I own all of Jims books including 5/3/1 Forever and have read pretty much everything he has ever written on training. Does anyone else agree with me by feeling that 5/3/1 has evolved and changed so much that it is out of control? The different variations are so far removed from the original program that it doesn’t even resemble it anymore. It used to be touted to being one of the most simple and basic programs for strength, but now I feel that it is getting complicated and more consistent. Instead of a base program, it is now evolved into dozens of templates. It’s almost gimmicky it me now.
I actually feel that I have a much greater understanding and belief of Conjugate principles. No matter where you read about Conjugate or Westside, the message and principles always stay the same. Whether you read, Defranco, Wenning, Tate, Louie or any other practitioners, the message and program/principles are consistent. Conjugate is based off science, physics, russian/bulgarian methods etc. I feel 5/3/1 is just what Jim uses for his athletes rather than based off agreed upon methods.
It kinda sucks because I really like Jim and much of his philosophy. It’s just that I don’t love his programming anymore. And being that he did train for a short time at Westside, it seems that he totally disagrees with everything they do now and mentions it often in his writings. I know he had a kind of falling out over there when he left. Also he was at EliteFTS for so long and they are heavily conjugate/westside influenced(Tate.)
I am gonna stay with Conjugate, but was just curious if anyone else feels the same.