You’re in good company. I’ve been familiar with 5/3/1 for quite awhile but only recently started figuring out the differences between supplemental and assistance exercises. I only had to read it about 10 times.
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I still don’t know. 
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I’m probably still wrong but I think it’s this:
FSL, SSL, BBB, and BBS are the first examples that come to mind. That is supplemental work for the main lift.
So on bench day it could be:
Main Work (5s PRO):
Bench 65% x 5, 75% x 5, 85% x 5
Supplemental Work (FSL):
Bench 65% x 5 x 5 sets
And the Assistance is the 25-50 reps of push, pull, single-leg, and core.
To muddy things more, I used to think supplemental work targeted the main lift so it might be extra tricep work to help with your bench lockout or paused reps to help with the sticking point. I think that’s still correct, but not how Jim programs things.
And I’m sorry if you were just being a bit sarcastic and didn’t need any further explanation. 
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No. I legit don’t get it. Lol. I’m not sure why, but I find 531 and 531 Forever to be as clear as mud. My husband told me I should just start with 531 Forever and not worry about the original book but I was so confused that I stuck with the first because it made a bit more sense. I’m not sure if it’s just because I’m not a legit lifter so I just don’t understand all the programming or what, but I picked the program that I ran because it was the least confusing for me. I’m still about 90% sure that I didn’t do it right. It’s partly what turned me to KB work. That and @T3hPwnisher suggested the 10k KB program. It’s simple and they tell me exactly what to do. No room for me to misunderstand.
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Simplest approach: supplemental work is barbell lifts with training maxes that aren’t main work sets. Assistance is non-barbell and has no training max.
Function of Assistance is to build muscle. Function of supplemental depends on program goals.
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The problem lies in the freedom. Jim doesn’t give you a full workout but a template to help you build your program. But he gives enough information to make it feel like it’s a specific workout… Until you get to the assistance work.
I’d say you did a pretty good job figuring it out because you picked a template (SST) that appears in the original book AND Forever.
I’ve started viewing it as whatever I need to stay balanced. Which muscles still need some attention after the heavy part is over?
I’m happy I finally figured it out but I just to try to program it for the entire three week cycle and ended up skipping it. Now I pick exercises in the moment and I think it’s going better. There are days that I don’t have much left in the tank and it’s nice to be able to do some isolation movements instead of heavy DB stuff.
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For sure. I need someone to tell me what to do. Lol. Options are too much for me to deal with.
Honestly why I never fell in love with that system, I think. I prefer a prescription as well. Different strokes and all that
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Yeah. I’ve found that I can do almost anything when I am told too. I went to a trainer for a while. He was my husband’s cousin. He would tell me to do something. I would tell him to F off and then do it. But I didn’t have to figure out weights or reps or what lifts to do. Just do whatever he loaded the way he told me until he told me to stop. If I have to figure it out myself I’m like a turtle on it’s shell. Completely lost and helpless. Lol
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Ya’ll picked Sunday when I don’t typically log on to have a conversation I’m passionate about, haha. Cutting in just to avoid confusion perpetuation.
Right, but through muscle building, is what I’m getting at. You’re not using it to practice grooving reps like you would with supplemental work. In turn, it’s the time in the program where you can grind reps, whereas the other work should be crisp and clean.
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And then, inconsistently, I don’t like being told that part. Just give me a range and the level of grind we’re shooting for, and I’ll find the weight that day. I don’t know why I’m like that
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I think that was part of the confusion for me for a long time, and still is at times. The purpose of the supplemental work when an author is using the term. And honestly, your simplest definition you stated also shows why it’s confusing when you read multiple authors/systems. You said “barbell lifts” which is how 5/3/1 views supplemental. Tactical Barbell you can have barbell, dumbbell, kettlebell, bands, whatever and you’re performing the sets and reps scheme pretty much the same as 5/3/1’s assistance but it’s classified as supplemental cluster. But TB defines assistance as those core/ab things, not supplemental.
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Yeah: I was speaking in terms of 5/3/1. Each program has its own language: trying to make them carryover isn’t correct. It would be like getting upset that “die” means to experience death when used in English but means “the” in German. Same words: different languages. Programs are no different.
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Question on loaded carries and TB Gray Man. I’m wanting to incorporate some loaded carries for the first time ever in my lifting career as I transition to TB (thanks Dan John). From your log and videos it looks like you do it on one of your conditioning days paired with rowing. What’s your thought process of putting it there instead of on a lifting day? Loaded carries are kind of tough for me to compartmentalize as you can get grip, back, core, or conditioning all from it.
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Made me think of the Cape Fear Simpsons episode, classic
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Alright, finally got access to a keyboard.
@TrainForPain and @BethB It’s one of the things I’ve written about recently. All programs do the exact same thing: they balance stimulus against fatigue and recovery. That’s it. The reason we have so MANY programs is because, beyond that, it’s about finding something that appeals to the psychology of the lifter such that they’ll actually COMPLY with the program. “Compliance is the science”, ala Stan Efferding, and as long as you actually DO the program, you’ll be good. Nutrition is no different. All good diets operate SOME manner of restriction, and Layne Norton talks about the most successful diet is the one that is the least restrictive to YOU. As long as you comply, you’re good.
In that regard, for some, 5/3/1 is the answer to all questions. For me, it’s a cousin to the answer: shared genetics but different enough that I found something that resonates more directly with Tactical Barbell. For some folks, it’s complete science and percentages and for some folks it’s complete art and magic.
Being able to view 5/3/1 from the lens I have now, it makes total sense, and it’s incredibly simple. But, in turn, it’s because I have the experience to understand it. Jim wrote simple programming for beginners with the understanding of an expert: it’s hard to “unlearn” all you learned along the way.
I will say, for my own sake, I think my background in video and tabletop games helps me navigate program language. I’ve hard to learn new systems and rules frequently, and I’m able to keep the streams from crossing in my mind.
In that regard
@staystrong In truth, I don’t think carries have a place in Grey Man. What I’m doing is a violating of the program, and one that I’m doing BECAUSE it’s my third time running it and I’m allowing myself to deal with the consequences of my actions. You’ll note that when I was running Operator, I DID include the carries on the lifting day, because it made sense to do it then. For Grey Man, I don’t have the bandwidth to do that: the lifting workouts are already taking an hour. I include carries on my conditioning day because that’s where I can make them fit, but already the conditioning I’m doing is in appropriate for Grey Man: it would be better suited for Specificity. I’m a strongman competitor, I have a competition coming up in August, and I like keeping the carry grooved.
If you’re really jazzed about the idea of carries, I’d try what I’ve done in the past: do one carry a day, every day. It’s an “Easy Strength” approach: no impact on recovery, great chance to practice the movement. You get 5 touches a week. And when Operator rolls around, you can really get after it.
The weather is good enough that I had to mow the lawn today and do some other yard work, and I got in a weighted vest walk with the dogs. It’s getting humid and soon enough it’s going to be the “high activity season”, which tends to mean leaning out. It’s good that Grey Man is rounding out, because that grip shirt is going to get uncomfortable soon. I also think there was something gnarly in the free coffee I had while getting my truck worked on, because my guts were on fire all day Saturday and early this morning, but it seems to have resolved.
I built a platform to practice my stone loading. Very simple Home Depot op. I’m excited.
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Nice job on the loading platform Pwn.
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@simo74 Thanks! Stupidly simple, very little measuring: my kinda job, haha.
Will you plane / sand down a slight dip in the middle to allow the stone to centre or just keep you hands on it ?
Hadn’t put any thought into that. Was going to put some carpet on top to keep the wood from splintering: I could easily create a divot there with some gorilla tape or something.