The 5/3/1 Super Soldier

Training Training Logs
1

This will be the last new log that I make for a while. I’ve dabbled in a few training methodologies the last couple weeks, none of them really tickling my fancy. I’ve decided to go back to what I know works and works well. That’s why I’m running 5/3/1. It’s simple, effective, and pretty much idiot proof (although there are still those who don’t know what the fuck they’re doing).

For those of you who haven’t followed my training logs before, my name is Luke, I’m 18 years old, and I live near Chicago.

Here are some other things to know about me:

Age: 18
Height: 5’6.5"
Weight: 188 lbs.
Body fat % ~14%

I used to train at Quads Gym under the guidance of Ed Coan and competed once in the USPF. Best raw competition lifts were:

Squat: 363 lbs.
Bench: 281 lbs.
Deadlift: 419 lbs.

My best raw gym lifts were:

Squat: 385 lbs. X 2
Bench: 310 lbs. X 2
Deadlift 400 lbs. X 2

Now that I have made the decision to fully commit myself to becoming an officer in the U.S. Army, it has come to my attention that my current training style won’t help me. I’ve decided to run 5/3/1 and put an emphasis on conditioning.

I leave for college (The University of North Georgia) and ROTC on 10 August, which leaves me exactly 16 weeks to train. On my second day at school, I have to take the APFT (Army Physical Fitness Test), which consists of a 2 minute push-up test, 2 minute sit-up test, and a timed 2-mile run. The best score possible for each are 71 push-ups, 78 sit-ups, and a 13:00 2-mile run. My goals for the APFT are:

Push-ups: 80
Sit-ups: 80
2-mile run 14:24

These scores would give me a projected 280 out of 300 possible points. By the end of my freshman year at college, I would like to have a perfect 300. After my first semester or freshman year, I plan on leaving school and enlisting in the Georgia National Guard. Once I have completed BCT (Basic Combat Training) and AIT (Advanced Individual Training), I will return to college and complete my degree and earn my commission as a 2nd Lieutenant in the U.S. Army. Once I receive my commission, I will be honorably discharged (barring any screw-ups) from the Georgia National Guard and begin my career as an officer.

Well, now you know what to expect in this log. I hope y’all enjoy the ride with me.

CS

2

Training Template

Actual Maxes

Squat - 365 lbs.
Bench - 305 lbs.
Deadlift - 405 lbs.
Overhead Press - 175 lbs.

Working Maxes (90%)

Squat - 330 lbs.
Bench - 275 lbs.
Deadlift - 365 lbs.
Overhead Press - 160 lbs.

Monday
A.M.: PT

  1. Ruck March
  2. Push-ups
  3. Sit-ups
  4. Pull-ups

P.M.: Lift

  1. Squat - 5/3/1 sets and reps
  2. Leg Press - 3 X 10
  3. Leg Curls - 3 X 10
  4. Walking Barbell Lunges - 3 X 10 (each leg)
  5. Prowler (Sets X Weight X Distance (yards)) - 10 X 90 X 40

Tuesday
A.M.: PT

  1. Jump rope
  2. Push-ups
  3. Sit-ups
  4. Pull-ups
  5. Distance Run

P.M.: Rest

Wednesday
A.M.: PT

  1. Ruck March
  2. Push-ups
  3. Sit-ups
  4. Pull-ups

P.M.: Lift

  1. Bench Press - 5/3/1 sets and reps
  2. Flat Dumbbell Bench Press - 3 X 10
  3. Cable Flies - 3 X 10
  4. Weighted Dips - 5 X 10
  5. Tricep Pushdowns - 3 X 12
  6. Stairs - AMRAP in 20 minutes

Thursday
A.M.: PT

  1. Jump rope
  2. Push-ups
  3. Sit-ups
  4. Pull-ups
  5. Distance Run

P.M.: Rest

Friday
A.M.: PT

  1. Ruck March
  2. Push-ups
  3. Sit-ups
  4. Pull-ups

P.M.: Lift

  1. Deadlift - 5/3/1 sets and reps
  2. Kroc Rows - 1 X 25-30
  3. Barbell Rows - 3 X 10
  4. Close-grip Lat Pulldowns - 3 X 10
  5. 45 Degree Back Raises - 3 X 10
  6. Prowler (Sets X Weight X Distance (yards)) - 10 X 90 X 40

Saturday
A.M.: PT

  1. Jump rope
  2. Push-ups
  3. Sit-ups
  4. Pull-ups
  5. Distance Run

P.M.: Rest

Sunday
A.M.: PT

  1. Ruck March
  2. Push-ups
  3. Sit-ups
  4. Pull-ups

P.M.: Lift

  1. Overhead Press - 5/3/1/ sets and reps
  2. Dumbbell Shoulder Press - 3 X 10
  3. Dumbbell Lateral Raises - 3 X 10
  4. EZ Bar Front Raises - 3 X 10
  5. Reverse Flies 3 X 12
  6. Stairs - AMRAP in 20 minutes

Notes: PVC rolling, stretching, and prehab will be done everyday. I’ll be supersetting the sets of all of the main lifts with 5 pull-ups and all of my assistance work with 20 jump ropes jumps. I’ll also be performing explosive jumps before the main lift on the squat and deadlift days and then I’ll be performing explosive throws on the bench and overhead press days. I think this is a lot simpler than what I had planned out before and I’m excited to get started on Monday.

CS

3

In.

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4

[quote]theBird wrote:
In.

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Good to have you aboard. This log will not disappoint. Now that I’ve finally got everything boiled down to simplicity, it’s going to go a lot smoother.

CS

5

A.M. 29 April 2013 - Ruck March & PT

Ruck March
Time: 30:00
Distance: 2.04 miles
Weight added: 20 lbs.

Push-ups
4 X 24

Sit-ups
4 X 24

Summary: I’ll have to finish my PT session with pull-ups and jump rope at school since I don’t have a pull-up bar or a jump rope at home (yet). Otherwise, the ruck march went very well. As soon as I laced up my boots, I felt as though I was going to have a good one, and boy did I ever. I got to 30 minutes and I felt like I could’ve kept going. I’m definitely going to shoot for around 2.1 miles on Wednesday, but for now, I have to focus on today. I’ve squats and the prowler later.

CS

6

In.

Congratulations on your decision to join the Army. I’m an Infantry LT who does 5/3/1, so I’ll be curious to see how this mod works.

7

[quote]kewr wrote:
In.

Congratulations on your decision to join the Army. I’m an Infantry LT who does 5/3/1, so I’ll be curious to see how this mod works.[/quote]

Thanks! Where’d you go to school?

CS

8

P.M. 29 April 2013 - Squat; C1W1D1

Warm-up

  1. Foam rolling
  2. Stretching
  3. Jump rope

Squat
2 X 10 X 45
2 X 5 X 135
1 X 5 X 185
1 X 5 X 215
1 X 5 X 250
1 X 5 X 280

Notes: All of the sets were pretty easy.

Leg Press
3 X 10 X 445

Seated Leg Curls
3 X 10 X 100

Summary: So I grabbed the prowler and was getting ready to use it. I had my 40 yards marked out and was getting ready to start my conditioning when one of the personal trainers came out and said I had to use it in the alley and not the parking lot. Okay, no big deal - I can adjust. Now, all of the parking lot is asphalt, so it’s nice and easy to push a prowler on, but there’s a patch of cement in the alley and it is damn near impossible to push a prowler across cement. So, it looks like I won’t be using the prowler. Although I’m disappointed that I won’t be able to use it the way I want, I’ll be able to substitute it with treadmill sprints. No biggie.

CS

9

College of William and Mary in Virginia.

What metrics are you focusing on here? APFT score, or lift improvement?

10

[quote]kewr wrote:
College of William and Mary in Virginia.

What metrics are you focusing on here? APFT score, or lift improvement?[/quote]

APFT score as of right now. Once I’m in college and start to get settled, I’ll focus on getting stronger and hopefully compete again.

CS

11

P.M. 30 April 2013 - PT

Distance Run
60 seconds running X 8
90 seconds walking X 8

Total time walking: 12 minutes
Total time running: 8 minutes
Total distance covered: 2.09 miles

Push-ups
4 X 24

Sit-ups
4 X 24

Summary: Felt good to get running again. The only bad part is that my shin splints are back, so I’ve just gotta stay on top of those and I’ll be good to go. Other than that, everything went smoothly.

CS

12

P.M. 1 May 2013 - Bench, W1D2C1

Warm-up

  1. Stretching
  2. Mobility work

Bench
2 X 10 X 45
1 X 5 X 95
2 X 5 X 135
1 X 5 X 180
1 X 5 X 205
1 X 5 X 235

Notes: All sets were pretty easy. I couldn’t stay tight for the life of me because the pad on the bench was so damn slippery. Also supersetted all of my sets with 5 pull-ups.

Flat Dumbbell Bench Press
3 X 10 X 65s

Dips
3 X 12 X BW

Straigh-bar Tricep Pushdowns
3 X 12 X 70

Stairs
5 repetitions (up and down) in 10:21.

[i]Summary: The workout itself wasn’t bad, but the stairs completely kicked my ass. The lactic acid buildup in my legs was just insane. I kinda left feeling pissed off that I didn’t push myself harder. I wanted to do 10, but there was no way I was going to make it out of there alive if I did 10. As I was driving home, I figured that I’d better leave myself some energy to run tomorrow morning, so that kind of made me feel better.

Also, switching gyms (again). This place has all the basics. Nothing fancy. They have a prowler and a big hill close-by, so it’s a one stop shop.[/i]

CS

[b]

13

A.M. 2 May 2013 - PT

Distance Run
60 seconds running X 8
90 seconds walking X 8

Total time running: 8 minutes
Total time walking: 12 minutes
Total distance covered: 2.06 miles

Push-ups
4 X 24

Sit-ups
4 X 24

Summary: This run felt really good. I kept my pace under 7 minutes the whole time and didn’t really feel that tired afterwards.

CS

14

P.M. 3 May 2013 - Deadlift, W1D3C1

Warm-up

  1. PVC roll everything
  2. Box Jumps
  3. Jump rope

Deadlift
2 X 5 X 135
1 X 3 X 225
1 X 5 X 235
1 X 5 X 275
1 X 5 X 310

Notes: Supersetted with 5 pull-ups every set (even the warm-ups). All the sets were easy. Although, I did tear open my previous deadlifting scabs, getting blood all over the place.

Barbell Rows
3 X 10 X 135

Notes: Supersetted with 30 jump rope jumps.

Wide-grip Lat Pulldowns
3 X 15 X 80

Notes: Supersetted with 50 alternating jump rope jumps.

45 Degree Back Raises
3 X 12 X BW + 10

Notes: Supersetted with 50 alternating jump rope jumps.

Summary: Overall, this workout just felt awesome. I was feeling unmotivated when I got home from school and even contemplated not going tonight, but I said “fuck it,” sucked it up, and went. I walked out of the gym feeling like a million bucks and like and I had just kicked some major ass. Mission: accomplished.

CS

15

Just wondering…

What is the purpose/goal of jumping rope in-between lifting??
I have never heard of this before.

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What? You have deadlift scabs? Are your bars extremely sharp (texas power bar, or deadlift bar maybe?)? I do get bruises in my lower shins from setting up again, and again. Also, with 5/3/1 aren’t you supposed to go for extra reps after the required?

17

[quote]theBird wrote:
Just wondering…

What is the purpose/goal of jumping rope in-between lifting??
I have never heard of this before.

tweet[/quote]

Just a good way to get more work in and to increase work capacity. I’m not very good at jump roping, but I’ve improved a lot the last week and a half.

CS

18

[quote]DSSG wrote:
What? You have deadlift scabs? Are your bars extremely sharp (texas power bar, or deadlift bar maybe?)? I do get bruises in my lower shins from setting up again, and again. Also, with 5/3/1 aren’t you supposed to go for extra reps after the required? [/quote]

No, the bars aren’t very sharp. I have a narrow stance and my shins are always on the smooth part of the bar, but the bar is always scraping up against my legs. And I’m not going for extra reps on the main lifts because I’m pushing the conditioning so much.

CS

19

I was supposed to do overhead press today, but I got weird last night and wasn’t exactly able to get up this morning haha. Plus, I have an AP test I need to study for and I have work until 11 tonight, so things just aren’t going to workout today. I might hit some shoulders tomorrow morning, though. We’ll see.

CS

20

P.M. 6 May 2013 - Squat, W2C1D1

Warm-up

  1. Rolled everything
  2. Stretching
  3. Jump rope

Squat
2 X 10 X 45
2 X 5 X 135
1 X 5 X 185
1 X 3 X 230 (70%)
1 X 3 X 265 (80%)
1 X 3 X 295 (90%)

Notes: All the reps were easy. Supersetted with 5 pull-ups.

Stiff-legged Deadlifts
3 X 10 X 135

Notes: Supersetted with 50 alternating jump rope jumps.

Barbell Lunges
3 X 10 X 95 (each leg)

Notes: Supersetted with 50 alternating jump rope jumps.

Prowler
10 X 90 lbs. X 40 yards

Notes: Only 1 minute of rest in between each sprint and alternated between high and low handles.

Laying on the pavement - 5 minutes

Summary: Awesome workout today. Thinking about lowering the rest period to 45 seconds or adding some more weight on the Prowler; I want it to be harder next time.

CS