5/3/1 Test

Bigger Stronger Leaner Powerlifting & Strength Sports
1

finished my forth cycle of 5/3/1,realy enjoying it,althou my deadlift and bench hasnt made much improvement,my raw squat has,my max before starting this programme was 230kg just belt,so i decided on my 4th cycle deload week i would test squat,and hey presto i hit 240kg was hard but not a grinder,up 10kg,really happy,hope to hit 250kg december…

heres my squat routine,feel free to comment

squat
5/3/1 i always just do required reps

box squats touch n go to 17inch box
3 sets up to 230kg for doubles or trebles

2 second pause squats 2 sets no belt up to 200kg

rep work
160kg 170kg 8 reps usually

goodmornings or zercher squats

ab work standing with thick band

i find pause squats excellent addition

2

Why wouldn’t you go for extra reps?

3

[quote]gorangers0525 wrote:
Why wouldn’t you go for extra reps? [/quote]

one i hate reps :smiley: 2 i llike to leave some in the tank and 3 never found reps beneficial
for my squat,always got better results 5s 3s doubles and singles :slight_smile:

4

Imo you’re probably getting much more out of the box and pause squat work than the 5/3/1.

Doing it for required reps 5/3/1 starts with top sets in the first cycle of 5 reps at 75%, 3 at 80% and 1 at 85%… That’s not going to have much of a training effect.

If I were you I’d just drop the 5/3/1 and do a bit more of the stuff below.

5

Why would you do touch and go on a box squat? That completely negates the entire reason you box squat.

6

[quote]black_angus1 wrote:
Why would you do touch and go on a box squat? That completely negates the entire reason you box squat.[/quote]

i find some people use it more for gauging depth then sitting waaay back and hammering the hamstrings. a few guys i train with only use it on ME squats and hardly sit back at all and dont even go that wide. they do pause at the bottom though. its way different then the way i use them on DE day with as wide as i can go.

7

[quote]black_angus1 wrote:
Why would you do touch and go on a box squat? That completely negates the entire reason you box squat.

first its a high box i use,and i find it good for overloading,second im a raw squatter not very wide stance and i never got much ccarryover from pause box squats,i get more from pause beltless squats,it must be working i squat 240kg raw just belt drug free and only been squatting 3 years :smiley:

8

[quote]celticstrenght wrote:

[quote]gorangers0525 wrote:
Why wouldn’t you go for extra reps? [/quote]

one i hate reps :smiley: 2 i llike to leave some in the tank and 3 never found reps beneficial
for my squat,always got better results 5s 3s doubles and singles :)[/quote]

I wouldn’t use 5/3/1. The whole entire point of it is to beat rep records. Also the fact that you hate reps most likely means that you suck at them which means getting to not suck at them will make you stronger.

9

[quote]gorangers0525 wrote:

[quote]celticstrenght wrote:

[quote]gorangers0525 wrote:
Why wouldn’t you go for extra reps? [/quote]

one i hate reps :smiley: 2 i llike to leave some in the tank and 3 never found reps beneficial
for my squat,always got better results 5s 3s doubles and singles :)[/quote]

I wouldn’t use 5/3/1. The whole entire point of it is to beat rep records. Also the fact that you hate reps most likely means that you suck at them which means getting to not suck at them will make you stronger.

i use 5/3/1 for exactly that 5 reps 3 reps 1 rep,i dont care if i suck at reps,i a powerlifter and just need to squat 1 heavy rep at comp :),it must be working,240kg raw squat just belt drug free in just over two years,if it aint broke dont try fix it :smiley:

10

I have gotten a ton stronger using 5/3/1 for my squat, bench and deadlift.

Here is a typical squat day:

5/3/1 (getting as many reps as possible)
10 x 1 speed/technique singles (about 70-80%, shooting for .9-1.1m/s)
2 x 10 volume (using around the same weight as speed singles or 5-10lbs heavier)

I find that grinding through that last set makes me more confident when I am attempting a heavy single that I can get out of the bottom because I do it when I am tired/fatigued every week on that last set.

on the “unload” week, I do the 3 x 5 at light percentages, then work up to one or two singles, hoping for a PR, and so far, I keep getting them :). after that, I’ll do about 5 of the speed singles and then either the 2 x 10 at lighter weight, or simply sets of five at the usual weight.

as a side note, I am squatting and deadlifting both twice a week. Day one squat is 3 x 10 that I wave every 4 weeks and then sled work. Day one deadlift looks a lot like the squat day above, except that the 2 x 10 are replaced with 3 x 10 deficits. Day two deadlift is 3 x 10 deficits waved a little heavier and then some band goodmornings.

I know you are reading the 10 reps part and the deadlift volume and thinking either, “power-lifters don’t need to do all of those reps,” or, “good lord, she’s going to hurt herself deadlifting twice a week,” but it has frickin’ worked. My squat and deadlift have both gone up 30lbs and since I started the high volume in June, and I have been training for over 5 years. It’s easy to make gains in the first couple of years of training (read dave tate’s levels of shit to suck, suck to good, good to great and how long it takes in his most recent reflections).

11

[quote]l-bomb10 wrote:
I have gotten a ton stronger using 5/3/1 for my squat, bench and deadlift.

Here is a typical squat day:

5/3/1 (getting as many reps as possible)
10 x 1 speed/technique singles (about 70-80%, shooting for .9-1.1m/s)
2 x 10 volume (using around the same weight as speed singles or 5-10lbs heavier)

I find that grinding through that last set makes me more confident when I am attempting a heavy single that I can get out of the bottom because I do it when I am tired/fatigued every week on that last set.

on the “unload” week, I do the 3 x 5 at light percentages, then work up to one or two singles, hoping for a PR, and so far, I keep getting them :). after that, I’ll do about 5 of the speed singles and then either the 2 x 10 at lighter weight, or simply sets of five at the usual weight.

as a side note, I am squatting and deadlifting both twice a week. Day one squat is 3 x 10 that I wave every 4 weeks and then sled work. Day one deadlift looks a lot like the squat day above, except that the 2 x 10 are replaced with 3 x 10 deficits. Day two deadlift is 3 x 10 deficits waved a little heavier and then some band goodmornings.

I know you are reading the 10 reps part and the deadlift volume and thinking either, “power-lifters don’t need to do all of those reps,” or, “good lord, she’s going to hurt herself deadlifting twice a week,” but it has frickin’ worked. My squat and deadlift have both gone up 30lbs and since I started the high volume in June, and I have been training for over 5 years. It’s easy to make gains in the first couple of years of training (read dave tate’s levels of shit to suck, suck to good, good to great and how long it takes in his most recent re

thats good gains,if it works for you keep doing it :),as i said i know what works for me,i have been training 16years all together,but unfortunately never squatted or deadlifted till i started powerlifting over two years ago,and like we all know at first the gains come easy then u have to grind for every kilo :D,plus im 43 in 3 months,life time drug free,i dont read dave tate etc,i find my own path and pave the way :),keep up the great work and remember there are no limits :slight_smile: