5x5 Pyramid Q?

[DeadLiftin]

o.k so after reading enough about 5x5 to make my head explode i have a few questions after reading a few journals? Lets say i follow the mon,wed,fri routine
of monday heavy, wednesay light, and friday medium. do i start out with my 5 rep max then work my way down? or start low and work up to my 5rm?
madcow said to add 2.5% to my 5rm and do it for triples on friday and then monday do that weight for 5 reps. would this example work

Monday.
Squat 200x5,195x5,190x5,185x5,180x5
Bench 180x5,175x5,170x5,165x5,160x5
Rows: 5x5 same as above just as example.
W. Dips. 3 sets of 5 plus 25lbs

Wed.
Squat 180x5,175x5,165x5,160x5,160x5
Deadlifts. DO i go heavy or light since its once a week???
Hyper extensions. 5 sets of 5 plus 10lbs
M.Press. 100x5,95x5,90x5,85x5,80x5

Friday.
Squat 205x3,200x5,195x5,190x5,185x5
Bench 185x3,180x5,175x5,170x5,165x5
Rows: Same above still
W.Dips 3 sets of 5
Preachers 3x8

So do i start like this or flip it around and start low and work up? and on the next monday would i do 205x5 on squats? ne suggestion?

 

[asdfzxcv]

Hello there,on all of the days you start low and work your way up to a top set.Also try to start your sets at lower weights or else the workload will be too much,try to start your sets at about 60% of your max set.

eg-if you are going to squat 200x5 you might want to ramp up like this

5x120
5x140
5x160
5x180
5x200

As the weight used for the top set increases,so do the sets that proceed it.
You do 5reps with the weight you used on friday for your monday session.

 

[anotherbutters]

o.k so after reading enough about 5x5 to make my head explode i have a few questions after reading a few journals?

I don't know what you've been reading then, because the single factor description and every single factor journal has the weight going up, not down.

Here's the single factor description again.

There are two versions described and used on this board, but I assume you're referring to the single factor, not the dual factor, since you're talking about triples on Friday.

In answer to your questions, asdf's correct about ramping up and weight selection. For deadlifts, go heavy and try to set PRs week on week (2-3%). The squats on Wednesday are done lighter, so work up to the third set you did on Monday and don't go any higher. Do two or three sets at that weight. After the triple on Friday, go back to the weight you used on the third set and try to get 8 reps - that's the back off set. With bench press, military and rows, you'll want to get yourself some microplates so you can make smaller increases than 5lb per week. 5lb per week is acheivable with squats and deads because the muscle groups are bigger, but you won't maintain that rate on upper body for long.

 

[DeadLiftin]

hey i was looking at the routine in the link you sent me and im pretty sure thats the route i wanna go but can i replace the powercleans with deadlifts? or do you think thats too much strain? i dont know how to do powercleans properly and plus i dont think theres anywere at my gym to do them. also i noticed you can replace the p.cleans with rows and highpulls with deads but if i lifted heavy with deads on wed. wouldnt i still be pretty soar for squats on friday?

 

[asdfzxcv]

hey i was looking at the routine in the link you sent me and im pretty sure thats the route i wanna go but can i replace the powercleans with deadlifts? or do you think thats too much strain? i dont know how to do powercleans properly and plus i dont think theres anywere at my gym to do them. also i noticed you can replace the p.cleans with rows and highpulls with deads but if i lifted heavy with deads on wed. wouldnt i still be pretty soar for squats on friday?

It would be too much work to substitute the power cleans with deadlifts.The deadlift is basically the maximum pull the body can muster and it takes a heavy toll on the central nervous system.Madcow2 advised me not to do High pulls from the floor if I was substituting them for the p-cleans,but rather to do them from a hang position in order to decrease the strain on the legs which are already squatting 3times a week in this program.Even this is not easy and i am contemplating switching back to the rows.

Personally I would just stick with deads on wednesday and rows on monday/friday,just my two cents

 

[DeadLiftin]

It would be too much work to substitute the power cleans with deadlifts.The deadlift is basically the maximum pull the body can muster and it takes a heavy toll on the central nervous system.Madcow2 advised me not to do High pulls from the floor if I was substituting them for the p-cleans,but rather to do them from a hang position in order to decrease the strain on the legs which are already squatting 3times a week in this program.Even this is not easy and i am contemplating switching back to the rows.

Personally I would just stick with deads on wednesday and rows on monday/friday,just my two cents

yeah but are youre legs soar from mondays workout on wednesday when youre doing light squats? i havent started this program yet but it seems to me like my legs are gonna be soar everyday. have any of you had this problem?

 

[asdfzxcv]

yeah but are youre legs soar from mondays workout on wednesday when youre doing light squats? i havent started this program yet but it seems to me like my legs are gonna be soar everyday. have any of you had this problem?

No,you may be a little sore for the first few weeks/days but it will subside very quicky as you become adjusted to the frequency.It not like most programs how you go in once a week and absolutely destroy your legs with 20different exercises until failure.I myself have been squatting 3times a week for 3months now and i can honestly say that i experience no pain anymore from frequent squatting.

This program is not designed to have you work to the point of failure(although it may sometimes occur) as it places a heavy toll on the CNS and doesnt provide much,if any benefit,to working a few reps short of failure.

If you havent already I suggest looking at the main 5x5 post in this forum or PM madcow2 as he seems to know alot about this kind of thing.

Hope this helps .

 

[Madcow2]

yeah but are youre legs soar from mondays workout on wednesday when youre doing light squats? i havent started this program yet but it seems to me like my legs are gonna be soar everyday. have any of you had this problem?

First, DOMS soreness IS NOT in any way indicative of a good or stimulative workout. With that out of the way, DOMS/soreness IS about conditioning. The first time you do an exercise you get really sore if you work hard. When you change up exercises or drastically increase workload all of a sudden, you get pretty sore at first. Once you start training a muscle 1x per week and get in the groove of what you are doing you tend to get sore or stiff for 1-2 days afterward but nothing earthshattering. So that's the limit of the typical BBer experience.

Of course the 1x per week frequency being used as a default for most of the year is based on a horrendous misunderstanding of recovery and the nature of overtraining (I've already written a ton on this stuff) so BBers often don't have any idea about training with increased frequency. Or they like dumbasses they double what they do 1x per week "to try" 2x per week and crash under the heavy instant increase of unaccustomed workload. Anyway, rant off, what you'll find is that you tend not to get sore anymore, maybe at first but not after a while.

I think if you read anotherbutters' journal he was sore in week 1 and some in week 2, and then subsequently went on for another 10-12 weeks setting weekly PRs. Anyway, unless you just get blasted by the volume and it's wayyy too high for you and makes you crumble, you should get used to it fairly quickly. Just train through soreness, stretch, loosen up, get some blood in there. If you are dangerously sore (i.e. to the touch), do some light active recovery work and revisit the workout later after you are better.