50 Years in the Weight Room
By Ashley Jones
2026 marks my 50th year of weight training. There is a famous quote that says, “if you steal from one person you are a thief, but if you steal from everyone you are doing research” (Tony Bennett), and this from Bruce Lee is also applicable to begin this article with, “absorb what is useful, discard what is not, and add what is specifically your own.”
Over the previous 50 years, I think I have read about and trialled many programs from Westside to HIT and everything in between. I have also competed in Master’s weightlifting, with Russian, Chinese, and Bulgarian influences in the program. No program is magical, but I would say that in all programs, consistency trumps intensity, and hopefully, you are in this for the long run.
As Louie says, “everything works, but nothing works forever.” The key to this brilliant turn of phrase is that you need to stay monogamous to a program for a period to find out whether it is effective. Far too many people practice program promiscuity, jumping from one program to another in search of the ONE, without spending enough time on each to determine whether it is or not. The table below is a progression I have found effective for most trainees to develop strength, size, and power.
When I first started training in the weight room at the age of 15, I devoured every page of each IronMan magazine that landed in my local paper shop, eager to see what new ideas I could integrate into my program. The next major influence on my programming and training journey was Milo magazine, published by IronMind Enterprises. For the last 13 years, I have been privileged to have my own articles published on elitefts.com, as well as to regularly immerse myself in a range of authors' ideas on training.
The key I have found to lifelong learning is to have an “inquisitive nature”, constantly asking WHY, and be open to different ideas and methods of training. Also, not to jump on the latest trend, but to analyse if it is progress or simply a detour away from what works. Too often, I see young strength coaches fixate on what they just learned to the detriment of what they had already been doing, rather than blending new and old ideas to make a stronger, more resilient program design. I cannot remember. Who said this following quote, but it is very relevant in our industry: “Not everything new is better, and not everything that is better is necessarily new."
As Einstein has said, “Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new.” I have probably made more mistakes than most over the years and have come to realise that perfection is unattainable. Remember to turn a fail into a F.A.I.L., First Attempt In Learning! Learn from the mistakes you make and try not to make the same one again in both your own training and the training of others.
I wish I had access to the programs I wrote and trained with when I started out on this journey. I am sure they were centred around the major movements that I was taught by Vince Basile at American Health Spa in 1976. Reinforced by the two “old timers’ of the gym, Dennis and Pat, who were always on hand to give us young pups a clip around the ears if we strayed away from the correct technique to lift more weight than we were ready for (Ego lifting). Today, I would categorise these exercises, but the reality of today is the same as it was then, heavy and basic for size and strength, which is the foundation of all training in the weight room. Squats, Deadlifts, Bench Press, Rows, Overhead Presses, Chins and Dips, 3 days a week, 6–12 reps per set and 3–5 sets per exercise, combined with the appropriate surplus of calories, will put muscle on parking meters. Always has and always will!
I wanted to develop a 50th-anniversary training plan that integrates many of the aspects of programming I have used over the years, and an aspect I have seen as a pitfall for some is trying to squeeze far too much into the week, thereby missing out on potentially game-changing elements. To this end, I have combined my belief in 3-week cycles with three different upper- and lower-body training plans and stretching the week to nine days, whilst still training four times in a traditional week-long plan. This is outlined below:
This program is designed for use in the off-season and exposes a player to a wide range of movement and planar options, upon which an in-season plan can easily be developed. I would extend this plan by at least another three weeks to ensure the player is exposed to at least three sessions for each upper- and lower-body session. This ensures that each session can be progressively intensified within the overall program. This was achieved as follows for the lower body:
Cycle/Block One: straight sets (1a), (1b), (1c), (1d)
Cycle/Block Two: super sets (1a/1b), (1c/1d)
Cycle Block Three: complex (1a/1b./1c/1d)
Unilateral exercises are always performed in a super set, and the LB CARE can be performed as straight sets or in a circuit.
Lower Body Sets & Reps
French Contrast Method (4 sets) – complex: wk1: 4 x 6 wk2: 4 x 4 wk3: 4 x 2
Iso-lateral (3 sets) – super sets: wk1: 12, 10, 8 wk2: 10, 8, 6 wk3: 8, 6, 4)
CARE (2 sets) - circuits: wk1 - 2 x 12 – 15 wk2 – 2 x 10 – 12 wk3 – 2 x 8 – 10
The upper body program is formatted slightly differently from the lower body, as explained in the sets & reps loading plan.
Upper Body Sets & Reps
Lines 1 & 2 (6 sets) – straight sets: wk1 – 2 x (6, 5, 4) wk2 – 2 x (5, 4, 3) wk3 – 2 x (4, 3, 2) or
(5 sets) – straight sets: wk1 – 5 x 5 wk2 – 5 x 3 wk3 – 5 x 1
Lines 3 & 4 (5 sets) – super sets: wk1 – 5 x 10 wk2 – 5 x 8 wk3 – 5 x 6 or
(4 sets) – super sets: wk1 – 12, 10, 8, 8 wk2 – 10, 8, 6, 6 wk3 – 8, 6, 4, 4
Lines 5 & 6 (4 sets) – super sets: wk1 – 12, 10, 8, 8 wk2 – 10, 8, 6, 6 wk3 – 8, 6, 4, 4 or
(3 sets) – super sets: wk1 – 3 x 12 wk2 – 3 x 10 wk3 – 3 x 8
CARE (2 sets) - circuits: wk1 - 2 x 12 – 15 wk2 – 2 x 10 – 12 wk3 – 2 x 8 – 10
A useful exercise in not only programming but life in general is to set aside some time to contemplate and answer the following questions:
1: Where do you want to be in 5 years’ time and what do you want to have achieved?
2: What do you need to do now and in the next six months for you to have the best chance of achieving your answer to the first question?
3: What are the hindrances that will stop you from achieving where you want to be?
You can periodically return to this, as your answers will provide you with a road map to where you want to arrive, focus on the processes, and enjoy the journey.
Wherever you are on your weight room journey, I hope this article and program have given you an opportunity to reflect on your past and consider some ideas as you approach the next fork in the road. Mistakes are inevitable; learning from them is a choice, a choice that only you can make, and with all choices, there are consequences that shape our futures, as the last guardian of the grail said, "choose wisely."
Author Bio
Ashley Jones is a strength & conditioning coach with 30+ years in professional sport across seven countries, best known for his work in rugby from club to international levels—including two Rugby World Cups with teams from both hemispheres. He was named NSCA Professional Coach of the Year (2016) and received the NSCA Boyd Epley Lifetime Achievement Award (2023). He’s also a long-time elitefts columnist
