All Pro Intermediate programs 1-4

[all pro]

Questions about Intermediate 1
-how many assistance exercises is too few/too many?
-do you start with your estimated 5rm for the main lifts and something like your 10rm for the assistance work?
-pulling the "girl card" and being that my numbers are sissified I would add 5lbs as opposed to 10 when progressing(read that) but what about the when you start a new cycle if I didn't get the reps...would I drop back 15lbs instead of 30? That part confuses me.
-I know that week 4 is a deload but is week 1 as well?


After reading thru the intermediate programs I decided to go ahead and switch from the beginner program to this. I was about to start my 4th week of cycle 8. I had failed to get the reps for some of them and was starting to get a bit bored/tired. I feel weird about not finshing it but as soon I did workout1 of Intermediate1 on Monday I knew I had made the right decision! At first I wasn't interested in switching from working out 3x to 2x. BUT with the summer here and kids being out of school etc. working out 2x was looking better and better. Also, don't know if it was physical(pushing 40 years old here) or psychological but the 3x a week was starting to leave me feeling unrecovered. Anyway, I am excited about Intermediate1. I was slightly intimidated by the 5rep sets but I got over it . I also like the 2 different rep ranges for the main lifts/assistance work. ANd I LOVE that I can add whatever assistance work I need although I am a little too excited and afraid I added too many .

Thank you AllPro for being the brains behind all of these programs. Programming/training theory continue to blow my mind and be overwhelming when I try to learn about them and I (in spite of being blond) am a semi-intelligent person. It amazes me how generous you are with your knowledge and how patient you are with your answers. Again, THANK YOU.
~BrandiBopeep

Ahhhhh shucks.....

[Quirmbach]

Thanks a ton for taking the time to post these workouts. I worked on a beginner plan a friend put me on similar to yours before I got online and learned some things on my own, and had a ton of success with it. Since then, I've seemingly overestimated my ability to develop my own workout routine, as I have been working for a few months on my own and only am seeing improvement in certain areas. All that said, I'm looking forward to trying workout #4, but have a question. I started bouldering (technical rock climbing) at a local gym, and I'm absolutely addicted. It's a great workout, and I have worked up to five days a week, going to the regular gym three or four days of the week directly after a few hours of climbing. Can I still climb four or five times a week with this workout? I am desperate to increase size/strength, but I would really like to keep as many climbing days as possible. Sorry for the lengthy wording, I'm new and don't really know what information is relevant and what isn't.

[Quirmbach]

Intermediate 1
________________________________
Intermediate 4
Athletic performance and mass and strength gain
Two work outs per week. The first work out is based on Bill Starr's infamous 636 NFL program.
The heart and soul of this program is 3 sets of 3 followed by 3 sets of 6. It starts with 3, 6 rep warm up sets, hence the name 636.
The weight does not change for 3 weeks. Week 4 is a deload week. This set up slowly grinds you into powder!
Three core lifts. Squat, bench press and rows.
Set 1 at 25% of your 5 rep max for 6 reps.
Set 2 at 50% of your 5 rep max for 6 reps.
Set 3 at 75% of your 5 rep max for 6 reps.
Sets 4-5-6 at 100% of your 5 rep max for 3 reps.
Sets 7-8-9 at 90% of your 5 rep max for 6 reps.
On week four do just the first 3 sets! That's your deload. DO IT!
Work out 2
Week one. 75%, 1x15
Week two 85%, 2x10
Week three 95%, 3x5
Week four, 105%, 1x5
All assistance work goes on work out two. Percentages are based on your current 10 rep max.
Week 1 75% 1x15
Week 2 85% 1x15
Week 3 95% 1x10
Week 4 105% 1x10


Use the second estimate.

Sorry if this is obvious stuff, but again, I'm new here, so hopefully I'm not bugging you with stupid questions .

Just wanna make sure I'm understanding correctly... So for example, you would do workout #1 monday and workout #2 friday, right? (I mean just that you do both workouts each week). Also, for workout one, if your five rep max increases as the month goes on, do you increase your weight from week to week? For workout two, are the percentages still based on your five rep max, or ten rep max like the assistance? Is workout two really short? Thanks again for all your time.....

[all pro]

Sorry if this is obvious stuff, but again, I'm new here, so hopefully I'm not bugging you with stupid questions .

Just wanna make sure I'm understanding correctly... So for example, you would do workout #1 monday and workout #2 friday, right? (I mean just that you do both workouts each week). Also, for workout one, if your five rep max increases as the month goes on, do you increase your weight from week to week? For workout two, are the percentages still based on your five rep max, or ten rep max like the assistance? Is workout two really short? Thanks again for all your time.....

I wish I had posted the simpler set up. Let me revise and simplify work out 2. You are now using it as a rep max test. The first week you are using the 3 rep weight from work out 1 as your 3rd set weight. But you are going to use the results from set 4 to re-establish the weights for the 636 and the second work out. This only sounds complicated. It isn't. All of the estimates are coming from this calculator,
http://www.naturalphysiques.com/18/o...max-calculator
Lets say that your 5 rep max is 200 pounds that means that your estimated 15 rep max is 138.
Work out 2 would look like this,
50 pounds x 10
100 pounds x 10
200 pounds x 5
135 pounds x AS MANY AS YOU CAN GET!
If you get all 15 reps then for the next week don't touch the 636....yet. Instead adjust just that final set of the second work out to the estimated 10 rep max weight, 170 pounds, and again go for 15 reps! Ya I know you wont get them. But lets say a miracle occurs and you get 11 reps. That means that your 5 rep max is now 210. Now the 636 goes to 210 x 3 x 3 and the 3x6 goes to 190 x6 x 3.
It's easier to do then it is to explain. The down side of this set up is that it's BRUTAL! One way around that is not to up any of the weight until you can get 15 reps out of what was a 10 rep max. It's up to you to pick your favorite method of self torture. But I guarantee you, this set up Friggen rocks the block big time like no other that I have ever used!

[andavari]

I love your workout! I've only been on the program for a week and I feel and see a great deal of difference; especially with my traps, lats and quads. I can't wait to see the transformation after 5 weeks. Oh yeah, I'm actually thinning out as well, more of that V shape due to my back and shoulders. Max rep!

[all pro]

I love your workout! I've only been on the program for a week and I feel and see a great deal of difference; especially with my traps, lats and quads. I can't wait to see the transformation after 5 weeks. Oh yeah, I'm actually thinning out as well, more of that V shape due to my back and shoulders. Max rep!

That's great and I'm glad it's working for you.

[Spire]

I'm planning to give the second routine a shot.

I started on Starting Strength (ran it for 9 months), then ran Linear 5x5 for another 8-9 months .. and over the last almost 6 months I've been running GST, as I've become more concerned with size than strength.

6 months is a long time for the same program though, especially something so different to what I've always done (ie: GST is closer to a bodypart split vs the full body SS and 5x5 I "grew up" on). Keen to give this upper/lower routine a shot.

What have you found results to be like with these programs, All Pro? It's a moronic question, I know - but this program is aimed at giving a good split of size and strength, correct?

Currently slowly bulking - I'll let you know how it goes on this program in a few months

[kc0716]

Yup you start in the middle of the rep range weight wise. And you shouldn't need warm ups after the first 3 exercises.
4-8 starts at 6
6-10 starts at 8
8-12 starts at 10
8-20 starts at 12
Work out 1 can be rough when your numbers are less than 100 pounds. You can still run it but you have to reduce the progression to 5 pounds. I'm not sure how well that would work out.

Hey all pro. I have a question for option #2.

Am I right in assuming that (using only bench press in my train of thought for illustration purposes)

- If I don't know already, I should spend a couple days finding out what my 8, 10, 12, 20 RMs are right? (depending on what exercise of course, I would need to know my 8Rep-Max for Bench, 10 for OH press, 12 for curls etc)

- Then, I would begin the cycle in the middle. So for example, on Day A1, I would bench press 4x6 using my 8 RM max...Day A2, I would bench press 4x7 using my 8 RM max....Day A3, I would bench press 4x8, and if I got all of them done, add 5%.....Day A4, I would bench press 4x4 using my old 8RM + 5% right? .......OR..............is it 4x4 using 4RM, 4x5 using 4RM, 4x6 using 5RM : which means hitting failure on every last rep on every set for every exercise?

- If what I figured above is true, and this is sort of like your beginner routine, I'm guessing the week 1 & 2 are deload week, 3 is the "get back into it" week, 4 & 5 is "lift hard" weeks?

- Also, is it feasible to think that doing 4x8 (and hitting failure on the 8th rep for all 4 sets), progression is going to slow down a lot?

[Deviant Motive]

I ran this one for a while and loved it

Hey all pro. I have a question for option #2.

Am I right in assuming that (using only bench press in my train of thought for illustration purposes)

- If I don't know already, I should spend a couple days finding out what my 8, 10, 12, 20 RMs are right? (depending on what exercise of course, I would need to know my 8Rep-Max for Bench, 10 for OH press, 12 for curls etc)

Correct.

If you ran the Beginner Program, you should already have a very good idea of your rep max but its still a good idea to re-test for accuracy

- Then, I would begin the cycle in the middle. So for example, on Day A1, I would bench press 4x6 using my 8 RM max...Day A2, I would bench press 4x7 using my 8 RM max....Day A3, I would bench press 4x8, and if I got all of them done, add 5%.....Day A4, I would bench press 4x4 using my old 8RM + 5% right? .......OR..............is it 4x4 using 4RM, 4x5 using 4RM, 4x6 using 5RM : which means hitting failure on every last rep on every set for every exercise?

You start 4x4 first week, 4x5 second week, etc....using your 6RM for the bench press. Then add 5% at the end of the 5th week if you got all reps. If not, start over

- Also, is it feasible to think that doing 4x8 (and hitting failure on the 8th rep for all 4 sets), progression is going to slow down a lot?

Nope

[thedogdidit]

I've finished 1 1/2 weeks of routine #2 (seems to be a popular one!) and love it so far. I'm doing it ABAB.

Definitely harder than the beginner routine. Those 2 heavy days a week are killer - and awesome.

When I did the beginner routine, by the 3rd cycle (or 4th?), I had added in a few other exercises. I'm not sure when I'm gonna be ready to do that for this one. On Sunday, since the gym was empty, I decided to try an exercise I've wanted to do for awhile -- weighted hip thrusts. It was my upper body day and I threw those in at the end. Whoops.
Yesterday, lower body day suffered. But it's all good ... or hopefully will be by Thursday ...

Anyway, no questions ...
just blathering on about things ....

[Deviant Motive]

I'm in week 3 of workout #3 and I'm liking it.

I have thrown in DL and love them...........just gotta try not to throw out my back. I can really feel the old, weak back when I'm doing these. I have no trouble with SLDL though.

I did kinda tweaked my back a few days ago getting out of the truck. I twisted a little too much and I felt it pop. Its been tender ever since. I ALWAYS have to be careful about how I get out of vehicles and even twisting in my chair at work. Any twisting motion will screw me up for several weeks.

I see now why the workout is only 2 days a week. I can tell my body needs the rest/recovery time between Mon/Thur.

I did take the chance and buy Con-Cret Creatine and have been taking it for 6 days now. I haven't seen any difference in anything as of yet. I have a feeling I need to take it a lot longer than what I expected. I only bought the 24 serving because I was afraid it would kill my stomach like the old creatine did a few years ago. So far, even with my (undiagnosed) gastrointestinal issues, I've had no bad side effects................ but no good effects either.

I feel like I wasted my $18 as of right now.

[all pro]

I'm in week 3 of workout #3 and I'm liking it.

I have thrown in DL and love them...........just gotta try not to throw out my back. I can really feel the old, weak back when I'm doing these. I have no trouble with SLDL though.

I did kinda tweaked my back a few days ago getting out of the truck. I twisted a little too much and I felt it pop. Its been tender ever since. I ALWAYS have to be careful about how I get out of vehicles and even twisting in my chair at work. Any twisting motion will screw me up for several weeks.

I see now why the workout is only 2 days a week. I can tell my body needs the rest/recovery time between Mon/Thur.

I did take the chance and buy Con-Cret Creatine and have been taking it for 6 days now. I haven't seen any difference in anything as of yet. I have a feeling I need to take it a lot longer than what I expected. I only bought the 24 serving because I was afraid it would kill my stomach like the old creatine did a few years ago. So far, even with my (undiagnosed) gastrointestinal issues, I've had no bad side effects................ but no good effects either.

I feel like I wasted my $18 as of right now.

At 5 grams per day it will take about 30 days to saturate your muscles. It's one of the few "magic beans' that actually works.

[Deviant Motive]

That's what I was afraid of.

I don't have enough for a month but at least, if I can afford to get more, I know I can use this kind.

Maybe I can talk my husband into buying me some more. piff, I'm dreaming. He thinks I'm crazy and I've "wasted" to much of my money on weightlifting over the years since I've tried different proteins, creatine, vitamins, equipment, etc.

I could just cut back on the groceries for a couple of weeks

[kc0716]

I ran this one for a while and loved it

Correct.

If you ran the Beginner Program, you should already have a very good idea of your rep max but its still a good idea to re-test for accuracy


You start 4x4 first week, 4x5 second week, etc....using your 6RM for the bench press. Then add 5% at the end of the 5th week if you got all reps. If not, start over

Nope

So, by week 3, you are at your max (4x6 using 6RM) and then week 4 and 5 would be setting PRs right? (if they were able to be done )

[Deviant Motive]

Yup

[SuffolkPunch]

Hey all pro:

I think that a lot of people are not going to do your 2 day a week programs because they like to train more often than that.

Is there any harm in splitting the workout into more days, for example the intermediate 1 program with a few tweaks for my personal preference:

First part of week - 5 rep / 10 rep phase:

Saturday:
Core:
-Back squat
- Weighted dips
Accessory:
- Reverse grip bench
- Ab wheel rollouts

Sunday:
Dynamic: Power cleans (singles/triples)
Core: Weighted chins
Accessory:
- Military press
- EZ bar curl


Second part of week 3x5 rep phase:

Tuesday:
Core:
- Back squat
- Weighted chins
Accessory:
- Military Press
- Leg Press
- Lateral raises

Thursday:
Dynamic: Power snatch practice (singles/triples)
Core:
- Deadlift - alternate between:
.......A: 1x5 @ 100% then 1x6 @ 90%
.......B: 3x3 @ 100% (same weight as previous week)
- Weighted dips
Accessory:
- Dragon flags
- DB flyes

[Deviant Motive]

[brandibopeep]

I am currently in Cycle1 (Week2) of Intermediate Program1.

I understand that week 4 is a deload. The week after my week4deload I am going on vacation(won't be working out) so I will have a deload week back-to-back with a week of doing nothing. Should I keep it as such with basically 2 weeks of "deload" or should I continue week4 as I did weeks 2&3 and then have "week5(my vacation)" be my "deload" for cycle1 and then come home from vacation and start up cycle2 like normal? (<---sorry for the long-ass confusing wording! Hope that made some sorta sense!)

Also...still have a few questions from my earlier post:

Questions about Intermediate 1
-how many assistance exercises is too few/too many?

Thank you!
BrandiBopeep

[all pro]

Hey all pro. I have a question for option #2.

Am I right in assuming that (using only bench press in my train of thought for illustration purposes)

- If I don't know already, I should spend a couple days finding out what my 8, 10, 12, 20 RMs are right? (depending on what exercise of course, I would need to know my 8Rep-Max for Bench, 10 for OH press, 12 for curls etc)

- Then, I would begin the cycle in the middle. So for example, on Day A1, I would bench press 4x6 using my 8 RM max...Day A2, I would bench press 4x7 using my 8 RM max....Day A3, I would bench press 4x8, and if I got all of them done, add 5%.....Day A4, I would bench press 4x4 using my old 8RM + 5% right? .......OR..............is it 4x4 using 4RM, 4x5 using 4RM, 4x6 using 5RM : which means hitting failure on every last rep on every set for every exercise?

- If what I figured above is true, and this is sort of like your beginner routine, I'm guessing the week 1 & 2 are deload week, 3 is the "get back into it" week, 4 & 5 is "lift hard" weeks?

- Also, is it feasible to think that doing 4x8 (and hitting failure on the 8th rep for all 4 sets), progression is going to slow down a lot?

You only need to find ONE of the rep maxes and use a calculator to estimate the correct starting weight. You don't have to spend the rest of your life testing each and every rep max.

[all pro]

I am currently in Cycle1 (Week2) of Intermediate Program1.

I understand that week 4 is a deload. The week after my week4deload I am going on vacation(won't be working out) so I will have a deload week back-to-back with a week of doing nothing. Should I keep it as such with basically 2 weeks of "deload" or should I continue week4 as I did weeks 2&3 and then have "week5(my vacation)" be my "deload" for cycle1 and then come home from vacation and start up cycle2 like normal? (<---sorry for the long-ass confusing wording! Hope that made some sorta sense!)

Also...still have a few questions from my earlier post:


Thank you!
BrandiBopeep

Enjoy the time off and pick it up where you left off. You don't start detraining until after the 2 week mark so you shouldn't lose anything. To answer your second question, there is no limit. Some people can stand training for 2 hours and others are in trouble after an hour. That's why intermediat and above programs aren't cast in stone. At this level the laws of individuality begin to show up. I always suggest adding things one at a time for 1 set each. At this level that means upper push + upper pull + legs. So you could try adding as many as 3 exercises per cycle. All you have to do is decide where you need the work.

[brandibopeep]

Enjoy the time off and pick it up where you left off. You don't start detraining until after the 2 week mark so you shouldn't lose anything. To answer your second question, there is no limit. Some people can stand training for 2 hours and others are in trouble after an hour. That's why intermediat and above programs aren't cast in stone. At this level the laws of individuality begin to show up. I always suggest adding things one at a time for 1 set each. At this level that means upper push + upper pull + legs. So you could try adding as many as 3 exercises per cycle. All you have to do is decide where you need the work.

Sounds good! Thanks!

[muladesigns]

I am wondering.
I workout 5 days a week. I do one main body part per workout. (About 15 total sets and average 8 - 10 reps each set). followed by stomach 3 days a week, and calves twice a week.
I am getting satisfactory results. good steady growth, with respectable gains.
my question is.
Am I loosing out on gaining more mass by choosing this type of routine? I tried a three day split routine before in the past, and have yielded better results thus far by the 5 day routine.

[brandibopeep]

... "Anytime that you can complete all of the assigned reps add 10 pounds for the next week."

could I go by a % of the weight for my progression? My numbers are pretty low to add 10 lbs to. BTW I have microplates and can progress with as little as 2.5lbs if necessary.
If so what % would I use for the increase AND what % would I use to drop back if I failed to get all the reps(like mentioned below)?

..."To start the next cycle if you were failing to complete every set of a given exercise then you reduce the weight by 30 pounds for week 1 for work out 2 only."

-is this true for assistance exercises too?
-so on week 2 workout 2 you go back to that weight that you were failing to get all the reps?
-what about light weight DB exercises? For example: I went from using 10# to #15 DBs for lateral raises....what if I can't get all 12 reps? Cycle 2 workout 1 I would use the 15s...then what would I drop back to for workout 2?

[Deviant Motive]

I've been reading through all the workouts trying to get a quick understanding of them for future reference when I change up routines. I ran #2 and I'm currently on #3.

#4 has me very confused.

I get workout 1.
squat, bench, row.......no assistance work
3 sets @ 25%, 50%, 75% x 6 reps.
3 sets @ 100% x 3 reps
3 sets @ 90% x 6 reps

deload week is only 3 sets @ 25%, 50%, 75% x 6 reps?

workout 2.............. I don't get it.
Still do squat, bench, row like the above setup? But I don't get where the 1x15 come in. I'm even more confused after allpro's response to Quirmbach

I wish I had posted the simpler set up. Let me revise and simplify work out 2. You are now using it as a rep max test. The first week you are using the 3 rep weight from work out 1 as your 3rd set weight. But you are going to use the results from set 4 to re-establish the weights for the 636 and the second work out. This only sounds complicated. It isn't. All of the estimates are coming from this calculator,
http://www.naturalphysiques.com/18/o...max-calculator
Lets say that your 5 rep max is 200 pounds that means that your estimated 15 rep max is 138.
Work out 2 would look like this,
50 pounds x 10
100 pounds x 10
200 pounds x 5
135 pounds x AS MANY AS YOU CAN GET!
If you get all 15 reps then for the next week don't touch the 636....yet. Instead adjust just that final set of the second work out to the estimated 10 rep max weight, 170 pounds, and again go for 15 reps! Ya I know you wont get them. But lets say a miracle occurs and you get 11 reps. That means that your 5 rep max is now 210. Now the 636 goes to 210 x 3 x 3 and the 3x6 goes to 190 x6 x 3.
It's easier to do then it is to explain. The down side of this set up is that it's BRUTAL! One way around that is not to up any of the weight until you can get 15 reps out of what was a 10 rep max. It's up to you to pick your favorite method of self torture. But I guarantee you, this set up Friggen rocks the block big time like no other that I have ever used!

I really wanted to try this to see how hard it is. Mainly, just out of curiosity. (I doesn't afraid of anything )

Assistance work is based on 10RM @ 75% 1x15, week 1, etc.

I'll re-read it another 3-4 times and maybe it'll click. I am at work and hungover so I'm not quite at my best, mentally, today.

[all pro]

I am wondering.
I workout 5 days a week. I do one main body part per workout. (About 15 total sets and average 8 - 10 reps each set). followed by stomach 3 days a week, and calves twice a week.
I am getting satisfactory results. good steady growth, with respectable gains.
my question is.
Am I loosing out on gaining more mass by choosing this type of routine? I tried a three day split routine before in the past, and have yielded better results thus far by the 5 day routine.

I don't think body part splits are all that good for mass gain. That leaves 2 choices, full body 2-3 times per week or an upper lower split 4 times per week. That type of set up will allow you to use a wider variety of rep ranges with out running out of gas in the middle of the work out. Body part splits seem to work best for advanced lifters that have the mass and are just trying to get the look at that point. But like everything else you wont know until you try. Just be sure to keep good records so that you can make a good assessment afterword.

[all pro]

could I go by a % of the weight for my progression? My numbers are pretty low to add 10 lbs to. BTW I have microplates and can progress with as little as 2.5lbs if necessary.
If so what % would I use for the increase AND what % would I use to drop back if I failed to get all the reps(like mentioned below)?



-is this true for assistance exercises too?
-so on week 2 workout 2 you go back to that weight that you were failing to get all the reps?
-what about light weight DB exercises? For example: I went from using 10# to #15 DBs for lateral raises....what if I can't get all 12 reps? Cycle 2 workout 1 I would use the 15s...then what would I drop back to for workout 2?

I was typing out an answer and the friggen power went out, so I'll try again.
The spread between 1x5 and 3x5 is 5%. You can play it safe and go up by 2.5% each time you get all 3 sets of 5. It will keep you in the middle. The spread between 8 and 12 reps is about 10%. Going up by 5% will keep you in the middle. That means that on the first work out, when you're finished you have 2 reps in the tank. On the second work out, It's on like donkey kong! Kick it's butt!

[all pro]

I've been reading through all the workouts trying to get a quick understanding of them for future reference when I change up routines. I ran #2 and I'm currently on #3.

#4 has me very confused.

I get workout 1.
squat, bench, row.......no assistance work
3 sets @ 25%, 50%, 75% x 6 reps.
3 sets @ 100% x 3 reps
3 sets @ 90% x 6 reps

deload week is only 3 sets @ 25%, 50%, 75% x 6 reps?

workout 2.............. I don't get it.
Still do squat, bench, row like the above setup? But I don't get where the 1x15 come in. I'm even more confused after allpro's response to Quirmbach

I really wanted to try this to see how hard it is. Mainly, just out of curiosity. (I doesn't afraid of anything )

Assistance work is based on 10RM @ 75% 1x15, week 1, etc.

I'll re-read it another 3-4 times and maybe it'll click. I am at work and hungover so I'm not quite at my best, mentally, today.

Work out 2 sets the stage for the next week. The final set you are testing for a 15 rep max weight. Use the results for however many reps you get to estimate your 5 rep max. That's the weight for the 3x3 sets of the first work out. The 3x6 you use 10% less weight. The assistance work is the same idea. If you can do 15 reps then reset the weight to your 10 rep max. I know, I know, this is different than what I posted but it's simpler. What I posted works great when I'm training a hard core iron head one on one. But it ain't going to cut it long distance over the internet. My fault and I apologize. I should have thought about that before posting that version. If you follow what I posted here it will keep you pushing from start to finish but it's a hell of a lot easier to set up. Just make sure that week 4 is a deload to avoid problems.
A simple deload for work out 1 is to do 6 sets but for the 3x3 portion use the weight from the 3x6. For the second work out reduce the weight by 25% and do 15 reps. You'll know if you got it right because you will feel supercharged for the next week!

[baja272]

Hello Allpro:

Ive been on the 5x5 program for 6 months and would like to start program 3 above. Is three times a week too much for this program for a 49yo male?

[brandibopeep]

I was typing out an answer and the friggen power went out, so I'll try again.
The spread between 1x5 and 3x5 is 5%. You can play it safe and go up by 2.5% each time you get all 3 sets of 5. It will keep you in the middle. The spread between 8 and 12 reps is about 10%. Going up by 5% will keep you in the middle. That means that on the first work out, when you're finished you have 2 reps in the tank. On the second work out, It's on like donkey kong! Kick it's butt!

ok thanks! that works for the increase now what about the % for that decrease(on wk1 workout2 of the next ) in the instance I don't get all the reps?

[all pro]

Hello Allpro:

Ive been on the 5x5 program for 6 months and would like to start program 3 above. Is three times a week too much for this program for a 49yo male?

Program 3 is no joke. The 636 is the back bone of the NFL. I watered it down considerably to post it here. For at least the first 4 weeks you're better off to just train twice per week. After the deload week you can decide if you've got enough energy to take it 3x per week. I'll be 56 in October. I LUV what the 636 does for me. I HATE what it does to me in the process. I run it for 2-3 cycles and then back off to something that looks like program 1 until everything stops hurting and I don't feel like a zombie any more.