5 x 5 Strength Training Program

The 5×5 is a strength training program that is designed to help you build muscle, lose fat and get stronger. Its primary goal is strength training and not body building.

The workout contradicts the common belief that you should train each body part once a week. It suggests that such routines are designed for professional body builders and that the average person needs more recovery and therefore shouldn’t train on consecutive days.

This workout is for people that are serious about gaining strength and improving their physique. This is Workout Level Tough Guy or above.

1 - Full Body Workout using Core Exercises

This workout program is built around exercises with multi joint movements such as bench presses, squats and pull ups. These are considered core muscle building exercises. This works better for strength gains because it incorporates groups of muscles rather than working individual muscles that are the focus of exercises like bicep curls, tricep extensions and leg extensions. The benefits are that your full body gets a workout every time you train . As you progress you’re lifting heavier and heavier weights, your muscles will adapt and grow to keep up.

2 - Squats in Every Session

The program focuses on doing squats in every session with the aim of increasing your full body strength. Some may argue that this is over training, but as long as you leave at least 48 hours between workouts to allow for adequate recovery and stretch the muscles correctly after each session, then you will only succeed in gaining strength and improving your overall fitness.

3 - 5 Reps instead of 8

The aim of this program is to increase strength, therefore it’s designed around doing sets of 5 repetitions and using a heavier weight, rather than sets of 8 repetitions with a lighter weight. This increases the intensity of the workload placed upon the muscles, hence stimulating strength gains and muscle growth.

4 - 2 Minutes Rest

For strength training you need to take at least 2 minutes rest between sets. This should be increased as you increase the weight. The more you lift, the more time your muscles will need to recover for the next set. Take anything up to 5 minutes if needed.

5 - Increase the weight each week

Weight should be added each week systematically to get stronger and build more muscle. This is easier when doing 5 reps. The increases in weight should be kept small and the focus on maintaining good technique.

Do this work out 3 times a week, alternating between Workout A and Workout B. This is an intense workout that really challenges the whole body, so it’s recommended you leave at least 1 full day between workouts to allow your muscles adequate time to repair and grow back even stronger.