How do I solve this 5x5 paradox of lifts??

[CobraUTAH]

Backlash and Fatrat, that's exactly the routine I came to, but I'm glad to see that it's working for others already. How does arm day treat you after working them some the day before on back and shoulders. I'm thinking it should be just fine since on the back portion of 5x5 your doing deads which don't involve bi's at all and only doing 4x10 of stuff that does affect bi's. Also do you feel constantly tired in the lower body region, from working the leg department twice a week. I was doing them back to back and although it was very tiring I had a ton of rest until the abuse started again.

Exodus how does the push pull routine of 5x5 work for you? Your doing bi's back and chest tri's, do you feel you can perform the later lift with as much intensity compared to if you did them on another day or first in the day?

 

[FatRat]

CobraUTAH, arms feel fine, although fatigue does grow over the weeks, and I tend to run a back off week every 6 - 8 weeks. Learning to pull with your back rather than your bis is a skill in itself and will help here. To be honest over the years I have worked every combination of arm muscles with other body parts, including full body and on their own. My conclusion? Everything will work as long as you alter the volume and frequency to suit and give your body time to get used to it. Anyone that says you can only do things one way is either very inexperienced or very blinkered. In my opinion, change is the catalyst for growth.

Lower body (legs) are fine, although Deadlifts and Squats twice in one week many trouble your lower back, especially if you let your form slip as the weight increases.

 

[Nonerz]

Learning to pull with your back rather than your bis is a skill in itself and will help here.

Interesting that you say that...I've been feeling like my bis are getting quite the workout when doing under hand lat pull downs...maybe using too much bis rather than back. How can you sharpen that skill?

 

[FatRat]

This is quite a difficult one to answer. You need to really concentrate on squeezing your shoulder blades together and contracting your lats, and at the same time thinking as you arms more as hooks rather than using them to pull. I sometimes helps to have someone place their hands on your lats as you contract so that you can feel the area you should be working.

Its not easy and you will probably need to use less weight to begin with, but that’s only because you are taking you bi's out of the movement a little but you will be targeting the back specifically.

 

[Lord_Suston]

Back/traps
Chest/bis
rest
Delts/Tris
Legs/calves
rest
rest(optional)

 

[Exodus]

im not doing 5 x 5 now....

but when i was.

i did this:
Monday - chest and Back
Tuesday - Off
Wednesdays - Legs
thurday - arms and shoulders.
frid - rest
sat - rest
sunday - rest

and i grew very well and hardly got overtrained.

and one last note, in your last routine you posted, you listed no calf and hamstring work, those are part of the leg too.

X

 

[Paulo]

Nonerz,

I use a wide grip for lat pulldowns. I go all the way out to the edges of the bar. (Of course I have long monkey arms)
It seems to focus a lot more on my back. I know it is harder. But, I don't generally do them under-handed.

I concur completely with Fatrat, concentrate on squezing your blades together and holding.

That's my only advice. But, I'm not a kinesiologist either.

G'day



Paulo

 

[CobraUTAH]

I'll be hitting hams mainly on deads day and on leg day as well I just didn't list in detail everything I was doing and calves are on leg day and on deads day so twice a week for those.

 

[Nonerz]

Nonerz,

I use a wide grip for lat pulldowns. I go all the way out to the edges of the bar. (Of course I have long monkey arms)
It seems to focus a lot more on my back. I know it is harder. But, I don't generally do them under-handed.

I concur completely with Fatrat, concentrate on squezing your blades together and holding.

That's my only advice. But, I'm not a kinesiologist either.

G'day



Paulo

Just for the record, I do both. I'd love to be able to do chin/pull ups for reps...but I'm not quite there yet! I suppose that it is "easier" to squeeze your blades together when doing the wide grip now that I think about it...and when I do T-bar or BB rows, I can really pull with my back and not bis...it's just the under hand grip where I can really feel that my biceps are doing some serious work.

Thanks guys!