Introduction/ Stronglifts 5x5
Introduction
Hello everyone,
This is my first post as a blogger so I will open with a little bit about myself. My name is Max, and I have been training for about a year and a half, through I have been seriously training for about 6 months. I have been going to the gym for about 2 and a half years altogether, but the first year was mainly just losing weight, no muscle gaining. I used to weigh about 255 pounds at 6,0 with 30% body fat, which was very unhealthy as I was considered obese.
I have always had a large frame, but I had stopped playing sports in middle school and soon after I lived a sedentary, unhealthy lifestyle due to stress, depression, and my bipolar disorder. After my first year, I was able to bring that weight down all the way to 197 pounds which I am still proud of but I was not very strong at all. At that point, I decided that my goal would be to lift weights and test how far I could go with strength training.
For the first year, I tried various exercises online and didn't have a clear program which I still gained muscle from, but it was not incredibly effective as far as gains in strength. I also made the idiot mistake of starting out on smith machines for compound exercises, granted that was due to the Planet Fitness I was a member of, lacking in equipment. I followed this chaotic, undisciplined routine for that year and realized that I could be gaining a lot more. I started following a more disciplined routine for bodybuilders from which I benefitted greatly, gaining back a large amount of my weight back in muscle. The routine consisted of working out 4 days a week, Monday/Thursday was Upper Body, Tuesday/Saturday was Lower Body, using high sets and reps. I started using free weights after switching gyms and pretty much had to start all over again. Despite this setback, I gained massive amounts of muscle and strength by following the routine with free weights. I will list my gains in specific exercises at the bottom of the page.
It wasn't until recently that I started Stronglifts 5x5 that I realized that even my bodybuilding program was flawed. I was trying to build muscle using high sets and reps but I was completely wrong. The guiding principle of Stronglifts 5x5 is as you build strength, you will build muscle and it is absolutely on the money. After three months on the program, I saw the most dramatic gains in strength I have ever had as well as building a lot of lean muscle. My deadlift alone was increased by over 120 pounds! I also lost a very decent portion of fat on my abdomen and torso due to the heavy deadlifts and squats. I will also post pictures at the bottom of my 3 month experience with Stronglifts 5x5.
Currently, I am starting a bodybuilding program known as German Volume Training to gain muscle mass and round out my muscle groups with isolation exercises. I will post my results of this program in a month.
I will now discuss who Stronglifts 5x5 is intended for as well as it's pros and cons.
Who is Stronglifts 5x5 intended for?
I believe that beginner fitness enthusiasts have the most to gain from this program. It sets up an incredibly strong foundation of strength which is absolutely necessary for those who wish to eventually compete or someone who wants to build a lot of muscle. Stronglifts 5x5 is considered a powerlifting routine so the goal is not to build as much muscle as possible, it is to gain as much strength as possible. However, as a result of this strength program, you WILL gain muscle because what do you think happens when you strength is increased dramatically? Your body builds lean muscle tissue to adapt to heavier loads.
You only do 5 compound exercises in the program, Bench Press, Deadlift, Squat, Overhead Press, and Upright Rows, however these are really all you need at first. All isolation and association exercises take from these main compound exercises, so when you finally break into a bodybuilding routine to sculpt your body, you will be able to start out far ahead of your peers and gain an incredible amount of mass. I found that starting with the isolation was very ineffective and led to far fewer gains of both muscle and strength.
To sum it up, if you are a beginner, intermediate fitness enthusiast who wants to build a strong foundation and build lean muscle incredibly efficiently. DO THIS PROGRAM. You won't regret it. Even if you are a veteran bodybuilder, you can still benefit from this program. I highly recommend you to at least try it for a month and see the difference.
Who isn't Stronglifts intended for?
As I stated before, this is a powerlifting program, it's main goal is strength. This means that though it will build lean muscle, even a quite substantial amount, it is not the MOST efficient at building muscle. It is shown that doing higher reps with higher sets as an experienced bodybuilder will yield more lean muscle gain than the 5x5 method. However as I also stated before, if you are new to strength training, building a foundation before moving onto the bodybuilding programs will be much more beneficial to you in the long run.
The second reason you may not want to do this program is the fact that you are building on your basic compound exercises, not your more isolated exercises. This means that for instance, when building your chest, it will not be as sculpted as a bodybuilder who has been training for several years. If you look at the pictures of my progress, you can see a major increase in mass, however the mass in mainly concentrated around the center of my chest because I am only building my flat bench press, not my incline or decline press. Again, this is a temporary issue because your flat bench will give you a perfect foundation for your other chest exercises. Once you feel that you have gained the amount needed for the next step, I guarantee that you will build the extra definition in no time at all. (I will be posting new pictures next month to show my progress in my new bodybuilding routine.)
So if you are an advanced bodybuilder who is seeking to make massive muscle gains in the most efficient way possible or looking to carefully sculpt your physique, look elsewhere.
Pros of Stronglifts 5x5
- Massive Strength Gains
- Impressive Muscle gains
- Also very good for fat loss
- Great for beginners
- Only 3 days a week, fantastic for those who have busy schedules
- Proven program that includes thousands of adherents with impressive stories
- No cost to learn the program!
Cons of Stronglifts 5x5
- No isolation exercises, so somewhat uneven muscle mass gains
- Not the most efficient at gaining muscle as it is a powerlifting program
Overall Rating - 10/10
For who it is intended for, it is a life changing program. It has helped me improve as a fitness enthusiast dramatically, more than any other routine I have tried. I recommend it to the fullest extent!
Lifting gains
01/2014 - 04/2014
Bench Press - 210 lb. -> 275 lb.
Squat 225 lb. -> 310 lb.
Deadlift 275 lb. --> 405 lb.
Overhead Press 115 lb. --> 175 lb.
Upright Barbell Row 135 lb. --> 190 lb.
