View Full Version : PVC's 5/3/1 "Intermediate" Log
Intermediate is in quotes because I'm technically still a novice at this point. I'm 20 years old, I currently weigh ~185 lbs and I was on SS for 4 months. I went from a skinny and weak 160 lb kid to a not-skinny and not-weak 190 lb guy. I'm switching to 5/3/1 because it's summer, and this program gives me the freedom to undereat occasionally, do cardiovascular-based activites and have a draining job with long hours - you know, stuff that would completely ruin my progression on SS. My functional 1RMs (the ones my workouts will be based on), according to the formulas in the 5/3/1 book:
Press - 130 lbs
Deadlift - 350 lbs
Bench Press - 170 lbs
Squat - 290 lbs
I'm doing a 3x per week variation, training on Sunday, Monday and Wednesday. I'll also be doing conditioning work twice a week, as my schedule permits.
Press - 85x5, 95x5, 110x8
Chinups - 6,4,2
Dips - 7,4,2
I can't currently handle doing 5 sets of chins and dips as prescribed in the book, so I'll have to build up to it.
Deadlift - 225x5, 260x5, 295x8
No assistance exercises today, because I squatted yesterday (see other log). I planned my transition between SS and 5/3/1 pretty poorly.
Mr.City
05-10-2010, 08:55 PM
You might want to place a pressing day between your squat/deadlift days.
My squat is still on linear progression. I'm bringing it back up to 270x5x3, which I will do on Wednesday, and after that it's 5/3/1 all the way. My actual squat day on 5/3/1 isn't until this coming Sunday.
Bench - 110x5, 125x5, 145x9
DB Bench Press - 35x10, 45x10, 45x8
Kroc Rows - 65x14
Ate more food yesterday and today, and as a result the bench was a breeze. I might have been able to get 10, but I've got a mental barrier with the bench. I'll have to work on overcoming that.
Squat - 190x5, 225x5, 245x7
The second set of squats should have been 215 lbs instead of 225, but I'm an idiot. Partying this weekend has left me as a frail shell of a human being, so the squats were not up to par. I was hoping to get 10 reps, but I'll settle for 7. I think I'll have to accept the fact that my Sunday workouts are going to be poor.
No time for assistance work. Got home from out of town at 3:30, got to the gym at 4:30, gym closes at 5:00. You do the math.
6 hill sprints
Steep hill, relatively short distance. Maybe I'll try to measure it next time. Felt slow. Strong, but slow. Now I'm regretting not having learned powercleans. Going to do 8 sprints next time.
Press 3x3 workout coming up after dinner.
Press - 90x3, 105x3, 115x7
Chin ups - 6.5,4,3,2
Dips - 8, 5, 4, 3
Up to 4 sets for assistance exercises. 5 sets next week.
Deadlift - 245x3, 280x3, 315x7
Good Mornings - 45x10, 65x10, 85x10x3
Grip Work - about to do this now
I was disappointed in my deadlift. I was expecting 8 reps, but my recovery hasn't been great recently. The seventh rep was very slightly hitched, not because I couldn't lift the weight properly but because I wasn't paying enough attention and it just sort of happened (as these things do on higher rep sets). I will make sure not to do it next time.
Does anyone have any suggestions for grip work that I can do for my deadlift? I have two grippers, not the Captains of Crush brand but they are of identical design. One offers 150 lbs of resistance (similar to the CoC #1 which is 140) and one offers 200 lbs of resistance (similar to the CoC #2 which is 195). I can close the 150 lb one for 20 reps, but I can't close the other one once. Any ideas are welcome.
Gripper training:
- Attempted to close the 200, failed
- closed the 200 with both hands and did a timed hold, 3 sets per hand
- closed the 150 for 25 reps with each hand
- closed the 150 for 18/17 reps with left and right hands respectively
- timed hold with the 150 for each hand
I think this worked pretty well. We'll see next Sunday when I deadlift again.
imnotbncre8ive
05-21-2010, 10:41 PM
Hey whuttup PVC, just dropping in to wish you well with your training and life in general. I recently bought Jim Wendler's 5/3/1 ebook so I thought I'd check out your log to see how its done in practice. Based on your numbers from the first training session, it seems you're using the 65%/75%/85% template.
Good luck!
Hey whuttup PVC, just dropping in to wish you well with your training and life in general. I recently bought Jim Wendler's 5/3/1 ebook so I thought I'd check out your log to see how its done in practice. Based on your numbers from the first training session, it seems you're using the 65%/75%/85% template.
Good luck!
Thanks man, always welcome. I went with 65/75/85 because I don't want the first two sets to interfere with the last one, which is the most important. Five-rep warmup sets are surprisingly tiring.
Bench - 120x3, 135x3, 155x7
Right on schedule. It seems that for my press and bench press, every 5 lbs added to the bar represents one less rep that I can do. If this is correct, I should be doing 160x6 next week if all goes according to plan.
Ran out of time for assistance work. Conditioning later today, probably.
Mr.City
05-23-2010, 08:43 PM
How are you liking the hill sprints? I was a dumbass and tried to "feel" them out in terms of fatigue. I was a wreck in the gym the next day.
How are you liking the hill sprints? I was a dumbass and tried to "feel" them out in terms of fatigue. I was a wreck in the gym the next day.
Really? The first time I did them I stopped when my sprint speed slowed down too much, and other than some pretty wicked calf soreness and some minor ab soreness I was fine. The second time I did them my sprint speed/acceleration improved and my rest times decreased, but my endurance was just as shitty so I had to stop at 6 again. I'm going for 8 next time.
Squat - 205x3, 230x3, 260x5
Leg Press - 180x10, 270x10, 360x10x3 (weight added to sled)
Ab Wheel - 4,1 on knees
Disappointing. It's funny, because when I was doing SS the bench and the press would be the first lifts to stall when I wasn't eating enough. Yet currently I'm trying to drop a few pounds and my presses are indifferent and my squat has been affected a lot. Cat Stevens was right: it's a wild world.
Also, for the ab wheel I think one single set might be ideal vs. multiple sets. However, it might just be that I can't do enough reps yet. I'll play around with it.
Mr.City
05-25-2010, 10:08 PM
Yeah...I didn't stop when I started to slow down.
Press - 95x5, 110x3, 125x4
Chin ups - 7,5,4,4,3
Dips - 7,5,4,3,2
I am so fucking tired and sore.
Today I worked an 11.5 hour shift at work, I was outside for most of this period, and it was 30+ degrees outside. Absolutely brutal. My shirt was soaked with sweat by noon. And then of course there's the soreness/tiredness from the squats and ab wheel (abs are particularly sore). All this culminates to my excuse for not getting 5 reps with 125. Any other day I would have gotten it, I swear. It just wasn't in the cards today.
famendoza
05-26-2010, 10:31 PM
How do you fail to press 125x5 and then chin 7 reps at 185lbs of bodyweight afterwards?
How do you fail to press 125x5 and then chin 7 reps at 185lbs of bodyweight afterwards?
More like 183lbs of bodyweight at this point, but to answer your question I don't know. As I said, any other day of the week it would have been 125x5. Oh well. If I had squatted on Monday instead of Tuesday I probably would have been fine for 125x5 press on Wednesday, but then my squat would have suffered from hill sprints on Sunday. Damned if you do, damned if you don't.
7 Hill Sprints
I'm finally understanding that whole "focus on one goal at a time" thing when it comes to strength and conditioning. My lifts (especially the squat) are suffering from my conditioning workouts, and my conditioning workouts are suffering from my lifting. Don't you love it when you can confirm the things you learn about by experiencing them yourself?
Dastardly
05-31-2010, 02:37 PM
7 Hill Sprints
I'm finally understanding that whole "focus on one goal at a time" thing when it comes to strength and conditioning. My lifts (especially the squat) are suffering from my conditioning workouts, and my conditioning workouts are suffering from my lifting. Don't you love it when you can confirm the things you learn about by experiencing them yourself?
Indeed, just like all this fatigue & overttraining style sleeplessness from thie high volume group deadlifts ive done for the past couple weeks.
Deadlift - 260x5, 295x3, 335x5
Good Mornings - 95x10x4
Grip work - attempted to close 200, did holds with 200, did holds with 150
Next cycle I'm going to film my deadlifts, because I think I might be hitching them a little bit.
Bench - 125x5, 145x3, 160x5
DB Bench - 60x6, 55x8, 55x6, 50x7
Another disappointing session. It would seem that, for me, on a 5 week schedule, skipping the assistance exercises for some of the sessions, 5/3/1 isn't enough volume. Doing each lift every 8-11 days hasn't been enough. Part of the reason I did the 5 week schedule was because I wanted to do hill sprints twice per week, but so far I've only managed to do them once per week anyways. The other reason was because there would be some weekends where I couldn't train, but so far that's only happened once out of 4 weeks. So, next cycle will be textbook 5/3/1, with each lift done once per week and tons of assistance exercises.
msingh
06-02-2010, 10:10 PM
How do you fail to press 125x5 and then chin 7 reps at 185lbs of bodyweight afterwards?
Probably because there isn't enough volume on pushes?
Probably because there isn't enough volume on pushes?
I'm doing a 5 week version of 5/3/1 which has me doing each lift up to 11 days apart, and I've also been skimping on assistance exercises (even today I did it). 11 days between lifts is not enough volume for me. Next cycle (starting in 1.5 weeks from now) I will be trying the standard 4 week version of 5/3/1, with each lift done once per week and not skimping on assistance exercises. I will get back to you then. Okay?
Squat - 215x5, 245x3, 275x4
Leg Press - 360x10x5
Ab Wheel - 6 reps on knees
Didn't think I'd make 4 reps, especially since 245 felt so heavy. I think I could have gotten 5 reps, but it would have been a 5RM and I didn't want to go to failure (although I'm thinking it might be useful to go to failure once in a while on this program...I'll have to experiment). So my squat has dropped from a 290 5RM to a 275 5RM. Sigh. Well, by the end of the summer I'll be setting some nice PRs. Slow and steady wins the race.
Press - 80x5, 85x5, 90x5
Chinups - 8,6,4,3,2
Dips - 7
Went to the gym too late, ran out of time to finish dips.
famendoza
06-07-2010, 09:38 PM
Probably because there isn't enough volume on pushes?
There's more mass PUSHING than there is PULLING. It's not a question of volume in this case because chins are harder by far than presses.
Goals for the end of the summer (since I'm thinking about it):
Squat - 305x5
Deadlift - 360x5
Bench Press - 185x5
Press - 140x5
Chinups - Set of 10 with 25 lbs added
Conditioning - don't know, still working on this goal
And I'll test 1RMs on my lifts at this time as well.
Yesterday:
Deadlift - 140x5, 1855, 210x5
Good Mornings - 105x10x5
Ab Wheel - 8 reps on knees
Bench Press - 70x5, 85x5, 100x5
Incline Bench - 115x5
DB Bench Press - 60x8, 55x8, 55x8, 55x6, 50x5
Kroc Rows - 22.5 reps each side
Dastardly
06-13-2010, 09:16 AM
Hi, hows it going PVC?
Was wondering how you find using the Ab wheel? Have you done many other types of ab work, how does it compare?
Hi, hows it going PVC?
Was wondering how you find using the Ab wheel? Have you done many other types of ab work, how does it compare?
I haven't done *many* other types of ab work, but I've tried a few and I still find the ab wheel to be the most useful. I've tried weighted situps, decline weighted situps, leg raises, and a pretty damn good machine that my gym has, but I still think the wheel comes out on top. I'm finding that it works best with one set to failure as opposed to multiple sets with fewer reps. Failure as in going until the last full rep you can complete, not going until you slump on the floor unable to complete the movement. The first couple of times you try it you'll be sore as hell though.
Squat - 115x5, 145x5, 175x5
Leg Press - 410x10x5
Conditioning - 6 Hill Sprints
Hill sprints were SLOOOOW as fuck. I've neglected to do them for the past two weeks, which explains why they were so slow. I decided to stop at 6, since doing more wouldn't have had much of a positive training effect.
Lesson learned: speed is quickly detrained.
Next cycle:
Press - 135
Squat - 300
Bench - 180*
Deadlift - 360
*Bench is being moved up by 10 lbs instead of 5. Why? Because I'm a rebel. And my bench is weak. And I think it can handle the larger increase.
Also:
I am adding lunges as assistance work to squat day. For bench day I'm replacing DB bench presses with close-grip bench presses. For deadlift day I'm adding ab wheel work, since I think it would be helpful to do it twice per week. Press day remains unchanged.
Press - 90x5, 100x5, 115x7
Chinups - 7.5,5,4,3,2
No Dips, pecs are still quite sore from bench day
I failed on rep 8 of the presses, but I sure as hell fought for it. My mistake: I tried to breathe from the top. This works well a couple of times, but for each rep you do it there is a net loss of air. After doing it 3 times, you don't have enough air to maintain a reasonable amount of intra-abdominal pressure. I held my breath for the first four reps, then breathed at the top before the 5th, 6th, 7th and 8th reps. By the 8th rep (fourth time breathing at the top), I hardly had any air left. What I should have done: breathed at the bottom for that last rep. Yes I would have lost the stretch reflex, but the stretch reflex is worthless if your trunk can't support the weight. Three lessons learned today:
1st Lesson Learned: The benefits of breathing at the top of the press are lost after doing so for a number of reps.
2nd Lesson Learned: Technique is integral to everything.
3rd Lesson Learned: Never make a public post stating your lifting goals when everything is going according to plan.
hatmanii
06-14-2010, 10:15 PM
It's a double edged sword no matter which way you try to take in air while repping heavy presses. Best way is to just let the bar come down and rack it power clean style so you can breathe easy then restart.
-Hat
It's a double edged sword no matter which way you try to take in air while repping heavy presses. Best way is to just let the bar come down and rack it power clean style so you can breathe easy then restart.
-Hat
My current opinion is that you should start by holding your breath for as many reps as is reasonable, then switch to breathing at the top for a couple of reps, then switch to breathing at the bottom when you've lost too much air from breathing at the top. Actually, for very high rep sets (>8) I could imagine a system whereby you alternate between breathing at the top and breathing at the bottom. But these are experiments for another day.
Deadlift - 235x5, 270x5, 305x8
Good Mornings - 115x10, 105x10x4
Ab Wheel - 8
I've been having an issue with my forearms recently. I don't know what it is. Maybe tendonitis, but I don't think this is what tendonitis feels like. It is a pain along the length of my ulna that occurs only when I am gripping an object with some force. I work as a car jockey and clean cars with a long brush (shaped like a broomstick) for much of the day, so either this is causing it or it's preventing it from getting better. No elbow or wrist pain. Anyways, because of it I decided to try the hook grip for the deadlift. I've been thinking of switching anyways, so what better time than now when my grip is fucked anyways? I must say, the hook grip sure does the trick, but my thumbs are sore as hell. I will continue to use it.
115 for the good mornings was too heavy, so I had to go back down. I'll shoot for 110 next time.
Lesson learned: good mornings are like women: they're very sensitive about their weight.
Squat - 195x5, 225x5, 255x7
Bench - 115x5, 135x5, 150x5
Due to my annoying busy schedule the past week and this week, my workouts will have to combine two exercises. These two today were supposed to be done last week, but I had no time so I did them both today. Wednesday will be Press and Deadlift, and Friday will be Bench and Squat again. Squat was fine today and is progressing on schedule; bench is fucked. I was going to increase my bench by 10 lbs this month, but during the first two bench worksets today I decided it would be a bad idea, so I recalculated the final workset for the standard 5 lb bench increase. And it was still shitty. FUCK. I hate the bench press so much.
Mr.City
06-23-2010, 09:32 PM
Why the 10 lb jump on the bench?
I'm going to be very busy for the next while, and I'm trying something different for a little bit. Will not be posting here for a couple of weeks.
Why the 10 lb jump on the bench?
Because I thought I could do it.
simonsky
07-04-2010, 09:03 PM
how does it feel to do deads and GM on the same day?
and why are you switching assistance to frequently? try to stick with it for 2-3 cycles at least.
how does it feel to do deads and GM on the same day?
It feels fine, to be honest. I mean, I'm not feeling great by my fifth goodmorning set, but five sets of anything are pretty brutal with a heavy enough weight.
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