I’ve been running 5/3/1 with no accessories for a couple of weeks and I’m setting ridiculous upper-body PRs basically every session. I hit 255 for 10 on bench a few days ago when I was struggling with 275 for 5 a few weeks back. I just cranked out 175 for 7 on overhead press right now. The week before was similar non-sense.
I would be worried I’m peaking but I wasn’t doing any extra volume before this. I’ve basically been doing a weekly volume of like 30 reps on bench and overhead press with no accessories since like august?
I want to believe a focus on doing a lot of explosive, sprinting, and plyo work has carried over in combination with amazing sleep, but I’m also cautious because I know that this is supposed to be harder for people.
Idk basically what’s going on? I’m getting way better than expected results from programming I’ve never seen anyone else do. Am I falling into some kind of weird trap I don’t know about?
It’s hard to say for sure. There are so many potential variables.
You’re probably in the sweet spot for recovery. Could be you’ve found your natural groove, or maybe you weren’t eating/sleeping enough with additional volume in the mix to capitalize prior.
If it’s working, keep going. Not all gains gifts make sense.
I’m just doing the sets prescribed by the app. So yesterday I walked in and did:
OHP 5x85, 5x95, 3x115, 3x135, 3x155, 7x175
Then I put the weights away, got back in my car and left.
Bench was a different day but it was a similar thing. I showed up to the gym, did 115x5, 145x5, 175x3, 195x3, 225x3, 255x10, and then put the weights away and went home.
I’m not doing any accessories or anything that isn’t exactly the squat/bench/OHP/DL sets. So that’s 100% of all my upper work in a week. If this is how it should be I’m into it, I like workouts only taking 30 mins tbh.
It’s not. What you’re doing is one specific 5/3/1 program that Jim called the “I’m not doing Jack Sh*t” program. Typically used during times when time is tight or the trainee is overtaxed. Otherwise, 5/3/1 programs always have supplemental and assistance work.
However, there IS no official 5/3/1 app, so that’s most likely the issue.
Si, I have a focus on sprint and explosive work so I intentionally kept weight volume low. I have dedicated sprint sessions several hours before the leg days and will also do a bunch of cleans etc.
I tend to also like working up to a single top set. I do a wider range of exercises, but I’m also not sprinting or doing a bunch of other taxing stuff. As long as your recovery exceeds your fatigue, making progress is to be expected! And if not, either change your program and take a closer look at your recovery and be honest with yourself.
