hey bros, after fricking around at the gym and doing some researching I have finally settled on SS for biggest gains in strength and size over the shortest period. I wanted to ask if any of you bros have done it and what you think, or if you can share any tips.
my only question is the time frame of workout: total sets for workout A (squats, bench/OP, DL) should be 7, with about 3-5 minutes of rest in between each set, about 35 minutes of rest with what I assume is a total of ~45 minutes of gymming. but once you factor in warm up sets, what should this look like? I have read people doing 5 to 6 warm up sets of increasing weight with what I assume are a couple minutes of rest at least. should I be spending at least an hour and a half to two hours lifting on this program?
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Warm ups to fast, SS will take around 1h/1h30 per day. More if you do a few isolations at the end
gotcha, thanks bros. might be a little too late to really grow for this summer but I’m gonna be looking like some USDA Buck Choice steak soon
Good luck anon. Beginner gains are the best. You’ll probably see something by summer propper.
Everyone’s done SS before here probably. Mark would want you to warm up that much sure. Work on your form before you start putting on challenging weight. Enjoy your phat ass.
You can blow through the workouts quickly when you're starting. But yeah when it gets heavy you take as long as you need in between sets, which can put you at around 1.5-2 hours per workout.
sounds about right, thanks big guy
Yes you should warm up incrementally and yes 1-1.5 hours would be normal. SS is also not really about gaining as much strength as possible, it’s a beginner program focused on establishing a baseline of technique and strength for all the common barbell movements. It’s a good program to follow strictly for ~6 months as a beginner before branching out.
is there any utility in trying to add very minor variation to the routine? I would rather throw in pull-ups sooner since I can at least do 3x8, but I can understand just being patient.
That'd be fine. Don't forget some arm isolations too so you're not t rex mode
What should you do afterwards?
Everyone here talks about SS/SL/GS but never what you should do next.
I don't think it matters. There was a dude on here who made amazing gains with SS+Cardio on his off days. Any routine will work so long as you try your best and avoid slop food.
But the entire point of when you're meant to stop this stuff is when it slows down.
I've just been adjusting GS more and more by progressing slowly and doing deloads fairly often, but at that point I'm just not really doing the program any more.
>done it
yes
>what you think
goat for novice
>tips
important:
1) read the fugen book and make sure you understand technique/program, it has fricking chinups and shit in it.
2) push VERY FRICKING HARD on the lifts, like go absolutely "i will kys myself on the squat rack today". So you NEED safeties/spotters every set, and you NEED to be confident that if you fail, nothing bad will happen. This is KEY.
not important:
add abs every day and rotate bis/medial delt/posterior delt iso 10xf through workouts
feel free to ignore power cleans, they don't do much.
>my only question
doesn't matter do what you feel is enough for you
i personally just did singles increaseing weight up to actual sets, took me like 5 minutes to get to actual sets, 5 minutes rest between sets, maybe do biceps or whatever isolation I described above during rests, then first working set is hard but you know you can get through, second is easier because now you're properly warmed up and primed, third is balls to the wall
one thing you can incorporate is slap 90+lbs more than rm on the barbell when you're about to squat, and just unrack it, maybe walk it out, then rerack it, then next set will feel lighter. or do some light cable rows really forcing the shoulders back and together when warming up for bench. makes it easier to stay tight.
PPL based on compounds is simplest option. e.g. start push day with bench, pull with rows/deads, legs with squats. 4-6 sets/workout 2x week, then years later when you start stalling increase workout volume decrease frequency.
iirc at first you just squat/bench/deadlift, then sub lighter variations when you stall on those lifts. Squat -> front squat, bench -> ohp, deads -> power cleans.
An intermediate program
In my experience it's not great for size other than for your legs, but it makes you very strong, very fast as a noob. You'll need more upper body volume if you want to grow proportionally
>I have read people doing 5 to 6 warm up sets of increasing weight
Those guys are pulling like 900lb off the floor bro. They need to ramp up otherwise they risk injuries. When you're first starting 1 or 2 warmup sets is all you'll need. You'll need more warmup sets as you get much stronger but it's a non-issue when you're just starting
Read this article or you will probably stall pretty quickly:
https://startingstrength.com/article/the_first_three_questions
when i was doing SS i used this site http://warmupreps.com/#starting-strength. works pretty well and tells u what plates to grab
Starting Strength is fine for most people
Eat like this instead of what Rippetoe recommends
Ok so this program is based around 4 exercises. Why the frick are squats 3x a week and bench and ohp 1.5x?
I would do
Workout A: Bench and Deadlifts
Workout B: OHP and Squats
Or even better
Workout A: Bench/OHP and Deadlifts
Workout B: Chinups and Squats
Optional workout C
Any combination of: Abs, neck, biceps, triceps, forearms, calves, cardio, etc.
Write your own book about it. Otherwise, shut the frick up. No one cares what you would do.
OP here, I was specifically asking for variations and suggestions in this thread. how about you shut the frick up and get the frick out of my thread. it’s a no Black person zone.
>biggest gains in strength and size over the shortest period
eat shit moron
SS is the worst possible program you can recommend to a beginner. You will build a lot of muscle - on your legs and ass, while your chest, back and arms will be comically underdeveloped. If that's what you want, then go ahead I guess
the start of the program takes like 30m, including warmup sets, because you won't really need more than 2m rest
the end of the novice program is a brutal 2hrs because a couple more warmups sets but you'll also want 5-10 minutes of rest to prevent failure
you'll also be adding dips/chins after deadlifts a week or two in and on the last day of the week I like to do extra stuff for arms since I'll have the weekend to recover
moreover as your deadlift slows down the cleans you alternate them with take a little longer
I usually warmed up with the bar with 50lb jumps of sets of 5s until near working weight then just do 1 or 2 to get used to the feel
once in a while I'll make 90lb jumps but I'm rarely that warm, comfortable, and in the groove
I don't warm up before deadlifts since they're after squats and ohp/bench
IF you're eating well you will get big and strong fast af well into 1/2/3/4 for 5s but it will burn you out so prepare to adapt each lift for intermediate progression after a few honest failures or just move on to something else
doing the novice stuff for 6-months, my sets got to 190/290/370/405 for ohp&cleans/bench/squat/deadlift respectively with 15+ dips and chinups
you should be gaining weight every 1-2 weeks; especially toward the end of the program, and if you're not add a few hundred calories more per day
I really didn't notice fat being gained and you probably won't either unless you start skipping workouts, the only thing you should see is that bar going up and your body getting slightly thiccr all over
they should call this book "Starting Sciatica"
me after SS (and TM heh)
make sure you add in the chins
don't be afraid to do some curls and shit afterwards
otherwise youll be t-rex
like me
lol