Approaching second cycle of 531 beginners next week but unfortunately I cannot make the Friday session due to family commitments so I may have to do a 2 day week as a one off rather than changing days and throwing the Monday Wednesday Friday 2 days off routine off schedule.
Is this a big deal? Friday is essentially a repeat of Mondays workout anyway. Of course I wouldn’t want this to be a detriment to my training so if it were absolutely nessassary I could wake up at 4am to do the workout but I really don’t want to do this unless I have to. So will a 2 day week effect the 3 week cycle in anyway or can I have piece of mind knowing that missing 1 session won’t be a big deal?
I ran 5/3/1 2 days a week for over a year and a half straight. Just skip the deload week and you can run it indefinitely if it fits your schedule better. I used the extra time to do the cardio I neglected for years. Magically, no injuries and I was able to come off blood pressure meds.
What I do when I could afford a third session is that I do bench before squat on the third day. It makes a little difference.
If you miss one, not really. If you do it like me where I constantly just do it over a 2 day cycle, progress will be a little slow I guess, but still, progress. And considering what I do for a living, being able to progress in the gym is a big thing no matter what.
If you dig deep through the forums or Jim’s work, he actually doesn’t care if you do ABA ABA or ABABAB. Just get the work in and make progress.
That’s the beauty of it, it offers enough flexibility to suit your goals as long as you know what you are doing. Just be careful not to butcher the program that it doesn’t look like the program anymore.
Thanks for your replies. I’m just gonna bite the bullet and miss Friday as much as its killing me as I hate missing sessions. Had a good workout Monday and yesterday so I’ll try get an extra day conditioning in and go back to normal next week
I’ve done this loads of times due to travel with work. It won’t hold you back, sometimes the rest did me good, sometimes I added a bit more accessories to the workout. Sometimes I found something else I could do, like a yoga class. Don’t punish yourself.
I do 3 day a week templates as it is what fits my work and family lifestyle. My work schedule can screw things up at times and I have found I have to be flexible with my workouts. I have done things like working out back to back to get workouts in within a timeline, I don’t always find this to workout well for recovery. What I have done more times then I can count and find it the easiest way to get the workout in is be flexible. In your situation of not being able to work out on Friday, I would get it in on Saturday and start the next week on Monday. I have also done things were I might workout Saturday and then start the next week on Tuesday and plan for Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. Just some thoughts.
I am 62 and my favorite 2 day template is based off Jim’s first book and switching to 5 Pros and FSL for the main lifts. Steady gains and never feel beat up.
Monday
Squat – 3 sets of 5 Pros / 2 sets of 5-8 FSL
Bench – 3 sets of 5 Pros / 2 sets of 5-8 FSL
Assistance Exercises:
• Pulldowns – 5 sets of 10 reps
• DB RDLs – 3 sets of 10 reps
• Dumbbell Press – 3 sets of 10 reps
• Triceps Rope Press Down – 3 sets of 10 reps
Thursday
Deadlift – 3 sets of 3 Pros / 2 sets of 5 FSL
Press – 3 sets of 5 Pros / 2 sets of 5-8 FSL
Assistance Exercises:
• Inverted Rows – 5 sets of 10 reps
• Goblet Squat – 3 sets of 10 reps
• Dumbbell Bench Press – 3 sets of 10 reps
• DB Curls – 3 sets of 10 reps