Bill Starr's 5 x 5 program... Variation per Madcow2 (thanx) So here it is! K up now!

[Madcow2]

Re: Bill Starr's 5 x 5 program... Variation per Madcow2 (thanx) So here it is! K up n

you must have missed one of my posts

I do remember it now that I see it but it's kind of a lot to keep everyone's programs and progress constantly at the forefront. Looks very reasonable though to add the closegrips there.

Given the last few posts I should probably mention that frequency of performing a given lift during a training cycle has a lot of benefits. In most cases you will get significantly stronger in a lift that you are training 2x per week or more than you will doing something 1x per week. Think of it as the body learning to specialize and build skill. This is why the BBer programs where they shotgun blast every known exercise to hit a muscle from every angle and contraption in the gym aren't a good way to go about things. Make sure you consider this when slipping in extra lifts and altering the layout.

 

[TheOak84]

i was thinking, 3 weeks of close grip, 3 weeks of dips, then the final 3 weeks of close grip?

would this help, hurt or not matter in terms of gaining strenght on the bench press?

i was thinking about doin bis again, prolly mon and fri.

while the triceps will be hit all 3 days

the only reason for the biceps is, when i row i try to not use my biceps until everything else gives out.

of course they get used regardless. but ive seen people rowing 225 for reps of 10-15 with huge guns, and a flat small back. they biceps overpower thier lats.

i try to avoid that. i was thinking something simple, bb curl on monday, db curl on friday. 5x5. and on wed, ill be doin pullups, 5x5, but using everything, back and bis to full potential. and really focusing on speed. i think it will be beneficial for rowing.

 

[blut wump]

Unless you're struggling with lockout on the bench, don't worry about your triceps. Don't worry about your biceps at all unless you want to buff them up and that's better left until after a mass/strength-building program.

No offence intended, but the biceps are such a tiny muscle group that they're best left to do all the recovery they can get from being hit with rows, chins, pullups etc. Give them their punishment between programs.

 

[HunterUk]

My university gym does not have a squat rack so I have been doing smith machine squats since I started the single factor program 10 weeks ago. I find with these going as low as possible forces my knees out over my toes and I can't get a good feel for the lift as the vertical range of motion is so rigid.

Do you think that perhaps deadlifts would be better than smith machine squats? Or maybe sub them in instead of the squats one day? Don't really want to mess with the program but smith squats seem less than ideal!

 

[Madcow2]

The smith sucks. I don't really know what to tell you because the deadlift can be much more taxing on the body (there is a thread in the table of contents entited 'Increasing the Deadlift without Deadlifting Take 2' that talks about why a lot of elite lifters avoid it). This program makes the assumption that you have access to an adequate gym. You can experiment with other stuff but if you can't squat - you can't really do this program (or any real training in my opinion). I'd try to locate something off campus or ask the football coach where his athletes train because you need to do squats. Sorry to bum you out.

 

[HunterUk]

Eek ok thanks for the answer will look into it!

 

[devilman13]

I've been looking into this and I was wondering if this substituting on the 2nd workout would be OK. instead of deadlifts do clean and press and instead of military do incline press. everything else stays the same. reasoning behind this is I have back problems (torn ligaments & heriniated disk) and have found that I can't do heavy deadlifts.

 

[Madcow2]

Cleans or high pulls are fine on Wednesday (the original layout had cleans in place of rows on M/F and high pulls on W but a lot of people aren't competent in these lifts). The only issue might be your pressing power if you can clean more than you can press in which case I'd avoid the 2 part clean and press, and simply use the clean (or use the push press if that helps). Also, if you are already pressing overhead there is no need for inclines. Just perform a single pressing movement on wednesday whether it's inclines or some overhead work.

 

[devilman13]

Cleans or high pulls are fine on Wednesday (the original layout had cleans in place of rows on M/F and high pulls on W but a lot of people aren't competent in these lifts). The only issue might be your pressing power if you can clean more than you can press in which case I'd avoid the 2 part clean and press, and simply use the clean (or use the push press if that helps). Also, if you are already pressing overhead there is no need for inclines. Just perform a single pressing movement on wednesday whether it's inclines or some overhead work.

Ok so instead of deadlifts do cleans and do military as sep. exercise?...ex. day2 is squats, military, pullups and cleans right?

Also, as I am finishing up a cycle and would like to try this 5x5 while "off" how long should I wait before I try this program. I have read the article in regards to cycling and this program but thats not the route I'd like to go. Just want to do this while off cycle to try and maintain or maybe increase strenght au naturale (keep my fingers crossed on this one)..Thanks in advance...

 

[Sub-Zero]

Re: Bill Starr's 5 x 5 program... Variation per Madcow2 (thanx) So here it is! K up n

madcow-

i failed on the intensity portion...i got 2 (and i guess a half) reps instead of the 3.

i think it was more of a mental issue than a strength issue, but anyway, how do i go about dealing with this

do i
1) do the same weight next week and get 3
2) take off five pounds and try
3) add 5 pounds to the weight(instead of usual greater increases), even though i failed, so this way i increase a little bit, without going too far ahead