"Fierce 5" Novice Routine

[GainAfterPain]

Very nice thread, I really like it. I'm going to use the original workout and I will start tomorrow(Friday) or next week Monday. I will probably keep track of my weekly progress in a workout log.

Question though: I can only squat like 40kg, warming up with just the barbell is a good idea right?

[MichaelDeMolay]

So as I understand, there is only a slight diference in results between the different programs correct? I want to run the program that emphasizes size. my only slight concern is that the extra reps are more likely to cause frequent stalls and eventually even hinder or be detrimental to linear progression. Are my concerns warranted? If not I would prefer to have that size emphasis.

[davisj3537]

It's just that I'm very busy at work and I feel it in my body. I don't mean starting fresh from scratch all over again, just a little rest to get the engine fueled again. And pick up where I left off after a week. That's all there's to it really.

Like a deload. No issues with that bud. Good luck.

Very nice thread, I really like it. I'm going to use the original workout and I will start tomorrow(Friday) or next week Monday. I will probably keep track of my weekly progress in a workout log.

Question though: I can only squat like 40kg, warming up with just the barbell is a good idea right?

You've got the idea sir.

So as I understand, there is only a slight diference in results between the different programs correct? Correct I want to run the program that emphasizes size. my only slight concern is that the extra reps are more likely to cause frequent stalls and eventually even hinder or be detrimental to linear progression. Are my concerns warranted? Meh If not I would prefer to have that size emphasis.

I think progression could be slightly more challenging on the high rep template, but if you are eating appropriately you should have no problem completing your sets.

[tsraponi]

I've been doing a dumbell one-arm row instead of the pendlay row since I don't know how to do it properly and the I can't find someone at the gym able to teach me... it isn't a very well known exercise.

Am I at a great disadvantage by substituting this exercise ?

[jdoug85]

I've been doing a dumbell one-arm row instead of the pendlay row since I don't know how to do it properly and the I can't find someone at the gym able to teach me... it isn't a very well known exercise.

Am I at a great disadvantage by substituting this exercise ?

The exercise section of this forum and YouTube are your friends

[beasknees]

Looks great - starting Option 1 tomorrow

[starx6673]

Like a deload. No issues with that bud. Good luck.

Yup, something like that! Thanks!

[davisj3537]

I've been doing a dumbell one-arm row instead of the pendlay row since I don't know how to do it properly and the I can't find someone at the gym able to teach me... it isn't a very well known exercise.

Am I at a great disadvantage by substituting this exercise ?

That depends on what your 1arm DB row looks like. I attached a video of how to do a pendlay row in the FAQ.

[NathanEvanss]

Just wondering, my week looks like this..

Mon - Gym
Tues - Football(Soccer Training)
Wed - Gym
Thurs - Football with friends(Soccer)
Fri - Gym
Sat - Rest
Sun - Football Game(Soccer)

Will this affect my lifting as long as i eat the calories that i have burned while playing football?

[davisj3537]

Just wondering, my week looks like this..

Mon - Gym
Tues - Football(Soccer Training)
Wed - Gym
Thurs - Football with friends(Soccer)
Fri - Gym
Sat - Rest
Sun - Football Game(Soccer)

Will this affect my lifting as long as i eat the calories that i have burned while playing football?

Of course this much activity will make any program a little more difficult, but if you eat appropriately you'll still do just fine.

[Jesse6131994]

lets say its monday and im starting the workout.

monday - do the squats at 100lb

wednesday - blah blah

friday - do i keep the squats at 100lb or 105?

[davisj3537]

lets say its monday and im starting the workout.

monday - do the squats at 100lb

wednesday - blah blah

friday - do i keep the squats at 100lb or 105?

You are way over thinking this.

[Jesse6131994]

You are way over thinking this.

im just trying to understand the progression scheme....thats all. lol

[CagedInSanity]

lets say its monday and im starting the workout.

monday - do the squats at 100lb

wednesday - blah blah

friday - do i keep the squats at 100lb or 105?

Assuming your workout days are Monday Wednesday Friday, then no if you were squatting 100 lbs Monday you would not be squatting 105 on friday, you would still be doing 100. The following week you move the weights up. PS. squats go up 10lbs per week not 5. I think he's saying you're overthinking it because realistically if you broke it down to 5lbs a session instead of 10lbs per week it probably wouldn't make a big difference, but I think the reason it's set up the way it is is so you up the weights after a 2 day break, fully rested and at your strongest, whereas friday might not be a great day to up the weights...

[davisj3537]

^Bingo

[Dax510]

Just finished my first week of Option 2 and it's a great workout. The A2 workout was hell going to 10 reps, albeit a good hell. Quick question, for option 2 when there are two different rep schemes during the week, do we use the same weight for the 10 rep sets as we did for the 5 rep?

[davisj3537]

Just finished my first week of Option 2 and it's a great workout. The A2 workout was hell going to 10 reps, albeit a good hell. Quick question, for option 2 when there are two different rep schemes during the week, do we use the same weight for the 10 rep sets as we did for the 5 rep?

No sir. This is covered in the FAQ.

[scoutkb]

I've been following this program for about a week and I really like it. But I dont really feel my chest being worked after workout B. I assume the OHP is supposed to work the upper chest but i'm not sure how well it's working for me. My legs and back definitely feel sore after the workouts but i'm recovering well and strength is going up on all lifts. Should i add direct chest work to day 2 or is this an OHP form issue?

[davisj3537]

I've been following this program for about a week and I really like it. But I dont really feel my chest being worked after workout B. I assume the OHP is supposed to work the upper chest but i'm not sure how well it's working for me. My legs and back definitely feel sore after the workouts but i'm recovering well and strength is going up on all lifts. Should i add direct chest work to day 2 or is this an OHP form issue?

Don't add anything. This is covered in the FAQ. For the record, "feeling" it doesn't mean $hit.

[DEEETS]

Great routine (almost) exactly what I'm looking for – I’ve been trying to digest the stickies to come up with a routine I can do.

I’m 31, back in the gym after 13 yrs and looking to cut >40kg. I have a few questions if that’s okay.

Due to a car accident my right ankle is medically fused, bone on bone, as a result I have no movement in my right ankle so...

1) I am unable to do the squats, can I swap for leg press / leg extension / a combination or another sub?

2) I am also unable to the calf work, and there’s nothing I can really sub in because I can’t bend my ankle. Should I sub in another exercise for another body part? Go for 3x triceps?

3) Because of the amount of weight I have to cut, I’ll still be cutting by the time the 4-6 month period of the routine is finished. Which of the variations would be the best for me? (I’ll take a stab in the dark at this one........... it doesn’t matter, don’t over think it????)


Thanks

[davisj3537]

You can swap squats for leg press. I'd leave the calf exercise slot blank. That is a lot of weight to cut. If you'd like to do this program I'd do rep option 1.

[DEEETS]

You can swap squats for leg press. I'd leave the calf exercise slot blank. That is a lot of weight to cut. If you'd like to do this program I'd do rep option 1.

Thanks, appreciate it.

[FearIsGood]

You can swap squats for leg press. I'd leave the calf exercise slot blank. That is a lot of weight to cut. If you'd like to do this program I'd do rep option 1.

I tried your workout and it was great, but there are things that didn't go well with me. In the exercises of the 5 rep range, I'd prefer to do directly a 5RM instead of a 8-10RM of 5 reps and same for the exercises of the 8-10 reps... for example on the Bench press I will chose a weight to do maximum 5 reps, by this I will be training to failure, do you think it's bad? Also I ignore doing this "superset", I prefer to finish the exercise and move to another since people are waiting to use the barbell.

[davisj3537]

I tried your workout and it was great, but there are things that didn't go well with me. In the exercises of the 5 rep range, I'd prefer to do directly a 5RM instead of a 8-10RM of 5 reps and same for the exercises of the 8-10 reps... for example on the Bench press I will chose a weight to do maximum 5 reps, by this I will be training to failure, do you think it's bad? Also I ignore doing this "superset", I prefer to finish the exercise and move to another since people are waiting to use the barbell.

There is no issue with you not doing the supersets. As for starting with a 8-10 rep max for sets of 5...this is done so that you don't fail. Running your lifts to failure is a mistake. You can run the program any way you like, but using a 5RM would be a mistake. The progression would eat you alive. If you just continued to follow the progression as is you'll be struggling in no time.

[scoutkb]

Regarding the deadlift, is it OK to use a belt on all the work sets? I'm just a little cautious at this point, i've had several close calls over the years with a couple of slightly slipped disks. I did deadlifts yesterday with a fairly light weight (175) and today my mid back felt really tight and i had some slight muscle muscle tingling in the mid back that went away with motrin. If i use a belt, how would that impact the program?

[davisj3537]

Regarding the deadlift, is it OK to use a belt on all the work sets? I'm just a little cautious at this point, i've had several close calls over the years with a couple of slightly slipped disks. I did deadlifts yesterday with a fairly light weight (175) and today my mid back felt really tight and i had some slight muscle muscle tingling in the mid back that went away with motrin. If i use a belt, how would that impact the program?

You are more than welcome to use a belt. You should keep in mind that deadlifts will cause injuries if your form is bad. A belt won't fix bad form...you'll still get injured. Take some video of your deadlift from the side and post it or PM it to me. This forum is very helpful when it comes to form critiques.

[unstrong]

Thinking about switching over to this routine from my current modified starting strength split. Even though I've been gaining a good amount of weight and some size, I'm not getting the strength gains that I've been looking for. The biggest problem is that I really can't keep up on the workout-to-workout increases, especially squatting 3x a week. I'm currently running:

A
Front Squats 5x3
Bench 3x5
Sumo Deadlifts 1x5
Pullups 3xfailure

B
Low Bar Squats 3x5
OHP 3x5
Pendlay Rows 3x5
Leg Curls 3x8

The changes on the A workout come as a result of some squat advice from Lucifer and Kaleida, with the Sumo deads swapped for conventional to try to keep the routine more balanced.

Couple of questions if I decide to switch:
- Is there any preference on which squat to use?
- Can I continue to front and low bar squat, alternating, or is this a bad idea because of decreased squat frequency?
- Preference on deadlift stance?
- Can I just move over my current weights, or is there any adjusting to do?
- Is deloading done the first time one fails to complete the required reps on this program? Second? Third?

Sorry for the long post, and thanks for staying so involved in the thread!

[davisj3537]

- Is there any preference on which squat to use?
- Can I continue to front and low bar squat, alternating, or is this a bad idea because of decreased squat frequency?
- Preference on deadlift stance?
- Can I just move over my current weights, or is there any adjusting to do?
- Is deloading done the first time one fails to complete the required reps on this program? Second? Third?

1. That depends on on several factors. We'll discuss this next. For future reference I advise a back squat

2. I'm liking the front squat/RDL swapped for DL/leg curl more and more lately. With this in mind, if you want to alternate between front and low bar then I'd do exactly that. Swap the DL/leg curl for a front squat/RDL. This way you'll do a low bar squat on workout A and do a front squat and RDL on workout B.

3. If you don't do the swap listed above then the stance you take on a DL doesn't matter.

4. This is complicated. You'll be adding more volume and changing rep ranges. I also have no clue how hard you are working. I'm not pulling/pushing the weight ya know. Dropping 10% wouldn't kill ya to be safe. It'll be put right back on in less than 3 weeks...work on your form during this time and come back strong.

Good luck

[JSELIN91]

Just started today, great layout. So is the weight supposed to be reset even after one failed lift? Also, can I use the weight I was using before on SS? My lifts were 205/150/235 s/b/d.

[davisj3537]

Just started today, great layout. So is the weight supposed to be reset even after one failed lift? Also, can I use the weight I was using before on SS? My lifts were 205/150/235 s/b/d.

1. Yes and let me explain why with this retardedly long answer. I've been thinking about this a lot lately. Most programs have you fail a couple times before resetting. I think resetting after one is better because it keeps you in a good mental state. If you fail a lift every time you go in the gym it builds a negative relationship in your mind with that lift....especially with beginners. Even when you drop the weight you'll be back at the same weight in 3 weeks or so. It isn't like you won't be getting stronger and bigger at a lighter weight. Work on your form and come back and crush the weight you failed on.

2. See #4 on above post of mine.