Episode 39: Mike Tuchscherer on "Emerging Strategies"

Episode 39 of the Strength Ratio Podcast features acclaimed powerlifter and coach, Mike Tuchscherer. Mike is also the founder of Reactive Training Systems (RTS). Reactive Training Systems is an online coaching, programming, and content provider for powerlifters.

This podcast is centered around RTS’s hallmark training methodology, which Mike has coined, “Emerging Strategies”. Emerging Strategies (ES) was created in response to the inherent limitations behind periodization theory, as well as to the individual response to training. As its name implies, this system “emerges” from the athlete’s response to training in a bottom-up fashion, as opposed traditional top-down periodization schemes.

Mike defines the necessary terms for understanding ES, such as the “Developmental Block”, “Pivot Block”, and “Time to Peak”, and how these aspects of the system are largely individualized. Furthermore, Mike provides anecdotes from some of his highest performing powerlifters that highlight such individualization, and how the system may lead to seemingly unorthodox training, or competition prep.

Other topics include, per their significance to ES, Rate of Perceived Exertion (RPE) and the Bondarchuk-Exercise Classification model.