The 5/3/1 Discussion Thread

[Hanley]

Lets play nice!

[LightningBolt]

Forgive me but, what exactly is it? Is it like a 5x5 program? Would it be an int-adv program or adaptable for any kind of lifter?

How exactly does protein work with it?

[Hanley]

Read this; http://www.tmuscle.com/free_online_a..._pure_strength

No protein allowed tho. It's the devil.

I'm just saying that cos i don't actually understand your question!

[itsallaboutheL]

Originally Posted by Hanley

Read this; http://www.tmuscle.com/free_online_a..._pure_strength

No protein allowed tho. It's the devil.

I'm just saying that cos i don't actually understand your question!

a small child full of protein!!

whats up with his sudden love of whole foods..... i bet Biotest aren't happy!!

[brianthebard]

Probably intentionally said that because of the site in question.

[the drifter]

ok to go from lightning bolts post...i take it this is for an advanced lifter and not someone starting out or returning to lifting?

so youve got your 4 week block then you increase and move on...how long do you cycle this for?

[itsallaboutheL]

Originally Posted by the drifter

ok to go from lightning bolts post...i take it this is for an advanced lifter and not someone starting out or returning to lifting?

so youve got your 4 week block then you increase and move on...how long do you cycle this for?

no gheys "bodybuilders" allowed

[the drifter]

fair nuff L im neither... think you need to be able to squat for this program so run along and play with someone over in PI

[Hanley]

Originally Posted by the drifter

ok to go from lightning bolts post...i take it this is for an advanced lifter and not someone starting out or returning to lifting?

so youve got your 4 week block then you increase and move on...how long do you cycle this for?

Wendler's always banging on about how it's for everyone!!

Constant progress is good, regardless of what level you're at!!

3 weeks on, 1 week deload (week = 7-10 days)

Add 5kg to your squat and deadlift, 2.5kg to bench and military

Repeat ad infinitum!

Kev's done 5 cycles. I'm on my 3rd...

[brianthebard]

Originally Posted by the drifter

ok to go from lightning bolts post...i take it this is for an advanced lifter and not someone starting out or returning to lifting?

so youve got your 4 week block then you increase and move on...how long do you cycle this for?

Well I'm a noob and I feel its working for me. When you take 10% off your 1rm then as a noob you're taking less off than an advanced lifter, so you see yourself pushing past your 1rm sooner. I don't think it matters what level of lifting you're at, and there are different assistance templates to suit different needs, but its highly customisable. (one of the templates is very suited to size gains).

As for how long you do it, it could be forever. I know I'm not doing it as long as others here but the way one can look at gradual changes and how your training will look months in advance really lends itself to the long term training. If in six months time I get bored of it and want to try a Russian cycle or something else then that's possible, and then you can go right back into 5/3/1 as a template for another 6 months or however long it takes.

Tbh I think at its heart its just a 4 day upper/lower upper/lower split, but with the percentages and the constantly changing rep scheme it appears to be more than that. But it seems to work really well.

[podge57]

Im just finishing up wave 3 - loving it so far, except for military pressing but i dont care too much about it anyway.

This wave i squatted 150x6, back in wave 1 i got 140x6, and ive been setting consistant bench and dl prs too.

I play football too, and i think this works weel for anyone involved in sport - the only thing that really matters is the one all-out set, and you can adjust the volume for everything else to suit your needs. Somedays i spend 25 mins in the gym, other days i take 75 mins

[Hanley]

Originally Posted by brianthebard

Tbh I think at its heart its just a 4 day upper/lower upper/lower split, but with the percentages and the constantly changing rep scheme it appears to be more than that. But it seems to work really well.

It's not revolutionary for sure. But that's the beauty of it.

The idea's tried and tested... gradually increase the big lift over time, do exercises that hit the same muscles. It's what powerlifters were doing before Westside came along and stole the show. Hell I know a lot of very successful powerlifters who still do the same basic thing.

5/3/1 sells the most basic way of training known to man as a package that produces results. It's great really!

[brianthebard]

This is the thing I've been wondering, could you just dump the military press day completely if you did some shoulder assistance work on some of the other days? I don't intend to get rid of it, but I'm curious. What I mean is what would be the negative implications of doing that?

ETA-totally agree Hanley, I was just trying to say that a lot of people would get distracted by the percentage stuff, which is important but really its a simple programme that you can follow for years.

[Naos]

If you want to see the results of 5/3/1, you have to do the program as written. As soon as you start customizing it, it's no longer 5/3/1. You might like your own version of it better than Wendler's original, but you can't attribute your success or failure to the guy who wrote the program unless you're actually doing the program as he wrote it.

This program does sound interesting. I'm doing some different type thing at the moment in the gym, really have to write it up in my journal at some stage.

Going to take a look at this in a few weeks possibly.

[kevpants]

Originally Posted by brianthebard

This is the thing I've been wondering, could you just dump the military press day completely if you did some shoulder assistance work on some of the other days? I don't intend to get rid of it, but I'm curious. What I mean is what would be the negative implications of doing that?

It would throw things out of kilter if you removed it. The thing about it, even if you don't progress that much on it is that it gives you an extra 3 days of lower body recovery (if you're training 3 days a week). If it's removed you are gonna end up going straight from squats to deadlifts and I suppose it's just the structure Wendler found optimal.

It gives you a chance to do some extra upper body assistance as well without having to bench twice a week.

When you think about it overhead strength is conspicuous by its absence from powerlifting. Realistically if you want to get overall strong you'd be mad to neglect it. It's not a "powerlifting program", I mean it's designed with unequipped lifting only in mind and Wendler expressed his dissatisfaction with only being able to squat, bench & deadlift but not being able to do anything else.