I’ve been getting 20 reps on all my deadlift days on the first cycle of 5-3-1:
5+ day: 20 with 127 kg in 66seconds
3+ day: 21 with 135kg in 87 secs
1+ day: 20 with 142 kg in 117 secs
Is this not going to see me gain strength — I can see myself getting 20 reps on all deadlift days for next 2 cycles.
I have good form with these weights but when I go heavy (4 plates or more) my core stability goes and my back rounds.
What does anyone think?
If you’re that concerned, add 7.5 kg to the Training max for next cycle.
However 20rep in almost 2 minutes: seems like a lot of rest during the set! Perhaps you’re fooling yourself, adding time (not necessarily intentionaly) when you should have terminated the set?
Looks OK to me. Getting that many reps isn’t uncommon during the first cycle (or even later). 20 reps in 2 mins isn’t bad either if you’re doing a full reset after each rep rather than touch and go. That’s only 6 secs per rep including the reset - I know I’ve taken longer than that occasionally. Stick with it - the high reps will fix your core strength in no time.
Update: I just tested my max before my military press day and I could only get 190. 200 and 195 wouldn’t leave the floor.
14020 or 1901!
The set of 20 gives my a max of 237 using Wendler’s max calculator.
Any idea what’s going on here: eg weak grip means bar won’t leave the floor or lack of quad strength (on the set of 20 my legs started caving in on last few reps as they also do on max back squats).
Doesn’t matter - max calculators get more and more meaningless the more reps you use. Why test already anyway? Just relax and stick to the program. I did 8 cycles before I tested my dead and pulled 205 off the back of nothing higher than 170x3.
Just keep doing what your doing and don’t reset any numbers for the lift, be sure to use good form while the weight is lighter. By the time you get to 4 plates doing this you should be able to handle it much better.
It could be because your doing a touch and go for 20, do dead stops and you wont get that many. I could get 405 for 5, but I dont think i could have gotten that much without touch and go.
When trying to go from high-rep deadlifting to singles or whatever, you will think to yourself “what the hell is wrong with me”. High reps won’t translate immediately to singles. At one time I spent months working up to 15 reps on 495 pounds on a touch and go deadlift, when I tried to do a single at 550 pounds the following week I couldn’t break the floor. Was I strong enough to break the floor? yeah, I think so. Did the high rep deadlifting do anything to condition me for breaking the floor on higher weights? hell no. What’s odd is that many times after long layoffs I have walked into a gym and pulled 550, but after conditioning myself for reps I really suck at singles at first.
Stick to the game plan and don’t worry about singles right now if reps are prescribed.
Keep the faith in a program if it is widely known to work.
Edit: I have to say that I don’t know a thing about the 5-3-1 program other than that there is a 5, a 3, and a 1 in the title.