As many as you can. If it is less than 5, your TM is probably too high.
Gotcha. Thanks for clarifying that.
Probably due to the football background.
Final question guys. I’m actually a 15 year old Sophomore in High School, turning 16 in May. I’m thinking of doing shotput for the outdoor track and field season. Can I possibly tweak 5/3/1 to focus on push presses, cleans, squats, and bench? Or can anyone who knows anything about shotput add/take away something from this workout? Thanks again.
Yup. I have ran 531 that way and was happy with the results. Though when I ran it that way I kept some sort of a strict press in there.
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Former shot putter and hammer throw, and 35lb weight ( indoor track.
Just work simple exercises and be consistent. Add weight to the bar weekly and add lean body masss.
Use a 531 program of total body training.
What I did long before 531, was a simple Bill Starr program of 5x5.
Lift, sprint, run hills, work on technique. Get stronger, get faster and most of all train consistently and eat for your goals.
You are at a great time in life to make progress. Don’t sweat the small details, of push press vs. military press vs. incline BP.
Just lift, run, throw and EAT.
Good luck and Godspeed.
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Thank you sir. I will do so. I’ll probably hop on something like Bill Starr’s 5 x 5 or one of Dan John’s programs if I can’t tweak 5/3/1 so well.
Thank you. I will look into this concept.
I was rereading Beyond 5/3/1, and I came across a 2x/week program that I think I could outfit to suit my needs. What do you guys think of this setup?
Days A / C and Days B / D would be alternated every week. So Week 1 would be: Throw, Day A, Day B, hills; and Week 2 would be: Throw, Day C, Day D, hills.
I forgot to mention this, but I’d be working up to a max single for the workout on my 5/3/1 lift using Joker Sets. I’m also going to change the 80%, 90%, 100% x 1 to 65%, 75%, 85% x 3 so I don’t totally kill myself.
So you are going to be working up to your TM on two lifts, every day of lifting you do?
Yes. I assumed that some days I would be able to do way more than other days.
One thing to take into account is that Jokers are COMPLETELY OPTIONAL and are not really necessary to make strength gains.
If the above program doesn’t call for them, I probably wouldn’t include them. But in the end your going to do what you want, just take that into account if your progress starts to stall sooner rather than later.
Personally I would keep the program the way it is. The total volume from doing the singles as they are is lower than if you were to replace them with the 65-75% x 3. If your TM is correct you should not have any issues with working up to a single on your TM.
Remember that you should be able to do your TM for 3-5 reps.
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I recall Jim saying in Beyond 5/3/1 that if you want to get stronger, three things must be present in your training: volume sets, Joker Sets, and PR Sets. He calls for FSL set work and/or Joker sets to be applied to the 5/3/1 lift of the day. Here’s the quote:
“If your goal is to get stronger, these three things should be present in your training:
• PR set
• Joker sets
• “First Set Last” down set. This can be done for one all-out set, or multiple
sets of 10, 8 or 5 reps. Don’t overanalyze this!”
Do you have Forever? Not saying “your wrong” but I think he has since tweaked the methodology on Jokers a bit. As in a bit more specifically stating when and where in your training cycle you should do them. Just because he said they should be in your training, doesn’t mean they should be done ALL the time.
I am sure if you do them once in a while if your fresh and feel good you will be fine. I certainly have in the past. But you don’t necessarily need to make them a hard and fast part of your program.
Regardless, like I stated before, you will do what you want. But it’s generally not recommended to change 531 programs. If it was written that way in Beyond its for a reason. Not to say you won’t make progress, but no one here will necessarily recommend making those changes. I can confidently say that you will make progress following the program as written. Beyond that your probably on your own, and your mileage may vary.
I don’t have Forever, sadly. Where would you suggest I throw in Joker sets or FSL sets, if any at all?
Only do jokers if you need practice with heavy loads. FSL is good to use whenever, but remember that it is SUPPLEMENTAL work. If you’re doing BBB, you don’t do FSL.
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How about this: pick one of the two programs you have posted already (either the one for beginners or the one you picked from Beyond) and follow it as written. No need to add in singles or Jokers or modify it for FSL. Just pick one and follow it as written.
If you follow the core principles of the 5/3/1 program you will make progress, that much I can garuntee you.
If you are still set on putting Jokers in your programming switch to 3/5/1 and only do them on the 3’s week and the 531 week. On the 5’s week only do minimum reps (no PR set). But still remember they are not necessary nor crucial to your progress ESPECIALLY if you are a beginner.
Okay. I’ll just do the 2x/ week program as written, then. Thanks for your advice. Also, can power cleans be programmed as assistance work to help with explosivity?
Being present in a training program doesn’t mean “do them every day”. A training program lasts 12 weeks or more.
Also, as I’ve said a million times, I still regret every putting Joker sets in the program. Can they be useful? Yes. But rarely do people really need them.
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Thanks for the reply, Jim. Means a lot.