III. Programming
**A. The basics
**B. Stalling and Resetting
**C. What to do after Rippetoe, Part 1
**D. General Questions
*****1. How much weight should I use?
*****2. What about sets and reps?
What to do after Rippetoe, Part 1
Question - What do I do after the Rippetoe novice program stops working?
Simply put, what do I do, how long do I do it, and when do I switch up?
The following progression will be SPECIFIC to individuals who have NEVER LIFTED WEIGHTS BEFORE. This is not for the older guy who is getting back in shape, this is for the kid/guy with very little or zero barbell training experience. This is a slight adjustment from the original writeup I did. Mark Rippetoe and I discussed progression via conversation, and he also has a large portion of "Practical Programming" dedicated to this type of question, so here is where things stand now.
"Base Novice program"
Workout A
Squats - 3x5
Bench - 3x5
Deadlift - 1x5
Workout B
Squats - 3x5
Standing Press - 3x5
Lighter pull from floor (rows 3x5 or cleans 5x3)
Why so few exercises? Why so little sets and reps? Why not add a few things right off the bat? Where the hell is the arm work? Check the Table of Contents, Section V. I address all of that specifically.
You progress on the base novice program for as long as you can add weight to the bar every workout. If you stall on one of the lifts but continue to progress on the other 2, you can make some "adjustments" to that specific troublesome lift (See Table of Contents - Section III - Programming - stalling and resetting), but continue to drive on with the other 2. Understand that 99% of you will stall faster on the presses and lighter pulls than you will on the squats and the heavy pulls (i.e. deadlifts).
Once you become tolerant to the volume contained within the base novice program, you can begin to judiciously add exercises. For some completely untrained/unfit/unathletic people, and especially for those who are "more mature" (i.e. an old fart, like me), you could end up sticking with this basic program for several weeks. For the naturally strong or the fit athlete involved in strength-oriented sports such as football, hockey, wrestling, martial arts, etc, this initiation period may only be 2 weeks, and you will be ready to tolerate added work.
At this point, 2 bodyweight exercises can be added.
Workout A
Squats - 3x5
Bench - 3x5
Deadlift - 1x5
DIPS - 2 x 8-12
Workout B
Squats - 3x5
Standing Press - 3x5
Pull from floor (rows 3x5 or cleans 5x3)
PULLUPS/CHINS - 2 x 8-12 - (3 sets of pullups/chins can be done if you do the cleans instead of the rows)
You add dips to Workout A and chins to workout B. Which should you do, pullups or chinups? How wide should your hands be? Why 8-12 reps? See Table of Contents, Section II, under Accessory Exercises.
Give this a few weeks. Most people, if they introduce these 2 exercises correctly (i.e. you don't rush it, and you maintain proper nutrition/rest/recovery) will be able to make a few months worth of solid progress with this exact template. Eventually, however, most of you will get impatient and will INSIST on adding some direct arm work. Here is how you should add it.
Friday workout only
curl - 2 x 8-12
triceps extension (TriEx)- 2 x 8-12
Notice it's not added to Workout A AND Workout B? notice it's not always added to the SAME workout all the time? You add it to the Friday workout because you will have an extra day to recover from the training. Exact techniques on the curls and extensions is further discussed in Section II, Accessory Exercises.
Abdominal work is desirable. Abdominal work can be added carefully from the time you begin the training. Do NOT overdo this, as your midsection will take a pounding from the squats, deadlifts, and pulls from the floor. You do not want your midsection tired while performing these lifts or you can injure yourself. As a result, I highly recommend you start off with 1 set of abs per workout during the first week, and add no more than 1 set of abdominal exercise per week. For more specific advice regarding abdominal training, once again, head over to Section II.
For additional training of the posterior chain (i.e. the lower back, the glutes and the hamstrings), you can add back extensions, aka "hyperextensions", reverse hypers or GHR (glute ham raises). BE VERY CAREFUL WHEN ADDING THIS TRAINING. It's not supposed to be exhausting, so don't make it so. You probably won't need this for a LONG time. Regardless, 1 or possibly 2 sets of 12-15 reps, not to failure, should be sufficient. Of course, head to Section II for more specific information regarding these exercises and their proper application.
If you add ALL this stuff, this is how it will look. Note that it will probably take several months before you really need to work up to this level and volume (and complexity). For God's sakes, DON'T START OFF WITH ALL THIS STUFF!!! Do the BASE NOVICE WORKOUT for as long as possible. The less work you do in the gym at the start, the more energy you have for recovery. The more energy you have for recovery, the better you will grow. You only need to add the extra "stuff" once the original "stuff" no longer sufficiently stresses your body.
Monday - Workout A
Squats - 3x5
Bench - 3x5
Deadlift - 1x5
Dips - 2 x 8-15
GHR - 2 x 12-15
Abs
Wednesday - Workout B
Squats - 3x5
Standing Press - 3x5
Pull from floor (rows 3x5 or cleans 5x3)
Pullups/chins - 2 x 8-15 (3 sets if you do the cleans)
Abs
Friday - Workout A
Squats - 3x5
Bench - 3x5
Deadlift - 1x5
Dips - 2 x 8-15
Curls - 2 x 8-12
TriEx - 2 x 8-12
Once again, you MUST be able to add weight to the bar on your main exercises. If you add the exercises and you aren't able to recover, or you aren't adding weight to the bar on your main exercises, then this is not the answer.
Question - How long should I do this program?
"Until it stops working" is the frustrating response I have given on several occasions. This is obviously an overly simplistic way of describing things, so I will attempt to describe it further here, and give a method to the madness of the slightly more advanced programming necessary for the intermediate trainee.
As I stated earlier, only 2 resets for the squat and perhaps 1 for the deadlift will be done before it's time to move on.
You will probably reset the press a few times before it is time to change programs. As long as the squat and deadlift are still moving up, however, there is no need to change programming. If you need to do a "bigtime reset" as described above, or if you are stalling on multiple exercises at once, then it is time to move on as well.
Question - How can I do an offload/deload within the confines of the program?
Try this as a 'Rippetoe deload', for a week (even 2):
Monday and Friday
Squats - 3 ramped sets up to top set of 5 (i.e. warmups + 185 x 5, 225 x 5, 275 x 5)
Bench - 3 ramped sets up to top set of 5 (i.e. warmups + 135 x 5, 165 x 5, 205 x 5)
Pendlay row - 3 ramped sets up to a top set of 5 (i.e. warmups + 95 x 5, 125 x 5, 155 x 5)
Abs - weightless situps or leg raises, 3 x 10
No accessory work, aside from a few sets of abs to keep them tight, and even this is optional.
Instead of 3 sets of 5 ("sets across"), do what amounts to 1 work set of 5, as described above, by "ramping" your weights, i.e. doing 5 reps per set, but adding weight each set up to your top weight.
This will keep you training, but will give you a much needed break. Workout time should not exceed 1/2 hour to 45 minutes. Your intensity will still be "high" because you'll be hitting a heavy weight at the end of the workout, but your total workload (both actual and adjusted) will be quite low, because only 1 set will be of substance with each exercise.
This is one way of deloading (one of several). Other methods might include only doing 3x3 on Monday and Friday with your previous 3x5-rep weight, another method might be doing only main exercises on Monday, and then only Assistance exercises on Wednesday and/or Friday.
A straight "deconditioning" means you take a week or two completely off. No training at all. This is pretty good for the advanced lifter who can read when they've really pounded themselves into the ground, but is generally less useful for the novice and early-intermediate trainee, who probably hasn't built up enough systemic fatigue to fully benefit from the time off. In other words, I wouldn't try a straight deconditioning yet.
I did the dips and stuff, added the arm work and the GHRs, and now, after a few months, it's time to move on. What now?
You have already progressed past the initial workout scheme (with added stuff):
Monday - Workout A
Squats - 3x5
Bench - 3x5
Deadlift - 1x5
Dips - 2 x 8-15
GHR - 2 x 12-15
Abs
Wednesday - Workout B
Squats - 3x5
Standing Press - 3x5
Pull from floor (rows 3x5 or cleans 5x3)
Pullups/chins - 2 x 8-15 (3 sets if you do the cleans)
Abs
Friday - Workout A
Squats - 3x5
Bench - 3x5
Deadlift - 1x5
Dips - 2 x 8-15
Curls - 2 x 8-12
TriEx - 2 x 8-12
and it's time to move on. You have reached the point where you are in a Catch22 with linear progression. What to do now?
Time to move on to the Intermediate stage.