WORK RATE
Elite EDT work capacity. Twelve timed PR zones a week.
- Length
- 4 weeks
- Frequency
- 4 days/week
- Session
- ~60 min
- Level
- Advanced
The program
Escalating Density Training, built for the pre-season. Four days a week, three PR zones a day — every zone a fifteen-minute clock shared by two opposing lifts. You alternate mini-sets until the buzzer and rest only as long as the next set demands.
Total reps across the pair is your score, and next week's only job is to beat it. Beat it by 20% and the app moves your load up 5%. Loads come off your rep maxes: 8RM for the heavy zone, 10RM for the middle, 12RM for the finisher.
Tempo is prescribed on every lift, because when the clock is the enemy the first thing to go is the rep. Four weeks. Elite work capacity and tissue tolerance — size, strength and power in the shortest time possible.
Week 1, as written
The actual first-week prescriptions from the app — exercises, sets, tempos and rests, exactly as the program runs them.
Session 1Upper 1▾
| A1Chin-Up Supinated | 15-min PR zone · mini-sets of 5 · 30X0 tempo |
| A2Parallel Bar Dips | 15-min PR zone · mini-sets of 5 · 30X0 tempo |
| B1Dumbbell Bench Press | 15-min PR zone · mini-sets of 8 · 20X0 tempo |
| B2DB 1 Arm Row | 15-min PR zone · mini-sets of 8 · 20X0 tempo |
| C1Incline DB Curls | 15-min PR zone · mini-sets of 10 · 2010 tempo |
| C2Skull Crusher | 15-min PR zone · mini-sets of 10 · 2010 tempo |
Session 2Lower 1▾
| A1Front Squat | 15-min PR zone · mini-sets of 5 · 30X0 tempo |
| A2Lying Leg Curl | 15-min PR zone · mini-sets of 5 · 30X0 tempo |
| B1Romanian Deadlift | 15-min PR zone · mini-sets of 8 · 20X0 tempo |
| B2Leg Press | 15-min PR zone · mini-sets of 8 · 20X0 tempo |
| C1Seated Leg Extension | 15-min PR zone · mini-sets of 10 · 2010 tempo |
| C2Standing Calf Raise | 15-min PR zone · mini-sets of 10 · 2010 tempo |
Session 3Upper 2▾
| A1Incline Barbell Press | 15-min PR zone · mini-sets of 5 · 30X0 tempo |
| A2Seated Cable Row | 15-min PR zone · mini-sets of 5 · 30X0 tempo |
| B1DB Shoulder Press | 15-min PR zone · mini-sets of 8 · 20X0 tempo |
| B2Lat Pulldown | 15-min PR zone · mini-sets of 8 · 20X0 tempo |
| C1Preacher Curl | 15-min PR zone · mini-sets of 10 · 2010 tempo |
| C2Overhead Dumbbell Extension | 15-min PR zone · mini-sets of 10 · 2010 tempo |
Session 4Lower 2▾
| A1Walking Lunge | 15-min PR zone · mini-sets of 5 · 30X0 tempo |
| A245-Degree Back Extension | 15-min PR zone · mini-sets of 5 · 30X0 tempo |
| B1Barbell Hip Thrust | 15-min PR zone · mini-sets of 8 · 20X0 tempo |
| B2Glute-Ham Raise | 15-min PR zone · mini-sets of 8 · 20X0 tempo |
| C1Seated Calf Raise | 15-min PR zone · mini-sets of 10 · 2010 tempo |
| C2GHD Sit-up | 15-min PR zone · mini-sets of 10 · 2010 tempo |
Week 1 as programmed in the app. Later weeks progress loads, volume and variations block by block.
How it progresses
- —Your zone score = total reps across both lifts before the buzzer.
- —Beat last week's score. Beat it by 20% and the load moves up 5% automatically.
- —Loads are set from your 8RM / 10RM / 12RM depending on the zone.
- —PRESZN runs the clock, counts the mini-sets, and scores the zone against your line.
Who it's for
- —Athletes building work capacity before a season.
- —Lifters who train better with a scoreboard than a spreadsheet.
- —Anyone short on time — sixty minutes, three zones, nothing wasted.
Methods inside
Equipment
Barbell · Dumbbells · Cable Machine · Machines · Bench · Pull-up Bar · Dip Station · GHD Machine
Questions
What is escalating density training?
Charley Staley's method: fix the time, chase the work. Two opposing exercises share a 15-minute PR zone; you alternate small sets and try to accumulate more total reps than last time. Density — work per minute — is the progression.
How does PRESZN score a PR zone?
Every zone gets a verdict against your own 28-day line for that exercise pairing and duration. Beat your line and the zone takes the point; a first-ever pairing that does real work to the buzzer debuts on the scoreboard. It is the same you-vs-your-average sport as every other set in the app.
Why only 4 weeks?
Density work at this intensity is a shock block. Four weeks builds the capacity; then you carry it into a strength or hypertrophy block while it lasts.