5x5 vs 3x10

[Sixguns]

What are the benefits of doing 5x5 over a 3x10 routine? I usually do 5x5 for bench, deadlifts, squats, and presses and everything else 3x10. I like that I can do heavy weight with the 5x5 but it seems like my muscles lack endurance because of it.

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

I think the whole idea behind 5x5 is answering a simple question.

Q) How do you get stronger?
A) Lift heavier weights

I do mostly 5x5 but I toss in some extra stuff at 3x7 (lat pull downs) and 3x10 (concentration curls).

Doing all the "extra crap" helps me with endurance. I'm more out of shape these days, but it was no big deal for me to do a 90 minute workout with 2 minute breaks between sets. That and running does wonders for endurance.

 

[z1ggy]

Gaining more muscle which will lead to the ability to gain more strength, in the long run.


Slow twitch muscles may benefit more from higher reps than fast twitch, but I generally stick to lifting heavy.

I did something like 2-3 months of doing all my lifts 3x12 with some cardio and eating healthy, and I believe I lost around 10lb, but I didn't look "jacked". I then gained the weight back after I got a knee injury.

Fast forward to now, I am on week 11 of doing MAX OT (which is heavy lifting, google it if you want) and I am down around 2-3lb, all fat. I look more "jacked" than I did 10lbs ago, because I likely lost muscle doing the 3x12 because I wasn't pushing myself. When I lift heavy, I feel maxed out (no pun) after I lift. After a 3x12 I was just filled with lactic acid and I didn't maintain my muscles, especially because I did cardio right after. Currently, I am not doing cardio..Just sports 2-3x times a week. I am now hitting the gym 2x a day, with a heavy lift around noon, and a quick interval session around 4:30-5pm. On days I have hockey, I'll skip the 2nd session.

 

[killster1]

doing max oT as well.. 2x 4-6.. not sure what a quick interval session is 😉

but more reps seems like good for endurance. The max oT training says every 10 weeks take a week off.. so hard to stop lifitng for a week.. makes you think you will lose your gains ;P i have hard time taking 2 days off a week unless my girl and me have plans out of town..

 

[pauldun170]

I've done 5x5, I've done 3x10
I've done 10,8,6,4,2,2,1
I've done 10,10,10,5,3,1
I've don 5x10 + 1

I switch it up all the time. If I want to get stronger, I eat.

 

[smackababy]

What are the benefits of doing 5x5 over a 3x10 routine? I usually do 5x5 for bench, deadlifts, squats, and presses and everything else 3x10. I like that I can do heavy weight with the 5x5 but it seems like my muscles lack endurance because of it.

How much actual muscle endurance do you think is being gained from doing 5 more reps per set? And, at what point does this translate to anything you need to actually be able to accomplish? Even in sports, acts that involve strength happen in bursts with intervals of 'rest'; cardiovascular endurance would be much more important.

If there is a situation where you need to be able to squat 2x your body weight 25 times, you'd likely know that before hand and train for it. And, even with that, I would think if you could do 5 reps of 3x your BW, 2x your BW wouldn't be nearly as taxing on your muscles.

If you're goal is purely visual, few sets of heavier weight is what makes your muscles bigger, and more likely to show through your fat.

 

[Sixguns]

If you're goal is purely visual, few sets of heavier weight is what makes your muscles bigger, and more likely to show through your fat.

Goals arent just about visuals, I just want to be stronger.

 

[TallBill]

I love me some 5x5.

 

[z1ggy]

doing max oT as well.. 2x 4-6.. not sure what a quick interval session is 😉

but more reps seems like good for endurance. The max oT training says every 10 weeks take a week off.. so hard to stop lifitng for a week.. makes you think you will lose your gains ;P i have hard time taking 2 days off a week unless my girl and me have plans out of town..

Quick interval for cardio. Read the MAX OT cardio section for more info.

With that week off you shouldn't lose much, especially if you've been training for gains. I'm training for fat loss, so I'm working up to my max working sets and just trying to maintain, although I expect to maybe even lose a slight amount of strength if I end up being able to drop enough weight.

As for OP, if you want strength, you need to lift heavy. Switching it up to lighter reps for a week or something is okay but IMO it's a waste of time overall.

 

[classy]

I am not a fan of either, I still pyramid up increasing weight.

 

[Sixguns]

Went back to 5x5 yesterday for chest. Feel much better today.

 

[Pantlegz]

generally speaking 5x5 is going to build more strength 3x10 is more for hypertrophy

 

[edro]

I typically do a progressions like these:

Dumbell Press: 12x50, 10x75, 10x80, 8x80
Weighted Pullups/Dips: 12x25, 10x35, 10x45
Anything on Cables: 10x, 10x, 10x (increasing weight each set so last rep is tough)

Every now and then I will increase weight and do 4-6 reps on my final set.
I usually know how many reps I can get and my last rep is almost always very tough.

I haven't tried the trendy 5x5.

(necroed this thread because I was searching for 5x5 🙂)

 

[Dr. Zaus]

I go for a hill-climb every 2nd or 3rd day while doing 5x5 with dumbbells: overhead tricep curl, overhead press, deltoid raise, cross body hammer curl, bicep curl, shrug, upright row.

I've been adding weight slowly. On 5x5 days I do 15s, all other days I just carry 25s while I walk up hill: matching my previous body weight.

But my goal is to maintain strength as I lose weight.

 

[SNC]

I never felt like I've done any work with just a 3x8 or 5x5 anything I love where my endurance is right now, I start with between 170 200 reps of bench with 20x bar for a light stretch, 2x20 1 plate, 2x12 2 plates, 1x7 3 plates, 1x3 3 plates and a quarter, 1x7 3 plates, 3x20 2 plates, 2x20 1 plate. I go in with these numbers and some days I'll squeeze out a few more reps in a set or a few less. and that just the first exercise of 8 - 12 depending on the day. I wouldnt feel like it was worth the drive to do just 3x or 5x.

 

[KIAman]

I never felt like I've done any work with just a 3x8 or 5x5 anything I love where my endurance is right now, I start with between 170 200 reps of bench with 20x bar for a light stretch, 2x20 1 plate, 2x12 2 plates, 1x7 3 plates, 1x3 3 plates and a quarter, 1x7 3 plates, 3x20 2 plates, 2x20 1 plate. I go in with these numbers and some days I'll squeeze out a few more reps in a set or a few less. and that just the first exercise of 8 - 12 depending on the day. I wouldnt feel like it was worth the drive to do just 3x or 5x.

Usually the 5x5 or the 3x8 programs have you go through a warm up cycle to help give you the volume at lower than workout weight.

For example, my 5x5 squat would have me do 10 squats at bar, then 10x135, 10x185, 5x225, then I would go into my 5x5 @ 285 workout weight where 285 is anywhere from 85-90% of my 1RM.

Trust me, these programs still give you lots of volume.