Now that you, as a newbie or long-time fitness enthusiast, have finished your first Bill Starr 5x5 program, you might be wondering "Now what?" Well, there are many directions you can go. Again, this is a foundation building program for basically anything under the sun with respect to why men go to the gym in the first place. For most of us, the mere fact that this program gives you a sense of direction and focus should be reason enough to follow it. I don't know about you, but I cannot find motivation to train if I'm just going there to "pump up" for months on end. A few days or even a week of mindless "instinctive" training is fine from time to time, just if we are feeling generally like crap and need to take a mental break from goal-oriented training. But beyond said week, most men need direction if they are to make training part of their lifestyle.
As I said, while the results you'll get from Phase 2 as written here are pretty nice, we actually follow a better version that must be customized very specifically. Some of you might find that your weights are so easy at the end of the 9th week that you'll be raging to jump all of the weights 5lbs and go on for another week or two. If you are feeling incredible, there's nothing wrong with doing just that. But at the end of these additional 1-2 weeks, you'll have to back off of the weights for awhile or risk serious injury. Keep it in mind that most injuries happen while in an overtrained or near-overtrained state. If you push a strength/mass building program too long, you'll be in or near this state of overtraining.
So it's better to be safe than sorry, and back off.
So what are your options? In short, there are many. Most proponents of the 5x5 will tell you that after the 3x3 Phase 2, you'll test your top 5 again, and start another 5x5 progression followed by a 3x3. I tend to disagree with this concept. Instead, I'll recommend some form of EDT style training or German Volume Training (GVT) to add more mass and increase endurance, definition through fat loss, and de-load the body over a period of 6-12 weeks before another strength phase is considered.
So what is German Volume Training?
Basically it was a program designed many years ago for weightlifters who wished to move up a weight class. It is very brutal in nature and requires a great deal of focus while doing the training. The basic German Volume Training is known as the "10x10" or where you'll do 10 sets of 10 reps of 60% of your 1 rep maximum per exercise, with an arbitrary, but fixed, rest period in-between sets. As you progress, you'll later do a "6x10" or 10 sets of 6 reps with 70% of your 1 rep maximum with a similar rest period. Already I've deviated from the "original" 10x10, but what many will argue that there are many hybrid versions that are more effective than the original. Of course, others will argue that the original is the best, and by changing it, it is no longer "GVT". I say that nothing is set in stone, and strength training is in a constant state of flux and adaptation. I might even discover something tomorrow that completely changes my way of thinking and by the time you read this, I'll consider this obsolete. At least it can still easily allow you to reach your goals, considering that what I feel is "obsolete", you'll find it to be a God-send. One mans trash is another mans treasure...
For example, you might try:
Monday - 60% of your 1RM:
Bench press: 10x10
Squat: 10x10
Dynamic Row: 10x10
Each set is seperated by a 90 second rest, and they are done in tri-set format, meaning that once you do bench, you'll then jump to squat, then to row, and then back to bench again, etc. It's important to observe a 90 second rest in-between each set. At first you might find 90 seconds too mind-blowingly difficult and will need to extend it to 2 or even 3 minutes. That's fine, considering some who are reading this have not run for 10 or more years. Over time, however, you'll need to reduce the rest interval if you wish to reap the anaerobic and aerobic energy system benefits. Many guys who were throwing up during their first bout of 10x10 later found it "easy and fun" and didn't want to quit. Go figure. Even I have a "love-hate" relationship with the 10x10. It is painful at first, but as you go on, you'll get an endorphin rush that is better than any buzz I've known.
What we also do is what we've dubbed the "Tiro Wave Method" in honor of our Assistant Coach James Tiro from Cebu who discovered that it's more effective to pace yourself by dropping down to 7 reps once you find the 10 rep goal next to impossible. After the 8th set, you'll try to complete the last 2 sets with 9 or 10 reps if at all possible. If you can complete more than 8 sets of the 10x10 for at least 7 reps, you'll add 5-10lbs to your weights, depending on how heavy you are training. If you are an advanced lifter using over 200lbs, you'll add 10lbs per increment, especially if you get all 10 sets. If you are using weights of less than 200lbs, you'll obviously add only 5lbs.
On Friday, for example, instead of doing 10x10, you'll do 6x10 with a 90 second rest interval. This time you'll wave down to 4 reps as your lower limit.
It's important to note that if you go below 7 reps for a 10x10 or 4 reps for a 6x10, you should stop the set. It's also important that you should avoid going to the point of failure or severe struggle with these sets. Always strive to save something for the last 1-2 sets. "Pacing yourself" is the key to surviving this style of training.
On Wednesday, you can apply the 10x10 and 6x10 to deadlifts, military press, and pullups. Another variation of the 10x10/6x10 is the Vince Gironda 8x8. We'll "Tiro Wave" down to 5 reps for this one. Many other strength coaches are now recommending 5x10, 4x10, and even 3x10. You'll need to experiment which one works best for you since there is no such thing as a "cookie cutter" program. One size does not fit all in the world of strength coaching, and it is why experience is so important. My own trainees have learned to trust my instincts instead of their own, even after they have trained with me for 6-12 months. This is why I am very distrustful of certifications, even the ones I respect like the CSCS. While I respect what they teach, they still lack the most fundamental aspect of legendary strength coaches - experience.
I hope what I've written here has expanded your mind and taught you to think critically with respect to designing strength training programs for mass, speed, and power. This program is what was done in the era before rampant steroid/growth hormone use and is a true "back to basics" look at what the old-timers used to get big and strong before Dr. Ziegler even dreamed about Dianabol.
Split routines suck, and I've never produced world-class athletes using them. Again, they were born in a "post-steroid" athletic world. The rest of those who remain drug-free need a little extra help in the scientific training department. I have produced a number of drug-free national and international contenders using the above total body style workouts, however. So you might benefit to take a page from my own Coaches Playbook. You probably have no aspirations to be "world-class", but even 50% of their abilities isn't bad now is it?
The purpose of this 5x5 primer was to show everyone that the information to achieve your goals is available. You just need to take a critical look at your fitness facility and demand excellence if inadequacy is an issue. When you have out-grown your current facility, the Coaches at Eclipse will welcome you with open arms so that we might help you reach even greater heights.