5/3/1 is a strength training program popularized by Jim Wendler. In this article, we’ll dive into exactly how to perform the program as written by Jim and a couple of modifications I like to make to optimize training as much as possible. Obviously, if you want to run 5/3/1 as designed by Jim Wendler, use his model without any modifications; my recommendations are my own from my years of experience and are in no way the opinion or suggestion of Mr. Wendler.
Programming the Main Lifts:
Whatever particular version of the program you decide to run, one thing will remain the same; the main lifts.
In this program, as with most strength programs, we will predominantly focus on the bench press, squat, deadlift, and overhead press. This means the program will be run most optimally in a 4-day split in the form of Bench Press – Squat – Off – OH Press – Deadlift – Off – Off – Repeat.
This being said, if you can only train 3 times per week, just continue revolving the exercises in the order shown above on the days you can train while doing your best not to train more than two days in a row.
The main lifts will be run in a 4-week wave with intensity (% of 1RM used) increasing while reps decrease in the first three weeks and a deload on the fourth as shown in the table below.
All percentages are based on 90% of your 1RM (not your true 1RM) which is about equal to a 3rm. Having this knowledge in mind, instead of having the trainee work up to a 1RM, I’ll normally work up to a 3RM for 2 weeks in a row to get a good baseline then start the program.
For example, if your bench press 3 rep max is 315, for week 1, you’ll perform 205 x 5, 235 x 5, and 265 x AMRAP (as many reps as possible).
As you can see, the last set of each day is a max reps set. Whether the prescribed reps are 5, 3, or 1, you will do as many reps as possible on this last set.
Week 4 is the deload week using sets of 5 across with very low intensity on the main lifts. Drop weight on all accessories by 10% and drop 1 set per exercise to allow proper recovery.
Accessory Movements:
The accessory movements are where the variations may or may not be implemented based on your desires. In my method of programming, there are four different ways to program them with the first two being Jim’s preferred methods and the last two my own.
- Boring But Big – Boring but big has been said to be Jim’s favorite model for assistance work for the program and lives up to its name. Basically, after the main movement, you’ll drop the weight to 50-55% of your 1RM and perform 5 sets of 10 reps. Following these back off sets, you’ll pick one more assistance exercise that targets the opposite musculature of the main movement. For example, a bench press day may look like the below:
This will allow you to get some lighter hypertrophic assistance work done while simultaneously refine your technique and form on the big lifts you are training.
The downside to this training method is that it gets extremely boring extremely quickly.
- The Triumvirate – This is another extremely simple method for programing accessories that is a favorite for the creator of 5/3/1. For this method, you’ll simply pick two exercises with one directly targeting the musculature of the main lift and the other targeting the opposite musculature performing each of them for 3-5 sets of 6-10 reps each. An example overhead press day is shown below.
As you can see, we perform one assistance exercise targeting the vertical pressing muscles followed by one targeting the vertical pulling muscles.
While this method is less boring than the first, it still leaves something to be desired in the volume and hypertrophy department which is where the final two methods come in.
- Standard Hypertrophy Method – This method mimics your standard hypertrophy or bodybuilding program template with 3-4 accessory exercises targeting the muscle groups trained that day performed in 3-4 sets of 6-12 reps. An example squat day is shown below.
We are basically just using more exercises with less sets per exercise to provide a more well rounded program.
- High Intensity Hypertrophy Method – The high intensity method is my favorite and I use it not only in this style of programing, but also in the majority of my other programs for hypertrophy work. You must have a solid mind muscle connection and the ability to activate the target musculature under a relatively heavy load for this method to work; if you do not, your results will be sub-optimal and you would be better off using one of the other methods described above. For this method, you will pick 4-6 exercises to be performed in 1-2 sets each of 6-20 reps. Each set will be taken to failure with advanced methods such as drop sets or rest pause sets. It is for this reason that this method is not the most optimal for beginners or trainees who have not yet learned how to activate the proper musculature through the full range of motion (mind muscle connection).
If you cannot activate the target muscle fully throughout the entire movement when using a weight heavy enough to induce failure in the target rep range, it will do you no good. You may be able to get the weight up using other muscle groups or a small part of the target muscle group, but if it is not stressing the target muscle through the entire range of motion you are just reinforcing muscle imbalances and faulty movement patterns. These MUST be fixed with submaximal (leaving 1-2 reps in the tank) sets of accessory exercises until they can be performed at a higher intensity.
In short, if you are a new trainee or still have trouble activating some muscle groups, fix it before you attempt this training style.
A sample deadlift training session is shown below.
As you can see, we use a variety of rep ranges. For the exercises with two different rep ranges, you will perform the first set with a weight that will cause you to fail in the prescribed rep range, then reduce weight as needed (normally 10-20%) to cause failure in the second rep range.
The exercise with (RP) next to the rep goal will only have one set but the one set will be split into two mini sets. You will choose a weight that you will fail below the prescribed reps (15-20 in this case so choose a weight you can complete 10-12 times), perform one set to failure, rest ~15-20 seconds, then perform another set to failure with the total of the two sets falling in the target rep range.
The lower back and ab exercises will not be taken to failure to protect the lower back. Perform the normal straight sets of 8-12 reps on these exercises.
Conclusion:
The 5/3/1 program is one of the most simple strength programs out there and works extremely well at the same time. There are quite a few ways you can modify the assistance work to reflect your needs and personality while keeping the main structure of the program intact to allow for extraordinary strength gains.
Just to be clear, the first two methods discussed (Boring But Big and The Triumvirate) are the only ones recommended by the programs creator.
Now pick whatever method you want and go get strong.