Programme · Intermediate · 4 days a week
Calgary Barbell 16-Week
Calgary Barbell 16-Week is a common intermediate powerlifting programme. 16-week block: 8 weeks hypertrophy base, 8 weeks peak. VALDA has it in its programme library: start it and VALDA sets up the sessions and starting weights, then moves you through the block week by week.
Free to start, 1 programme at a time. Already have the app? Open in VALDA takes you straight to it. In the app it's listed as “Calgary Barbell 16-Week Peak”.
Is Calgary Barbell 16-Week for you?
Intermediate competitive powerlifters with a full runway to a meet, and lifters who want the adaptation base the 8-week version skips.
At a glance
- Level
- Intermediate
- Goal
- Powerlifting
- Time
- 4 days a week, ~75–90 min a session
- Length
- 16 weeks
A sixteen-week meet prep in four blocks — accumulation, intensity, competition prep, peak — ending in a meet-week taper. Volume contracts and intensity climbs the whole way, and the exercise list changes with each block rather than staying fixed.
4 sessions
| Session | Exercises |
|---|---|
| Week 1 · Monday |
|
| Week 1 · Tuesday |
|
| Week 1 · Thursday |
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| Week 1 · Friday |
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Sessions from the first block (Week 1 — Block 1). Later blocks change the loading.
The block
- Week 1 — Block 1
- Week 2 — Block 1
- Week 3 — Block 1
- Week 4 — Block 1
- Week 5 — Block 2
- Week 6 — Block 2
- Week 7 — Block 2
- Week 8 — Block 2
- Week 9 — Block 3
- Week 10 — Block 3
- Week 11 — Block 3
- Week 12 — Block 4
- Week 13 — Block 4
- Week 14 — Block 4
- Week 15 — Block 4
- Week 16 — Taper Week
Four sessions a week: Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday. Bench four times a week, squat and deadlift three, always paired with their competition variations — pin squats, paused squats, paused deadlifts, board presses, feet-up and touch-and-go bench. Block 1 is straight sets, Block 2 pairs heavy clusters with back-offs, Block 3 moves the variations onto RPE-anchored top sets, and Block 4 strips the accessories and peaks the mains off a single top set.
How the weights move
Percentage work is referenced off a training max of 95% of your 1RM. RPE-anchored sets are chosen on the day. The programme ends two days out from the platform — the meet is the test, and there is no max-out week.
Starting weights: Working sets are percentages of a training max, set at 95% of your estimated one-rep max.
Calgary Barbell 16-Week, with the maths done
- Sessions set up from the programme, ready to log
- Starting weights worked out from the programme's own rules and your estimated maxes, with a default where VALDA has no history yet. You can change any of them
- Moves you on to the next week of the block when you finish the current one
- Log sets from your phone, Apple Watch or Wear OS watch
Calgary Barbell 16-Week questions
Who is Calgary Barbell 16-Week for?
Intermediate competitive powerlifters with a full runway to a meet, and lifters who want the adaptation base the 8-week version skips.
How many days a week is Calgary Barbell 16-Week?
As VALDA runs it: 4 days a week, ~75–90 min a session.
How does progression work on Calgary Barbell 16-Week?
Percentage work is referenced off a training max of 95% of your 1RM. RPE-anchored sets are chosen on the day. The programme ends two days out from the platform — the meet is the test, and there is no max-out week.
Can I run Calgary Barbell 16-Week in VALDA?
Yes. It's in VALDA's programme library: start it and VALDA sets up the sessions and starting weights, then moves you through the block week by week. You can start it on the free plan, 1 programme at a time. Automatic progression: Free: 6 sessions · Pro: unlimited.
Is VALDA affiliated with Bryce Krawczyk?
No. VALDA is not affiliated with or endorsed by Bryce Krawczyk. This page describes the programme as VALDA runs it.
Where Calgary Barbell 16-Week comes from
The longer of the two standard Calgary Barbell peaking templates, written by Bryce Krawczyk — founder of Calgary Barbell and a Canadian record holder in the deadlift and total. He distributes both free, which is the only reason you can browse this one here: the programme is his, and VALDA just carries it. His coaching, his own app and the rest of his work are at calgarybarbell.com.
VALDA is not affiliated with or endorsed by Bryce Krawczyk. The programme belongs to its author; this page describes it as VALDA runs it.
This page describes a common training programme for information. It isn't a personal prescription.