My 5/3/1/ programming

Well unless you have been living under a rock, you know what 5/3/1 is.  If you don't, I don't know what to say.  

The great thing about it is that you can run up and down the 5/3/1 ladder how you see fit.  This works great for me as I am big on doing back-off sets for my assistance work, rather than changing the movement and adding volume with something different.  

Without further ado I will talk about how I set up my 5/3/1 cycle and the reasons why.

Squat and Deadlift every other week -

This is something I have done in the past with success.  In my articles I go back to the fact that for me, I recover far better if I squat and pull on the same day, or alternate them week to week.  I made the mistake of thinking I could go back to squatting and pulling in the same week on separate days after this last bicep tear.  I thought that I would need an extra day to get my dead back up over 600 fast enough, but it really didn't take long once the confidence in my arm was back.  Then within a few weeks, I found myself dreading training and feeling tired more often than not.  I wasn't conditioning as much and soon I felt like shit again, and got a big "I told you so" from Wendler.  Whatever.

Anyway, so I knew that my recover was tapped out.  So I took 4-5 days off, then instituted the squat and pull on alternate week schedule again.  In a week and a half, I already feel TONS better.  When I walk into the gym I feel like being there again and want to work.  This is a good feeling.  

When I head over to the hills, I want to run again.  When I go into the backyard, I want to do my sprints again.  All good things.  All done because I eventually got smart again, and started paying attention to recovery again.  Because I only do lower body once a week with limited volume I don't do a deload (not that I've ever put a planned deload in my training anyway).  

The other thing I am doing is setting up the cycles like so.  

Week 1 - 3's - Hard work.  Leaving only 1-2 reps in the tank

Week 2 - 5's - Just do the reps.  Work up and back down the ladder, but just get the reps in.  So 65% 75% 85% 75% 65% all for 5 reps

Week 3 - 5/3/1 - Hard work.  Same as week 1.  

Repeat process

I program it out using about 80-85% of my "max".  So the weights are fairly light really.  For my first week of deads I did 500x8 and for squats I did 475x8.  Both of these worked out perfect as I could have gotten 10 but that would have been near max effort (did I just use that phrase?  Now I need a shower).  So I did a pretty good job of being smart in my programming. 

So my layout looks like this...

Week 1 - 

Deadlift -

Leg Curls - 4-5 sets

Calf Raises - 2-3 sets

Week 2 - 

Squats -

Leg Curls - 4-5 sets

Calf Raises - 2-3 sets

Benching - 

Benching is a little different.  I have gone back to alternating bench and incline for this cycle.  Mainly to help my elbows again, as incline doesn't hurt it quite as much as flat benching.  

The programming for bench and incline are different.  This is really just a personal preference.  

For bench I do the same as squat and dead.  I do the week of 3's first, then the 5's, then the 1's.  However what I do is just get the reps in for the top set, then I do my back off with the preceding weight.

So for the first week, I did 365x3 on bench, and then did 315x10 on the back off (easily good for 12-13 with that however the bent bar screwed me up).  This is the usual plan of attack for bench.

The next week I will incline, and I won't do a back off, I work right up to the top set and go all out, only a rep or so shy of failure.  I don't do a back off set.

These things are just personal preferences, there is no "science" or witchcraft behind them.  It's just how I like to do things.

My assistance work is as follows -

Bench -

T-bars - 5 sets

Biceps and Triceps - 6 sets

Incline -

Chins - 5 sets

Biceps and Triceps - 6 sets

Off Days - 

My "off days" consist of either hill running for 6-10 hills, or 15-20 40 yard sprints.  I also work in ab circuits, rear delt, and trap work on those days too.  This is done low intensity with light weights and not much thought.  For example I might do db. upright rows for 3-5 sets of 10 with the 40's and some bent laterals before I do my sprints/runs.  Nothing hard or heavy, just enough to work those areas.  I will throw in an ab circuit two times a week usually as well.  Again, these things are done on "off" days and only take 15 minutes or so.  But I think it's good to do a little something everyday, then do your big stuff twice a week.  This feels good and keeps me fresh.  

Don't bastardize it -

5/3/1 is good just like it is.  Notice how I'm still working within the framework of the actually principles of the program.  I don't bastardize it and do stupid shit with it, that makes it not the program anymore.  To quote Dana Carvey making fun of Ross Perot "You can't put a porcupine in a barn, set it on fire, and expect to make licorice".  Don't do stupid shit with a program that works.  I use incline instead of overhead press because overhead now is too hard on my elbows.  Outside of that, the program is still in the correct framework.