5x5 frankies or stronglifts

spent most of last year with frankies 5x5 with good results but i tend to see people talking about stronglifts 5x5, the same concept i no but the latter seems a lot more basic and mybe get quite boring, whats your views, also i have a new rack and would like to do a few cable excercises ect. any help thanks

aidy,
 
I am into my 4th week on Stronglifts and I like it a lot, not finding it boring at all so far but that might change after 12 weeks which is how long I am going to keep on it for. I think what you can gain from this program (not just physically) makes it worth a bit of tedium for just 12 weeks anyway. 
 
I like the fact that it's so simple to be honest, it allows me to really concentrate on technique for just 5 lifts which I'm really keen on. I feel it will give anyone a good solid foundation to progress from.
 
I like the way its designed progression wise too, you always have a new target to aim for on every session and it's nice and clear what to do when you fail or hit a plateau.
 
I'm sure it's not for everyone but if you want to build strength and gain muscle and improve your technique all at the same time then I think it's hard to beat.
 
Starting strength is similar and looks good too.

thanks mate just about to start a set now, is it A 1 week then B the next week and so on?

also deadlift is only 1x5 do you think thats enough? and your doing pendley rows instead of bo rows am i right? thanks

i like poached eggs


aidy,

I am into my 4th week on Stronglifts and I like it a lot, not finding it boring at all so far but that might change after 12 weeks which is how long I am going to keep on it for. I think what you can gain from this program (not just physically) makes it worth a bit of tedium for just 12 weeks anyway. 

I like the fact that it's so simple to be honest, it allows me to really concentrate on technique for just 5 lifts which I'm really keen on. I feel it will give anyone a good solid foundation to progress from.

I like the way its designed progression wise too, you always have a new target to aim for on every session and it's nice and clear what to do when you fail or hit a plateau.

I'm sure it's not for everyone but if you want to build strength and gain muscle and improve your technique all at the same time then I think it's hard to beat.

Starting strength is similar and looks good too.

 
How are you getting on with the squats?
I'm on week seven now, used the calculator to find my starting weight as I'd been squating for six weeks before starting. It looks like I might have to drop the squats from deadlift day to help with recovery though.

stephec

i like poached eggs


aidy,

I am into my 4th week on Stronglifts and I like it a lot, not finding it boring at all so far but that might change after 12 weeks which is how long I am going to keep on it for. I think what you can gain from this program (not just physically) makes it worth a bit of tedium for just 12 weeks anyway. 

I like the fact that it's so simple to be honest, it allows me to really concentrate on technique for just 5 lifts which I'm really keen on. I feel it will give anyone a good solid foundation to progress from.

I like the way its designed progression wise too, you always have a new target to aim for on every session and it's nice and clear what to do when you fail or hit a plateau.

I'm sure it's not for everyone but if you want to build strength and gain muscle and improve your technique all at the same time then I think it's hard to beat.

Starting strength is similar and looks good too.

How are you getting on with the squats?
I'm on week seven now, used the calculator to find my starting weight as I'd been squating for six weeks before starting. It looks like I might have to drop the squats from deadlift day to help with recovery though.

 
Ok so far but I'm an old fart (47) with a dodgy back, very new to weights and only at 62.5Kg on squats at the moment, they are just starting to make me work. I am going very deep so I guess I could lift more if I stopped at paralell but to be honest the numbers don't worry me. it's all about getting the technique bang on first and foremost, I guess the numbers will come if I get that right.
 
I can imagine I'm going to start struggling real soon as I get to my PB's on all 5 lifts over the next couple of weeks.
 
Have you managed to keep upping the bar every session or have you failed to complete 5x5 on anything yet? any deloads?

With strong lifts I'm only doing bench every 2 weeks? Again is it part a 1 week then part b the Next and so on

Aidy,
 
OK, I'll try and answer your questions for you.
 
There are 2 workouts, see below for details
 
Workout A 
Squats 5x5 
Bench 5X5 
Bent over rows 5x5 (Pendlay rows are best) 
Workout B 
Squats 5x5 
OHP 5X5 (Military Press is best) 
Deadlift 1x5 
  
You alternate workouts, week 1 is ABA, week 2 is BAB and so on. 

 
This means you do Squats 6 times and everything else 3 times a fortnight.
 
Pendlay rows are bent over rows with one vital difference, you put the bar down and reset between reps, just as you would with deadlifts, you also try to perform the lift explosively rather than slow and steady, it's a much better exercise done this way.
 
1x5 deadlifts will seem easy enough to start with but when the weight starts getting heavy it will be planty after heavy squats and rows, don't forget you will also be doing 2 warm up sets as well.
 
See below for links to Stronglifts site for details. 
http://stronglifts.com/ 
  
There's a lot of waffle and far too much self promotion and testimonials on the site for my liking but ignore that and just read about the program and the excellent articles on how to perform each lift. 
  
Another good site is starting strength, Mark Rippetoe really knows his stuff and his instruction articles/videos are very helpful, link below. Loads of videos of his on You Tube. 
http://startingstrength.com/ 
  
  
I have made a spreadsheet for 5x5 that tells you exactly what to lift for each exercise for each session as you progress and even works out your warm up sets for you too, it also includes graphs so you can easily track your progress. If you decide you want to go 5x5 and would like a copy of the spreadsheet PM me and I'll e-mail it to you. 



If you have any more questions I'll do my best to help, or one of the more experienced MT members will step in if my answers aren't so good or if I'm missing something.

 

That all I need to know mate, can't thank u enough for your time and advice.

 
No problem mate, I'm still pretty new to this myself and I've had some great advice from people on here so if I can do anything to help anybody else I'm always happy to take the time to do what I can.
 
I'd recommend starting a journal too, it's suprising how much support and helpful comments you will get.
 
Good luck with your training

Hey Guys, thought I might put my input on this, There's an Stronglift App With it good for Tracking or logging which is handy =)
 
I started stronglifts after 4 weeks break over christmas,
On 6th of Jan I did
30Kg 5,5,5,5,5 Squats
30Kg 5,5,5,5,5 Bench press
35Kg 5,5,5,5,5 Bench Rows
 
Didn't go gym on the monday becuase I was too sore,
Didn't squat on the wednesday, Did
30Kg 5,4,3,0,0 Overhead Press, Didn't try the squats will sore.
 
Will be doing it today though =)

Stronglifts is a great beginners routine but there's only so long that squatting 3x per week is feasible. 
 
 

aidy


also deadlift is only 1x5 do you think thats enough?

 
 
If 5 reps isn't enough, you're not lifting heavy enough. If you're giving it all you've got it will take a few days to recover from it. 

   UGM - A friendly fitness community.

Homercles


Stronglifts is a great beginners routine but there's only so long that squatting 3x per week is feasible.  

 
That's what happened to me.
 
I'd been squatting for a couple of months before starting Stronglifts, so used the table to calculate my starting weights. Come week five I was up to 80kg squats, but my legs decided they couldn't keep it up. I did a couple of sessions without being able to increase the weight, then finally decided to drop the squats from deadlift day, it's made a big difference.