It’s been a while since I’ve posted, but that doesn’t mean I haven’t been “doing the work”. In fact, I’ve just been too busy doing the work to post. I’m about to swap out the resistance training (RT) portion of my workout and thought I’d give you an update on how that’s worked for me, and what I’m moving to.
Resistance Training – 5-3-1
For the last 8 months I’ve been working a routine called “5-3-1” popularized (if not created by) Jim Wendler. I heard about it, was intrigued, and so bought his book detailing the plan. It’s a short Kindle read and easy to grasp, or you can check out this link to get most everything you need to know. Here’s the plan in a nutshell: It’s a four week cycle of four days/week, concentrating on four “big lifts”: Squat, Deadlift, Bench, Overhead Press. The first week you hit your lifts with 3 sets of 5 reps each, the second week you hit them at 3 x 3, and the final week you hit them for 3 sets of 5, then 3, then 1 (plus as many as you can, safely). Each week you are progressing in weight. The fourth week of the cycle is a “deload” week to help you recover. The plan expects you to progress in strength slowly. That’s what I like about it as an older lifter; it’s a lifetime plan in that you keep adding a little each week to your “max” (which isn’t truly your match, just a percentage of your one-rep max (ORM)), and you have plenty of recovery time built in. The fact that I’ve been doing this for 8 months is a testament to how well this works. It’s also proven to me the value of recovery.
The 5-3-1 program is built on a set of percentages, so I created a Google Sheet that I update each month. Your weights for each set are calculated as a percentage of your “max”, which is really 90% of your ORM, as indicated above. My sheet works by simply updating the ORM at the beginning of the month, and it fills in each set’s target weight across each set and week. I’ve drastically oversimplified the plan: I recommend you check out the link, above, or buy the book and give Jim (and me!) some love.
I have made my own changes to the plan, based on some limitations unique to me. First, thanks to rugby and lots of stupid bench-press mistakes as a young guy, my shoulders are a mess. When I overhead press (OHP) it feels (and, sometimes, sounds) like there’s gravel in my shoulders. I’ve had to give up on heavy OHP. In addition, my work schedule and other health priorities only allow me to RT 3 days/week. So I have cut out the OHP day from the system. Here’s how my schedule works:
- Monday – Deadlift
- Wednesday – Bench Press
- Friday – Squat
You are expected to add some accessory work to each day. I use these exercises to either add more volume or train body parts that aren’t getting emphasized from the “big three”, above. On Monday, after deadlifts, I drop to a lighter weight and add four sets of squats. On Wednesday I add a bench press variation (incline, decline, or dumbbells) at a light weight to “grease the groove” and add some kind of back work, either heavy dumbbell rows or pull-ups. On Friday, Squat Day, I add light(er) deadlifts, again to increase volume and practice form. And, because I’m a dude, of course there are some curls and light shoulder work thrown in.
I’ve benefitted from 5-3-1 tremendously, as has my youngest son, who started the program shortly after I did. My numbers have definitely increased in my lifts, which is hard to do at my age (58 as I write this). I’ve also outgrown my pants. Seriously, my butt and legs have become uncomfortable in my jeans and I’ve had to retire several pairs. That’s a testament to how well it works: I haven’t changed pants sizes in almost twenty years!
Cardio
Zone 2
On Tuesdays and Thursdays, between RT days, I do some kind of cardio work. Because it’s been winter most of that has been done on a treadmill, elliptical, or rowing machine. Tuesday is long, slow, Zone 2 cardio. I absolutely hate running on a treadmill, so it isn’t as long as it should be, but I aim for about 25 minutes on the elliptical at a heart rate of 180-my age (The Maffetone Formula). Now that it’s getting warmer here in Memphis (it was almost 80 yesterday, yay!) I’ll be running outside more.
HIIT
On Thursdays I do some kind of HIIT work. Again, in winter I’m indoors, usually on a rowing machine. Since yesterday, Thursday, was so warm here, I took a medicine ball outside and did med ball slams. Very often I’ll do a running variation. What I’ve come to as my interval method looks something like this: I use some kind of exercise that I can comfortably do that will really get my heart racing, I do it for one minute all-out, then I actively rest for a minute (active rest means I’m not just sitting down, I’m moving). I repeat the routine for 20 minutes, which gives me 10 active intervals.
Walking
I know walking doesn’t sound much like “exercise”, but I’ve been trying to integrate walking into my daily routine more and more. As a computer jockey, I sit a lot, and I sit indoors a lot. Any movement is good, and sunshine and fresh air is great. Because walking after eating is great for tempering glucose response after eating, I’ve made it a priority to go for a brief, brisk, walks after each meal. It’s especially important for me to hit my morning walk after breakfast to get some sun in my eyes and set that circadian clock.
Sauna
Finally, I take one day to sit in the sauna for 25 minutes. I wish I could do more, but I don’t have a sauna at my house (wish list!), but there is a YMCA here in town that has one. I make the trek on Friday to do my workout there, and then spend 25 minutes in a very hot sauna.
Q2 2025
Resistance Training
I’m dropping 5-3-1 for a while just to add some variety to my life, and to add some emphasis on hypertrophy. Muscle strength and size are both important for overall health. 5-3-1 has added some muscle to my frame, but is primarily a strength-based system. Muscle size has metabolic benefits beyond strength: specifically, the more muscle you have, the more glucose you can store; it becomes a “glucose sink”. I’m not a big guy, I’m not a young guy, and as I’ve hinted at, it’s hard to put on muscle. I think it’s valuable to make that a priority, at least for some part of the year. So I’m currently creating a program that will allow me to maintain the strength gains I’ve made over the past year but lay down some additional muscle. We’ll see how that goes.
Cardio
Though I don’t play competitively anymore, I do still love to play rugby, and my goal is always to be able to step onto a pitch if the opportunity arises. Usually that’s only touch rugby these days, but I’ll take what I can get. Summer is the season in Memphis when the rugby community comes together and plays each week, often in huge numbers. It’s fantastic exercise: Zone 2, sprinting, and physical dexterity all at a high level. When that kicks in, I’ll retire my weekly Zone 2 and HIIT and just play.