Basically, i'm sick and i am curious about what to do about the cycle or routine i was following.
I would do it on mondays and thursdays, and the weight and reps would change after three weeks of the prior reps. Today was scheduled to be my first 4x4, but because i am sick i was far too weak to do it. Should i just rest this entire week and try doing it again next week, or should i rest the week and fall back to week three, or should i just push the days back, for example try the 4x4 Tuesday and Friday, then swap back to monday and thursday for next week or what? Thank you.

weeks 1-3: 4x6
Weeks 4-6: 4x4

Just wait till you are fine and repeat the last workout.

well. i suppose you have 3 options

1rst option = try to do the 4x4 routine regardless of whether you fail
2nd option = lower the weight and do a different rep scheme that you can handle until you are all better, then start back at your 4x4

3rd option = rest completely until all better.  then start the 4 x 4 routine.


i vote you do option 2, since you've already tried option 1 and it didn't work too well.  option 2 will allow you to keep your muscles active and steer clear from muscle atrophy.

option 3 is good too..   listen to your body.  if it's telling you to take a break.. then do it.  you might actually come back from your week or so off STRONGER than when you began

thanks, i'm just paranoid after being sick after i had strep throat only two weeks ago and it COMPLETELY ruined my strength, it was like three months of hard work right down the drain.

ORIGINAL: PumaKrieg

thanks, i'm just paranoid after being sick after i had strep throat only two weeks ago and it COMPLETELY ruined my strength, it was like three months of hard work right down the drain.

not necessarily.  had the same thing happen to me when i left the country for 2 weeks and came back.  lost almost 10 lbs.. and my leg strength left quickly.

you have something called "muscle memory".

when you feel like eating again.. get your diet in order and get back to the gym.  i have all the confidence in the world that you will SHOOT right back up to where you left off rather quickly. it shouldn't take 3 months.

and as far as lifting light, what should i do?

Normal workout just lighter?
And if so how much lighter, such as 50% of my normal max or less and should i adjust the reps to be higher or keep the reps in the 4 to 6 range still?

Thanks.

Option 2 and 3 (truesilverfoxs option set) are both good. I wouldnt worry about atrophy or losing gains though.
Atrophy will take quite a bit of time to set in, most training programs require a week off training (if not 2 weeks) every now and then and atrophy is not an issue there why would it be here? This is of course Dependant on how long you will be sick for.

Losing gains should not be too much of an issue either provided that the illness you have now does not get in the way of your diet.

You will feel weaker upon re-entering the gym should you select option 3. But this does not actually indicate a loss in strength (unless your diet was altered by the illness), this is the result of deconditioning. The weight will feel heavier regardless of how much muscle tissue is or isnt lost and you will be more sore following each workout (for a time). Since your program seems to be more geared towards strength I agree with Truesilverfox that option 2 is probably better. And again, do everything you can to keep your calorie intake normal if not elevated.

I can totally sympathize btw, I got E coli 2 or so weeks ago and lost 10 pounds in 3 days. Getting sick blows no matter who you are, it blows harder if you are training.

It annoys me that i was in the middle of a ten week program and i was making big strides, and when i go back to lifting, even if i get back to normal, i don't think i will go up as fast strength wise as i was before.