How to Deload: 10 Things You Should & Shouldn’t Do

By R.Davies, PhD・Exercise
Published May 11, 2026 | 6 min read

A deload is a short period of reduced training stress designed to clear fatigue and restore performance. But how you structure it will determine how effective it actually is. So if you’re experiencing fatigue, your training is getting difficult, and your performance is flagging, you may decide to deload — and the next question is how to do it.

A poorly executed deload can actually leave you worse off than you were before, and fail to provide any real benefits. The good news is that the principles of deload are (relatively) straightforward, and the evidence offers some clear guidance on both what works and what to avoid.

1. Meaningfully Reduce Your Volume

The single most important change during a deload is pulling back on training volume. This means reducing the total number of sets or reps performed [1]. A reasonable starting point is to reduce your volume by 30-50% compared to your normal training week.

So if you normally do 10 working sets for your lower body a week, drop it to 5. You can also reduce the number of reps per set (while lifting the same weight), or reduce the load and keep the number of reps and sets the same. The goal should be to keep the movement without creating any noticeable fatigue.

2. Keep Your Training Frequency the Same

Most coaches like to keep the frequency of training the same during a deload, even while reducing the volume and effort [2]. This is done for two reasons. Firstly, it maintains the frequency at which you practice the movement ‘skill’, whether it is squatting or running; skipping all forms of movement for a long period of time may affect the technical execution of it. Second, maintaining frequency keeps your training rhythm and momentum going, so when you return to ‘full’ training, it feels like a normal progression rather than a massive step up.

If you normally train four days a week, train four days during your deload — just do considerably less in each session. If you are training six days a week, you probably have room to reduce the frequency by one or two sessions a week if you like.

3. Reduce Effort — Leave More in the Tank

During normal training, you should be working close to failure on most ‘sets’, maybe leaving 1-3 reps in reserve (9 out of 10 effort). However, during a deload, that ‘buffer’ should widen. Aim to stop four to six reps short of failure (6 out of 10 effort), using loads that feel manageable rather than challenging.

This means using lighter weights than normal. A modest reduction of 20% on most exercises is a good place to start, but you can reduce it further if you’re particularly fatigued. The point is not to see how much you can do with reduced volume; it is to keep the muscles and joints moving without adding any extra fatigue.

4. Use the Week to Address Weak Points & Recovery Methods

A deload week is a good opportunity to do the maintenance work that often gets squeezed out of normal training weeks. Light mobility work, foam rolling, and low-intensity active recovery (such as walking, swimming, or easy cycling) can support recovery without adding meaningful fatigue. Some athletes use deload weeks to include a small amount of work targeting areas they normally neglect (like an old rotator cuff injury or hip mobility work).

While your training load is lower than normal, and you may be about to start a new phase or period of your programme, the deload week may be a good opportunity to take a look at optimising your sleep or nutrition.

5. Plan Your Deload Strategically (if you can)

Managing other commitments alongside your exercise programme is a challenge for most people — even professional athletes have personal lives and travel to manage. If you’ve committed to taking a deload week at some point during your training programme, it may be more efficient to schedule it in weeks when you know you're going to be busy.

Getting married or going on your honeymoon, holidays, work, exam or assignment deadline week are good examples. If you know you’re going to be busy or have some extra stress put on your plate, it may be a good time for a deload week to focus on something else. It may not be easy to plan, and you shouldn’t go out of your way to do it, but if the opportunity arises and it is convenient, it may be worthwhile.

6. Don't Take a Complete Week Off

A full week of zero training — no gym, no track, no movement — might feel like proper rest, but the evidence suggests it is not an effective deload strategy (for strength training anyway). One week of complete rest can affect your strength, stamina and doesn’t improve your muscle growth [4]. You do not need to train hard during a deload — but you do need to train. Coaches tend to flag complete rest weeks as suboptimal, preferring structured reductions in training load over complete rest [5].

7. Don't Try New Exercises or Dramatically Change Your Programme

Stick to your usual exercise selection during a deload [5]. The exercises you have been practising develop movement patterns that are worth maintaining — and switching to unfamiliar exercises during a deload creates two problems.

First, new movements, even if they are light or easy, may still cause muscle damage and soreness, which is the opposite of what a deload is trying to achieve. Second, returning to your main lifts after a week away from them can feel more difficult and (temporarily) affect your performance.

Small variations are fine — a goblet squat instead of a barbell squat, or a cable row instead of a barbell row — but dramatic changes in exercise selection are better saved for the start of a new training block, not a deload. Save new exercises, new techniques, and major programme restructuring for the start of the next training block, when your body has time to adapt gradually.

8. Don't Dramatically Reduce Load While Keeping High Reps

For resistance training, a common misconception is that a deload should involve very light weights performed for more reps than you normally do. This misses the point.

Performing high-rep sets close to failure with light weights will still cause fatigue. The goal of a deload is to reduce overall ‘training stress’, not redistribute it. Don’t swap lower loads for higher reps; you need to reduce the load and the effort of the session, and keep rep ranges similar to your normal training.

9. Don't Ignore What Your Body Is Telling You

A deload is a recovery tool, not a rigid prescription. If, after three or four days of reduced training, you feel genuinely recovered, your energy is good, your motivation is high, and performance feels sharp, no rule says you must stretch the deload out to seven days. Equally, if you are coming off an exceptionally hard block and still feel run-down after a week, extending the deload by a few extra days is not a failure; it’s smart [5].

The purpose of a deload is recovery, and whether that recovery has occurred is something your body communicates fairly clearly. Learn to read those signals rather than following a rigid schedule regardless of how you feel.

10. Don’t Jump Back into Training too Aggressively

The first few sessions after your return from a deload can carry some extra risks. So, before your deload begins, know exactly what weights, sets, and reps you are planning to return to after it ends. Coming back to training with a clear plan prevents the temptation to jump back in too aggressively; it’s a common mistake that immediately rebuilds the fatigue you just spent a week clearing up.

If you’re taking your deload midway through a programme, your first week back should pick up (approximately) where you left off before the deload. A gradual re-escalation of volume and intensity over a week or two is generally safer and more effective than trying to ‘make up’ for your time off [3].

Key Takeaways

A well-executed deload is not complicated. The core principles are simple: train with your usual exercises at your usual frequency, but reduce the training volume or effort. Keep moving, avoid complete rest, avoid doing new things, and plan your return before you begin. Done this way, a deload week should leave you feeling sharper, more motivated, and ready to push harder in the weeks that follow.

Sources

1. Bell L et al. "You can't shoot another bullet until you've reloaded the gun": Coaches' perceptions, practices and experiences of deloading in strength and physique sports. Front Sports Act Living. 2022 Dec 21;4:1073223. PMID: 36619355

2. De Marco K et al. Resistance Training Prescription During Planned Deloading Periods: A Survey of Strength and Conditioning Coaches Across Varying Sporting Codes. J Strength Cond Res. 2024 Dec 1;38(12):2099-2106. PMID: 39446750

3. Lorenz DS et al. Periodization: current review and suggested implementation for athletic rehabilitation. Sports Health. 2010 Nov;2(6):509-18. PMID: 23015982

4. Coleman M et al. Gaining more from doing less? The effects of a one-week deload period during supervised resistance training on muscular adaptations. PeerJ. 2024 Jan 22;12:e16777. PMID: 38274324

5. Rogerson D et al. Deloading Practices in Strength and Physique Sports: A Cross-sectional Survey. Sports Med Open. 2024 Mar 18;10(1):26. PMID: 38499934