I am curious though @MarkKO and @mortdk where did you guys learn about or get all your ‘updated’ info on 531? I mean I bought the book (with a personalized thanks on the receipt from Jim himself) many years ago, but it’s now my understanding things have changed a fair bit? Is the original version now no longer the most optimal ?
There are several books now, but IMO the OG is the best. After the original there was Beyond 5/3/1 which has some decent bits like First Set Last, and recently Jim published 5/3/1 Forever which a lot of people are raving about. By all accounts it’s a compendium of ‘new’ templates with cool names.
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Haven’t read the forever book. It costs a fortune to ship to europe.
And as Mark says it’s a lot of templates with cool names.
I was a member on his private forum for a year and can’t spill everything from there.
I think the beyond is a very good supplement to the OG.
The main difference these days is:
The OG is about increasing all the time until you stall on 5 3 or 1 rep.
These days he works in 3 cycles:
This is a very basic of the many templates and is found on these TN as well.
Start with a TM at about 85% of 1RM or the weight you could do 5 clean good reps with.
2 cycles of 5 pro (every set in all cycles is 5 reps no PR sets), increase TM between cycles.
followed by 5x5 FSL.
Then assistance 50 reps pull (rows, BPA, Face pulls, curls), 50 reps push (push ups, DB presses, triceps) 50 reps of core or single leg work (lunges split squat or ab work)
1 week deload.
increase TM
1 cycle of OG pushing rep prs on top set
FSL 3 sets of 5
assistance as above
1 week of testing.
Ramping to TM pushing for a PR, if you get at least 5 reps, you’re good to start a new program or template with that weight.
You could also go for a 1 RM in the testing week.
NO FSL or assistance it’s working as a volume deload as well.
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@mortdk that’s the first time I’ve been able to understand the current running order. Thank you.
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Yeah, I still don’t get it.
I’m going to reset after C5, do 5’s Pro for a cycle, then 351 with FSL and 1RM testing in weeks 3 and 1.
Whateve!
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Mucho bad idea. Hit your 351 cycle, with sensible jokers in week one. Deload for a week. That’ll serve as a peak of sorts. Then at the end of the week, test your maxes. Rest another week and start again.
I would do a joker week 5 if I was feeling good and do one upper and one lower. Then do a heavy single the 1 week is how I would do it. Maybe reaching out a little.
I tried what you are talking about and I was dragging by the 1 week. It taught me a lot about heavy lifting.
So now I’m running a conjugate max effort plan. 
I like lifting heavy. I’ll try this plan out for a bit and learn when to reach and when to hold back and then cycle back to a 531 style plan after I try out a bunch of variations.
Yeah, I misquoted. I meant PR sets in week 3 and 1.
Yeah, I get it, but if I reset, blah blah blah - see me in my thread.
Sorry Spock!
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LOL it’s all good , but I feel like you guys are speaking a foreign language 
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Okay Jenn I’ll try to explain.
Military press, lets just assume that 85 lbs is your 1 rep max.
We start out finding the TM (training max).
This is 85 % and that would be 72 pounds OR a weight you could do 5 good reps with.
Again we assume you could do 5 good reps with 72 pounds.
W1 working sets 46 x 5, 54 x 5, 61 x 5 NO PR FSL 5x5 46 lbs
W2 working sets 50 x 5, 58 x 5, 65 x 5 NO PR FSL 5x5 50 lbs
W3 working sets 54 x 5, 61 x 5, 68 x 5 NO PR FSL 5x5 54 lbs
increase TM by 5 pounds now 77 lbs
W4 50x5, 58 x 5, 65 x 5 NO PR FSL 5x5 50 lbs
W5 54 x 5, 62 x 5, 69 x 5 NO PR FSL 5x5 54 lbs
W6 58x5, 65 x 5, 73 x 5 NO PR FSL 5x5 58 lbs
DELOAD WEEK
W7 ramp to 77 lbs x 1 NO backoff just a bit assistance
increase TM by 5 pounds to 82 lbs
W8 53 x 5, 62 x 5, 70 x PR set FSL 3 x 5 53 lbs
W9 57 x 3, 66 x 3, 74 x PR set FSL 3 x 5 57 lbs
W10 62 x 5, 70 x 3, 78 x PR set FSL 3 x 5 62 lbs
7th week test week.
W11 Ramp to TM 82 lbs perform a PR set IF you get 5 reps or more with this weight.
You can increase the TM to 87 lbs and start over with 2 weeks of 5’s pro as it is called ind The Wendler universe.
As you can see increasing the TM by 5 pounds probably would bury you quite quickly.
So I would advise to only increase by 2 or 3 pounds IF your 1RM is 85 pounds unless you were beginner I don’t think you could do 5 reps with 82 pounds 11 weeks later.
So one have to make responsible choices.
Hope this makes a bit of sense.
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Fuck me dead @mortdk has revealed himself as the oracle of 5/3/1
Grinding along quietly in the background then suddenly revealing he’s got a gift for explaining it.
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Well thank you very much for taking the time to explain it to me that way ! 
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Oh hai derr…
It’s me! Your friendly neighborhood indecisive, anxious mess 
.
Here’s my update/confession/sharing too much personal information over the internet monthly post.
Back when i was wigging out about work and my boss etc. (which is still a huge issue, BTW, he makes me very uncomfortable for many different reasons) I slept with my ex.
Shocking, though not really.
We saw each other a few times a week for a month, and I literally HATED every encounter. I like dreaded seeing him, sleeping with him, texting with him. I hated it all, i hated him and i hated how i felt after. If you were to ask me why I did it I wouldn’t have an answer for you. He repulsed/repulses me, and I am not just saying that .
So fast forward to getting ready to deload during my girl thing, and it never came. I had horrible cramps and mood swings/even missed a day of work because i kept crying and shit, but i never actually got my period. I figured it was because of weight loss and work related stress, mixed with a huge life change of starting full-time, really early mornings, but naturally it scared the shit out of me. When i told him i was about 7 days late he basically just accused me of sleeping with someone else. Which is NOT me, has not EVER been me, and will NEVER be me. I decided right then and there i had to re-rid this person from my life. I could never share happy moments with this person, or hardships, pets, trips, memories, nothing.
I still haven’t gotten my girl thing, but i took a test and it was negative so i am no longer very worried. But just the “OMG what if” was enough to wake me the fuck up (again, for the 1000000th time). He is poisonous scum, to say the least.
Anyway, being free of him allows me to make decisions based on what makes me happy and not based on what he might want me to be. Powerlifting makes me happy, doing girly ass ass things make me feel like i am trying to be just like everyone else. Squatting makes me happy, squatting 3 sets a week is not enough for me. I dont need high reps because i am fucking good at high reps and i suck at heavy shit right now. SOOooOo i am going to do advanced german volume training for 6 weeks , then ill rest completely for 4-5 days and go into a “strength block” (lower volume, heavy singles and doubles) for about a month, then I will rest and do the GVT again, etc…
Maybe it’s stupid , IDK, i dont really care. THe accomplishment i feel calms my anxiety so mission accomplished.
I do like front squats wed, MP thurs, rest fri, back squats sat, deads sun, bench mon, tues rest etc…
Very few single leg/single arm stuff after, i’ve spent enough time doing isolation shit, i need a break from that too.
WEd i did front squats 105 x 10 sets of 5, thurs I did MP 65lbs x 10 sets of 5, today i did back squats 145lbs x 10 sets of 5. I also try to do it tempo-ish, but that part isnt really down to a science yet. Its fucking hard anyway, i love it.
GOt a surprise when i stepped on the scale today, 124.2lbs!! Holy jeebus, i lost more than 6 lbs in about 5 weeks. Maybe a cheat meal every two weeks instead of once a month so i feel less like im gonna die from pizza deprivation < LOL.
K
BYE
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This dude must be hung like a mule or has some other bedroom talent you can’t seem to let him go even though he is toxic. Come on…
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No, nothing of the sort actually. Like I said, I hated sleeping with him . Especially near the end . There was zero pleasure obtained on my end .
I have a very disordered mind. One I can usually communicate with and see the motive behind most of my obsessions . But this one is a mystery to me. Which is troubling to say the least. I think it could be a self hate sort of thing, insecurities etc … either way I’m going to start seeing a shrink for a while just to gain a new perspective on this one particular matter to ensure I never see him again
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Great idea girl. You are worth it!
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Thanks
I also hope it can help me to have better relationships with men in the future. I find I’m making negative assumptions and being untrusting when men converse with me and I don’t want to be like that .
Yes I’ve been hurt , but I know great men are out there and this needn’t stop me from finding and trusting them
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You recognize this. That is great. Be mindful.
Yes, it is. It’s a child hood thing, so do some inner child work.
You smart!
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Actually, i had bit of a realization last night and i think that it was my desire to feel desired in some way that lead me to reconnect with him.
You see, at work I am one of the oldest employees. I’m not old, but I’m the oldest of the young.
Everyday i am surrounded by 20 somethings who are gorgeous, have great bodies, and who are much stronger than i am (its basically a gym filled with powerlifters),
I am not saying i am jealous or bitter around them, admire and look up to them, but i also feel inferior. A lot of them are dating powerlifting guys who also coach them, and even the ones who aren’t are in long-term relationships. They also get hit on by members or have flirt buddies who give them attention on a daily basis. I’m bland. I’m single and i’m bland. I also am the only one who works the early shifts (some days before 5am) so i really have no time to make much effort in my appearance. I also look and act fucking tired because I am.
Not only that, but most of these girls are just using this job as a pit stop onto better things, the ones who aren’t are management. I’m a 30-something single mom working a full-time minimum wage job with no plans for a future that includes school.
A lot of these women are also sharing a mortgage and whatnot with their significant other , so they’re doing all the grown-up things i wish i was doing.
I’m budgeting and saving, but it would be 200 years until i could afford a home.
I guess to summarize i feel unattractive and insignificant at work. I used to be the unique one, or the fit one, or the something one at least. I am the no one.
Its harsh and depressing, but that’s how I feel. And that isn’t really changing at this point so that is something i need to be very weary of because THAT is the reason why i go back to my ex.
Its not for pleasure , or even loneliness because he never cured that, its for desirability . BUT it truly means nothing coming from him and accepting that and feeling that will be the key to not going back.
Anyway yes,
Deadlifts today
160lbs x 10 sets of 5
Probably the easiest one so far. I either underestimated my deads or overestimated my squats and military or its just because i didnt tempo deadlifts in anyway
ya
oh wells
BYE
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Get some clients and use that experience to make some cash Girl. TJ e to put that age and experience to work. Quit playing the game and live an empowered life. Until you realize how unique and incredible you are you will let emotional unrest drag you down. You are not an duckling any more but a swan. Time to fly…
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