5 Sets of 5 Reps for Strength and Size
Many guys get stuck in a rut with their training, never venturing beyond the tried and true 8-12 reps of 3-4 sets. But variety is the spice of life and variety can add some oomph to your training progress. One very viable option is the 5 x 5 workout program.
Highly Recommended
The 5 x 5 program is a favorite of powerful lifter Brook Kubrik, who has noted its potential for building big power into the physique. Other lifters have found the 5 x 5 to be productive as well.
The five by five approach is almost self explanatory - five sets of five reps. This falls somewhere between a powerlifting workout and a bodybuilding scheme and as such it works great.
Sets of Standard Lifts
The exercises employed for the 5 x 5 workout session are the compound standards - the bench press, squat, military press, deadlift, curl, and bent row. You perform each of these exercises for five sets of five reps.
Since you are only performing five reps you can load the bar with a fairly heavy weight load and crunch out the reps.
This specialized routine will build some real power into your physique. Give this specialized training a good long cycle - at least two months or more of consistent and hard employment of the 5 x 5 to see what it can do for you. And you will find it can do a lot.
Switching your workout around will stimulate your muscles in a new way and give them another challenge, a hurdle to have to clear with the heavier weights used in the 5 x 5 sessions. Your body will respond with gains in both strength and size and that's what you are after.
