Reply With QuoteI don't really see a reason to move away from a program that is clearly working, seeing as you were hitting 10 reps on the last set. I'd go back and ride out linear progression for as long as you can...then again, I'm not 41 years old.
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GSLP vs 5-3-1
Wondering if anyone else has noticed this.
When doing wendler's 5-3-1 (regardless of template) I find that my heaviest set feels extremely heavy. For example, I switched to 5-3-1 after GSLP a few months back.
With GSLP I was hitting my top Bench Press set with 205x5,5,&10.
When I switched to 5-3-1 (as written) my top set was 190 and I only was able to muster 8 hard reps. Same with the press & squat, deadlifts seem to do okay either way.
I am thinking I may not be strong enough to offer the proper stimulus with one top set on 5-3-1 vs the GSLP. I know that the tonnage on GSLP is much more, and that I seem to progress much easier.
I switched to 5-3-1 because I'm 41 y/o and thought it would help with recovery.
Just curious if anyone else had the same experience.
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I don't really see a reason to move away from a program that is clearly working, seeing as you were hitting 10 reps on the last set. I'd go back and ride out linear progression for as long as you can...then again, I'm not 41 years old.
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✓ Member
I thought GSLP was a lot better than 5-3-1, from a volume and progression standpoint. You get two days a week squatting, 3 days a week of some sort of press, a nice volume of pulling and curls/chins. It's a pretty sweet setup. I didn't like 5-3-1 at all, personally at least not how it's typically set up. Here is what I did to gslp after running it awhile:Originally Posted by mikiekimi
Original:
A-Press 5-5-5+
B- Bench Press- 5-5-5+
A- Weighted Chins x 6-8 x2
B- Curls x 12-15 x 2
Squat 5-5-5+
And on Weds or Day 2 the Squats are subbed with deadifts (with PC's or Snatches as a warm up, you know this).
1st Mod- GSLP/TM hybrid
Day 1
A Bench Press 5-5-5+
B Press- 5-5-5+
A Body Weight chins x max reps x 3 sets
B Curls
Squat- 5-5-5+
Day 2:same typical GSLP protocol
Day 3
A Bench Press 4-6, 8-12
B Press 4-6, 8-12
A Weighted Chins
B Curls
Squat 4-6, 12-20
2nd Mod- PowerBulding GSLP
Day 1:
A Press 5-5-5+
B DB Press 5-5-5+
A BW Chins x max reps x 3 sets
B 1 arm Row x max reps x 3 sets
Curls x 12-15 x 2 sets
A Back Squat x 5-5-5+
B Front Squat x 5-5-5+
Day 2:
A DB Incline Bench Press 5-5-5+
B Incline Bench Press 5-5-5+
A Bent Over Rows x 8-12 x 2 sets
B G Rows/Yates Rows x 12-15 x 2 sets
A Deadlift- 5+
B Deficit DL- 4-6, 12-20
Day 3:
A- Bench Press 5-5-5+
B- DB Bench Press 5-5-5+
A- Kirk Shrugs x 6-8 x 2 sets
B- DB Shrugs x 12-15 x 2 sets
Curls x 12-15 x 2
A- Leg Press x 12-20 x 2 sets
B- Hack Squat x 15-25 x 2 sets
I plugged in some pre-exhaust stuff occasionally too. Hope this helps!
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I've been on both and am having somewhat the same experience. I don't necessarily understand why you switched if GSLP was working, maybe for the shorter sessions?
I think that assistance is pretty damned important in 5/3/1. Get it wrong, and you wont progress.
It should be said, though, that switching to a new programme often necessitates some acclimatization. I.e. I was on GSLP, but it was getting grindy, so I wanted to go on 5x5. I took a week off before I started 5x5, and in that time I apparently "lost" about 30-40 lbs off my squat.
I think if you let the 5/3/1 work for you, you'll start seeing results. But it is very much a programme for the loooong haul.
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I moved to 5-3-1 because I started to have some hip/shoulder issues (bursitis/rotator cuff tendonitis) and I thought the decreased frequency would help. I think I probably just should have deloaded or taken some time off instead.
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They just came out with a 2nd edition of the Greyskull book. Anyone know if there are any programming changes or is it mainly how to do the lifts plus pep talk?
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Go get your neck harness and steroids ebook and then you can proudly not get butt raped in prison. The whole vibe and mantra with GSLP is so bizarre. I have never made my training decisions based on me worrying about being anally violated in a penitentiary. Maybe the program works but I wouldn't want to give my money to a crew like that.
Seriously though all you have to do is look at some of the logs here of dudes running 531 putting up a lot of weight to realize the stalling is probably more a product of something else like an inconsistent diet, or some other factor.
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I agree with Dowling. Not on the Greyskull thing, if you sift through some of the macho stuff (which isn't that bad in my opinion) there is some really good stuff in there both on diet and training. John helped me through a plateau on both fronts a while back.
But on the 5/3/1, it works if you let it. But there is a lot of info missing in order to assess the problem. Did you lose/gain weight in this period. Did you miss gym sessions for one reason or another? Did you do all your assistance work, including hill-sprints and other conditioning? Etc.
But once again, if GSLP works better for you, then I'd just do that. Progression is faster as well.
A 29lb drop in your calculated bench max is quite a bit. Were you shooting for AMRAP rep records on the last set of the 3x5 and 3x3 sessions before that? What assistance exercises were you doing? If you want more volume on 5/3/1 you could consider the boring but big assistance program, 5x10 on the bench with 30-70% of your training max.
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