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5x5 question
- Thread starter theguy351
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CrazyRussian
Banned
I've been doing 5x5 for about 2 months. My biceps and triceps grew WITHOUT me even doing the bi/tri work on Friday. After I added that in they've been growing at an even better rate. I'm satisfied. Chest obviously grows, legs obviously, I've been complimented on my shoulders and on my traps, even though I have no idea how the hell my traps would get bigger. My lower back has gotten beefier...the one thing I'm kinda dissapointed with is my upper back, but that's because I just started doing rows the right way about..4-5 weeks ago.
So in summation, all of em get bigger...the two areas that have lagged for me though are upper back and shoulders
So in summation, all of em get bigger...the two areas that have lagged for me though are upper back and shoulders
letsgorangers
New member
well im like u guy, im starting a 5x5 too.......i wanna know also if bi's and tri's grow...
blut wump
New member
The biceps and triceps should grow from the bench, OHP and rowing. Your upper arm will probably take on the distinctive and pleasant sausage form, though, if you neglect the fluff work to induce extra swelling.
Traps grow from deadlifting. You can induce extra growth there without too much negative overall impact by adding in some power shrugs.
I'm surprised someone had lagging shoulder development. Did you sub out military press for incline press? Try swapping out rows for power cleans some time. I found that the cleans worked my rear delts a little extra.
Traps grow from deadlifting. You can induce extra growth there without too much negative overall impact by adding in some power shrugs.
I'm surprised someone had lagging shoulder development. Did you sub out military press for incline press? Try swapping out rows for power cleans some time. I found that the cleans worked my rear delts a little extra.
Protobuilder
New member
Some guys' arms are overdeveloped, in relation to the rest of their body. If you're one of them, or one of those guys whose been pounding arms pretty hard, you might lose some arm size b/c you won't be doing 25 sets of every bicep curl variation imagineable. Most people find that by adding weight to their bench, dip, OHP, row, and pullup, that their arms grow or stay the same size. I haven't done direct arm work in quite a while and they're holding steady and feel thicker and stronger.
It really shouldn't be a problem b/c doesn't the layout have room for 3x10 on curls and triceps work at least one day of the week? Starr's program has room for "beach work" once or twice weekly for those who are worried about it.
It really shouldn't be a problem b/c doesn't the layout have room for 3x10 on curls and triceps work at least one day of the week? Starr's program has room for "beach work" once or twice weekly for those who are worried about it.
GlynnDiesel
New member
Sorry to hijack. I've read this before but cant do a search, any particular day best for adding in power shrugs. In regards to 5x5?
Protobuilder
New member
GlynnDiesel said:
I don't think it matters much. Just don't go crazy with them and don't start really pushing them heavy each week or they "may" cut into your other work. 2-3 sets of 8-12, IMHO.
GlynnDiesel
New member
Cheers proto. All I remember was someone saying not to place em in the wednesday workout along with deadlifts. I understand the reasoning. But I've always enjoyed shrugging after deads. As you say I cant see it making that much difference what day as long as they arent gettin hammered.
Protobuilder
New member
I wouldn't be opposed to doing them the same day as deads, just keep an eye on your lower back and, again, treat them as a supplemental exercise that can be dropped or reduced when necessary.
Cynical Simian
New member
If you feel like doing them after deads, go for it, especially if you're not adding chin-/pull-ups at the end of the Wednesday workout. Like PB said, unless you do something completely absurd ("prefatiguing" your triceps with tri extensions before bench or some Flex-inspired crap like that) the assistance work shouldn't hamper your other lifts.
GlynnDiesel
New member
As for the original poster, sayin I hijacked your thread! I've been doing basic training for a good few years now and 5x5 style setups for nearly 3 and I've no issues with my bi's & tri's.
Hybridtheory2o
New member
When I used to do my 5x5 everything grew but obviously some areas more than others. That just depends on your body. As far as arms go mine exploded with doing a 5x5. I also do one muscle group a day though which I think is very typical so nothing special here. I find this helps me because I can stay very focused on one muscle group at a time and I can absolutley anhilate it properly. When I start trying to do splits by the time I get to my second muscle group im feeling like sorta sloppy and what not and I would start to train a little messy just to get through it. I enjoy going 5 times a week one muscle group per day.
Mon-5x5 with chest
Tues- 5x5 with back and abs but i dont do 5x5 with abs lol
Wed- Legs 5x5
Thurs-Shoulders 5x5
Fri- biceps and triceps 5x5
regular sessions- same as above but with 3 sets sometimes 4 on bigger muscle groups and rep range i use typically is 8-12
I do my 5x5 mass cycle for about 8 weeks. My body tends to recover fairly quickly and I noticed the most gains in my chest and upper back. I have a very thick upper back now. My best advice is since everyone is different and someones order and style might not help ur body like theirs so keep expirmenting till youfind out what makes your shit explode.
O yeh and my chest didn really start exploding till I started doing dumbell presses instead of barbell. I find that dumbells tend to target less of my shoulder and more of my chest and completley hammers on it very nice. I like to minimize that so on shoulder day I can rip them apart to their liking as well. But like I said this is what works for me and my body.
Mon-5x5 with chest
Tues- 5x5 with back and abs but i dont do 5x5 with abs lol
Wed- Legs 5x5
Thurs-Shoulders 5x5
Fri- biceps and triceps 5x5
regular sessions- same as above but with 3 sets sometimes 4 on bigger muscle groups and rep range i use typically is 8-12
I do my 5x5 mass cycle for about 8 weeks. My body tends to recover fairly quickly and I noticed the most gains in my chest and upper back. I have a very thick upper back now. My best advice is since everyone is different and someones order and style might not help ur body like theirs so keep expirmenting till youfind out what makes your shit explode.
O yeh and my chest didn really start exploding till I started doing dumbell presses instead of barbell. I find that dumbells tend to target less of my shoulder and more of my chest and completley hammers on it very nice. I like to minimize that so on shoulder day I can rip them apart to their liking as well. But like I said this is what works for me and my body.
Hybridtheory2o
New member
Oh as regards to dead lifts. I like to do them last because I dont need a tremendous amount of weight to make growth occur. Yes I still train heavy when I do my deads last but I train as heavy as I can with doing them last and I still use a considerable amount of weight.
blut wump
New member
Not to dismiss your posts as completely off-topic but here's the 5x5 he was referring to:
http://www.geocities.com/elitemadcow1/table_of_contents_thread.htm
BTW 5x5 works nicely for abs. Do a search on here for Needsize 5x5. It's a decline sit-up variant.
http://www.geocities.com/elitemadcow1/table_of_contents_thread.htm
BTW 5x5 works nicely for abs. Do a search on here for Needsize 5x5. It's a decline sit-up variant.
Hybridtheory2o
New member
Oh my bad dude lol. I missed the boat on the post it looked like. I am looking at your link now.
Hybridtheory2o
New member
Would my post where I missed the boat be legit though? I do this heavy heavy cycle in an attempt to induce new growth and what not. Even though its different I just wanna know if it would work like that because it did for me before.
blut wump
New member
The general concensus we seem to have here is that so long as you're aiming to make progress over time on your lifts by steadily adding weight to the bar at your chosen rep range then you'll make gains, provided that your chosen rep range is not so high as to be just endurance work nor so low as to be purely neural work. Most here will work primarily 4-6 sets of 4-6 reps on their main work sets.
Some lifts will warrant triples and occasionally people will work 8-10 reps for extended periods but it's all good so long as regular, quantifiable progress is the goal.
As you've probably already seen from the 5x5 on Madcow's site, it centers around working lifts multiple times per week rather than working specific muscle groups once per week. This is more in line with accepted strength training methods rather than the 'principles' that the bodybuilding community inherited from the 70s and 80s. Once per week training does work, as you know, but we've all found good progress from the multiple times per week method, rarely going to failure. What's more, general conditioning is higher and muscle soreness is a thing of the past. Very few who've tried the 5x5 have left it disappointed. There are several keeping training logs on here.
You can think of the 5x5 as a good method to get things moving again when the BB-style split stalls and you can't tolerate upping your dosages of aas or as simply a very good way to grow naturally. As a natural lifter, if you want to grow your muscles then you have to train for strength. The 5x5 is based on sound strength-gaining principles.
Some lifts will warrant triples and occasionally people will work 8-10 reps for extended periods but it's all good so long as regular, quantifiable progress is the goal.
As you've probably already seen from the 5x5 on Madcow's site, it centers around working lifts multiple times per week rather than working specific muscle groups once per week. This is more in line with accepted strength training methods rather than the 'principles' that the bodybuilding community inherited from the 70s and 80s. Once per week training does work, as you know, but we've all found good progress from the multiple times per week method, rarely going to failure. What's more, general conditioning is higher and muscle soreness is a thing of the past. Very few who've tried the 5x5 have left it disappointed. There are several keeping training logs on here.
You can think of the 5x5 as a good method to get things moving again when the BB-style split stalls and you can't tolerate upping your dosages of aas or as simply a very good way to grow naturally. As a natural lifter, if you want to grow your muscles then you have to train for strength. The 5x5 is based on sound strength-gaining principles.
BiggT
New member
I just want to add on to the posts on the 5x5's approach. I am coming from primarily a strength-training background.....As a kid I knew 'bodybuilding' as the mags I'd sometimes look at after I finished the wrestling ones when my mom was taking extra long at the super market, lol. I understand how people who have been fed "bodybuilding" stuff from the 70s/80s/90s/00s will be concerned about the lack of an "arm day" and the lack of direct hit pumping type exercises.
In strength training, you train lifts for performance.....basically squats, a standing press, a press on a bench, and some type of pull (oly lifts, a DL variant, some type of row, chins with various grips). Generally when working/"training" with 75-90% of 1rm you can design a set/rep scheme to progress with and get in enough total work to induce some nice hypertrophy to boot.
If arms are a concern....I PROMISE you, sufficient work for them are 4 sets of iso stuff once a week. Guy351.....just do this up already, the concerns you express are normal for everybody who is not used to sound strength training principals and who has only been spoon-fed Weider's or Jones/Mentzer garbage, you can really get a complex about not "working muscles" with exercises that cause that target muscle to be swollen with blood and "feel' worked......If you do it by the book according to MadCow's site the first time and use the spreadsheet to select weights, you're not going to be disappointed after 8 weeks or so.
Keep a log on here and give it a go, man.
In strength training, you train lifts for performance.....basically squats, a standing press, a press on a bench, and some type of pull (oly lifts, a DL variant, some type of row, chins with various grips). Generally when working/"training" with 75-90% of 1rm you can design a set/rep scheme to progress with and get in enough total work to induce some nice hypertrophy to boot.
If arms are a concern....I PROMISE you, sufficient work for them are 4 sets of iso stuff once a week. Guy351.....just do this up already, the concerns you express are normal for everybody who is not used to sound strength training principals and who has only been spoon-fed Weider's or Jones/Mentzer garbage, you can really get a complex about not "working muscles" with exercises that cause that target muscle to be swollen with blood and "feel' worked......If you do it by the book according to MadCow's site the first time and use the spreadsheet to select weights, you're not going to be disappointed after 8 weeks or so.
Keep a log on here and give it a go, man.
