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Bill Starr 5x5 Linear Version For Intermediate

Lifters

This highly effective strength and muscle building 5x5

workout by Bill Starr illustrates the importance of making
systematic progression to drive gains.

Workout Summary

Main Goal Increase Strength

Workout Type Full Body

Training Level Intermediate

Program Duration 12 weeks

Days Per Week 3

Time Per Workout 75 minutes

Equipment Required Barbell, Bodyweight

Target Gender Male & Female

Author M&S Writers

Workout PDF Download Workout

 Workout Description
Introduction
Relatively easy program to understand.  It nicely illustrates the importance of
making systematic progression to drive gains and increase the core lifts.  I highly
suggest people read the Training Primer I've prepared as you will understand all of
training so much better afterward.

History
One of the many flavors of Bill Starr's 5x5 workouts.  This particular one is designed
with the intermediate lifter in mind and is from the Deep Squatter site on this page. 
Deep Squatter is a great site so make sure you check it out along with all the great
info located in the archives.  Someone who has experience with the lifts and some
decent training history should do quite well.  It's important to keep in mind that this
program is a snapshot, training changes with time, you don't do it forever, to get a
better idea on how training changes over time I'd encourage people to read this
interview from Glenn Pendlay and Mark Rippetoe on programming.

Usage
This program is based on weekly linear progress.  You take your current 5 rep
maxes (5RM) and work up to them systematically by increasing weights in steady
increments over 3-4 weeks.  You then hit your current 5RM on lifts and continue
these incremental increases week to week which pushes you further and further out
making new personal records (PRs) every week until you stall on the majority of your
lifts.  If you miss reps, keep the weight constant the next week and don't move it up
until you get all 5x5.  When you eventually stall on the majority of lifts, and you will,
meaning something like several weeks of no progress in that you can't add reps or
weight, you'll have to reset lower back several weeks and begin again.  If it's just one
lift that has you stuck, reset on that and work up again but don't restart the whole
program.  When restarting the whole program, a lot of times changing variables is
also helpful here.  I'm not going to cover that.  Training is a blend of art and science,
and knowing what parameters to change for a given lifter is more art.  This is a
cookie-cutter, it's meant to get you big and strong, and more importantly training
correctly.  The best programs are always tailored to a given trainee so being your
own coach, you have to learn and seek out knowledge (generally not in bodybuilding
sources as a rule and this will seldom do you wrong).

Rep speed is natural, time between sets is what you need.  Don't rapid fire
compound lifts but don't be lazy.  2-5 minutes is probably right with 5 minutes being
needed after a very taxing effort.
Core Description
CAUTION - READ THIS: if you are going to devote hours and hours over weeks and
weeks to a program, please take 10-15 minutes to actually read this page and
understand it.  That's a poor method of saving time.  Also, you will find it hugely
useful to read the Training Primer I put together.  You will understand so much more
about training in general if you read it.  Honestly, save yourself years of learning and
spend 10-15 minutes reading that page.  Hell just print it out and leave it in the
bathroom.  Within a couple days, you'll have it finished and you will be so much
further ahead than so many others.  Also, please make sure to read the Possible
Issues section below - don't be a nimrod.

Before beginning it is useful to know your 1 rep maxes or more ideally your real 5
rep max in each lift (there is a table and calculator in the TOC).  If you don't know
this - it might be useful to test your lifts first or start light and allow for some
flexibility in the weekly planning.  The whole key is the weekly progression and
keeping workload low enough to not overwhelm someone with fatigue and enable
them to get out in front and set records for as many weeks as possible.  Said a
different way, the stimulus is not getting under the bar once with heavy weight but
getting under it frequently and systematically increasing week to week starting
within your limits and slowly expanding.

Bill Starr 5x5 Linear Version For Intermediate Lifters

Monday
Sets
Exercise x Details
Reps
Ramping weight to top set of 5 (which should equal the
Squat 5x5
previous Friday's heavy triple)
Bench Ramping weight to top set of 5 (which should equal the
5x5
Press previous Friday's heavy triple)
Ramping weight to top set of 5 (which should equal the
Barbell Row 5x5
previous Friday's heavy triple)
Assistance: 2 sets of weighted hypers and 4 sets of weighted sit-ups.
Wednesday
Sets
Exercise x Details
Reps
First 3 sets are the same as Monday, the 4th set is repeating
Squat 4x5 the 3rd set again
Incline
Press or
4x5 Ramping weight to top set of 5
Military
Press
Deadlift 4x5 Ramping weight to top set of 5
Assistance: 3 sets of sit-ups.
Friday

Sets
Exercise x Details
Reps
4x5, First 4 sets are the same as Monday's, the triple is 2.5% above
Squat 1x3, your Monday top set of 5, use the weight from the 3rd set for
1x8 a final set of 8
4x5, First 4 sets are the same as Monday's, the triple is 2.5% above
Bench
1x3, your Monday top set of 5, use the weight from the 3rd set for
Press
1x8 a final set of 8
4x5, First 4 sets are the same as Monday's, the triple is 2.5% above
Barbell Row 1x3, your Monday top set of 5, use the weight from the 3rd set for
1x8 a final set of 8
Assistance: 3 sets of weighted dips (5-8 reps), 3 sets of barbell curls and 3 sets of
triceps extensions (8 reps).

The Progression
So it's pretty obvious what's going on in this example is weekly increases of 2.5% of
your top set of 5 on Monday.  So you do 100lbs for 5 on your top set on Monday. 
Then on Friday you do a triple with 2.5% more, or 102.5.  The next Monday you come
back and do 102.5 for your heavy set of 5, that Friday the triple is 105 and so on. 
For the non-squat Wednesday lifts you just increase by the percentage week to
week.

Of course you start with a good margin to give yourself a run so you have to back
into the initial weeks' weights.  That means using some math.  Put your current 5 rep
maxes at week 4, figure out what 2.5% of the number is and go back and put that for
week 3, do that back until you get to week 1.  The Friday triple is always the next
week's Monday set of 5.  Pretty easy.*

Some people seem to think this is very slow progress (and maybe it is for a true
beginner) but for most lifters this 2.5% weekly is fairly aggressive scaling.  Think
about building up for 4 weeks and then 2.5% compounded weekly on your personal
records after that.  If you can even get 4 weeks of PRs, that's over 10% on your lifts
in just 8 weeks (there are people who would kill for this and many are lucky to
manage 1-2% over that same time frame).  People who can keep it up for anywhere
near 12 weeks (8 weeks of PRs) are looking at 20%+ on their lifts.  Even if one can't
get long progression, this is still a good way to go for even a few increments as long
as a lifter can make progress like this (and eventually they won't be able to and will
have to do something a bit different that looks more like the Advanced version.

Bill Starr 5x5 Linear Version For Intermediate Lifters

Progresion

Program Week Lift For 5 Reps % Increase Over Current PR

4 200 0.00 %
5 205 2.50 %
6 210 5.06 %
7 215 7.69 %
8 221 10.38 %
9 226 13.14 %
10 232 15.97 %
11 238 18.87 %
12 244 21.84 %
13 250 24.89 %
14 256 28.01 %
15 262 31.21 %

Although given the chart and what I've said elsewhere on this page it should be
obvious, I will clarify the point that this is not a 9 week program (I think some people
have downloaded only the spreadsheet rather than reading since I figured 9 weeks
of calculations was enough to get the idea - not much I can do about that).  You
continue until it stops working.  If you are adding 2.5% a week to your big lifts and
eating enough to move the scale consistently, there is nothing else you can do from
a program perspective to encourage muscular weight gain.  Ride the horse and if
lifts gives you trouble, either cut some warm up volume or reset it back a few
weeks.  When the majority of the lifts are stalling, reset the whole program and build
back up to PRs over 4 weeks.  Maybe change some variables (i.e. use 3x10) and/or
some assistance lifts (front squat on Wed, lockouts instead of overhead).

Impact of Weight Gain/Loss and Experience Level

I will also note that weight gain can be considered a tail wind to the progression. 
Meaning, you will have an easier time getting stronger and making a longer
progression if you are eating enough to drive bodyweight upward during the
program (i.e. also known as bulking or trying to add muscle, see caloric excess). 
This does not however mean that you should start heavier simply because you are
planning to gain weight.  The effect is typically not that strong and this is the best
way to blow this program up - always better to take more time than less. Another
tailwind would be experience level, someone much closer to their ultimate potential
is going to run out of steam and have to settle for shorter progressions than
someone with 6 months of training under their belt.

A headwind would be dieting or cutting.  If you are really making an effort to lose
weight and using this program you might want to start significantly lighter or make
smaller jumps week to week (i.e. take 6 weeks to reach your current 5RM rather than
4 weeks).  Basically the same 200lbs 5 rep max squat at a bodyweight of 200 is a
stronger lift at a lighter bodyweight.  So if you are dropping bodyweight, you
probably want think about starting lower because your 5RM estimates won't be
accurate as your bodyweight changes and to get a reasonable shot at progression
you don't want to be starting too high (that said, the less experienced the lifter they
might have enough tailwind from their junior amount of experience to override a fair
degree of headwind from bodyweight dropping).

Ramping Weights
This is basically increasing your weight set to set like warming up.  If your top set of
5 is 315, you might go 135, 185, 225, 275, and then 315 all for 5 reps.  There are
several reasons for this, you are warming up, getting a lot of practice and really
groove the coordination of the lifts, and contributing to workload without raising it
so high that fatigue overcomes you and you overtrain.  If you do 315 for all 5 sets,
workload is a lot higher and doing that a couple of times a week ensures that you
won't last long on this program.

Typically jumps can be somewhere between 10-15% per set based on your top set
(or 12.5% and round up or down).  An easy way to figure this is to find out what 10%
and 15% are for your top set and then track backwards into the other sets using the
variance to round or help it make sense.

Example:

Your top set is 100lbs.

10% is 10lbs and 15% is 15lbs.

Your 5th set is 100x5, 4th is 90x5, 3rd is 80x5, 2nd is 70x5, and 1st is 60x5.

These are the minimum jumps of 10%, the math doesn't always look this neat but
using 12.5% isn't as intuitively easy to see for explaining this.
Make sure this makes sense and you aren't so strong as to make the jumps
ridiculous at 10-15%.  But keep in mind, going 200, 205, 210, 215, and 220 is a lot
closer to 220 for 5x5 and that's too much on this kind of frequency, it will fatigue you
a lot faster (i.e. prevent you from progressing) and hurt your ability to get as much
as possible with your top set.

*Note: for the math inclined you probably realized that when moving up in weight
you are taking 2.5% of the current weight but when I have you set up the initial
weeks moving backward you are taking 2.5% off the forward week which is a slightly
larger number than moving in the other direction.  So if you want to really be exact,
you can work it out the other way but the math is harder.

Possible Issues
If people get stuck early it's because they start too high.  There is no negative to
starting a bit more conservatively (just potential time spent acclimating at worst). 
On the other side, starting too aggressively can kill the whole program.  You decide
on whether you want to potentially risk a tad of time in the worst case scenario or
waste all your time and blow it up getting zero results.

Particularly if people have issues with a lift the bench is where people get caught.  A
lot of guys have been training the bench hard forever.  Probably high frequency and
generally maxing it or using lower reps than their other lifts.  Well, you want to push
one lift hard and not bother much with others - you wind up with an asymmetry in
your ability to adapt.  You have to pay the price for not pushing as hard on your
squat, deads, rows, and overhead regardless of the program and that's just how it
is.  This is compounded by not having plates lighter than 2.5lbs (so 5lbs jumps),
which is often too much for people with the rounding and lifts that just aren't all that
strong (look at the Microloading page).  Also people put their true, best case 5RM
with limited warm-up out at week 4.  Most people won't have a problem but really, at
week 4 you are expected to do the 5RM and do about 20 reps at varying weights
beforehand.  This makes week 4 a personal record in reality.  Essentially, being more
conservative with the bench is better especially if you are one of those die hard
bench press worshippers.

In regards to the squatting or frequency, if you haven't squatted at all, or don't squat
full range or haven't done much before it can be an issue particularly if you have
enough training to move some weight.  Most people haven't had a problem but
particular to the squats a few people have wound up with overuse issues.  It's not
that people can't squat 3x per week - anyone can.  It's a matter of conditioning
someone to be able to do it at the volume and intensities that this program calls for
and acclimating to it immediately.  Just like walking 2 miles a day, anyone can do it
but if you sit on the couch and your movement is limited to 100 yards per day to get
the mail and feed yourself - well it might take some time to build up.  Most
importantly, if you start to get these issues (and not muscle soreness) but a chronic
aching and soreness in the joints/tendons/muscles etc...you need to back off and
not keep pushing.  That doesn't mean you get a little sore in week 1 and quit, this will
take a few weeks but once this type of thing shows up don't just keep pushing.  A
coach would have you back off or likely not start you here, you don't have a coach so
you have to use your brain.  It just might take 4-5 weeks to build up and get things in
shape to be able to begin this program.  That's okay but if you keep pushing and
wind up with serious tendonitis it can take a while to resolve itself.  Not worth it. 
This was covered on the Table of Contents Intro Page under the second topic but
obviously people don't read everything so it's here too (and I assume some won't
bother reading this either but you reap what you sow).  Like I said before, in general
it isn't an issue but a program is just a 'point in time' example, some people might be
ready for that point, some won't.  I tried to set this up where it should be okay for
just about everyone, that doesn't mean than a few people may not have an issue
with the parameters.

Other Pertinent Information

The Lifts
Squats - these should be full range Olympic style squats. Use the full range of your
body - that means as low as you can go which for almost everyone is past parallel. If
the top of your thighs aren't at least parallel it's for shit. If you think this is bad for
your knees going low, you and whoever told you that are relying on an old wives tale.
Anyone who knows the human body will tell you that below parallel is MUCH safer
on the knees whereas parallel and above put all the sheer right on them and doesn’t
allow proper transfer of the load to the rest of your body (this is how your body was
designed). Read the Squat article from Arioch linked in the TOC for a complete
description and references on the mechanics of the squat and depth.

Deads - each rep is deweighted fully on the floor. No touch and go. This is called the
'dead'lift because the weight is 'dead' on the ground. You can touch and go warm
ups but that's it.

Military - standing overhead presses. Supporting weight overhead is a fundamental

exercise and stimulates the whole body.   Push presses are a fine substitute.

Rows - 90 degrees and done dynamically (Accelerate the weight into your body - do
not jerk it but constantly increase the pace like an oar through water).  There is a
TOC topic on rows, a good read that also illustrates a version done from the floor.

Common Sense - you should know how to do the lifts before starting a program like
this.  Start light and learn.  Don't include brand new compound lifts that have you
training near your limit without some time in.  This is how you get hurt.  Compound
lifts load the entire body and are very effective.  If you have a weak link, they will
bring it up - of course if you haven't trained the lift long enough for this to happen
your weak link may get you hurt.  Use your brain.

The rest is self explanatory.

Time Between Sets

Don't over think this.  Use a natural rep speed, take what you need between sets. 
Don't be lazy but don't rush.  You can't be doing rapid fire sets of big compound
lifts.  Maybe on the lightest warm-ups you take a minute but most sets will be 2-5
minute range with 2 being between fairly easy sets and 5 being after a heavy set in
preparation for another very serious major effort that drains you.  I can see
exceeding the 5 minute limit by a tad when really pushing near failure in the PR
weeks when you are uncertain of getting your reps on your last set.  Just use your
brain and don't micromanage.

Diet
Depends on whether you are trying to gain muscle or what.  I will say that for gaining
muscle, caloric excess must be present.  Read the caloric excess topic in the table
of contents.  More people, particularly bodybuilders, go wrong here.  If caloric
excess is present and training stinks, you will get fatter.  The few guys who have
come back with no weight gain got very strong and gained no net weight - guess
what - they were already fairly lean (i.e. no excess in their diet otherwise they'd have
been fatter) and they didn't gain fat or muscle (no caloric excess during training). 
There's nothing any program can do if you won't eat.  For the purposes of gaining
muscle or getting big and strong it's better to eat McDonalds and KFC all day long
than not eat enough Zen clean ultra pure food which might be healthier but if not
enough there's simply nothing to use to grow.  So caloric excess is a requirement,
you don't need to eat like a slob but it will work infinitely better than not eating
enough healthy food for this purpose.  Lots of people have gotten big and strong on
diets that were bad, if you choose to eat squeaky clean, kudos to you but it is not
critical to putting on muscle (it might be critical to a long high quality life though).

Incorporating the Olympic Lifts

The above is basically setup for someone who doesn't know the OLs. Starr's original
workout included Power Cleans and High Pulls. Instead of Bent Rows substitute
Power Cleans. Rather than Deads substitute High Pulls.  That’s a quick and dirty way
of handling this without much disruption.

Substituting Exercises
Don't f*ck with this. Every bodybuilder seems to have Attention Deficit Disorder and
an overwhelming desire to customize everything. The bottom line is that these are
all the most effective exercises and just about anything one does will result in less
gains. As a rule those people who want to change it don't know enough to make
proper alterations - those who do know enough, don't have much to change. The guy
who is responsible for this program is of the best on the planet at bulking lifters and
making people stronger. It's kind of like Sesame Street's Elmo offering neurosurgery
advice at NYU. Anyway, it's absolutely essential not to screw with the squats, they
are the foundation of this program. If you want to sub inclines or push presses for
military that's okay. Do not sub machines - don't even think about it, hit yourself with
a plate if you must.

For arms choose a single biceps and triceps exercise and perform them at the end
once per week for 3 sets of whatever - your arms will take a beating from all the
pulling and pressing anyway. If you want to chin on Wednesday or do a few sets of
pulldowns/ups that's fine (avoid the machines if you can use bodyweight). Core
work is always fine. Cardio is fine - interval training is the best for this I'll just throw
out. If this is just too much mental strain, take solace in the fact that it's just a few
weeks, you'll gain a ton of muscle and strength and then you can spend the next 4
weeks adding the minute detail to refine the gained mass (like most care anyway - I
have yet to meet a guy on this board who will trade 20lbs of muscle for a bit of
added detail somewhere). In a nutshell, put your trust in some of the better coaches
on the planet and enjoy the results.

New or Beginner Lifters

This is not a beginner program.  You will make faster progress with less workload
on a true beginner program.  I really recommend Rippetoe's Starting Strength for
beginners or novices.  It's so critical to learn the lifts correctly and get started on a
good program (i.e. not what one typically finds on bodybuilding sites).  Rippetoe is
the man at coaching beginners and putting muscle on them with 30-40lbs in 4-6
months being quite normal.  The book will handle teaching you all the lifts.  It's
written for coaches and no, given what I see in commercial gyms, the internet and
Joe Schmoe at your local gym are not capable of instructing you properly - they will
screw you up and make you look like a moron or possibly get you hurt. On top of
that the book covers everything to get you set up on a program that is time proven
as one of if not the best beginner programs available.

Advanced Lifters
After a while, linear progress doesn't work so well.  You want to do this for as long
as you can.  And I mean, resetting and running at your records, changing some
exercises, rep ranges, whatever, just keep trying to get some linear progress as you
want to milk this kind of progression for all it's worth.  After a while it will become
pretty obvious this doesn't work for you any more.  Welcome to periodization.
Sample Template
This is a downloadable Microsoft Excel file that calculates your relevant lifts and
plots out what this program might look like over a number of weeks.  It makes a lot
of assumptions that might not be right or near optimal for any given lifter.  I've tried
to make it applicable to an experienced trainee familiar with the lifts.  Understand
that this is just a reference for what it might look like as some people do a lot better
with an example - you don't need or necessarily want to adhere to this.

You will obviously need Microsoft Excel or a compatible spreadsheet program to

make use of this file.  If you don't have the full version I think you can download
Excel Viewer from Microsoft for free, just run a web search and you should find it
quickly enough.  You might also find the Microloading article a worthwhile read if
you are working with percents or incremental increases.

Download File - Current Version 0.3

Change Log
08-15-2006

Added Training Primer link in the Introduction. 

Added Possible Issues section.
Added "Caution" verbiage and info to the Core Description Section (yes I
realize it won't help everyone but you have to try)

05-14-2006 

Since a lot of people seem to be interested in cutting over the summer I

added some information on the impact of weight gain/loss into the
description.

03-19-2006

Added some links to new diet writeup.

Added link to Excel Viewer
Added link to Microloading page
New Version of Program Template v0.3, changed some links and added
info about program length
Added Comparison link in title navigation bar for 5x5 Programs

12-26-2005
 Fixed the chart again, apparently Excel is more free than I though with text
and extrapolating a series.  Now everything should reflect the backoff sets
on Friday being 8 reps for all lifts.
Download link now works and updated details on the file which is archived
with Winrar.

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96 Comments
+ Post Comment

Posted Mon, 01/05/2015 - 14:04 LIKE 9

Johnny
Thanks, this was a great program, even though I applied it to the bench pressing only. It worked
well. My bench max went from 195lbs to 230lbs in 12 weeks.

REPLY

Posted Fri, 05/02/2014 - 16:07 LIKE 14

Jack
Can anyone give some advice on my squat.
I am able to maintain good posture on the way down til just before parallel, but when I break
parallel my back arches forward and I feel like I start lifting with my back too much.
Is it better to not go so deep but with proper form, or keep the depth and try work on form?
Any tips would be much appreciated!
p.s. This is a great work out, just what I have been looking for!

REPLY

Posted Sun, 04/20/2014 - 04:26 LIKE 10

greg
Hi, and thanks,
My laptop keeps asking me for a zip file when I click on the spreadsheet template? Can you
help?
Greg

REPLY

Posted Mon, 04/14/2014 - 12:22 LIKE 9

Mario
What do you guys think about using the main lifts of Bill Starr's 5x5 and add the accessories of
Jason Blaha's novice 5x5?

REPLY

Posted Sun, 04/13/2014 - 11:15 LIKE 10

nick
Hi guys,
I am thinking of giving this routine a try after finishing my first Stronglifts cycle, and i would like
to ask for your advice : Would it be a bad idea to add farmer walks after each workout?
(varying the type [farmer's, waiter's, cross] weight, distance, speed and overall intensity of
course, depending on the day - heavy, light, medium)
Thanks for the detailed article!

REPLY

Posted Fri, 02/14/2014 - 18:11 LIKE 9

Yiannis
Hi, I ve been on and off training and diet for the past 3 years.I am 22 years old, 6 1, 187 with
14% bodyfat.
Squat/278, Deadlift/298, Bench/180. Do you think I should stick with Starting Strength before I
jump to this program and If yes what numbers am I aiming on the big 3 before jump to bill star.
thanks

REPLY

Posted Sat, 02/15/2014 - 07:31 LIKE12

Yiannis
Deadlift/335

REPLY

Posted Tue, 02/04/2014 - 06:46 LIKE 8

Aman
Hi
I've started this program yesterday...i have a question regarding wednesday...
I was wondering if i could do dumbell incline press instead of military press? Would i get the
same results? I tend to feel more on chest with dumbell incline press instead of barbell
inclines...
By doing inclines would my shoulders develop in the same way as with military press?
 REPLY

Posted Sun, 12/22/2013 - 16:11 LIKE 8

Jay
Anyone ever find that training primer? Would love to read that.

REPLY

Posted Fri, 11/29/2013 - 09:55 LIKE 13

Adnan Syed
I have opposite problem. I lift very heavy in squats going full deeper passing parallel thighs. and
i lift heavy in Dead lifts too. but my upper body is not very strong. And i also have a question
that will it not affect the arms if you r not training them ?

REPLY

Posted Thu, 10/03/2013 - 15:20 LIKE 9

Joe
Are the exercises in the assistance section option or should we be encouraged to do them?

REPLY

Posted Thu, 09/05/2013 - 19:55 LIKE 9

Rob
Hi Steve- Do you suggest the Standing Military Press or Incline Bench Press on Wednesdays?

REPLY

Posted Wed, 08/28/2013 - 10:09 LIKE 13

Michael Kastberg
i can respect the fact that bill doesnt want you to change the program and customize it... but
instead of doing curls on fridays wouldnt it be better to substitute that exact excercise with pull
ups or chin ups?

REPLY

Posted Fri, 08/23/2013 - 10:29 LIKE 13

charles
Iam familiar with Bill Starr. Ive always had great progress with his advice.

REPLY

Posted Mon, 06/24/2013 - 18:19 LIKE 11

Matt
Quick question can I replace the wednesday sit ups for side-bends or add side-bends that day?
Also for rows should I bring the weight back down to the floor every rep like a Pendlay row?
Thanks for the workout it looks great, excited to start!

REPLY

Posted Mon, 06/03/2013 - 20:42 LIKE 9

Matt
I am 41 yrs. old and wondering if this is a good program for mass building as well as strength? I
have been back in the gym for about a year now and have hit a plateau it seems like. I definitely
want to get stronger, but at the same time, I want that mass increase as well. Is this program
good enough to satisfy both at my age?

REPLY

Posted Wed, 06/05/2013 - 17:20 LIKE15

mnsjason
Your diet plays a huge role in adding mass, as I'm sure you know. This routine will certainly
help pack on mass, but only if your diet can support it. You should see mass and strength
gains, and if you've hit a plateau, this will help break it. I say go for it!

REPLY

Posted Wed, 06/05/2013 - 18:06 LIKE11

Matt
Thanks for the reply...I believe I'm going to give it a try!

REPLY

Posted Sat, 06/01/2013 - 17:05 LIKE 10

weexxxmoho04
hi steve am small guy am 5 foot 2" weight around 11 stone roughly 158lb i eat fish and steak
and chicken and i gulp down protien shakes but doesnt put great mass on me as i wonna lift
heavier what do u recommend i do ?

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Posted Tue, 05/28/2013 - 03:22 LIKE 11

Monish
Whats the assistance sets for ?

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Posted Wed, 04/24/2013 - 09:37 LIKE 12

Simon
Hey Steve
Thanks for this great explanation
I dont want to be that guy that always has to change everything but do you see a problem with
adding pullups and some lateral raises and facepulls?
Pullups are really important to me and deltoids are a weak point of myself
I would appreciate to hear your thoughts about this issue

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Posted Tue, 04/02/2013 - 22:20 LIKE 15

Dee
I've read a fair bit on this topic and this article was written well with good content.

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Posted Wed, 03/13/2013 - 13:59 LIKE 11

Rich
What cardio if any would you incorpoate on the rest days?

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Posted Fri, 03/08/2013 - 10:17 LIKE 10

Po
Should i increase the weight on all the sets next monday equal to the amount i did on the heavy
3 friday, or just the top set.
Example, Mon: Benchpress 1x5 100 Ibs, 1x5 110 Ibs, 1x5 120 Ibs 1x5 130 Ibs, 1x5 140 Ibs =
topset.
Friday, Bench. first for sets, the same as monday. then a tripple, 1x3 145 Ibs. Thats a increase
on 5 Ibs. Next monday, do i Increase all 5 sets with 5 Ibs or just the topset? Hope you
understand my question here.

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Posted Fri, 02/22/2013 - 22:10 LIKE 11

perry
I have trained for years, My body is used to higher reps 8 to 10. and 20 rep squats. I find that i
am loosing my size and dont get a pump. on the 5x5

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Posted Thu, 02/07/2013 - 11:03 LIKE 11

Simon
Is there any way I could incorporate power cleans into this?

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Posted Wed, 01/23/2013 - 18:32 LIKE 9

NIK
for the Wednesday workout should I alternate between between military and incline, or do both?

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Posted Fri, 01/25/2013 - 17:32 LIKE 10

mnsjason
One or the other, and you can alternate if you wish. Military tends to hit the shoulders a lot more
than incline, which is intended to hit the upper chest.

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Posted Thu, 01/10/2013 - 05:47 LIKE 9

silv3r4sh
Hi there, the muscle group worked out by bent-over dumbbell rows, can anyone please tell me is
that targeted at all in this without?
Cheers!

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Posted Thu, 01/10/2013 - 16:26 LIKE13

Joey
Yes

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Posted Thu, 01/10/2013 - 23:47 LIKE10

silv3r4sh
Thanks Joey, sorry I was having a brain fart and didn't see the barbell rows in this one. If
only I could get my comment removed!

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Posted Sun, 12/16/2012 - 20:19 LIKE 9

Tom
I have always been a weak bench presser and maxed out at 235 pounds about 10 years ago.
Now I am 41 and started this workout routine with a 205 pound max. As I proceeded through
the workout, the first 3 or 4 weeks seemed really easy and as I kept getting closer to my max it
seemed to be unbelievable that it was progressing so easily and I kept wanting to max out
before the 9 weeks was up so at about week 6 I maxed out at 265 and continued the workout
until the end and maxed again, this time at 275. I tried a bodybuilding routine for a while but
now I am back on this program again and ultimately wanting to reach a 300 pound bench press.
At this rate, I should reach it easily by the end of January. Thanks for posting this routine. It
really worked for me. Oh yeah, and I am now able to squat 275 and deadlift 300.

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Posted Tue, 12/04/2012 - 06:20 LIKE 11

Brian Walpole
Although many gurus and experts allude to there being an optimal way to achieve peak physical
strength or increase muscle mass, the fact is, even though there are many golden rules to
follow, there are many different ways to achieve the aforementioned. One firm favourite of
many strength & size trainers is the the old school 5 x 5 protocol designed by Bill Starr. The 3
basic exercises that Starr based his workout programmes on are the barbell squat, the bench
press and the power clean.

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Posted Wed, 11/28/2012 - 03:49 LIKE 10

Buyse
Could this be a good workout for cutting or does it involve to little isolation work?

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Posted Mon, 11/26/2012 - 02:13 LIKE 14

Miguel
Hi Steve,
I was wondering about the 5X5, for some reason I am really confused about the workout
warmup.
For example, I will squat 115 lbs 5X5, but what should my warm up be? How many reps and
sets and weight? Are the warmups part of the 5X5 sets or are they separate form my 5X5 at
115.
Thanks for all your help and info, :)
Miguel,
Abu Dhabi, U.A.E

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Posted Fri, 11/09/2012 - 21:24 LIKE 12

Billy
The download file at the end of the article doesn't seem to work, when I click on the link it just
goes to another page and says "this page cannot be found." Is there anyway you can fix that? or
am I doing something wrong?
Thanks

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Posted Tue, 10/16/2012 - 22:26 LIKE 11

James
I thought I should add that my back and neck doesn't bother me while I'm doing it it's later that
day and into the next day

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Posted Tue, 10/16/2012 - 22:07 LIKE 11

James
Hi I've been doing this workout for three weeks now and I'm having a tightness/pain in my
midback and my neck bothers me a little. I saw a trainer right before starting this and he said
my forms were great. The back issues isn't soreness but it's not normal back pain. Should I see
a trainer again or is this possibly normal? I've never squatted heavy and I'm pretty sure it's from
the squatting. Thanks

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Posted Sat, 10/06/2012 - 13:38 LIKE 10

carlos z
Thx Steve,
is there a workout you recommend strength/muscle that would combine well with crossfit 1 or
2x/wk
I'm 48 years old and of coarse have the problem of wanting all... strength, lean/vanity and
functionality
hope you could advice
carlos

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Posted Sun, 08/12/2012 - 15:39 LIKE 11

Alex Mello
Full body workout help, when i do full body workouts increasing weights after every workout
was easy for me but i would get real nauseous and the light headedness went away but i felt
like throwing up after real heavy weights...Any advise on why this may be...

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Posted Thu, 08/09/2012 - 12:55 LIKE 11

Rick
Yeah, still no link to the training primer. Good article.

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Posted Wed, 08/08/2012 - 09:49 LIKE 13

Dave
Its all very well the article saying "read the training primer" and check out the 'Deep Squatter"
page - there is no sign of either to be found!!
The link to Deep Squatter doesn't work and I have searched for the training primer but it doesn't
seem to exist anymore.

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Posted Thu, 08/09/2012 - 12:35 LIKE13

Steven
Try the link now...

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Posted Wed, 06/06/2012 - 03:11

LIKE
 LIKE 12

Tarik
Hey Steve, I love what this workout has to offer, I'm planning on starting it in one week. Would
you mind please explaining to me Wednesday's workout day, I'm pretty confused for that one.
Thanks

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Posted Sun, 04/22/2012 - 18:16 LIKE 10

Wally
My question is Squats, I know they are the foundation for this workout but my knees just can
not deal with squats. I have been working with a trainer now for 8 months and while I can do a
squat my knees just don't deal well. 3 days of squats in a week is not something I can do. I have
been doing goblet squats without too much issue, so I was wondering if I could do them
instead or if deadlift could be done instead 3 x a week and do low weight squats oned day?

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Posted Mon, 04/16/2012 - 14:05 LIKE 21

jason
1st question- is it ok to work out every other day or is there a need for 2 days of rest at the end
of the week?

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Posted Tue, 04/10/2012 - 02:00 LIKE 20

Felix
I'm looking to start this program next week, with my goal to push my 1RMs to 1000lb (currently
around 840). I made good progress with Steve's 5 day power muscle burn split, and have spent
the last two months mixing training up and trying new exercises and lifts; it's time to hit a
structured program again. Two questions - I use a pushbike for daily transport, with the
emphasis here on the squats will I be overdoing it on the legs? Secondly, I'm happy with the
core methods of this program but am keen to add more assistance work (chest flyes on
Monday, shoulder flyes and leg press on Wednesday), again, counter productive or will a little
more work round things out?
Great site folks, I've gained a wealth of knowledge and perspectives here which has helped
heaps!

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Posted Fri, 02/17/2012 - 16:45 LIKE 22

James
Awesome workout! I've been using it for 11 weeks and it's just what I needed. I look forward to
doing it at night, which hasn't happened for awhile, because I can see the results. I've increase
all of my lifts since starting and have had to revamp the numbers twice. My only set-back is a
strained pec which has kept me off the bench for about 6 weeks now. Not sure when I'll be back
benching but I still love this workout.

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Posted Mon, 02/06/2012 - 10:29 LIKE 22

 Billy
Hi, i've been doing this workout for a long time a year or 2 ago but i havent been training for
around 1 year now and i want to start again.
1 thing i realised is there is no shoulder presses in this workout its either incline bench press or
shoulder press. is there anyway to add shoulder press in also without substituting the incline
press?
i feel it is incomplete if i am not directly training my shoulders also because this is a main part
of strength just like incline/flat bench n deads etc.
incline bench press does my upper chest and my shoulders are very weak compared to my
bench press and rows and deads. and if i substitute my incline bench press for shoulder press
then i will have a weak upper chest and it will not be proportional to my lower chest.
what do you think?
thanks!

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Posted Fri, 01/20/2012 - 22:21 LIKE 19

john
I want to start this workout, while doing the Spartacus workout on my off days as cardio. Do
you think that is too much? I am not a beginner, I just stopped playing basketball and have
gotten out of shape. (Belly/loss of muscle)

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