Need some help.
- Thread starter ChrisDono
- Start date
jason2459
Member
Not sure what your primary goal here is? Strenght? Size? Fat reduction?
If you want to get strength and hypertrophy I'd look into Westside for Skinny bastards, a 5x5 routine, or Wendler's 5/3/1
Bill Starr Intermediate 5x5 (elitemadcow's)
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Bill Starr Advanced 5x5 (elitemadcow's)
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WS4SB version 1
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WS4SB version 2
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WS4SB version 3
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Wendler's 5/3/1 ebook
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Or a good ol' Westside Template.
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Or better yet The Beginners Training Manual
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SRS2000
Active member
Unless you're a very experienced lifter and can come up with programs based on your specific needs, do one of the programs mentioned above. I also assume you wouldn't be asking there if you were experienced enough to come up with a program on your own, so use one of the programs listed. It usually takes years and years of hard lifting to really be good at coming up with your own programs.
If your goal is strength, your program is far from optimal. If it were me, I would scrap it and do one of the listed programs and take out the guesswork. If I had done that early in lifting career I would have saved myself years of unproductive training.
If your goal is strength, your program is far from optimal. If it were me, I would scrap it and do one of the listed programs and take out the guesswork. If I had done that early in lifting career I would have saved myself years of unproductive training.
stullsy
Member
heres my current routine for powerlifting
I max out each of the first 3 lifts for 2 weeks, then work the other 2 at 80-90% of my 5rm. So if i max out on the 2 board i work incline and military at 80-90%. I do the dropsets for hypertrophy.
day 1 chest and shoulders
Incline Bench 5x5 ramping weight to top set of 5
Bench Press 2 board 3x5 at 80-90% of 5rm then dropset of regular bench for 10 reps
Standing Militart 3x5 at 80-90% of 5rm then dropset of 10
laterals and raises 3x10-12
face pulls 3x 10-12
Day 3 Legs and Back
Deadlift 5x5 ramping weight to top set of 5
Good mornings 3x5 at 80-90% of 5rm then dropset of 10
Squat 3x5 at 80-90% of 5rm then dropset of 10
Weighted pullups increasing to top set of 3 or density training with negatives
Chest Supported Rows 4x8, doing them with moderate weight focusing on pinching my back like at the bottom of a bench press
weighted incline crunches
swiss ball crunches
hyperextensions
swiss ball reverse hypers
Day 5 Tries and Bis
Close grip bench ramping weight to top set of 5
3 board bench 3x5 at 80-90%
seated overhead french presses 3x10
hammer curls 10-8-6-6
seated dumbell curls 3x10
barbell curls 3x10-12
then i do some more ab work if i feel like it lol
I max out each of the first 3 lifts for 2 weeks, then work the other 2 at 80-90% of my 5rm. So if i max out on the 2 board i work incline and military at 80-90%. I do the dropsets for hypertrophy.
day 1 chest and shoulders
Incline Bench 5x5 ramping weight to top set of 5
Bench Press 2 board 3x5 at 80-90% of 5rm then dropset of regular bench for 10 reps
Standing Militart 3x5 at 80-90% of 5rm then dropset of 10
laterals and raises 3x10-12
face pulls 3x 10-12
Day 3 Legs and Back
Deadlift 5x5 ramping weight to top set of 5
Good mornings 3x5 at 80-90% of 5rm then dropset of 10
Squat 3x5 at 80-90% of 5rm then dropset of 10
Weighted pullups increasing to top set of 3 or density training with negatives
Chest Supported Rows 4x8, doing them with moderate weight focusing on pinching my back like at the bottom of a bench press
weighted incline crunches
swiss ball crunches
hyperextensions
swiss ball reverse hypers
Day 5 Tries and Bis
Close grip bench ramping weight to top set of 5
3 board bench 3x5 at 80-90%
seated overhead french presses 3x10
hammer curls 10-8-6-6
seated dumbell curls 3x10
barbell curls 3x10-12
then i do some more ab work if i feel like it lol
jason2459
Member
I highly suggest one of the programs I posted.
Another popular avenue for beginners is getting the book Starting Strength and follow the program in there.
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To each there own but I do not believe in body part splits as an effective means to getting stronger.
SRS2000
Active member
If you like the basic split you have, I would recommend the 5/3/1 program. It has a squat, bench, deadlift, and military press day each week. You can tailor the assistance work based on your specific needs. You can get the e-book for ~$20 at the elitefts website. It will tell you everything you need to know about how to run the program including several options for assistance work, progression, etc...
The basic outline is similar to what you have listed, but takes out the guesswork for sets, reps, and progession. If you are willing to run the program correctly, you can use it indefinitely even when your focus may change (cutting, bulking, strength, etc...). The program can be adapted to any of these circumstances.
jason2459
Member
Agreed. 5/3/1 Ebook is a great read too. I probably will never do the 5/3/1 method but enjoyed reading the book. It is a great overall program bassed on good ol' block periodization but in Jim Wendler's hilarious way of making it easy to understand. Plus it's cheap to buy.
If you go with 5/3/1 or if anyone that reads this does I attached an excel spreadsheet that can help. It does NOT give the entire program nor will it help with out understanding the 5/3/1 program. I didn't make the spreadsheet either so any issues with it don't PM me.
If you go with 5/3/1 or if anyone that reads this does I attached an excel spreadsheet that can help. It does NOT give the entire program nor will it help with out understanding the 5/3/1 program. I didn't make the spreadsheet either so any issues with it don't PM me.
jason2459
Member
You don't use your workout. I would suggest against it. If you go with 5/3/1 instead of the many other programs I posted I would buy the 5/3/1 ebook and read through it all and use the excel spreadsheet to help put together what you need to do. If you have any questions Jim Wendler has answered many questions in the Program and Training Q/A on EliteFTS that you can read through and you could even submit any question you may have after that.
jason2459
Member
Got some PM's on my thoughts on these programs. Well, I personally never did any of them but have read through each of them and have seen great results from each and every one of them from many different people.
The WS4SB programs are designed by Joe DeFranco for his athletes to start out with and get stronger and bigger in the off seasons. So great for both strength, size, and conditioning.
The Bill star 5x5 type routines are just well rounded and good entry levels to get started into strength training and probably the easiest to follow as they are laid out 100% for you and takes out a lot of the guess work.
Wendler's 5/3/1 has become very popular over night and is designed around getting stronger and conditioning. Not strictly a powerlifting type routine and will probably gain some size with this as well as it is a combination of rotating between moderate intensities with volume and lower volume with higher intensities. Like I said above the EliteFTS Q/A is a great resource to answer any questions on it as well.
Starting Strength is a great book to read through and gives great examples of how to properly learn different types of lifts. Also lays out a program designed for beginners to take advantage of "beginners" gains. Also, a very easy to understand program and there is a forum out there to answer any and all questions on it as well. Look in the link above for that.
Personally I started with the Dave Tate express Basic Template and never looked back. But my goals are to be a competitive powerlifter and focus on my total. I want to hit 1675lbs total @ 220 unequipped with in the next few years.
The WS4SB programs are designed by Joe DeFranco for his athletes to start out with and get stronger and bigger in the off seasons. So great for both strength, size, and conditioning.
The Bill star 5x5 type routines are just well rounded and good entry levels to get started into strength training and probably the easiest to follow as they are laid out 100% for you and takes out a lot of the guess work.
Wendler's 5/3/1 has become very popular over night and is designed around getting stronger and conditioning. Not strictly a powerlifting type routine and will probably gain some size with this as well as it is a combination of rotating between moderate intensities with volume and lower volume with higher intensities. Like I said above the EliteFTS Q/A is a great resource to answer any questions on it as well.
Starting Strength is a great book to read through and gives great examples of how to properly learn different types of lifts. Also lays out a program designed for beginners to take advantage of "beginners" gains. Also, a very easy to understand program and there is a forum out there to answer any and all questions on it as well. Look in the link above for that.
Personally I started with the Dave Tate express Basic Template and never looked back. But my goals are to be a competitive powerlifter and focus on my total. I want to hit 1675lbs total @ 220 unequipped with in the next few years.
youngandfree
Well-known member
Hey Chris, you said you want a program for strength gains. These programs that were suggested will be completely different than any split you have done. That's a good thing, since the split you have been doing isn't giving you the strength gains you desire.
I think the starting strength is a great place to start. I am going to start it when my hand is completely rehabbed since I just got a cast off a week ago. 8 weeks in a cast and needless to say my strength has gone down. I've been able to maintain enough size, lost some back size since that was the only thing I couldn't really do with the cast.
I think the starting strength is a great place to start. I am going to start it when my hand is completely rehabbed since I just got a cast off a week ago. 8 weeks in a cast and needless to say my strength has gone down. I've been able to maintain enough size, lost some back size since that was the only thing I couldn't really do with the cast.
SRS2000
Active member
Any of these programs will work well if you do them correctly, work hard, and get enough food and recovery. Don't paralyze yourself trying to figure out which one is best.
Pick one that you can commit to for a minimum of 6 months. Make sure you understand the program, which may mean buying a book so you understand the full program. Then do the program as written. Too many young lifters want to try and mess around too much with established programs instead of doing them as written. Totally commit to the program you pick and work very hard at it. If you hit a plateau, do some research and figure out how to get things going again within the context of the program. Too many people scrap good programs after a bad workout or two and end up changing programs so often they have no idea what works and what doesn't.
jason2459
Member
I said in the post that the spreadsheet alone will not help anyone. It is used to help someone that already understands the 5/3/1 program written out by Jim Wendler. It can be purchased for a rediculously low price from here:
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Read through it and if there are any other questions on the program the best place to get them answered or look for answers to your question would by they're Q/A section.
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You can read through, search, and ask questions.
SRS2000
Active member
Should be 65% x5 reps, 75% x5 reps, 85% x max reps. One set at each %, then move on to assistance work.
Start saving money if possible. The e-book will make this way easier to understand.
