However, if you fail to perform all the reps of a lift for 3 workouts in a row, you will need to deload. You just don't add weight the next time you go into the gym. The first couple times this happens, you don't need to worry. Since you add weight to a lift everytime you successful complete all the reps, you will eventually get to the point where you start to fail on the reps of your last set or last couple sets. This is the next most important concept of the program. You will add 10 pounds to your deadlift because it is a heavy lift and you will only do it every other workout. This will force your muscles to grow and adapt to more weight. For any lift, if you completed all the reps of all the sets during the last workout, you'll add 5 pounds to the lift for the current workout. This is probably the most important concept of the program. If you are like me and already know your maximum weights for each lift, you'll want to take 10% off your 5 rep max for each lift and start with that. You'll need to stack weights under the bar so that it is the correct starting height. On rows and deadlift, you will start with more because the bar needs to start and end each rep on the floor for proper technique. You will want to start with the bar on bench, squat, and shoulder press. If you have never lifted before, you should start very low. Stretching helps recovery and loosens up the tissue surrounding the muscle giving it more room to grow. You will also want to stretch any muscles that you will use for that lift. Warming up is especially important if your muscles are sore from the previous workout. The second warm-up set should be about 75% of your maximum weight. The first warm-up set should be about 50% of your maximum weight for that lift. This is okay.įor each lift, you will do two warm-up sets. You may find yourself doing a different number of sets for each lift depending on your progression. After you deload twice again on that lift you will decrease the number of sets to 1 for that lift only. After you deload twice on a given lift, you will decrease the number of sets to 3 for that lift only. In an attempt to reduce the recovery time on deadlift, you will do only 1 set of 5 reps. Deadlift is the exception because it is the heaviest lift and will need the most recovery. How many repetitions and set of each liftįor each lift except deadlift, you should start off doing 5 sets of 5 reps. It would do nothing but increase the time you need for your triceps to recover. Tricep pull downs an example of a lift that I wouldn't even consider adding to the program because your triceps are already trained by bench and overhead press. Also, since abs and calves are not directly needed in any of the core lifts, my recovery time shouldn't be significally increased. As for calves, this is really just to test whether or not the strong lifts concepts are applicable to any set of muscles, even isolated muscles like calves. So I know that I must increase the size of my abs muscles to achieve a six pack. I already have a low body fat, but no visible abs. I happen to want nice looking calves, and I especially want six pack abs. However, calves and abs are muscles that are, at best, only indirectly trained by this workout. In fact, in most cases, the extra exercises will only hurt your ability to recover. The author of the strong lifts website claims that you will see little or no results from adding addition exercises. The 5 core exercises of the strong lifts program are squat, deadlift, bench, shoulder press, and rows. You just repeat this pattern over and over. The next week you will do workout B on Monday and Friday and workout A on Wednesday. So the first week, you will do workout A on Monday and Friday and workout B on Wednesday. For me, this will be Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. You will workout 3 days a week with at least one day of rest between each workout. Of course as you build strength, you will also build muscle. Please note that the primary purpose of this program is build strength.