5-3-1

Recently I was asked by a member of Level 4 what I thought about the 5-3-1 and if it was a good fit for her. Now, let me just state this up front...I believe the Wendler 5-3-1 is a good strength program for beginner to advanced lifters. The elite guys may need something different but in general, the 5-3-1 will work great for most of our folks. It will get you strong and keep you on track with some hard numbers and solid progressions.
Here is our email exchange:


Dear Steve,

Thanks for the info and for talking to me this morning. I read the whole book today (well, I skimmed some of it, I must admit). I guess I don't have a clear picture of how level 1 classes progress to the level 2 program, at least as it is described in the book. My goals are not to be big and strong. Strong is important to me mostly as a component of overall health, fitness, and athleticism. As I said to Dave recently, I want to resist setting "cross-fit" goals. Rather, I want my workouts to help me be fit, strong, graceful, and capable of enjoying the other things I want do outside the gym. I have no idea what a bench shirt or a squat suit is, and I don't think either will ever be relevant to my life.
I aggravated an old shoulder injury this summer during a workout, shortly after Dave cleared me for level 2, so I haven't wanted to move up. Now I'm wondering what the right thing to do is. Level 2 looks like a bunch of very strong guys, and a few awesome women.

XXXX

Dear XXXX,

Thanks for your email. I agree with you completely, a squat suit and bench shirt have no relevance to your training and goals. The Wendler 5-3-1 program provides a framework. It is a simple strength program/progression that will allow you to chart your progress and have some definitive numbers to go off of when we do one of the main lifts in class. It uses small incremental increases over time to improve strength.

For our purposes, the e-book is only meant to give a more thorough explanation of the 5-3-1. Strength, as you know, is a big part of what we do and from what you stated, a personal goal as well.

The Level 2 class is designed to be more challenging. What we are after in Level 2 is exactly what you described, strength as a component of overall health and fitness. It is the underlying piece with our gymnastic movements, O-lifting, mobility and good movement in general. Possessing it will help us move better, longer. We are simply using the 5-3-1 as a framework for the strength component. We are not trying to breed gorillas and develop powerlifters, not by a long shot. Our overall goal is to help everyone move better and with Level 2, continually challenge you. Basically we are taking the Level 2 class up a notch. These workouts will help you be more fit, graceful, and improve your quality of life outside of the gym. On the days we don't train the main lifts we'll focus on good quality movement. The met-cons will be shorter and more challenging as well.

You are an awesome woman! True, there are some strong folks in that class, each with different personal goals. In speaking with the other people in class, I haven't heard a single one say that their goal is to have a sub 8 Helen time. They have stated that they want to get stronger, move better and be better athletes. The common thread with all of you being the demonstrated ability to meet the Level 1 benchmarks and the desire to continually challenge yourself. I honestly feel that the Level 2 class is a good fit for you. Keep an eye on your shoulder and be honest with yourself about how you are feeling.

So, take the Excel spreadsheet, plug in your numbers. Use those numbers when we do the lift in class. We'll take care of the other stuff. I'm 100% confident that you will see positive changes from this.

Steve


52 Most Common 5-3-1 Questions