117 reviews for Matt Vena Intermediate Powerlifting Program
Version 3.0 of program
From champion powerlifter and coach Matt Vena, this program is a generalized powerlifting routine for intermediate lifters, focusing on squats, bench presses, and deadlifts with specific variations and accessory work. Here's a concise breakdown:
Squats:
Day 1: Regular squats and tempo squats (4-second descent, 0.5-second pause).
Day 3: Paused squats (1-second pause at the bottom).
Bench Press:
Day 1: Larsen press and dumbbell incline bench for hypertrophy.
Day 2: Tempo bench single (4-count descent) and back-off sets.
Day 3: Primary bench day with long pause bench (2-second pause).
Day 4: Regular bench press and close grip bench press (2-3 finger widths narrower).
Deadlifts:
Day 2: Romanian deadlifts for hinge work and posterior chain hypertrophy.
Day 4: Paused deadlifts (1 inch off the floor, 1-second pause).
Accessory Work:
Triceps: Included on three bench days.
Back and Biceps: Back work on day 2, biceps on day 1. First set to failure, remaining sets to RPE8.
Progression Scheme:
Microcycles: 3-week cycles, adding a rep each week, then resetting reps and adding 3% weight.
Singles: Cycle through RPE 6-7-8 over the microcycles.
Taper Week: One moderate day, one light day, then max out with RPE6-8-10 jumps.
Focus on consistent form, controlled tempos, and autoregulating based on daily performance. Adjust weight and reps as needed to avoid overshooting and ensure steady progress.
Read the full guide on the website for full program details:
Scurtu A.
Man, 3010 weeks complete
2 years of prior experience
Less than expected strength gains
Less than expected muscle gains
The intensity is waay too high and for too long towards the end. Not for me i guess.
Nathan Y.
Man, 203 weeks complete
2 years of prior experience
As expected strength gains
As expected muscle gains
Very good I use this program as a base and adjust it based on my needs. For instance if I don’t need pause squats I’ll switch them for box squats for my adductors. I have already put one of my friends on the program and he crushed his PRs and I have done the same.
farag khaled
Man, 2011 weeks complete
2 years of prior experience
More than expected strength gains
More than expected muscle gains
This is my review after running the program for 1.5 times First time i was forced to cut it short at week 6 due to sickness yet i gained 5 kilos or 10 pounds to all my lifts during those six weeks Second run i was able to complete the 12 weeks and my lifts shot up Squat 140 - > 150 kg (315 - > 335)lbs Deadlift 175 - > 190 kg (395 - > 425)lbs Bench 100 - > 105 kg (225 - > 235)lbs Final bw 90 kg My notes: -Squats were brutal more than anything else in the program, yet i am in no place to complain with a 20 pound pr -this program made me break through my 2 year bench plateau, twice. And coincidentally this is the first time that i recieve compliments to my chest - overall volume was well balanced for the powerlifting movements and allows you to add bodybuilding volume to bodyparts you want to target - i did 4 sets of biceps and 4 triceps to failure every workout and my arms grew half an inch over the 18weeks - i added 2 heavy sets of seated dumbell overhead Press to failure to day 2 of every week until week 11 - i added back work twice per week in addition to shoulders, abs and traps - first run was done on a bulk but second time was a maintenance phase because i started the program at ~18% body fat Could i have got better gains if i ran it on a bulk? 100% yes - i tweaked my back on week 6 (due to faulty equipment) and trained in pain for two weeks, if that didn't happen probably i would have seen better yet squat gains I missed reps on close grip bench during weeks 6,9 - i didn't touck the programming for the powerlifting movements, yet i might lower the squat percentages a bit for the next run if i started missing reps with my new maxes - trust the program, up to week 11 i felt myself getting weaker on the squat and stuck on bench, taper week hit and voila, 20 pound squat pr and 10 bench - i am going to rerun it again on a cut with small modifications to see if i can maintain or even gain a little bit -workouts as written took as low as 45 minutes on easy weeks to 1.15 hours FINAL NOTE: THIS IS A PERFECT template for powerlifting and can be easily modified for bodybuilding if you have more time and energy, 5/5 will rerun it again
Kukka K.
Man1 week complete
3 years of prior experience
As expected strength gains
As expected muscle gains
On a second week of the program and it seems great. Just feel mislead 'cause the sessions take well over an hour to complete.
Bradley S.
Man3 weeks complete
2 years of prior experience
As expected strength gains
As expected muscle gains
I'm a story liker. I would like this program more, if it was more leg dominant.
Rishav
Man12 weeks complete
4 years of prior experience
As expected strength gains
As expected muscle gains
Putting 95% of one rep max here is a good idea otherwise it will be difficult to complete the program. I made good progress on squats and bench but zero progress on deadlifts. I believe the volume was just too much for me and I always went fatigued into deadlift sessions. I even sometimes lowered the weight and reps still I think it’s so much that it’s detrimental.
Vytautas Baranauskas
Man, 265 weeks complete
5 years of prior experience
As expected strength gains
More than expected muscle gains
Technique really improved, also bulked up quite a bit due to the extra volume. Overall, a great program that will push you
Juho H.
Man, 2712 weeks complete
As expected strength gains
More than expected muscle gains
Bench 120kg -> 130kg Squat 137,5kg -> 167,5kg Deadlift 155kg -> 180kg Bw 81kg
Sruly K.
Man12 weeks complete
4 years of prior experience
As expected strength gains
More than expected muscle gains
Squat (High Bar): 150ish-165.5kg Bench: 113kg-N/A Deadlift: 200kg-207.5kg Bw: 170lbs-176lbs This is a great program overall. Most sessions took 1.5hrs and were pretty easy. I loved the arm accessories and gained a lot more muscle than I expected. At first I thought it was weird to do accessories before a compound movement but it actually made me feel more warmed up. It’s also nice to unload the bar and leave versus doing accessories afterwards. Squat: Haven’t done high bar in 2 years, previous best was 147.5kg, best low bar was 160kg. Every workout was easy besides for tempo squats, those were tough. Loved the pause and tempo squats to drill position and balance. I was surprised my legs got bigger even with no accessories. Bench: The program was good for bench but I had an issue with my form so I had to stop around week 9, did hit some rep prs so I definitely got a little stronger. Deadlift: All the deadlifts were very sub maximal which I liked. The paused deadlifts were amazing and really helped my start position. RDLs were very fun and helped build overall strength. 10/10, will run again!
Anonymous
Man5 weeks complete
1 year of prior experience
As expected strength gains
As expected muscle gains
Good