Jim,
I’ve been an avid follower of 5/3/1 and its philosophy for several years now but, like many I think, I tend to learn better by doing than by being told. For this reason it’s often the case that I read something you teach, it makes sense to me and I take it to heart, but it doesn’t fully sink in until I experience it myself. This was the case recently regarding your old statement that:
“You don’t have to operate at your max in order to increase your max”.
In late Spring of last year I injured my shoulder and immediately thereafter began some professional training that included physical activity that continuously re-aggravated that existing injury. It was a very frustrating and painful summer and there was a time when it hurt like a motherfucker just to bench press 135 pounds.
After completing my training and returning home in August I reset my bench press TM pathetically low. I mean PATHETICALLY low, and gave myself one year of 5/3/1 programming with which to rebuild my bench.
Today, six cycles later, I blew away my previous best 1RM by 20 pounds and I did it having utilized very low, sub-maximal weights for the last six months.
Just want to say thank you not just for a fabulous program, but even more so for a fabulous Training Philosophy.
-K