@Cyrrex, @doomyguy - Thanks, guys—working hard works!
@T3hPwnisher - For sure, dude! I have no problem getting up early to train when I know it’s coming, but days like yesterday are the worst: I wanted to sleep, I just couldn’t!
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7WP, Deload - d6
Friday - 04 February 2022
Workout: Bench + extra conditioning, 0850-0950 (60 minutes)
Warm-up
Jumps only (no throws)
Begin: 0908; End: 0939; Duration: 31 minutes
Bench - 110x5, 135x5, 160x5 | 190x5, 215x5, 240x5, 265x5 (rep PR)
Chin-up - BW - 15, 10
Ab wheel - ramp (15) - 20, 10
Standing DB press - 2x35 lbs - 18, 7
BFP - red - 30
Deficit reverse lunge - L/R - 2x20 lbs - 20
Band pushdown - red - 30
50 1-pump burpees + 24-kg KB swings - 2x25, 25-second rest between
Assistance totals:
Push - 55 reps
Pull - 55 reps
Single-leg/core - 50 reps
So that’s that: I hit all my new TMs for 5 reps this week, so I’ll be using those for the 5s PRO, 5x5 FSL anchor beginning next week. The top set moved a little slowly today, but that seems to be the story this week. (And once again it’s a rep PR.) I’m not worried about it, though, because I’m confident I can hit all the percentage work for 5 super-clean reps without issue.
And for the record: I hate single-leg work. Because it exposes weaknesses. I try not to use my back leg when I do these lunges (or the Bulgarians earlier in the week), but the more I think about it, the more it seems to come into play. So, like everything I hate, I probably need to do more of that. JW recommends leaving it out of BBB, and so I did, but the upcoming anchor will allow it.
More shoveling is in my future: rain turned to snow overnight (hence, no throws today), so I’m going to have to work on clearing it. There’s a nice sheet of ice beneath now, too, which makes it 10x worse. Wasn’t able to start before breakfast like I normally would due to my schedule today, and it may well be late this afternoon before I can begin… Fun times!
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Your bench is impressive.
(it’s bench-pressive)
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Nice benching! Solid PR there!
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@Cyrrex, @shaneinga - Thanks!
7WP, Deload - d7
Saturday - 05 February 2022
Workout: Easy conditioning, 0610-0715 (65 minutes)
25 1-pump burpees + 24-kg KB swings
Weighted vest walk - 30 kg - 35 minutes
25 1-pump burpees + 24-kg KB swings
Fasted. Just me and the snow plows this morning.
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From another thread:
Because I like adding pearls of wisdom to my log.
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Good ol boilerman he has principles boiled down into his mind.
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Agree with the above that is some really solid bench mate.
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@simo74 - Thanks, mate!
7WP, Deload - summary
A good week: hit all my new TMs for 5 reps and got a mental and physical break. I’m now ready to push hard again, so it was a successful deload.
Did much better with my diet this week, too. Friday night brought the first family night out in a long, long time: Out. In public. Together. With other people. Having fun. That was refreshing. We returned home and had some cake and ice cream, so that was way off-menu, but the rest of the week was on point. Just need to keep that ball rolling…
Starting 5s PRO, 5x5 FSL as an anchor this week, and my goals are:
- Complete all 4 lifting workouts
- Complete an extra Widowmaker set for each lift (one day later)
- Complete 4 days of hard conditioning
- Complete 3 days of easy conditioning + direct calf work
- Do 52 chin-ups/pull-ups and 50 somethings every day
- Continue to eat properly
I’m planning to do the 5x5 FSL sets as actual 5x5s this cycle, but I’m throwing in a single FSL Widowmaker set for each lift the next day, e.g., a squat WM on Tuesday, a press WM on Wednesday, etc. Those will not count toward my 50 daily somethings.
I’ll be doing sled work for all 4 days of hard conditioning. I really like farmer’s walks, though, so I’m planning to do some variation of Pwn’s The Last Castle as part of my extra conditioning at least once a week (probably Wednesday afternoons). Also looking to hit 75-80 reps in each of the assistance categories on lifting days.
Finally, my TMs for this cycle are:
Press - 145 lbs
Squat - 295 lbs
Dead - 335 lbs
Bench - 265 lbs
I think that’s about it, so let’s get going!
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5s PRO, 5x5 FSL - c9w1d1
Sunday - 06 February 2022
Workout: Easy conditioning + calves, 0745-0855 (70 minutes)
Seated CR - 230 lbs - 25, 20, 15
Weighted vest walk - 30 kg - 35 minutes
Fasted. I slept until 0620 this morning, and that felt like heaven. Added 10 pounds to the calf raises this week and wanted to get 60 reps across 4 sets, but was able to do it in 3—got a really nice burn, too.
Jump rope and some EMOM work to follow later today.
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How are you choosing TM’s? 90% of your 1RM, or a weight you can get 5 solid reps with? I’m almost done with my TB Base Building and will be moving back to 531 workouts and I’m considering what to use as my TM. My plan is going to be (for most lifts):
5’s PRO + widowmaker @ FSL weight, and weight vest circuits for assistance.
Nice work going on here! The steady, head-down approach does wonders for strength and physique gains.
1 Like
I did a TM test week before moving into the 5/3/1 programming back in June.
JW recommends an 85% TM for the Prep & Fat Loss Template I was using at the start, and that means I should get 5 solid reps at the TM weight. So, for testing, I just began with something reasonable and kept adding weight to the bar in 5-10 pound increments (depending on the lift) and doing 5 reps until I hit a weight for which the reps didn’t come, or at least didn’t come easily enough. Yes, fatigue had an impact—e.g., I’m pretty sure my deadlift TM could actually be higher than it is—but who cares: Start too light and Progress slowly, right? Anyway, I then backed off to the last good set and used that weight as my starting TM.
I’ve then incremented 5-10 pounds in almost every new cycle as JW recommends, but I’ve also used the TM Test protocol from Forever to make sure I can actually handle it. I even use it during my deload weeks (like the one I just finished).
Only between my first two cycles of BBB did I not increment the TMs; instead, I progressed by bumping up the percentages I was using on the supplemental work and did the sets Malcom X style. My goal here is to work up to 5x10 at FSL, which is my plan for the new BBB cycle that will follow the anchor I just started.
So, yeah—I tested them.
Thanks!
You’re proof of that, my friend.
2 Likes
5s PRO, 5x5 FSL - c9w1d1
Sunday - 06 February 2022
Workout: Extra conditioning, 1545-1620 (25 minutes)
Jump rope tabata - 4x40/10 - 1 round
6 rounds of:
a) 10 chin-ups/pull-ups (strict, various grips)
b) 15 push-ups
c) 20 air squats
Time: 13:41
Jump rope tabata - 4x40/10 - 1 round
Welcome back to two-a-days, sucker!
Good gracious—that looks easy on paper, and it probably should have been, but… That floored me. Started out with chins in the odd minutes and push-ups + air squats in the even minutes, but could only keep that up for the first 6 minutes: the chins caught up to me in Round 4, I had to start dropping, and the timer just kept running.
Happy with the effect at least: HR was up, I was dying, and I got 60 chins, 90 push-ups, and 120 air squats in a span of less than 14 minutes.
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@antiquity - Not sure why I wrote you a book. Should’ve just led and ended with this, haha!
Glad to have the info. In our real life, it’s hard to find anyone that will tolerate listening to our training plans and approaches, and that’s why we’re here.
I am still considering the best way to implement a 531/weight vest template. Jim has some options in his Forever book, and has expanded on other approaches as well. I’ll tag you later this week when I list out some options I’m considering.
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Right on the nose!
I find the detailed write ups interesting too, for the record.
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5s PRO, 5x5 FSL - c9w1d2
Monday - 07 February 2022
Workout: Squat, 0520-0625 (65 minutes)
Warm-up
Throws + jumps
Begin: 0536; End: 0621; Duration: 45 minutes
Squat - 105x5, 135x5, 165x5 | 195x5, 225x5, 255x5 | (195x5)x5
HLR - 20, 20, 10
Dip - 75 - 15, 15, 10
Chin-up - BW - 15, 14, 11
Good morning - 115 - 20, 10
Push-up - 40
BFP - red - 40
Assistance totals:
Push - 80 reps
Pull - 80 reps
Single-leg/core - 80 reps
Fasted.
Gotta be honest, folks: yesterday turned into an emotionally draining day dealing with extended family issues, I got caught without food, and when I finally ate, I ate too much decent food and then continued eating bad food. My relationship with food has changed for the better, no doubt, but sometimes I forget that maintaining the new relationship is hard work. I hope you all know by now I’m willing to do hard work—I just need to remember that, too!
I then slept poorly, up at 0345, so decided to knock this out. Emotion didn’t dissipate over night, and this work was driven by it, which makes it so much harder. I wish I could say my head is clear now, but it’s not. At least one workout is done…
Okay, rant over. Things went well under the circumstances. Top set felt heavy, but that seems to be true independent of the actual weight. And that is annoying. Supplemental work was fine; quads fatigued more than lower back today. I superset assistance between all squat sets, including the supplemental, until there were no more squats. Kept things moving at a decent clip, too.
Dips were killer, but moving to 75 lbs represents a 25% increase, and I’m actually pretty happy with how they went. Could really feel them in my triceps, certainly more so than with lower weights. Chin-ups had my biceps on fire today, which isn’t a bad thing. And I’m not sure whose idea good mornings after squats was—oh yeah, it was mine—but that was killer too. Probably just what I needed.
Sled push and daily work to follow later today.
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Sorry to hear about the recent difficulties Sven. Hope you’re doing alright.
That’s some serious dip weight, dude.
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