building strength

[sean14182]

so i've been doing starr's 5x5 workout for a good 8 weeks now, good stuff ive made some fairly respectable gains (for a beginner) but my question pertains to what i would be the most beneficial for me.

let me backtrack though, as i said im a beginner, and as of right now (week 8) i'm successfully at for my max sets:
bench 170
incline 150
squat 180
deads 200
rows (bent over dumbbell) 70's

assistance:
curls- sitting down with the arm pad in front of me, 50 lb curl bar: 8 reps (sorry dont know proper name lol)
tris- 60 lb (flat on my back with curl bar over my head lowering it)



now to get to the point. i weigh around 190lbs and am quite lanky with almost no muscle definition (especiall in the arms) at 6'1, age 22. i've been reading several threads and am wondering if i would be better off doing a higher rep workout, closer to hypertrophy, perhaps a 3x8 set up, or if i should stick with what i am doing.
my logic for choosing the 5x5 was that it promises the biggest gains in terms of size and weight gains. i figure since you dont tend to even see results till you are benching your weight or above i should stick with the 5x5 workout atleast until i hit 190lbs on bench.

anyways just looking for advice, anything you can offer is fine, i'm realistic and not expecting miracle gains and am willing to put in the work ideally id like to hear from some lifters similar to myself who started out without much to work with who've conquered genetics (naturally lol). thanks in advance
-Sean

 

[Powerbuilder333]

You sound like a clasic ectomorph (like I was), so I'd stick to low rep sets.
As long as your progressing I'd stick with the 5x5 (I'm not that familiar with it). Be patient.
When the 5x5 stops working (for a couple of weeks - everybody has an off day), put together something that fits your personality better. I use a 5 reps or failure policy on the powerlifts, and 10 reps not to failure on most assistance movements.
Train 3 days a week (split routine), never for over 90 minutes. Make sure you eat 6 medium sized meals a day. Sleep 8 hours a night. And avoid stress. Good luck.

 

[sean14182]

thanks powerbuilder

 

[djeclipse]

If your lifts are going up and you're eating you will put on size. the problem is you're pretty tall and and 10lbs on your frame doesn't show as well as 10 lbs on someone that is only 5'-6".

The 5 x 5 is meant as a starting tool to help teach you about training.

 

[silver_shadow]

yea stick with it if you are making good progress as PB said. also you'll need to put on some more meat overall to see a drastic improvement in your overall musculature. one thing i'd suggest is to take pics from different angles now. then concentrate on moving the scale northwards every week by 1lb (if you aren't gaining that fast, then eat more!). after 2 mths take some more pics and compare to your old ones.... i an guarantee you will feel like giving yourself a pat on the back

and yes if you are benching at least your bodyweight, your arms are going to BE bigger generally speaking. add more weight to the bar and it'll be even better.

 

[Powerbuilder333]

Silver has a great idea with the pictures. I wish I would have takin' "before" pictures.

 

[the_alcatraz]

I believe the 5 x 5 is only effective if you're a novice in bodybuilding.
I'd go with 8 reps, 4 sets for each body part; one muscle a day; and ample rest time. try to get at least 6 meals a day.

 

[Elementality]

I'm fairly new to true bodybuilding and I have been doing the 5x5 for almost a year and I've kind of customized it to my own fitting. For example, I could bench more reps at a higher end of weight than I could squat. I stick to 5 reps for squatting, because I always break parallel, almost ass to ground. When you go that low, even without weights, you can feel it become difficult to get out of the hole since when you go that low your nervous system shuts down or whatever the terminology would be. With bench and barbel rows, I kind of go 5 - 8 reps. I stick to the weight increases for each set like the excel sheet suggests, but I don't follow it exactly for reps.

Just try and follow the right weights, and then rep it as much as you can and if you're doing it right you shouldnt be able to do more than 8 reps anyway. Once i implemented this kind of unplanned scheme for reps my gains have been better.

 

[b fold the truth]

You aren't going to hurt yourself by changing things up every several weeks. Remember...time will give you the results you want.

 

[sean14182]

current update i stuck with the 5x5 and my max for 5 reps is the following
bench 175
squat 205
deads 235 (barely)
rows (dumbell) 75-80 depending on how much i have left in the tank at the end of the day


im happy with my squat and deads progress but my bench has been seriously lacking. my original post was mid march and its mid july now. i took a week and a half off from bench because of a sore shoulder but still considering im a beginner im not at all satisfied with my gains.

edit i should add my main goal is size, but strength is important to me as well
also i took the suggestion of taking pictures. i went from 175lbs to 190lbs in the 2 months. theres noticeable difference in chest size but also the gut got a little bigger. im not sure how much if any i put on is muscle

but due to my frustration ive decided i want to change up my routine ive plateud in nearly everything. i was thinking of trying to combine the best of both worlds and do the following. i am extremely motivated and have been doing my new workout for 2 weeks. critique is as always very welcome


mon
-bench ramped 5x115, 135, 175
downward ramp 8x135, 10x115, 12x95
-squats same idea more weight
-rows 8x50 8x55 8x60 8x65 8x75

tues
-cardio 25-30 minutes 70% max speed
-preacher curls 5 sets of 8 ramped
-couple random tri/bi excercises, whatever im in the mood to do
-crunches/situps/abs

wed
-incline same setup as regular bench with ramp and de-ramp
-deads 5x135 5x185 5x235 8x185 12x135
-light squats tbh i dont really stick with anything on this i just do sets of 5-8 depending on level of soreness

thurs
repeat cardio

friday
same as monday sometimes ill do dumbbell bench instead of regular bench if i feel i need a change

sat
cardio and abs

 

[highlander555]

by looking at your lifting weights, it seems that more strength training is needed before a "body building" routine (one with slightly higher reps geared toward hypertrophy) should be tried.

I'd say a good goal for the switch would be when you can squat 1.5 times your body weight for reps. After that you can rest assured that you've built a solid foundation ready for more of a bodybuilding routine.

Good luck brother.

 

[sean14182]

by looking at your lifting weights, it seems that more strength training is needed before a "body building" routine (one with slightly higher reps geared toward hypertrophy) should be tried.

I'd say a good goal for the switch would be when you can squat 1.5 times your body weight for reps. After that you can rest assured that you've built a solid foundation ready for more of a bodybuilding routine.

Good luck brother.

thanks for the advice i think that sounds like a solid plan to me.