I’m finishing up my first year of lifting and trying to plan ahead for the next year. I want to have a 360 day schedule of what I’m doing because I’m, embarrassingly enough, likely to program-hop. I’m starting with 5/3/1 for 16 weeks, moving to I,BODYBUILDER for 18 weeks (16 weeks for the main sections, 2 for transition), and then I have time for another 16(ish) week program. This is where I’m having trouble deciding what to do. While I’m not necessarily a powerlifter or bodybuilder, I’d like to do a powerlifting program after the I,BODYBUILDER.
Anyone have suggestions?
So you’re planning to program hop? Why change programs every 16-18 weeks?
I have just started training with the I, BB program so I don’t know how long you are supposed to give each Phase but 5/3/1 is for a much longer time than just 4 cycles.
Oh I didn’t realize that. I’m poor so I didn’t ever actually buy the book–how long is it intended to run for? Should I do it for the entire year?
I don’t think there is a set time length. There are a couple of threads specifically devoted to 5/3/1 in this forum.
[quote]coolnatedawg wrote:
I have just started training with the I, BB program so I don’t know how long you are supposed to give each Phase but 5/3/1 is for a much longer time than just 4 cycles. [/quote]
Yep would recommend 5/3/1 for 6 months minimum, the book never says anything about duration but some lifts need to be reset around 6-8 months so if you were going to switch that would be a good time to do it.
I think I BB phases are 2-4 weeks depending on your weakness, what you want to give more priority to. If i ever do that one i will probably just do 3 weeks each. But im not a bodybuilder or follow those forums so maybe others do it different.
Let’s start at the beginning. What is your goal for training? Unless your goal is changing every 16 weeks, then your program shouldn’t be changing either. If your goals are changing every 16 weeks, then go do crossfit.
The above program you have written out is just western style periodization. Except you have it backwards so far. You want to do a 16 week strength phase before a hypertrophy, I’m assuming because I know nothing about I,Bodybuilder, phase. Most people would suggest that you switch and do I,Bodybuilder first. But then again, most people are fucking stupid.
16 weeks is not enough time for you to get the gains you are capable of. You have only been training for a year. You could basically do any program you wanted to and get bigger and stronger off of it if you stick with it for a long enough period of time. That period of time is different for every novice lifter, but I guarantee its longer than 16 weeks. The only reason your progess is going to stall at such a young training age is because you switch programs too much… which I bet is happeneing to you.
You want to make a yearly plan and that is a good ting. It’s always good to set short term and long term goals. It seems to me that you arent sure what your goals are. If it’s size, lift to get bigger. If it’s strength, lift to get stronger. It’s that simple. The problem is; most people have a hard time understanding that strength and size take a very long time to develop. Not weeks, or months, or cycles, or even years in some cases. The stronger and smarter I get, I realize its going to take me a fucking lifetime to reach my goals.
Anyway, really sit down and figure out what you from your training. EXACTLY what you want and write it down. Prioritze those goals from most to least important. If you are honest with yourself, the ideal program for you will basically write itself on that piece of paper.
^fucking this x1000000000
Okay, thanks for the help everyone. My plan at this point is to stick with 5/3/1 for the entire year and see where that gets me. It’s true that I don’t have any specific goals. I think at this point I’m leaning more towards strength, but I realize that after two years (or longer, whatever) that I can still change my focus without necessarily backtracking.
At this point my lifts are pretty shitty. Something like bench 225, squat 315, deadlift 345. I’m not really sure where I started a year ago, but I think I’ve made pretty reasonable progress. If I’m going to set goals for my next year of training, what should I base them off of? Is it unreasonable to expect to add a third plate to the bench and something like 140 pounds to the squat and deadlift?
not unreasonable if you eat properly(enough) and rest enough.
[quote]KidofNoise wrote:
Okay, thanks for the help everyone. My plan at this point is to stick with 5/3/1 for the entire year and see where that gets me. It’s true that I don’t have any specific goals. I think at this point I’m leaning more towards strength, but I realize that after two years (or longer, whatever) that I can still change my focus without necessarily backtracking.
At this point my lifts are pretty shitty. Something like bench 225, squat 315, deadlift 345. I’m not really sure where I started a year ago, but I think I’ve made pretty reasonable progress. If I’m going to set goals for my next year of training, what should I base them off of? Is it unreasonable to expect to add a third plate to the bench and something like 140 pounds to the squat and deadlift?[/quote]
Those lifts arent shitty. They might not be as much as some of the other guys your age and weight but keep in mind that the majority of the people in our country are lazy, awful, weak, and shitty.
Whatever goal you make is not unreasonable. You just need to make them and work your ass off to get them. If your training stays aimless, your results won’t mean anything.