Bill Starr's 5x5

[Ed Gasket]

i've just read up on bill starrs 5x5 routine and i'm thinking of giving it a try for a few months as opposed to the 4x10 training 'm doin at the moment as it is for strength and tone. Anyone tried it or is using it? have you seen any gains? it seems like an interesting site and makes alot of sense, i rarely use a program other than my own but seeing as it is a bulking program i may try it.

[abear]

i'm doing a variation right now and keeping a log in the diary section. its helped me out big time

[Karky]

im on it, ive seen gains its a good program!

[R.Lewis]

Its good for gaining strength and mass, but its geared towards powerlifting more than anything else.

If you lift weights for cosmetic reasons then you may find it better to add more shoulder, ab, oblique and Lat work to the program.

When I tryed the 5x5, after a few week I had to add another workout to the program Cos I felt I needed more work in thoses areas.

[Karky]

yeah ive been kind of qurious about the 5x5 and the lats as i want v shape but it doesnt have alot of lat work.

[R.Lewis]

The main thing for me was that I felt it was too much leg work and the workouts were very uneven.

I was always told to keep everyting equal to stop muscle imballence.
with the BS5x5 your working the chest twice as much as the lats for just 1 example.

[Karky]

well, the 5x5 is made by people who know what they are doing. too much leg work? its probobly because the base of the program is the squat, but i dont think its so uneven, whats so uneven?

[R.Lewis]

Its good at what its designed for, which is to make you strong for powerlifting.

But not good for bodybuilding.

[evolution]

Originally Posted by Karky

yeah ive been kind of qurious about the 5x5 and the lats as i want v shape but it doesnt have alot of lat work.

A program has nothing to do with the V shape, it has to do with how our bodyfat is; a diet will address this issue.

The 5X5 is a great program for building size and strength.

M-
squat 5X5
bench 5X5
row 5X5
...it's pretty evened out

And it continues like this.

One of my fav variations of it looks like this-
Monday
Squats-5x5(Do four progressively heavier sets of 5 with the 5th set being your 5RM.)
bent over row or Pendlay row-5x5(Do the same)
Bench Press-5x5(Do the same)
Incline DB Press-2x12-20

Wednesday
deadlifts-4x6
Good Mornings-3x8-12
Shoulder Press-5x5
Pullups-4xmax

Friday
Squats-warmup to a 3 reps with 5 more lbs than you used on Monday. On the following monday use this weight for your 5th set.
Bent Over Row-5x5
Incline Bench-5x5
Tricep Extensions-2x12-20

Of course, there's always a modified Westside-esque set-up with ME days and RE days...but that's another animal altogether.

[R.Lewis]

Evo, when I made the comment about it not being even I was looking at the fact that you work chest with 3 exercises of 2-5 sets., and then lats there are 4 sets of 1 exercise per week

[Karky]

evo, you throw inn a few extra exercises, why is that? do you think it is more effective that way?

[Ed Gasket]

Originally Posted by Karky

yeah ive been kind of qurious about the 5x5 and the lats as i want v shape but it doesnt have alot of lat work.

bent over rows work the lats dont they?

[evolution]

Originally Posted by Karky

evo, you throw inn a few extra exercises, why is that? do you think it is more effective that way?

The 5X5 is not so much a program by itself but a way to set your program up. I've seen many different variations of the 5X5 and I just happened to like the way that that one is set up.

I didn't really add anything as this is not my design but if I was going to do a 5X5 program, I'd tweak it a bit more than what I put up...but that's me and I have specific purposes.

[liecheatsteal]

what is the 5x5? my bad...

[Ed Gasket]

google bill starr's 5x5 mate