The sport of powerlifting appears to be simple. There are only three lifts in a competition — the squat, the bench press, and the deadlift. You lift the weight, and then a judge lets you know if you performed it properly. Easy, right? Well, maybe just in theory.
Anyone who has competed in powerlifting knows that the real work is done off the platform. Training to prepare for a meet can last anywhere from eight to sixteen weeks, and it’s not for the faint of heart. Powerlifting requires you to move heavy weight and perform lots of volume — and sometimes all at once. To progress and recover, your training needs to be calculated, and you need to ensure that your sleep, diet, and supplementation is on point.
One lifter that appears to have her training mastered is Heather Connor. By day, she works as a first-grade teacher. Outside of her day job, Connor is a prolific powerlifter in the 47-kilogram (104-pound) category. She is a two-time International Powerlifting Federation (IPF) World Champion, is the first female to deadlift four times her bodyweight raw, and seems to set a new PR every other week. Few people are as strong as Connor.
To learn how she does it, BarBend asked Connor for a week of her training.
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Heather Connor’s Week of Training
Like many powerlifters that compete at the highest levels, Connor works with a coach. Hers is Collin Whitney. Whitney designs the program and Connor executes. She sends feedback and results to Whitney, and they make adjustments as needed.
The training is based on linear progression. The philosophy is that the lifter gradually increases their training effort based on whatever the current one-rep max is for the lift. This metric is known as the rate of perceived exertion (RPE). Conner and Whitney track the sets, reps, weight used, and total volume (weight x sets x reps) each week.
Day One
Once Connor is warmed up, she will load the bar with 276.5 pounds (125.3 kilograms) for her first sets of squats. For reference, this is less than 40 pounds away from her best squat in competition which is 314 pounds (142.4 kilograms). She’s also squatted 325 pounds (147.5 kilograms) in training. Then, she’ll perform another two sets of squats, pushing herself to get as many reps as possible. From there, she’ll perform a moderate amount of volume on the bench press and some accessory work to improve her main lifts.
- Back Squat: Four sets of two reps @85% of 1RM
- Back Squat: Two sets of five reps @78%, last set AMRAP
- Bench Press: Four sets of three reps @RPE 7
- Block Pull: One set of one rep @RPE 7
- Block Pull: Four sets of two reps @RPE 7
- Leg Press: Three sets of 10 reps @RPE 8
- Superset with
- Reverse Hyperextension: Three sets of 10, eight, six reps
Day Two
On this day, Connor focuses on the bench press. She hits 140 pounds (63 kilograms) for her first sets of bench. Her best in-training press is 170 pounds (77 kilograms). Then, the esteemed educator takes 130 pounds (59 kilograms) to school for four sets of four reps. After that, she’ll hit up some accessory work to beef up her pressing ability.
- Bench Press: Two sets of four reps @82% of 1RM
- Bench Press: Four sets of four reps @76%, last set AMRAP
- Incline Bench Press: Three sets of eight reps @RPE 8
- Flat Dumbbell Bench Press: Four sets of 12, 10, eight, six reps @RPE 8
- Cable Row: three sets of 12 reps @RPE 8
- Superset with
- Triceps Extension: Three sets of 12 reps @RPE 8
- Dumbbell Flye: Three sets of 15 reps, with a drop set of 10 reps on the last set @RPE 8
- Superset with
- Reverse Flye: Three sets of 15 reps, with a drop set of 10 reps on the last set @RPE 8
Day Three
The main course of this training day is the final of the big three lifts, the deadlift. This is where Connor is her strongest. At the end of 2020, she had pulled an incredible 440 pounds (200 kg). This is actually 33 pounds over her current American record of 407.8 pounds that she pulled in competition. Her weight for this workout will be 374 pounds (169 kilograms), followed by three sets of three with 343 pounds (155 kilograms). Then she’ll move on to back and biceps-focused accessory work to improve pulling power.
- High-Bar Squat: Three sets of six reps @ RPE 6
- Deadlift: Three sets of two reps @85% of 1RM
- Deadlift: Three sets of three reps @78%, last set AMRAP
- Pause Deadlift: Three sets of three reps @RPE 7
- Dumbbell Row: three sets of 12, 10, eight reps @RPE 8
- Superset with
- Shrugs: Three sets of 12, 10, eight reps @RPE 8
- Lat Pulldown: Three sets of 15 reps, with a drop set of 10 reps on the last set @RPE 8
- Superset with
- Biceps Curl: Three sets of 15 reps, with a drop set of 10 reps on the last set @RPE 8
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Day Four
This day is more of a support day, with Connor focusing on moving weight with control and accumulating lots of volume. At no point does Connor exceed 80% of her max capacity.
- Tempo Bench Press: Four sets of two reps @RPE 8 with a tempo of 4-1-0
- Close-Grip Bench Press: Two sets of eight reps @RPE 7
- Incline Dumbbell Bench Press: Three sets of eight reps @RPE 8
- Superset with
- Dumbbell Curl: Three sets of eight reps @RPE 8
- Upright Row: three sets of 12 reps @RPE 8
- Superset with
- Triceps Extension: Three sets of 12 reps @RPE 8
- Lateral Raise: Three sets of 15 reps, with a drop set of 10 reps on the last set @RPE 8
- Superset with
- Front Raise: Three sets of 15 reps, with a drop set of 10 reps on the last set @RPE 8
- Side and Front Plank: Three sets of 30 to 45 seconds each movement
Day Five
The training week is now in the home stretch. For Connor, this is a relatively “easy” day, focusing on technique and control (hence the pause reps. She’ll then finish off with some hamstring, core, and back work.
- Pause Squat: Five sets of three reps @RPE 6-7
- Long-Pause Bench Press: Two sets of one rep with three-second pause @RPE 8
- Spoto Press: Three sets of six reps @RPE 8
- Romanian Deadlift: Three sets of 10, eight, six reps @RPE 8
- Core Movement: three sets of 12 reps @RPE 8
- Superset with
- Pull-Up: Three sets of 12 reps @RPE 8
More Heather Connor
In March of 2020, BarBend‘s CEO David Tao had the opportunity to interview Connor — the first female IPF powerlifter to deadlift four times her bodyweight raw. Connor talks about a previous injury in the podcast, how not to ignore signs of injury, big-money competitions, and her weight-gain strategy. You can check out the full episode below.
Connor is also a BarBend contributor. You can check out the most recent article she wrote: The Top 5 Powerlifting Women to Watch in 2021.
Featured Image: heather.e.connor on Instagram
