CrossFit Total
1 RM Back Squat
1 RM Strict Press
1 RM Dead Lift
This is the start of a strength cycle please write down your numbers so we can use
it to work off of percentages in the weeks to come.
Also please be aware that your 1 RM may not be as high right now due to a non strength bias in our programing.
What is a strength cycle you ask? It will make you stronger!
We will Be using the 5/3/1 Wendler Strength Cycle read below to see how it works.
(You can also check out” https://www.t-nation.com/workouts/531-how-to-build-pure-strength “to read more)
In 5/3/1, you’re expected to train three or four days a week. Each workout is centered around one core lift – The squat, deadlift, and strict press.
Each training cycle lasts four weeks, with these set-rep goals for each major lift:
Week 1 3 x 5
Week 2 3 x 3
Week 3 3 x 5, 3, 1
Week 4 Deload
Then you start the next cycle, using heavier weights on the core lifts. And that’s where a seemingly simple system starts getting a little more complicated.
You aren’t just picking a weight to lift five times or three times or one time per set. You’re using a specific percentage of your one-rep max. And not your full 1RM. The calculations are based on 90% of it.
So if your 1RM in the bench press is 315 pounds, you use 285 (90%) as the base number for your training-weight calculations. Here’s how it works:
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | |
| Set 1 | 65% x 5 | 70% x 3 | 75% x 5 | 40% x 5 |
| Set 2 | 75% x 5 | 80% x 3 | 85% x 3 | 50% x 5 |
| Set 3 | 85% x 5+ | 90% x 3+ | 95% x 1+ | 60% x 5 |
When you see 5+, 3+, or 1+, that means you do the max reps you can manage with that weight, with the goal of setting a rep record in each workout.
Let’s walk through the Week 1 workout for back squat. Using the example above, if your 1RM is 315, you calculate all your percentages from 90% of that max, or 285 pounds.
So you’re using 185 (65% of 285) x 5, 215 x 5, and 240 or 245 x 5 or more. (In my 5/3/1 ebook, I provide detailed lists of weights and percentages so you don’t have to carry a calculator with you to the gym.)
After you finish the first cycle, you add five pounds to your 1RM calculations for the two upper-body lifts and 10 pounds to your 1RM for the squat and deadlift.
One Goal Per Workout
With 5/3/1, you accomplish a goal every workout. Some programs have no progression from one day to the other.
Another unique feature is that final balls-out set in each workout. You don’t have to go beyond the prescribed reps if you don’t feel like it, but there are real benefits to doing so.
I’ve always thought of doing the prescribed reps as simply testing your strength. Anything over and above that builds strength, muscle, and character.
Yes, that last set is the one that puts hair on your chest, but the system doesn’t work without the sets that precede it. I tried cutting those out but I got smaller and weaker. There might be only one really hard set, but the other sets are still quality work.