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Today's 5 x 5 workout and some fun facts
- Thread starter Jim Ouini
- Start date
Sets of 5 are fine (Starr did write the program for cleans and pulls). The clean pull is also a bit less technical than the full clean so unless you are wayyy out there you'll be fine. 5x5 is fine for the power clean and related lifts, much more, particularly multiple sets of 8-10 etc... are where this stuff gets into issues. Read last sentence in this post more carefully: http://elitefitness.com/forum/showpost.php?p=4915308&postcount=27. If you read post 28 he's also fairly familiar with Starr's protocols.
Jim Ouini
New member
Madcow2 said:
I'll keep 'em at 5...right at the limit of some lapses in form for me, definitely something for me to keep awares of.
Wk 1 Day 2
BW after workout = 194
Box squats
Warmup to 205 x 5 x 5
I widened my stance a bit, almost as wide as my sumo stance. Felt real good.
One guy who I see often at the gym comes up to me and says 'It always seems like you're squatting, don't you do anything else?'
Dead (sumo)
Warmup to 295 x 5 x 5
Felt good, moderately hard and I lost count of my reps one set so I might've done an extra one.
Push Press
Warmup to 115 x 5 x 5
Last set was more 'push' than 'press'. These are tough for me after deads.
Pullups
25 x 5 x 4, BW x 5
Had to drop the weight on the last set since I barely got the last rep on set #4. I think I figured out why these are harder 2nd time around - I'm 16lbs heavier
Anyway, only 2 more Wednesday's to go - Wks 3 and 4....
Jim Ouini
New member
Wk 3 Day 1
BW after workout = 195
Actually at home I've been 197-199 throughout the day, so up maybe 3-4lbs from end of 1st run through. Feeling some around the midsection but I don't care
Full Squat
Warmup to 275 x 5 x 5
Not too bad, maybe should've gone higher but with some form issues still present thought I'd make sure I could get the reps in.
My knee was/is bothering me so by necessity I widened my stance maybe a bit past shoulder width...I think I'll stick with this for now. At the very least it'll give me one less thing to think about.
Bench
Warmup to 265 x 5 (failed on 4 rep).
Actually I asked for 260 and the guy I was working in with put on 2 10's. So I said what the hell. The first 3 were real easy and then I just hit the wall on reps 4-5, although I was still pushing.
Clean Pull Low
Warmup to 275 x 5
Good sets. The gym was quite crowded and because I had to wait for a bench and working in with somebody I had some rest time between squats and clean pulls. Plus I focused on 'snapping my hips', I think is the term, and that helped.
Note: So this guy I was working in with on bench is a pretty young PT at the gym and was quite chatty, said he was training for a natural body building contest. Nice guy I guess, real enthusiastic about working out and training.
He asked me if I knew who Ronnie Coleman was and I said yes...so he told me he eats BBQ chicken breasts just like Ronnie Coleman, and he's gained 10lbs on that new supplement Ronnie endorses something called NO2 Explode I think.
Thus I kinda knew he was on a BB program, so when he benched he went to failure every set up to his 2 rep max and I helped him with 2 negs. Then when I was only doing 5 on my way up he kept egging me on to do 7 or 8 or 10. I politely kept saying 'no I'm OK with 5' and he really looked disappointed at my lack of effort.
When we were finished he said 'What's next, inclines?' and I told him no I'm done I have to do clean pulls and now he REALLY looked at me funny.
Anyway point of the story is that it's always funny when the 2 methods of training collide, now that I'm on the DF wave dropping words like 'intensity' at the gym can send a conversation into a downward spiral.
BW after workout = 195
Actually at home I've been 197-199 throughout the day, so up maybe 3-4lbs from end of 1st run through. Feeling some around the midsection but I don't care
Full Squat
Warmup to 275 x 5 x 5
Not too bad, maybe should've gone higher but with some form issues still present thought I'd make sure I could get the reps in.
My knee was/is bothering me so by necessity I widened my stance maybe a bit past shoulder width...I think I'll stick with this for now. At the very least it'll give me one less thing to think about.
Bench
Warmup to 265 x 5 (failed on 4 rep).
Actually I asked for 260 and the guy I was working in with put on 2 10's. So I said what the hell. The first 3 were real easy and then I just hit the wall on reps 4-5, although I was still pushing.
Clean Pull Low
Warmup to 275 x 5
Good sets. The gym was quite crowded and because I had to wait for a bench and working in with somebody I had some rest time between squats and clean pulls. Plus I focused on 'snapping my hips', I think is the term, and that helped.
Note: So this guy I was working in with on bench is a pretty young PT at the gym and was quite chatty, said he was training for a natural body building contest. Nice guy I guess, real enthusiastic about working out and training.
He asked me if I knew who Ronnie Coleman was and I said yes...so he told me he eats BBQ chicken breasts just like Ronnie Coleman, and he's gained 10lbs on that new supplement Ronnie endorses something called NO2 Explode I think.
Thus I kinda knew he was on a BB program, so when he benched he went to failure every set up to his 2 rep max and I helped him with 2 negs. Then when I was only doing 5 on my way up he kept egging me on to do 7 or 8 or 10. I politely kept saying 'no I'm OK with 5' and he really looked disappointed at my lack of effort.
When we were finished he said 'What's next, inclines?' and I told him no I'm done I have to do clean pulls and now he REALLY looked at me funny.
Anyway point of the story is that it's always funny when the 2 methods of training collide, now that I'm on the DF wave dropping words like 'intensity' at the gym can send a conversation into a downward spiral.
blut wump
New member
I've had that too: asked for a spot from someone, just in case, and then he couldn't understand why I'd stop before needing him.
One word of warning from my own recent experience: my hips have been really sore and tired from the wide-stance squat work. So sore that I've had trouble getting down low even with just the bar until I reverted to a narrower stance. I think maybe I was overdoing the weight on the wide box squats rather than treating it as a light day2 squat. I feel that I have a lot more to push against and a more stable base with a wide stance but it definitely brings the hips in a lot more. Maybe it won't bother you but I was starting to suffer. Still, it didn't kill me so it should make me stronger.
One word of warning from my own recent experience: my hips have been really sore and tired from the wide-stance squat work. So sore that I've had trouble getting down low even with just the bar until I reverted to a narrower stance. I think maybe I was overdoing the weight on the wide box squats rather than treating it as a light day2 squat. I feel that I have a lot more to push against and a more stable base with a wide stance but it definitely brings the hips in a lot more. Maybe it won't bother you but I was starting to suffer. Still, it didn't kill me so it should make me stronger.
Blut Wump said:
FYI - wide stance PL squats are much more taxing on the body. I doubt anyone can really hammer these in this program 3x per week for long with equipment and all - just too much. The fact that you were using them for the light Wednesday squat and that the weight was heavier than your 1x5 weight on Friday only makes this worse.
Jim Ouini
New member
Blut Wump said:I've had that too: asked for a spot from someone, just in case, and then he couldn't understand why I'd stop before needing him.
One word of warning from my own recent experience: my hips have been really sore and tired from the wide-stance squat work. So sore that I've had trouble getting down low even with just the bar until I reverted to a narrower stance. I think maybe I was overdoing the weight on the wide box squats rather than treating it as a light day2 squat. I feel that I have a lot more to push against and a more stable base with a wide stance but it definitely brings the hips in a lot more. Maybe it won't bother you but I was starting to suffer. Still, it didn't kill me so it should make me stronger.
Yeah I've been playing around with my stance on the box as well. I've been going 20% lighter on the box than on Monday's squat.
My width is about as wide as my sumo dead, which is where my toes (pointed out about 45 degrees) are about 4-6 inches from the collar.
Should be interesting tomorrow since I have to go for my max 5 x 5 box squat, followed by my max dead and with my stances being pretty similar for both...ugh.
blut wump
New member
That was one of the reasons I decided to stick with conventional-style deadlifts. I started intending to be light on the box squats but got too enthusiastic with them. I guess I can chalk it up as another mistake I'll be unlikely to repeat for a while and hope that the extra rest of the 2x deload will be enough to bale me out.
I did box squats on Monday week5 and felt tight but ok. I'll be sticking with the narrow Oly stance for my day2 deepsquats during deload. Thanks for the info madcow.
I did box squats on Monday week5 and felt tight but ok. I'll be sticking with the narrow Oly stance for my day2 deepsquats during deload. Thanks for the info madcow.
Jim Ouini
New member
Wk 3 Day 2
BW after workout = 196.52
Box squats
Warmup to 225 x 5 x 5
My knee was still bothering me in addition to my right quad feeling a bit tweaked so I was dreading these. Still the weights were OK and probably good for this week. Next week I'll try 245 I think.
Dead (sumo)
Warmup to 335 x 5 x 5
My friend showed up right at about my 2nd set and said 'Hey I've never deadlifted before let me try it'. Well he's a big boy about 6-2 240 and he was able to muscle it up with pretty decent form.
I hate it when dudes warm up with my max
My last set I tried conventional style and it went up real easy, actually easier than my sumo. Hmm.
Push Press
Warmup to 130 x 5 x 5
Ugh. Have I mentioned I suck at these? Failed last set at 4.
Pullups
30 x 5 x 4, BW x 5
I used to be good at these but that was 20lbs ago
Note: OK I don't mean to be a butthead but today I saw something really ridiculous, even for Bally's. A couple guys were on the leg press, one of them works there, he always has that lat spread thing going and rolls his short sleeves up you know so we can see his 20 inch pythons.
Anyhoo, he loads up the machine with 9 plates per side...then they parade across the gym carrying over a bar with 45's which they put on top of the leg press.
Then the set begins and sure enough about 6in range of motion, grunting and gasping (otherwise I wouldn't have noticed ) - but to make it worse the other guy has his hands on the platform pushing up on it every rep.
I just don't understand this.
BW after workout = 196.52
Box squats
Warmup to 225 x 5 x 5
My knee was still bothering me in addition to my right quad feeling a bit tweaked so I was dreading these. Still the weights were OK and probably good for this week. Next week I'll try 245 I think.
Dead (sumo)
Warmup to 335 x 5 x 5
My friend showed up right at about my 2nd set and said 'Hey I've never deadlifted before let me try it'. Well he's a big boy about 6-2 240 and he was able to muscle it up with pretty decent form.
I hate it when dudes warm up with my max
My last set I tried conventional style and it went up real easy, actually easier than my sumo. Hmm.
Push Press
Warmup to 130 x 5 x 5
Ugh. Have I mentioned I suck at these? Failed last set at 4.
Pullups
30 x 5 x 4, BW x 5
I used to be good at these but that was 20lbs ago
Note: OK I don't mean to be a butthead but today I saw something really ridiculous, even for Bally's. A couple guys were on the leg press, one of them works there, he always has that lat spread thing going and rolls his short sleeves up you know so we can see his 20 inch pythons.
Anyhoo, he loads up the machine with 9 plates per side...then they parade across the gym carrying over a bar with 45's which they put on top of the leg press.
Then the set begins and sure enough about 6in range of motion, grunting and gasping (otherwise I wouldn't have noticed
) - but to make it worse the other guy has his hands on the platform pushing up on it every rep. I just don't understand this.
