It’s much easier to train at maximal levels more often if you don’t do anything but lift. However, if you are an athlete and doing sprint work, jumps, med ball throws, position specific work etc. etc you have to pick your battles and realize that you are also, if training properly, often putting maximal efforts into those as well. Something has to give. You simply can’t do everything maximally at once. Think optimal rather than maximal. Yes, there are times for max weights but it’s not all of the time.
Put a full effort into the training but there is no need to finish every set or workout with nothing left/no reps in the tank, so to speak. There should always be quality present but each time you train should not be about training at 100% intensity. Early in the block, it’s more important to have more reps left but by the end of the block (week 3 or 4) they have 0-1 rep left at the end of the worksets.
Often times I have athletes who’s bench, in particular, stalls out-for whatever reason it’s not usually their squat that levels off. In almost every case, I get them to reduce their set-rep maxes and by the end of the block, their weights have improved. We lift off of percentages of set-rep maxes and not single set rm’s or 1rm’s.
For example an overreaching week/intro. micro. might be:
week 1 at 85% of their best for 5 x 5,
week 2 at 90% of their best for 3 x 5,
week 3 at 95-100% of their best for 3 x 3
week 4 at 75-80% of their best for 3 x 2.
Most of the weeks are actually a range so the first week is actually 85-90% for 5 x 5, 90-95 for 3 x 5, etc.