coming up with it. Because anyone can just come up with a random program, but I’ve actually found this style of training to not only be efficient in theory, but also extremely effective personally. This is where those psychological factors come into play. An example I’ll give is that with all of my programs I keep lower body training to a very minimalistic outline. Even in terms of frequency some say 3 leg sessions a week is ideal for everyone. But the truth is it just isn’t that simple. Your programming has to put you in a position where you can not only stimulate growth via adequate volume, but more importantly be able to focus 100% of your energy into the heavy lower body sessions. Motivation is a training variable. Like all other variables, they are interconnected. Raise the volume, loading, and frequency too high? Well then not only is recovery/risk of injury now an issue, but long term motivation is also decreased. My mentality has always been that squats and deadlifts are never going to be easy. I’ve noticed that squatting 315 lbs x 10 is still difficult, even though I can squat 405+ lbs x 10. These big lifts require you to be mentally ready. I noticed when I did just train legs more often without a sense of purpose because it is always difficult, I was fooling myself into thinking I was training adequately. Yet I wasn’t really progressing quickly. When I started training 3 sets of 6 reps on squats, 2 sets of 6 reps on deadlifts, long rests in between sets, focused on setting a personal record, that was when I started progressing very rapidly. I went from squatting 325 lbs, to 395 lbs, to 465 lbs in a period of about 1.5 2 years. This was done without bulking as well, just gaining 10 15 lbs of bodyweight while decreasing bodyfat percentage.
That doesn’t mean those exact numbers of sets and reps are magical, rather it shows how effective a minimalist setup can be. I have since refined my training methods into this linear program and the 6 week periodization program, I personally never use a program outside of those two for my own training. Overall, this program is just an effective way to implement very simple programming for strength/muscular development.
3 Different Templates
The entire goal of this is to focus on simple strength training. That is why there are 3 templates, but all of them include the same exact setup on the heavy strength days. However, each program is set up to modify the variation days to serve different purposes. The three templates are the strength/control program, strength/power program, and strength/hypertrophy program.
Strength/Control
Of all 3 templates, this setup is the main one I’d recommend for general strength. It is also ideal for beginners. When I say beginners, I mean new to serious strength training. If you have absolutely no experience with lifting in general, then you may want to give yourself 6 months or so to lift with lighter weights. You will need to know how to perform the lifts safely with a full range of motion prior to this. As a beginner you likely won’t be very efficient or consistent with your form, but I don’t want anyone starting this program without being able to at least perform the lifts with proper form using an empty barbell.
I anticipate most people seeing this program will want to use this template. The beauty in this format is that you will not only be lifting with a high intensity to take advantage of the quick progression new lifters have, but also the pause variations will force you to strengthen your form. Notice how I said strengthen your form rather than learn proper form. That is because something which seems to be downplayed is the fact that maintaining proper form requires more than skill and even mobility, it also strength in specific areas. You may be able to squat down with your knees opening up, but if your hip flexors/external rotators (I group them together because the hip flexors also aid in external rotation as well) are weak, then once the weight gets heavy enough your knees will cave in.
The goal with the control day is to develop the skill of the lifts, increase time under tension which will help build muscle, and increase effective mobility by strengthening form. Another benefit, which is possibly the most significant, is the control day allows for lighter weights to be used without dropping the overall intensity. So you can train your squat without worrying about battling the same numbers every workout which may cause mental barriers. This isn’t just for beginners. Paused lifts are actually used by not just by advanced, but even elite lifters very often. So while including these variations can be extremely useful to develop form for novice lifters, it will always be effective no matter the experience of the lifter. I know I’ll constantly use this exact setup for different periods of my training in the future.
This program follows an upper/lower split, which is generally going to be more effective than a 5 day bodypart split for natural athletes in terms of building strength/muscle. I suggest upper/lower rather than fullbody routines simply because that setup can make it difficult to adequately train the entire body without losing focus due to fatigue near the end of the workouts.
Progression Of Loading
To start for the heavy days, pick a weight you can perform for 3 straight 6 rep sets without any trouble. Now that isn’t to say you should start with an extremely light weight, just make sure there is no chance of failure. Around 75 80% of your 1 rep max is generally going to be where you want to begin. So someone who benches 225 for a 1 rep max, would work with anywhere from 170 180.
For the control day, the rules are the same. For the 6 sets of 4 reps, make sure you can comfortably complete the weight you start out with as well. The weight is going to be lighter than your heavy day since you are performing so many sets and the pause variations make it more difficult. So typically for the pause squats, pause deadlifts, spoto presses, and pause upper back movements, you’ll be using around 70% of your normal 1 rep max in those lifts.
Now as far as progression, each week add 0 10 pounds. Now I know your first thought is probably why include 0? Well the truth is often times one of the main lifts, usually the bench press,, will develop slower than the lower body lifts due to less weight/force being involved. This may cause you to want to take two weeks to increase by the smallest increment your gym has available (5 lbs for most people in standard gyms). And also, sometimes you may feel great one week, and want to throw on 10 more pounds than last week. This is very possible if you are a beginner, are on a bulk, or are just usually not training for strength with 100% focus throughout the year. But generally speaking, adding the smallest increment (5 lbs for most) each week will be the goal for each lift. Overall the end goal is that the heavy days will be very intense sessions where you have to put 100% of your focus into each working set. The first couple weeks will be easier to build into it, but
You may be thinking, does this progression apply to the control days? The answer is yes, you want to progress in the pause variations as well. But like the main lifts, I leave it open to 0 10 pounds because you need to listen to your body. The heavy days should be intense after a couple weeks so odds are you’ll be fairly sore going into these control days. So if that is the case, then you can adjust by not raising the weight for the control session to match the weekly raise in the normal lifts. Then from there you could start raising both the standard heavy lifts and control lifts at the same rate again with the discrepancy increased between the heavy/control days. The control days should be challenging overall but you should never be at serious risk of actually missing a rep. The heavy days should be where the limits are being pushed at the start of the week.
Accessory Exercises
I intentionally want to leave the exercises besides bench, squat, and deadlift to be open for you to choose. For the shoulder, upper back, and bicep exercises I suggest you pick a movement and stick with it for at least 4 weeks. So for example if you choose to use dumbbell rows for upper back, stick with it for at least 4 straight weeks rather than switching every week or so. By sticking with a movement it allows you to master it while focusing on progression. But then I also don’t want you to be too limited, which is why after 4 solid weeks of dumbbell rowing, then you could use another movement, like weighted pull ups for example for the upper back exercise.
As far as progression goes for the accessory lifts, it can depend on the lift. For the upper back movement, the goal is to increase by 0 10 lbs each week just like the bench press. However, with the shoulder and bicep movements,progression will be slower. Remember, these movements are just done with one peak set after the main bench/back work, so the goal is to use them to just complete your overall upper body development. Shoulder and bicep lifts will almost always progress slower regardless of setup in comparison to the bench press/upper back lifts for a variety of reasons.. With this in mind, progression for the shoulder/bicep movements should be at 0 10 lbs per each 3 week period. So to recap, for the main lifts you’ll try to increase every week if possible, but on these lifts, every 3 weeks bump up the weight.
Suggested Exercises For Accessory Lifts
Upper Back Exercises
- Dumbbell row
- Weighted pull up
- Barbell row
- Any machine upper back movement
Shoulder Exercises
- Seated dumbbell press
- Standing dumbbell press
- Military press
- Seated barbell press
- Any machine shoulder movement
Bicep Exercises
- Dumbbell curl
- Hammer curl
- Barbell curl
- Any machine bicep movement
Resetting After Hitting Failure
Since this is a linear program, and you are pushing yourself on the heavy days, you will eventually hit a point where you miss a weight. Once this happens, drop the weight by 15 pounds for the next week. That is just for a particular lift too. So if you just miss a squat set but are able to still deadlift the 2 sets for 6 reps each, then keep the deadlift progression the same as you drop the squat weight. Fluctuations of lifts are very common and if you try to hold back all of your lifts for the sake of being “even”, then you will essentially hold yourself back to the weakest link. Generally the weak link will come up in due time anyway, so there is no need to force it.
Now once you have had to reset the weight 3 times on a lift, then you need to start progressing every 2 weeks. This will likely take you a long time to even reach this point if you are a beginner, but if you do, then allowing for slower progression is the best way to handle this situation. Also, if you are starting as a more experienced lifter, you may want to consider taking this approach from the start. I personally prefer to give my bench 2 weeks at times to progress but even now at my strength, I am still comfortable bumping up the weight week to week in the squat and deadlift for short periods of time. If you fail more than 3 times progressing every 2 weeks, then that is why you need to take a break from the program. This would be when I recommend my 6 week periodization program. You can actually use both of these very well by using the 6 week cycle to take a break from this linear program. From there I generally suggest you run 3 straight 6 week cycles if you can, but also you can alternate between the two however you see fit.
Warming Up
All of the sets listed are not including warm up sets. When it comes to warming up you can use other movements if you’d like, but the requirement is to simply take the time to gradually increase weight with the movement itself. Check on my channel “Heavy Lower Body Workout (every rep/set)” for an example of how I warm up. Your warm up will likely not take as long as mine if your working sets are somewhere in the 200 300 pound range. If you do have some joint soreness, it will be a good idea to throw in some extra warm up drills.
Diet
For this program all that I ask is that you are eating at least at maintenance calories and are getting an adequate amount of protein. However, If you are above 15% bodyfat by a considerable amount, then you will still be able to gain strength while gradually losing weight. But if you are relatively lean, I don’t want you to bulk into obesity, rather just gradually gain weight/strength. You can also simply recomp on this, which is usually what I personally am doing. I suggest in my 6 week program to eat 3 scoops (25 35 grams) of whey protein a day for those who don’t want to meticulously track macronutrients. That guideline applies here as well.
The brand of whey protein doesn’t matter as long as it has enough grams per serving so you aren’t being shortchanged. Then get some cheap monohydrate creatine if you’d like. I personally don’t use it as it does nothing for me, but scientific research has repeatedly shown it can be very effective for many people. Both the whey protein and creatine are very cheap relatively speaking. A preworkout might help mentally but is absolutely not a necessity.
Rest In Between Sets
This is one of the most commonly overlooked issues when it comes to strength training. If you are not resting enough in between sets, then you will not be able to progress. You need full rest in between sets to ensure you are able to complete the workouts. This usually means anywhere from 3 10 minutes in between each working set. I have had times where a full 15 minutes was needed so just make sure you are resting however long you need to be 100% focused for the next set. For the control sessions you likely will only need around 3 minutes in between sets to fully recover as the weight/intensity won’t be quite as high as the heavy days. The only exceptions to this rule of allowing for full recovery are the optional exercises. While performing those movements you can rest shorter intentionally to increase the intensity while using lighter weights. That is actually usually what I recommend, having just 1 2 minutes in between sets.
If you want to make your workouts shorter, you can superset upper body movements. Now I don’t mean that you should bench, then immediately start your back movement. Rather still give yourself some time in between, just alternate between the movements to allow the workout to go quicker without compromising recovery for a particular lift. So for a given upper body workout superset bench/back, shoulder/curl, and then the two optional movements. You don’t have to do this if it isn’t convenient for you at your gym or if you simply don’t prefer it, but as I said it is just a way to make the training sessions a bit more efficient in terms of time management. This will work well on upper body lifts, but of course this will not be a good idea when it comes to squats/deadlifts.
Strength/Power
As I previously explain, chances are most of you will primarily want to use the strength/control program. This version’s strength day is the same, actually the only difference in this program is the lower body variation day. Instead of control it is focused on developing explosiveness. This can be be helpful not only to ensure fast twitch fibers are adequately trained without having to use heavy weights relative to your max, but also to train the nervous system. This is obviously going to help with athletic activities like increasing your vertical leap or sprint acceleration. It also help your max lifts as well of course as max strength and power are strongly interconnected (I have a 36 38 inch standing vertical from focusing almost entirely on strength). But overall you do not have to include explosive training if your goal is just strength, rather it is just another tool you can utilize.
Weighted Explosive Exercises
- Barbell Jump squat
- Box jump
- Power clean
- Speed deadlifts (deadlifts with 50 70% of max performed explosively)
- Speed squats
- Trap bar jump
- Dumbbell jump squat
- Dumbbell lunge jump
- Any machine which allows for an explosive concentric portion of lift.
Unweighted Explosive Exercises
- Squat jump (jumping using squat stance width/depth)
- Box jump
- Broad jump
- One legged box jump
- One legged broad jump
- Any other jump variation
note these jumps are performed for max power, so jump as high/far as possible on each rep rather than just going through the motions.
Strength/Hypertrophy
This program is more for bodybuilding, although I will say that the strength/control program will develop musculature just fine as well. The differences between these programs are very subtle. The major distinction for the hypertrophy day is that it has a higher volume overall. There is also slightly more variation on the hypertrophy days. For the deadlift variation, I recommend either stiff legged deadlifts, deficit deadlifts, or snatch grip deadlifts. For the chest pressing movements, I strongly recommend prioritizing dumbbells.
Strength/Hypertrophy Program
Monday Heavy Lower Day
Squat 3 sets x 6 reps Deadlift 2 sets x 6 reps Optional Exercise 3 sets x 8 12 reps Optional Exercise 3 sets x 8 12 reps
Tuesday Heavy Upper Day
Bench Press 3 sets x 6 reps Upper Back Exercise 3 sets x 6 reps Shoulder Exercise 1 set x 6 Bicep Exercise 1 set x 6 Optional Exercise 3 sets x 8 12 reps Optional Exercise 3 sets x 8 12 reps
Thursday Hypertrophy Lower
Either Back Squat Or Front Squat 5 sets x 8 reps Deadlift Variation 3 sets x 8 reps Hamstring Curl 3 sets x 12 reps Calf Raise 5 sets x 15 reps Optional Exercise 4 sets x 8 12 reps Optional Exercise 4 sets x 8 12 reps
Friday Hypertrophy Upper
Chest Press (flat or decline) 4 sets x 8 reps Incline Chest Press 4 sets x 8 reps Upper Back Exercise #1 4 sets x 8 reps Upper Back Exercise #2 4 sets x 8 reps Shoulder Exercise 3 sets x 10 reps Bicep Exercise 3 sets x 10 reps Optional Exercise 4 sets x 8 12 reps Optional Exercise 4 sets x 8 12 reps
