The 5×5 workout routine is quite popular, and for good reason. When it comes to building mass and strength it can be surprisingly difficult. You would think that the two would go hand in hand but they don’t. As I’ve discussed in some of my previous posts, strength training is actually a great way to improve muscle definition yet it doesn’t work all that well for gaining muscle mass.
Generally, a strict strength training routine will involve working out in the rep range of about 3. A good rep range for strictly mass gains is much higher, at about 12-15 reps. The 5×5 workout routine is great because it builds mass, strength and definition all in one workout.
When it comes to carving truly great looking muscles, it really is going to take a few different phases. The 5×5 workout is probably one of the best approaches that you can do to combine muscle mass and muscle definition. Although this routine isn’t quite as effective as a purely mass building or purely definition building phase, it does do a good job at both.
About The 5×5 Workout
The 5×5 workout was brought to the mainstream by two of the most famous bodybuilders, Bill Starr and Reg Park back in the 1970’s. Eventually Arnold Swarchenegger adopted it and integrated it into his routine. Once that happened, everybody started doing it!
Since then there are been many alterations, modifications and variations to the 5×5 workout routine that these guys performed. One of the aspects that I really like about Bill Starr’s 5×5 workout is the variation on intensity throughout the week.
- Monday – heavy
- Wednesday – light
- Friday – medium
This is an important aspect to the routine as it allows the body to make great gains over time.
Bill Starr’s 5×5 Workout Routine
The sets and reps for all of these exercises are, well … 5 sets by 5 reps. It’s not an out of this world workout, but it is a solid strength training routine.
- Monday:
- Squat
- Bench press
- Power clean
- Wednesday:
- Bench press
- Power clean
- Squat
- Friday:
- Power clean
- Squat
- Bench press
A Variation To The Workout
As I mentioned there have been quite a few little “tweaks” to the 5×5 workout routine throughout the years. This makes sense because it is such a solid platform to create great workouts from.
One tweak that I really like is the one that Rusty Moore adds in the Visual Impact for Men workout. I can’t go into too much detail but it is based more on progressive resistance than Star’s routine.
“… Do your first set and stop at 5 reps, wait 45-60 seconds, do another set of 5 reps, wait 45-60 seconds, attempt to do 5 reps for set 3, wait 45-60 seconds, attempt 5 reps for set 4, wait 45-60 seconds, attempt 5 reps for set 5 …” – Rusty Moore
As you can see the routine gets progressively harder as you go. That is how the 5×5 workout routine will help you build muscle!
A pure strength training routine will allow you to rest anywhere from 1-2 minutes instead of only 45-60 seconds, where a pure muscle mass routine will allow maybe only 30-45 seconds of rest between sets but with many more reps and pushing to failure on each set.
The 5×5 Workout For Strength & Mass
If you look at Sparr’s 5×5 routine you’ll see that there isn’t much variety in exercises:
- Squat
- Bench press
- Power clean
… that’s it. Don’t get me wrong, these three exercises are good great and if you did only these you wouldn’t be bad off. I feel that, although not necessary, we can get away with adding a few more exercises and swap some out to hit different angles and areas of the muscles.
For this routine, we’ll use the following exercises.
- Legs
- Squats
- Straight Leg Dead Lifts
- Chest
- Incline Dumbbell Press
- Flat Bench Dumbbell Flys
- Back
- Chin Ups
- Bent Over Rows
- Shoulders
- Military Press
- Arnold Press
- Arms
- Barbell Curls
- Kneeling Cable Triceps Extension
Yes, Another 5×5 Workout Routine
Here’s a 5×5 workout routine using the above exercises. For this routine, we’ll be doing a 2 day split instead of the traditional 3 day split. This allows us to do a larger variety of exercises over the course of the week. Also, this really makes a big difference in the amount of muscle tone you’ll get from this workout.
Day 1 — Chest / Shoulders / Triceps
Warm up with 3-5 minutes on the treadmill, bike or any other cardio exercise.
- Incline Dumbbell Press
- Military Press
- Kneeling Cable Triceps Extensions
Day 2 — Back / Legs / Biceps
Warm up with 3-5 minutes on the treadmill, bike or any other cardio exercise.
- Squats
- Chin Ups
- Barbell Curls
Day 4 — Chest / Shoulders / Triceps
Warm up with 3-5 minutes on the treadmill, bike or any other cardio exercise.
- Flat Bench Dumbbell Flys
- Arnold Press
- Kneeling Cable Triceps Extensions
Day 5 — Back / Legs / Biceps
Warm up with 3-5 minutes on the treadmill, bike or any other cardio exercise.
- Deadlifts
- Bent Over Rows
- Barbell Curls
What makes 5×5 workout routines interesting is that you can approach them from a few different angles. For example, you can stick with a weight that you can perform all 5 sets for 5 reps, or you can work your way from a fairly light weight to a heavy weight as you go from set 1 to set 5. I’ve also seen a triangle approach where sets 1 & 5 are the same, sets 2 & 4 are slightly heavier and set 3 is the heaviest.
All of these approaches are effective and produce different results. As I mentioned above, I lean towards the approach found in the Visual Impact Muscle Building workout because you get the most out of the workout. You get good gains in strength and good gains in overall muscle mass — win, win!
When doing only a 5×5 workout routine, you do sacrifice a little in the amount of strength or muscle mass that you can achieve versus focusing on just one aspect at a time … which is why it is usually best to separate your workout into different phases.
Great post. I’ve loved the 5×5 format.
Have you found any research on doing higher reps in the 5 sets?
At home I just can’t afford to keep growing my kettlebell collection to keep the reps that low. I’m often doing 5×8-12 instead. Not sure if that is still accomplishing the same goals, or not. Any thoughts?
You know what Troy that’s a good question. I really haven’t looked deeply into that so I’d hate to give an inaccurate answer, but …
My thoughts are that by training in the higher rep range you sacrifice a little by way of strength and definition gains but get a little more size out of the workout.
As far as accomplishing the same goals as a 5×5 you’d be better off increasing the sets instead of the reps if that’s what you’re going for. Sound good?
Kevin,
It also matters that I’m just in it to stay in shape for life. I’m not bent on highly specific goals. Many people who take on a 5×5 protocol are doing so for specific gains. I’m just fine if “my mileage may vary”.
-Troy
Right on Troy, I think that’s right where you should be! I’ve seen a lot of guys (myself included) that go all out in their training but then slowly let it slip away. Stay in shape for life — that’s where it’s at!
Nice variations on the 5×5 routine. It’s a good example that a workout really doesn’t need to be that complicated in order to work.
Michael
Thanks Michael … yeah, good ole’ 5×5 rocks!
I really like this concept. I think getting away from workouts that isolate each muscle is the way to go also. Pure bodybuilding just doesn’t seem right when the muscles are meant to work together.
Thanks for the comment! Yeah, there are times when isolation exercises are beneficial, but overall, more compound exercises are going to produce great results.
I was wondering how long should I keep doing the 5×5 until it’s time to switch up ad I’m sure you know if you keep doing the same routine you tend to stay at your current level? And when I do switch it up what should be my new routine? Thanks and amazing site btw
I feel as long as you are pushing yourself, whether in the amount of weight or the intensity in which you lift you shouldn’t really stay the same. Having said that though, I usually switch things up a bit after about two months.
Where you go from there is really up to you. If you want to concentrate more on getting ripped, then lower the amount of sets & reps to about 3×3, add in a bit more HIIT and watch your diet. If you want to concentrate on adding some size increase the rep range to somewhere around 3×12 with shorter rests.
Hey Kevin, I’m currently starting Strong Lifts 5×5, i feel it’s more geared toward beginners in the lifting game and i don’t think i’m getting very much out of it. Soo my question is: what weight should i start off at? SL5x5 has me starting at 50% of my 5rep max and adding 5 lbs per workout but the starting weights feel too light, i’m afraid i’m losing valuable time, any suggestions?
I’m honestly not familiar with Strong Lift’s workout … I’ve heard of it and I’ve heard good about it but I’ve just never tried it so I can’t say for sure what their workout is aiming to do.
For me, I like to pick a weight that I can do 7-8 reps but stop at 5. I find this works well for creating dense muscles because I’m not failing at the end of the sets. Also, with a slightly less weight you can give 100% focus on form and contracting the appropriate muscle … of course, as you go your weight will increase over time because you are getting stronger. Hope that helps.
i just started working out i been taking syntha 6 and kre alkalyn 1500 mgs i want to know if that is good to be taking i would like to know what workouts i should be doing i am overwight my weight is 267 i been going to the gym for 1 week now i would like to get some suggustion
Charles,
I’ve never taken either of those two and I honestly don’t know much about them … generally I’m not too huge on supplements. I do know that Prograde is a quality product and they have a very popular weight loss supplement you might consider as an alternative. Overall though, the most important aspect in losing weight is your diet, not supplements. Keep your weekly calories in check and you should be well on your way.
As far as a workout goes, I suggest strength training along with cardio. Checkout this post with my 1,2,3 combo to get in shape quick: http://fitnessblackandwhite.com/1-2-3-combo-to-get-fit/
This sounds like a great workout. I have read that it targets strength, mass, and cardio.
The amount of reps seems about right and the fact that it has the split gives ample time for the mody to recover.
What difference does it make if I don’t take protein or supplements?
It doesn’t make much difference at all. Really, supplements are not going to make or break you … they’re just a supplement. I do drink protein shakes to help me keep my total protein for the day up without raising calories, but definitely not necessary.
its been al over d blogs .v shudn b doin 5×5 for arms n dats too much stress..what do u think??
I personally like 5×5 for arms. It is important that you use proper form no matter what exercise you choose to do.
What is important to remember though, you can lift 5×5 for pecs, 4×15 for shoulders and 3×10 for arms … you’re not tied to doing only one set and rep scheme for your entire body. You can checkout this post to see what different set and rep schemes work: http://fitnessblackandwhite.com/how-many-reps-to-build-muscle/