Starting Stronglifts 5x5 Need help!

Savant21

Savant21

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In about 2 weeks I'm going to join the ymca & begin the stronglifts 5x5 lifting routine. I've never seriously lifted before, so basically I'm a complete noob. My goal is to gain weight. I'm 6'1 1/2 161 lbs. I need some advice on a few concerns of mine before I start.

1. How long will it be until I'll need a spotter? When you start the routine on the first day, you just start off with the barbell itself. You add 5 lbs each workout. I don't have anyone to lift with, should I worry about this?

2. How do I warm-up? I heard that it's best to just do a few reps of each lift with just the bar. Running on a treadmill to warmup before lifting isn't very conducive to your gains. Could anyone clarify this & explain how I should warmup?

3. I plan on lifting Mon,Tues, & Thurs (after school). Every other day I'll probably be at work. Should I space out the workouts so I can give myself a little more rest or is this fine? (I just got a job & I put that I'm available for Sun,Wed,Fri,Sat)

4. Should I keep a lifting log detailing every lift I did for each specific day? (Sounds stupid but I'm completely new to lifting)

5. Is there anything else I'm missing that I should be aware of before I start the routine?

Here's a link to the 5x5 routine StrongLifts 5×5 Strength Training Program | StrongLifts.com

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Sorry for any inconveniences.
 
1. Don't need a spotter when starting out. Just need to drill in proper form constantly. Do this by taking a camera and filming your lifts.

2. Start with bar. Add weight each time. I like to do 3-4 warmup sets.

3. Yes

4. Keep log yes, very important.
 
@TrainingAdict Thanks man I greatly appreciate it!
 
If possible, you should try working out on non-consecutive days. Once the weights get heavier, you are really going to need the day off in between in order to recover.
 
@toonie Oh I acknowledge that, but I just got a job & I told my manager that my availability is Sun, Wed, Fri, Sat. I'm definitely gonna need those days right now since my gym membership is gonna be $31 monthly & for my groceries. (Also I'm saving up for a car & I have to pay my school $50 monthly)
 
The way you have your training days set up you will be squatting two days in a row, don't do this. You need at least one day of rest between your training days for this program. Either figure out a way to do that, or do a different one, such as the one below from the FAQ.

Day one: Deadlifts
Deadlifts 5X5
One or two deadlift assistance exercises
Upper body pull exercise (eg. BORs or pullups)

Day Two: Bench
Bench Press 5X5
One or two bench press assistance lifts

Day Three: Squats
Squats 5X5
Front Squats 3-4X6
Whatever ham/lowback/quad assistance you
 
@rckvl Oh I'll just switch the lifts then. I was going by the routine given on the stronglifts site. I'll perform the lifts this way:

Day one:
Squat 5x5
Bench 5x5
Inverted Rows 3xF
Pushups 3xF
Reverse Crunch 3x12

Day two:
Overhead Press 5x5
Deadlift 1x5
Pull-ups/Chin-ups 3xF
Prone Bridges 3x30sec

Day three:
Squat 5x5
Bench 5x5
Inverted Rows 3xF
Pushups 3xF
Reverse Crunch 3x12
 
Luchador 007 said:
@rckvl Oh I'll just switch the lifts then. I was going by the routine given on the stronglifts site. I'll perform the lifts this way:

Day one:
Squat 5x5
Bench 5x5
Inverted Rows 3xF
Pushups 3xF
Reverse Crunch 3x12

Day two:
Overhead Press 5x5
Deadlift 1x5
Pull-ups/Chin-ups 3xF
Prone Bridges 3x30sec

Day three:
Squat 5x5
Bench 5x5
Inverted Rows 3xF
Pushups 3xF
Reverse Crunch 3x12
Click to expand...
Eh, The squatting on day one will interfere with the deadlifting on day two if they are done on consecutive days. If you are doing a full body routine then none of the training days should be consecutive days.
 
@rckvl I understand what you're saying, it's just my schedule is pretty tight. I go to school 3 times a week (Mon,Tues,Thurs) plus I just got a job & I told my manager that I'm available Sun, Wed, Fri, Sat. I'm gonna need those days since I'm saving up for a car & I'll need to make the montly bill for my gym ($31) plus my groceries as well. I could possibly request Friday off.
 
Are your job and lifting mutually exclusive on workdays? Even if you are working 12 hours shifts, there's still a few waking hours there that might be used to lift...
 
pliftkl said:
Are your job and lifting mutually exclusive on workdays? Even if you are working 12 hours shifts, there's still a few waking hours there that might be used to lift...
Click to expand...

This. Or you could choose a different program that will work better with your schedule.
 
@pliftkl I'm trying to schedule my workouts on school days. I usually work 8 hour shifts (could possibly be more since I work from 8:30am-6:30pm this sunday) I understand what your saying but I have to make due with what is available. I would lift after work but I'm usually very tired once I clock out. Plus I don't have a car yet so it would be a hassle for whoever is picking me up to take me to the gym. Basically it's just circumstances right now. Hopefully I'll enough $ to buy a car by next month, then I'll be able to spread out my days for lifting.
 
Just throwing another idea towards you. This is from the starting strength wiki

I can't train 3 nonconsecutive days...

NOTE - the following is NOT addressed by Rippetoe in the book. As such, take it as the advice of me, Kethnaab. It is NOT the advice of Mark Rippetoe.

With that in mind....

If you cannot train on 3 nonconsecutive days in a week, then you have a bit of a problem. There are tons of options available to you, I will list briefly a few of them here. Go to the section that deals with "variations to the program" for more info.

If you can only train 2 days/week or 2 of your workouts must be back-to-back, you can do the basic Starting Strength Workouts A & B on 2 non-consecutive days and then do a bodyweight-only workout on another day. For example:

Monday - Workout A
Squats - 3x5
Benches - 3x5
Deadlifts - 1x5

Thursday - Workout B
Squats - 3x5
Standing Presses - 3x5
Cleans - 5x3

Friday - Bodyweight Workout
Chinups - 3x10
Dips - 3x10
Hyperextensions - 3x10
Abs - 3x5

You could also look into other alternatives, such as a push/pull or upper/lower type setup which is quite easy to fit into a M/T/Th/F schedule.
Click to expand...
 
A question. If you are doing 5x5 squats during one session, how many minutes do you rest between each set? And do you need more rest before doing the last and the heaviest set?

Also, do you take same amount of ti e to rest between sets of other exercises (eg deadlifts or pull ups)?
 
^^^ I'd do this. Don't worry too much if you had your heart set on stronglifts, you can still do that when you get a car. It's better to have a routine that matches your circumstances than to do a routine the wrong way. TS, you seem to have a great attitude towards training, don't get discouraged!
 
@toonie I'll follow that lifting routine if I can't do stronglifts. I'm open to whatever is gonna benefit me in order to reach my goal. Btw do I need a day for the bodyweight workout? Can I just have two days of working out in general?
 
You can do awesome on a two day a week. I would say you should use the two day since you're so stressed right now. Just try it for a month or two.

Squat 3x5
Bench 3x5
Bent Over Rows 3x5

Deadlift 3x5
Overhead Press 3x5
Chins 3x5

Adding weight each time you go to the gym. I did it for a while when I was super stressed. Hell, I did once a week and when combined with eating a ton helped me preserve my strength.
 
What do you do for work? The first half of this year, I was working 12 hour shifts, 7 days a week as a roughneck and still managed to go to the gym after work.
 
How far away is your gym? Sometimes I get dropped off at my gym and run home (1.6m)

I will agree with everyone else about the splits. If you cant do 3 non-consecutive, you will just need to do a 2 day split.

I sometimes work >100 hrs per week, 24, 36, and even 48 hr shifts. So I made a program that is flexible for 3 or 2 sessions. Whichever works that week.

I do
A- Squats, Bench, Chins
B- Deads, Over head press, DB Rows

I will admit to being a complete newb so my program may suck. But it does seem to be pretty flexible.
 
rckvl said:
The way you have your training days set up you will be squatting two days in a row, don't do this. You need at least one day of rest between your training days for this program. Either figure out a way to do that, or do a different one, such as the one below from the FAQ.

Day one: Deadlifts
Deadlifts 5X5
One or two deadlift assistance exercises
Upper body pull exercise (eg. BORs or pullups)

Day Two: Bench
Bench Press 5X5
One or two bench press assistance lifts

Day Three: Squats
Squats 5X5
Front Squats 3-4X6
Whatever ham/lowback/quad assistance you
Click to expand...
 
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