Please Scroll Down to See Forums Below I'm going to be starting the 5x5 routine tomorrow and have a question. I'm looking to bulk up and gain some mass. I'm 6'4" and weigh about 195, but ideally want to get up to about 215 - 220. For chest I'm going to do 5x5 flat bench, but should I do 2x8 incline db's or incline bench? What are the advantages/disadvantages of doing incline with dumbbells vs. the bar? Will the bar help with better gains in mass? Any advice is greatly appreciated.
Another 5x5 Question
- Thread starter mulva
- Start date
look bro i would do my inclines 5x5 its a lot better for mass trust me, i used to love to do flat bench its more of a ego thing i guess being thta i can put more up on flat. do 5x5 inclined, and i would do a 5x5 flat after,and then a 2x8 or so on declined. if you wake up and don't feel it like you would like too add some flyes in there but i think this should work. the bar i think is best for adding mass the db are great for isolating and shaping. (more reange of motion) i've gotten great gains and strenght gains from the 5x5. what does the rest of the week look like for you??
Saturday: chest/shoulders
incline bench 5x5
chest-bench 5x5
Flies 2x8
shrugs 5x5
side laterals 2x10
I have a rotator cuff injury in my left shoulder so it severely limits what I can do for shoulders. Unfortunately, this means no military press.
Sunday:back/abs
back-deadlifts 5x5
barbell rows 2x10
pullups 2x as many as I can do (currently only about 6)
crunchs and other ab work
Monday rest
Tuesday: arms
barbell curl 5x5
preacher 2x8-10
concentration curl 2x8-10
Dips 5x5
pushdown 2x8-10
rope pushdown 2x8-10
Wednesday: legs
squats 5x5
leg press 2x10
stiff leg DL 2x10
calf raises 3x10
Thursday and Friday off
How does that sound? Remember, I'm trying to bulk up.
incline bench 5x5
chest-bench 5x5
Flies 2x8
shrugs 5x5
side laterals 2x10
I have a rotator cuff injury in my left shoulder so it severely limits what I can do for shoulders. Unfortunately, this means no military press.
Sunday:back/abs
back-deadlifts 5x5
barbell rows 2x10
pullups 2x as many as I can do (currently only about 6)
crunchs and other ab work
Monday rest
Tuesday: arms
barbell curl 5x5
preacher 2x8-10
concentration curl 2x8-10
Dips 5x5
pushdown 2x8-10
rope pushdown 2x8-10
Wednesday: legs
squats 5x5
leg press 2x10
stiff leg DL 2x10
calf raises 3x10
Thursday and Friday off
How does that sound? Remember, I'm trying to bulk up.
wutangnomo
New member
The "bar" will not give you "more mass" then dumbells. Basically it's a preference as to what you like to use. Ultimately, your diet is what determines how much mass you put on. BB incline bench versus DB incline press will not make much of a difference, although with DB's you work more of your stabilizer muscles. With BB you can go heavier, so all in all they work out the same really.
I'd stick to BB inclines as you can add smaller incrimental weight to each side (2.5lbs plates), whereas with DB's the total amount that goes up is always 10 lbs (5lbs weight increase for DB's X 2 DB's = 10lbs total increase), and when you start getting to the heavy weight it makes a huge difference and will be too big a jump.
Flat BB bench is the staple of any chest workout. It is one of the "big 3" exercises, squats and deads being the other two. Build your foundation with BB bench as 5x5. After a while, you can switch over to incline as your 5x5, but for now I'd say use BB bench as your 5x5.
I'd stick to BB inclines as you can add smaller incrimental weight to each side (2.5lbs plates), whereas with DB's the total amount that goes up is always 10 lbs (5lbs weight increase for DB's X 2 DB's = 10lbs total increase), and when you start getting to the heavy weight it makes a huge difference and will be too big a jump.
Flat BB bench is the staple of any chest workout. It is one of the "big 3" exercises, squats and deads being the other two. Build your foundation with BB bench as 5x5. After a while, you can switch over to incline as your 5x5, but for now I'd say use BB bench as your 5x5.
I started the 5x5 workout on Saturday with chest and shoulders. For chest I did:
incline bench 5x5
bench press 5x5
decline db press 2x8
This worked pretty well for me, I'm just concerned that after I'm on the program for awhile and the weights increase on the incline 5x5 sets, that won't be able to get a good 5x5 workout on the flat bench press. Do you think I should switch something around and start with chest 5x5, then do incline (either bb or db) 2x8 and decline db 2x8?
incline bench 5x5
bench press 5x5
decline db press 2x8
This worked pretty well for me, I'm just concerned that after I'm on the program for awhile and the weights increase on the incline 5x5 sets, that won't be able to get a good 5x5 workout on the flat bench press. Do you think I should switch something around and start with chest 5x5, then do incline (either bb or db) 2x8 and decline db 2x8?
I was just tweaking it a little as was suggested by Protobe above. So, what do you think is more beneficial - the 5x5 on bench or incline?JKurz1 said:
Since your preference is 5x5 for incline, do you just do your bench with db's 2x8? Also, since you do chest twice a week do you do one day 5x5 incline and then 5x5 flat bench the next? Sorry for so many questions, just trying to gain the most I can out of this workout from those with experience.
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