What Is the Dynamic Effort Method?
The Dynamic Effort (DE) method is a staple in many conjugate training systems. It involves lifting a light weight as fast/explosively as possible for the purpose of developing speed-strength.
Aaaand…. some people want no part of it. Either they find it to be a PITA to set up for (if using accommodating resistance), it doesn’t fit their objective, or they just don’t feel that they get much out of it.
For reference, a typical barbell-based DE wave might look something like this:
• Week 1 – 12 x 2 (50% + 25% bands)
• Week 2 – 10 x 2 (55% + 25% bands)
• Week 3 – 8 x 2 (60% + 25% bands)
And your typical template that includes DE might look something like this:
Also referred to as speed work, this method is discussed in detail in Science and Practice of Strength Training (Zatsiorski). However, most people are probably familiar with it from the work of Louie Simmons/ Westside Barbell, who has put out a ton of education on conjugate training over a lifetime of experience.
Should You Use It?
Whether you do this or not probably depends on what you’re training for, how you respond to DE work, and how you approach it.
Plenty of respected lifters and strength coaches advocate for its usage, while others have openly expressed that their time would be better spent elsewhere.
Westside’s system includes it, though their newer lifters are advised to skip.
(Personally, I use it – just not all the time.)
Either way, this post will not attempt to take a deep dive into if this method actually works, how, and for whom.
Instead, we’ll talk about some alternatives to this style of DE work, whether you’re excluding it totally, or just not having it take up permanent residence in your conjugate programming.
Things to Do In Place of Dynamic Effort Work
1. Bodybuilding
This one is probably the most obvious default.
One thing to consider when replacing DE is that can complement the Max Effort work without frying you to bits.
Bearing that in mind, you could just make this a ‘pump’ day, keeping the axial loading to the bare minimum while getting the bulk of your workload from things that are easy on the joints and recovery. (Think dumbbells, bodyweight, certain machines, GHR, Reverse Hyper, etc.). This can make a nice phase if you’ve been pushing the envelope lately, you are older/ more beat up, or when the priority is to bring up a weak muscle.
Or, maybe you would you benefit from more frequency or specific practice on the main lifts.
If this is the case, then check out the next option:
2. Three-Week Repeated Effort Wave
Even at Westside, the lifters will cycle off of DE occasionally in favor of more repetition work. Here are some examples of what that can look like:
Louie Simmons 6’s, 8’s or 10’s Progression
Take your pick of any of the following and progress for 3 weeks:
• 6×6 – Start at 70%. Add 3-4% per week.
• 8×8 – Start at 65%.
• 10×10 – Start at 60%.
You could even mix up your grips in a session, as Louie Simmons has often recommended for DE bench.
Like this (6×6):
• 2×6 Close Grip
• 2×6 Medium Grip
• 2×6 Wide Grip
Other 3-Week Wave Ideas
• Week 1: 8×8
• Week 2: 6×6
• Week 3: 5×5
• Week 1: 5×5
• Week 2: 4×5
• Week 3: 3×5
• Week 1: 5×5 (45% bar weight + 25% band weight)
• Week 2: 5×5 (50% bar weight + 25% band weight)
• Week 3: 5×5 (55% bar weight + 25% band weight)
(Note: all of the progression waves in this section are by Louie Simmons.)
Incorporating the bodybuilding idea above, you could also alternate your 6’s, 8’s or 10’s sets (or whichever option you choose) with an exercise for any opposing or non-conflicting muscle that needs work. If you match the number of sets for your weak point with any of the progression options above, you’ll get plenty of volume to grow.
3. Mid-Weight Singles
Moderate-weight singles can be great for building confidence and instilling the feeling of successful single reps, if that is something that is needed.
For this one, you could keep some DE work, which can both help set the tone differently from the ME day and serve as part of the work-up.
Or skip it. It’s up to you.
If you’re feeling good, work your way on up to a clean, medium-weight (RPE-8-ish) single with good bar speed. Unlike the ME day, you won’t be straining or pushing anywhere near failure.
This only has to happen on the days that you are feeling up for it.
One thing to be mindful of here is that replacing some of the DE work with singles could mean a volume decrease… which may or may not be an issue.
Also, not everyone responds well to singles taken in this manner. However, the people that they do work for tend to really love them.
4. Max Effort… Again
Instead of alternating Max Effort and Dynamic Effort days, it would be Max Effort every time.
Obviously, this one has potential to be a bit brutal. It’s definitely not for everyone, and it does seem that most who go this route tend to be all set within a few months.
All that aside, I love doing brief phases of this and it has lead to some great PRs.
5. Max Reps with a Light(er) Load
The idea was borrowed from one of my favorite systems – Joe DeFranco’s Westside for Skinny Bastards.
You’ll go for 3 sets of max repetitions on an upper body lift or bodyweight movement, like:
- Bench Press – use 55-65% of 1rm
- DB Bench or Incline Bench
- Floor Press
- Push-ups
- Pull-ups or Chins
DeFranco recommends leaving 1-2 reps in the tank on the first 2 sets and going for broke on the 3rd, resting 90s-3m between sets.
In his updated notes on the WS4SB system, he did mention burnout out after a few cycles of this. For that reason, he now recommends alternating it with phases of good old bodybuilding work.
For example:
• Week 1-2 – Push-up 3 x Max Reps
• Week 3-4 – DB Bench 3 x Max Reps
• Week 5-6 – DB Incline Bench 4 x 10-15
This is in a sense a form of ‘maxing’ since you are going all in… which can be a different beast for lower body than it is for upper.
For the lower body, check out the next option:
6. Cleans, Jumps and Throws
This one is a no-brainer for the athletic crowd, and is probably something that the average lifter/ former athlete probably feels they should be doing more of.
This is still a form of speed training, but with a different slant from the standard barbell-based method.
If you can’t manage a clean, a simple trap bar jump is pretty fool-proof. Sandbags, kettlebells, med balls, and other implements can work here as well.
If we’re going for super-athleticism, the explosive movement could even be paired with a lift. This could also be considered the contrast method – a great way to develop power.
How you go about this might also depend on what your ME day actually consists of, but here are a few ideas:
- Deadlift and Broad Jump
- Squat and Box Jump
And it can work for upper, too:
- Bench and Clapping Push Up
7. Control or Tempo Work
This can be a good one for the joint hypermobility crew, or anyone who needs to work on positioning and control.
You’d use a paused, tempo, or controlled eccentric variation of a main lift.
This might sound like the polar opposite of dynamic work – except that in most cases, you’ll still want that explosion on the way up. For example, it could be something like a 3-5-count down, owning your positions and being mindful of tension the whole way, then a nice big boom out of the hole.
Using the squat as an example, here is how a week might look:
• ME Lower – Squat to a 1rm
•
DE2nd Lower – Pause Squat 5×3 (@65-75% of Day 1’s max)
Since this can be a lot of time under tension, you may want to stick to low to moderate rep ranges. You might even be able to get away with using a similar loading prescription as a typical dynamic effort wave for this.
8. 5/3/1 + Conjugate Combos
Okay. This one could end up being it’s own post.
Actually, someone did write a post about combining elements of 5/3/1 with conjugate– and they did a damn good job of it.
Seriously. Excellent article.
In the idea proposed here, we’ll also play around with the Max Effort (ME) work to complement the the DE substitution.
Combo #1: Max Efforts + 5-3-1 – (3-Week ME Rotation)
- ME Days – Hit a top set of 1-5 on a main lift. You can follow the 5/3/1 weekly structure, but stop at the specified number of reps (don’t go for an amrap). Then, work from there to your top set of 5, 3, or 1.
DEOther Days – 5/3/1. Use a main lift variation with 5/3/1 progression in place of the speed work. Use a low training max for this (and possibly a rep/RPE cap as well for lower body). Add FSL as desired for extra volume.
In this version, you could stick with the same ME lift for 3 weeks, using the 5/3/1 structure as a jumping off point. Come week 4, deload or switch lifts.
On the DE days, you are really just using 5/3/1 as a base to get some muscle-build-y rep work in (hence the low t-max).
This one admittedly resembles something more like just straight up 5/3/1 with joker sets and FSL, with the 5/3/1 structure providing some targets for your work weights.
Here’s another:
Combo #2: Conjugate Lower + 5-3-1 Upper
The upper and lower body can feel like two different beasts in training, and I think this combo does a great job of appeasing both.
- ME Lower Day – Conjugate.
- DE Squat Day – Keep. (Looking pretty conjugatey so far…)
- ME Bench Day – 5/3/1.
DE5/3/1 Press Day – 5/3/1. Use a Press variation with 5/3/1 progression in place of the speed work. Use a LOW training max. Add FSL as desired for extra volume.
Here, we kept the conjugate ME and DE lower days. 5-3-1 for the rest.
Another spin on this is to also keep the ME bench. So, essentially you just use 5-3-1 in place of the DE upper day (which seems to be the toughest sell for people).
(And if we keep developing this idea, I think we’ll eventually end up back at something like Joe DeFranco’s WS4SB. If you made it this far in, please go check that system out. It’s pretty great.)
Sticking 5/3/1 elements in place of DE in a conjugate system can be a pretty bold move, but both systems are very customizable for more experienced lifters.
Final Thoughts
Conjugate systems are meant to be versatile and highly adaptable for sports, powerlifting, or just general strength training.
The topic of whether DE work should be excluded or not can spark some heated debate, which I think we did a pretty decent job of staying out of here. But if you have decided to skip it, hopefully this can give some ideas as to what might fit there instead.
As with anything, you’ll want to carefully monitor your progress and recovery to make sure that your choices are working in your favor.
If you’re looking for a well thought-out and user-friendly conjugate training system, check out Joe DeFranco’s Westside for Skinny Bastards. (Be sure to also check out the 3rd version of the system on his site).
The Dynamic Effort method was introduced in Science and Practice of Strength Training (Zatsiorsky), and implemented by Westside Barbell. For more reading on it, check out the links below.