I was going to use the 2 day training template from the original 531 book ie Monday’s Squat & Bench followed by some assistance work, Thursdays Deadlift & Press followed by assistance work.
However I notice in the beyond 531 book it has all lower body work in one session ie 531 for squats followed by 5x10 deadlifts, then in the next session it has all upper body work together ie 531 bench followed by 5x10 press with the exercises being alternated each week.
Is the more up to date version the way to go or does it really not matter ?
I actually prefer the lay out of the original but there must be a reason for the changes.
Two thoughts;
In beyond Jim states this is a better version, trust the man. He knows what he’s doing, if you don’t trust him you won’t adhere to the program and miss out of the gains.
Going against above, the only way to know if something is better for YOU is to go through it personally then evaluate. That’s why Jim mostly does 6 week blocks.
It’s funny you guys bring up the 2 day template. I am actually going to start it on my next training cycle. I am going to go with option 2 template. Do you guys have any suggestions on what percentage of the TM to use on the 5x10 assistance? Is it the typical 50-60% or should I push it a little bit harder with a higher percentage?
Both work well and I have used both. Just use the one that most motivates you. Using 6 week blocks allows you to experiment and never lose the basic principles.
[quote]JON8383 wrote:
It’s funny you guys bring up the 2 day template. I am actually going to start it on my next training cycle. I am going to go with option 2 template. Do you guys have any suggestions on what percentage of the TM to use on the 5x10 assistance? Is it the typical 50-60% or should I push it a little bit harder with a higher percentage? [/quote]
I started with 50% and it was way too easy, but since 531 progressions are intentionally slow I just went with it…
[quote]JON8383 wrote:
It’s funny you guys bring up the 2 day template. I am actually going to start it on my next training cycle. I am going to go with option 2 template. Do you guys have any suggestions on what percentage of the TM to use on the 5x10 assistance? Is it the typical 50-60% or should I push it a little bit harder with a higher percentage? [/quote]
50-60% is a good place to start. I would start there and try one of the BBB challenges if you want to push your BBB sets.
Also BBB sets do no necessarily have to be done for straight sets. You can ramp up, pyramid, ramp down, etc.
I’m currently using the Beyond 531 templates (on 1.3 at this time) Jim posted here on T-Nation but I am doing them on a two day a week schedule. It adds a week or two to the overall blocks but it works for me. I have noticed, as I get older (I am 43), I don’t need to lift several days a week to make any results. The 1.1-1.4 templates are basically a full body workout program and I think they are working great. In fact, I hit my training max on squats today for 10 reps and then did two joker sets above it before dropping back to the 5x5 finishing sets.
Somedays (most days) I incorporate the Jack Shit methodology as well. I’ll do the 531, Jokers, and 5x5, and the 5x3 lifts and quit. I also superset the lifts as well. I don’t know what to call it: 531 1.1-1.4JackShitTwodaysaweek template. Again, it works for me both physically and mentally.
The day after I lift, I push my prowler. So I get four days of physical activity and it works for me. The prowler acts as sort of an active recovery tool as well.
Thanks Jim for an awesome, flexible workout system.