whats everyones view on the 5x5?

[klaatu21]

im planning on giving it a go? any one have any success?

[mrbear666]

from what ive read on here it seems to work for most people, i dont do it myself so cant say from experience, but it definately seems to work for other people on here!

[vegan_rossco]

It seems to work for everyone mate go for it, the only thing I didn't like was squatting every session which is 3 days a week but like I said its worked for most! Let me know how you find it

[Scobra]

I haven't done the 5x5 personally, but I do a lot of power lifting which gives you a great base. Do it up!

[dangoody27]

I've done it at various points throughout the past 5 years or so. Great program, but you definitely have to cycle off of it as heavy training year-round will eventually take its toll on you.

[klaatu21]

how long would you reccomend doing it for then?

[asparagus]

I would recommend it for 6-9 months, depending on your progress. If you are still making gains with it then continue a couple more months, but after 9 months you should probably switch to an intermediate program that has you increasing the weight weekly or monthly as opposed to every workout. After a 6 month stretch of 5x5, you could try Madcow or 5/3/1.

[klaatu21]

awesome, was planning on doing it until my birthday thats in may, so it all works out perfectly

[Mini Forklift]

I've done it at various points throughout the past 5 years or so. Great program, but you definitely have to cycle off of it as heavy training year-round will eventually take its toll on you.

That's why I rate deload weeks as being an important part of a training program; they allow optimal recovery without interfering with continual strength gains/muscular adaptation.

 

Does 5x5 not factor them into their waves? It's one program I'm not overly familiar with.

[klaatu21]

the only deload thats factored in is ifyou dont manage to complete the 5x5 of a certain weight in three consecutive sessions you deload by 10% and keep on from there. a sort of 2 steps forward 1 step back approach.

[captfit]

Check out my log i was on a 5x5 for almost 13 weeks . Worked well for me .

[Faux]

I have never done a real 5x5 workout but cross fit hits all the muscles almost every other day. I have been following it for almost a year now and I got decent results. I think I need to switch to more of a traditional 5 day split to isolate groups more and allow more time for regeneration.

 

.02

[stoumi]

I've been on it since October, 2012 and made some good gains. More than I ever thought I would at age 43. The only limiting factor was myself. You can read myStronglift journal on my site, which covers the initial 12 week program. Good luck.

[nirvikara]

I've been doing icecream fitness full body 5 x 5 and love it... squats and deads improving every session

[HIT Rob]

My view/opinion of 5x5....

 

The idea is nonsense,

 

Firstly, the idea is arbitrary, there's nothing scientific about a "method" the advocates performing a certain number of sets and reps just because two numbers match, this also goes for Vince Gironda's 6x6, 8x8 and 10x10.

 

Secondly, the movements that are typical advocated along with such a training "method", require the right/ideal bodytype, ever noticed how the best gymnasts are quite short or how top level basket ball players are very tall? The same is true for certain exercises/events, as Mark Ripptoe even said, "not everyone is designed to be a good Deadlifter or Squatter". Its no wonder squats and deadlifts have f**ked up more trainees backs than they have built powerful physique's! (Yes, poor form plays a big part with individuals getting injured , but so does not having the right bodytype for certain exercises/events).

 

Thirdly, low reps on big compound movements (on every workout) is a very high stress way to train, the connective tissues are put under a great deal of stress, as is the CNS, if an individual is going to train in such a fashion, then they MUST learn to manage the stress, as ML pointed out above, deload weeks are a great way to help manage the stress, you can also reduce the volume and/or frequency as well, either way, if you dont manage the stress, you will soon see your progress come to a grinding halt!

 

Fourthly, the flat bench press is a very dangerous exercise/event, not just from safety perspective, but also from a bio-mechanical stand point, in puts an inordinate amount of stress on the pec/ shoulder tendon, DY explains at the start of this video...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SuFklvQX2KY

 

If its strength your after, then i'd recommend a combination of Mike Mentzers HD 2 routine, alternated with his Consolidation Routine, the HD 2 rouitne is low stress high intensity training, and the latter is high stress high intensity training.

[JubNZ]

Nice post HIT Rob, makes a lot of sense to me. I was trying to make my sets all at 8 reps for a while there, however I found that my bodies joints were feeling a lot of constant stress. So I have upped the reps again, with slightly lower weight. Its taking all the stress off the joints, yet I can feel the muscle really burning.

 

You put it in a way that I couldnt articulate

[HIT Rob]

Hi mate,

 

high reps are a great way to manage stress, i personally like Brain Johnston's cluster sets (rest pause method), it allows for more cumulative fatigue, while still keeping the exercise within an anaerobic pathway.

 

Best

Rob

[JubNZ]

Hi mate,

 

high reps are a great way to manage stress, i personally like Brain Johnston's cluster sets (rest pause method), it allows for more cumulative fatigue, while still keeping the exercise within an anaerobic pathway.

 

Best

Rob

 

Have you got any good links or something to read in regard to Johnston's methods?

[HIT Rob]

Yes Mate,

 

Brian only posts on the Dr Darden site, if you join the site you'll be able to access all his posts. Unfortunately he doesnt owned the rights to the zone training books anymore (there only published in Italian now).

 

This was the interview that got me on to his work, its a brilliant interview, he goes into a lot of detail, after i heard it i contacted him to buy the zone training DVD. http://www.highintensitynation.com/2013/02/high-intensity-training-interview-of-the-month-brian-johnston/

 

Brain was also a keynote speaker at this years H.I.T resurgences event in May, i also bought this http://www.hitresurgence.com/buy-dvd, in this he demonstrates his Tri-angler training method and lectures on how Darwin's theory on evolution ties in with training, really interesting.

 

Hope this helps

Rob

[JubNZ]

Cheers Rob,

 

Have managed to locate a bunch of Brians post on the Dr Darden forum, have the tabs up ready to read, and will listen to the interview too!

 

Thanks alot!

 

Jub

[AndiMorris]

I did stronglifts 5x5 as my first ever attempt at a proper training program. I enjoyed it, but when I reached plateaus on squats, deads and press I found it very difficult to motivate myself to continue. Thankfully not long after I joined a Crossfit gym, which helped in this way mainly because of the near one to one coaching. It turns out my form was bad on both squats and deads, so I was quite lucky that I did lack the strength to go very heavy before I injured myself. Having a coach there really helps with motivation to push through plateaus.