5x5 program

Unlike some exercises where cheating helps folks lift heavier weight, the overhead press is a humbling movement. To press heavy weights above your head, you need to be strong, and there is no way around it. Sure, you can use some leg drive and momentum to help yourself. Doing so benefits your bench press and helps further develop your chest, shoulders, and triceps. What matters most is that you perform each repetition with good form and a full range of motion.

Lift the barbell and lower it in a controlled fashion, avoid using momentum, and avoid dropping the bar from the top position. On a similar note, be more conservative with your loading and progression. For instance, you can follow the classic outline of Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Alternatively, you can train on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. Both options will work equally well, and it mostly depends on your preferences and availability.

You should always leave at least a day of recovery in-between sessions to prevent a drop in performance. Similarly, your shoulders, chest, and triceps will also be tired. Training is vital for causing a stimulus. But your recovery is what then allows that stimulus to turn into an adaptation For instance, you might want to include more assistance work for the individual muscle groups in your body. The bench, squat, deadlift, bent over row, and the overhead press will deliver significant results.

But adding assistance work can help you achieve even better results, provided you recover well, and your nutrition is on point. High-Bar Back Squat — 5 sets x 5 reps Flat Barbell Bench Press — 5 sets x 5 reps Bent-Over Row — 5 sets x 5 reps Dumbbell bicep curls — 2 to 3 sets of 12 to 15 reps Cable rope tricep extensions — 2 to 3 sets of 12 to 15 reps Cable rope face pulls — 2 to 3 sets of 12 to 25 reps.

High-Bar Back Squat — 5 sets x 5 reps Standing Barbell Overhead Press — 5 sets x 5 reps Conventional Deadlift — 5 sets x 5 reps Classic push-ups — 2 to 3 sets of 10 to 20 reps Unilateral dumbbell rows — 2 to 3 sets of 10 to 15 reps Leg extensions — 2 to 3 sets of 12 to 20 reps.

For example:. The more exercises you include, the harder it will get to recover on time. So, be mindful when making any adjustments to the original program and monitor how they impact you. The program works great for beginners because it leads to rapid strength and muscle gains initially and helps them maximize their newbie phase.

All you have to do is learn five exercises, have three weekly workouts, and follow a simple progression scheme. With enough consistency and proper nutrition, this program can deliver steady results for a long time. According to research, training our muscles twice per week seems optimal for hypertrophy, but training three times a week can also work great 3. As far as strength is concerned, performing the different lifts more often will lead to quicker results 2.

Like many things, your lifting performance also depends on skill to some degree. The more you work on an exercise, the better and more technically-proficient you become. Besides this significant difference, both programs share similar details. The principle of progression, exercise selection, and workout structure are similar.

Specifically, you no longer do five sets of five reps across exercises but instead ramp up the intensity and end up doing a single heavy set of five reps.

Your second squat workout of the week is also lighter. But why is this the case? In other words, one tactic might have helped you boost your squat from 60 to pounds. And yet another method to go from to Plus, as the weight gets heavier, recovery demands increase. Recovery is still the crucial element for positive adaptations, and Madcow simply emphasizes it. The 3-day split has always been popular among trainees because it works.

The question is, which of the two is better? Both are in their unique ways. The upper lower split is also popular among trainees because it offers an optimal training frequency and allows for decent strength gains. The most common way to do the upper lower split would be to have four weekly workouts — two upper and two lower. You can also train three times per week and alternate between a lower and upper body workout over the weeks. The bro split , while not as popular as it once was, still has merit.

The goal is to dedicate specific days for training given muscle groups — for example, chest on Monday, back on Wednesday, and legs on Friday. Three-day versions can work, but your workouts will have to be much longer. In terms of effectiveness, it can be beneficial for muscle gain. Countless individuals have used this simple training program and have made fantastic strength progress in a matter of months.

This program is evidence that simple programming can work for a long time. Too many people look for the most complicated approach, where something clear and simple would work much better.

All you have to do is select light enough loads, remain consistent, do your five sets of five, and make small steps up. It employs a linear model of progression. Still, if you want to do some cardio for good health and improved recovery, it would be best to do it on your rest days.

The overhead and bench press both train the chest, shoulders, and triceps. The deadlift and row both train your arms, shoulders and back. We could make a case that all five movements train most muscle groups in the body, at least to some degree. The goal is to master the fundamentals, apply them consistently, and push yourself hard. The simple answer? Your workouts should be as long as needed for you to complete all of your sets systematically.

In other words, you need to rest enough between sets to maintain your performance as the workout progresses. The goal here is adequate recovery. A good coach will teach them proper technique, monitor their workout performance, motivate them, and give them helpful tips and insights. Any thoughts on swapping the deadlift? Using a calorie calculator to make sure you're in a slight caloric surplus is a great idea while following a 5x5 program. As with any systematic, heavy lifting program, you need to ensure you have proper pre- and post-workout nutrition while doing 5x5 training.

You may not get very sweaty doing sets of 5, but rest assured, your body is working hard! The workouts are going to take a lot out of your body, so providing them with the nutrients to fuel the activity as well as recovery from it is essential.

Aim for a gram of protein per pound of body weight each day, and don't be afraid to see the number on the scale go up along with the weight on the bar. Hit your reps and earn your shake! If you can set your ego aside and do the work, you will join the legion of 5x5 believers on BodySpace and in the Bodybuilding. Then, you can always return to it in the future whenever you want to see the weight on the bar go up!

Shannon Clark is a freelance health and fitness writer located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. View all articles by this author. A Timeless Plan for Balanced Gains. This is a classic plan for the modern lifter.

Track your weights, swap out lifts to match your equipment, and watch demonstration videos of every movement! Barbell back squat. Barbell Bench Press - Medium Grip. Barbell Row. Ab Rollout. Lying cable triceps extension. Barbell front squat. Military press. A routine based around triples, doubles and singles are often preferred since this not only lets you go heavier but you get more properly done first reps which is a key to optimal powerlifting performance. There is much merit to this approach.

Admittedly, some on the web as people on the web are wont to do have tried to make 5X5 the ultimate training program for all applications but that has more to do with people on the web than how 5X5 was ever really presented or meant to be used.

The beginner 5X5 program is actually an ascending pyramid or ramp from a light weight up to a single top set of 5 repetitions. At every workout, they might try to add 5 lbs to the top set or to each set as their strength and technique improves. For the most part, only the top set is a working set. As the lifter progress, often the top three sets end up being fairly stressful and one common modification of the beginner 5X5 approach is to cut the reps on the intermediate sets.

So rather than performing 5 reps each set, a lifter might go 5, 4, 3, 2 and then really give it their all on the top set of 5. By limiting fatigue on the earlier sets, the lifter can give the top set more effort. This approach is commonly only used towards the end of a beginner 5X5 program when the lifter is starting to move some decent weights.

Rank beginners should be performing all 5 reps on each of the 5 sets for technical and practice reasons as much as anything else.

Now, I really like this interpretation of 5X5 for certain applications. Training beginning lifters is one of them and this ties into an issue of teaching and motor learning. When beginners are learning a new lift, they need to do a lot of perfect repetitions in order to not only learn but ingrain good technique. So the lifter might start with the bar and perform do 5 perfect reps ideally the lifter is being given coaching cues throughout.

Then depending on the movement and the trainee, weight pounds are added and 5 more reps are done; again with coaching being given. If technique stays solid, more weight is added until all 5 sets are done. At the next workout, the lifter would start a little bit higher on the first set and pyramid up again hopefully to a new top set.

A series of workouts might look like this:. Just gradually adding weight to every set so long as technique is staying stable at the heavier weights. In any case, if there is a coach doing things right, each day the lifter should be getting 25 technically good reps with technique improving over a series of workouts with progressively heavier weights. As well, training this way not only helps with technique improvements but starts to teach the lifter how to push and focus more as things get heavier.

Each set with a heavier weight requires them to get a little bit tighter, concentrate a bit more, be a little bit more intent on keeping form solid as things get difficult. Exerting effort in the weight room is learned skill like any other and this type of program is a good way to start teaching that to newbie lifters. Things usually move faster because technique is already established but starting light and pyramiding up lets lifters get their groove back faster than trying to go too heavy too fast.

Over a handful of workouts, lifters can regain their technique and a lot of their strength by using a 5X5 ascending pyramid and adding weight on each set and then starting a bit higher the next workout.

Reiterating the above, with this type of approach the early sets are basically always light enough to be done perfectly which is good for reinforcing proper technique. As well, the gradually increasing loads teaches the lifter to maintain proper form and focus as things get a little bit more difficult.

As well, the top set is still stimulating strength gains so there is usually quick progress positive feedback being a key aspect of keeping trainees continuing to train when they first start. Again, the biggest potential drawback is that, left to their own devices, un-coached lifters will invariably add too much weight too quickly and their form will go down the toilet.

In that situation, using a higher repetition range to limit the weight that can be used may be a safer approach than the 5X5. But, as noted, the 5X5 ascending pyramid is primarily for beginners; at some point, a single top set is no longer sufficient to stimulate much in the way of strength or size gains and more volume is needed.

Which is when folks typically move to the other common 5X5 interpretation. The common next step after the beginner 5X5 ramp is what is usually referred to as 5X5 sets across. Those sets are done after an appropriate warm-up so the lifter will be doing more than 5 total sets in practice. Depending on the work weights, anywhere from warm-up sets might be done prior to the 5 heavy work sets. This can make for a long day which is why this is usually only used for a handful of exercises per workout with additional work being done for a handful of higher repetition sets.

After doing warm-up sets, the goal of 5X5 across is to do all 5 sets of 5 with the same weight. One general rule of thumb that is often imposed is that if you get less than 14 total repetitions across 5 sets the goal is 25 reps , the weight is too heavy.

Usually this happens when the first set of 5 is too close to a true maximum. Under those conditions, most experience fairly large repetition drop-offs with each set. Another that is often applied is that if a lifter goes to the gym and sees a huge rep drop off after one set, they should call the workout and go home. So if someone warmed up and then did 5 reps, 5 reps and then only got 2 reps, they should be done for the day.

In this approach to the 5X5 program, when all 5 sets are achieved with the same poundage, the weight on the bar should be increased as the next workout. How much would depend on the movement and weight being lifted by lbs on bench, squat and deadlift and 2. Once lifters get some training momentum going, especially if they are eating enough, they may find that they get all 5 sets of 5 for several workouts even as they add weight.

In that case, they should stay at the current weight until all 25 reps are achieved before increasing. Basically the goal of the 5X5 sets across program is to get a good whack of volume with heavy but not maximum weights and then letting the workout autoregulate itself such that getting all 25 reps means going up.

This is often coupled with a second workout, usually a 5X5 ascending set to a top set in the same week. Both are simply truncated versions of the 5X5 sets across. In one version, only 2 sets of 5 are done at the same weight, often after 3 lighter warm-up sets.

The program is still technically 5X5 but only 2 heavy sets are done. When I have personally done programs like this I was never married to it having to be 5 total sets per exercise or 5 reps per set, especially on warm-ups.

This can make for some grindy and gruelling both physically and mentally workouts since they are all basically maximum sets. If you want to go really nuts, you can do your 2 grinder sets of 5 and then follow it up with a set of reps, at least on squats. A program at least similar to the above was presented by John McCallum.

Here you did 2 warm-up sets of 5 to 3 heavy sets of 5 at the same weight. As with the 2X5 variant, those sets are worked much closer to maximum. In one of his more insane programs, the 3X5 heavy sets was followed by 8 sets of 10 with a 30 second rest. Power bodybuilding or pure insanity? You make the call. Both of these are actually related to the same reason: in both situations, trying to perform 5 sets of 5 with the same weight would mean reducing the weight so much that the optimum range in terms of the percentage of max for gaining strength or size is eliminated.

Yeah, sure, work capacity can be improved but, realistically, some people just suck at doing repeat sets with heavy weights, a couple of heavy sets and they are done for the day. In that case, cutting the volume to keep the load up and then making up the volume with higher rep work may be a better option. Both the 2X5 and 3X5 interpretations accommodate that.

Essentially the trainee starts with the 5X5 sets across workout, attempting to perform all 5 sets with the same weight as described above. So long as they are able to get all 5 sets of 5 they add weight to the bar.

They continue doing this for as long as they can. In that situation, I recommend dropping the 5th set entirely so the workout becomes warm-ups to 4 sets of 5 at the same weight. So long as they get all 4 sets of 5 they keep adding weight. So drop the 4th and make the workout warm-ups to 3 sets of 5. When that stalls, drop to 2 sets of 5. Many will be able to keep pushing the weights up on 2 sets of 5 for extended periods.