New to PLing, Where Should I Start?

Sheiko has a chart on his site for optimal weight depending on your height (somewhere in the forum), at 5’9" you should be around 220-242. Of course this is just a guideline and not everyone will fit into these exact numbers, but it gives you a rough idea of what weight you should aim for.

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Meso… Micro… Macro…all the same…:sweat_smile:

Meso is what I wanted to say, thanks for correcting.

PowerliftingtoWin has a nice description.
More on Texas Method

I wouldn’t even look at TM that way, it’s just a basic DUP program. It’s also not a beginner program, you are supposed to use it when you stall out on linear progression.

Strong lifts man. I’m somewhat close to you in terms of lifts, but I also have 20 pounds on you, lol. You can afford to gain some weight, because I think your strength levels are good, especially for someone at 5’9” 167. I was 5’9” 155 in August 2017, and since then I put on 35 lb. and put 80 pounds on my deadlift, 40 pounds on my bench, and maybe 110 lb. on my squat. You have some serious potential man, good stuff. Good luck, feel free to message me w/ any questions you might have.

Cheers man.

Your best options at this point are to use a linear progression program like Starting Strength or any basic 5x5 program. There was another guy on here who made a lot of progress with greyskull, you could check that out.

As for what @jbackos said about 5/3/1 not being appropriate for beginners due to the AMRAP sets, I totally agree. However, there is another 5/3/1 option that doesn’t involve AMRAPs, it’s called 5’s progression. You do 5’s for all work sets and you can make 10% jumps (10% of your training max) after the 3rd set if you are feeling good. Obviously don’t fail reps and you are not supposed to be working up to a 5rm, just a heavy set of 5. On top of that, you could do “opposite first set last” for 5x5, so on your squat day you work up to your heavy set of 5 and then do deadlifts with the weight for the FIRST work set for 5x5. This will give you a bit more volume and frequency, both of which are lacking in the standard 5/3/1 template. Don’t bother with 5x5 OHP though, do close grip bench or dumbbell bench or something like that instead. People are always recommending 5/3/1 and beginners all want to do it, I came up with this solution so that you can actually make it work.

Thanks man! I appreciate it

Thanks man! What is This 5’s progression? I cant seem to Find any solid information on it

It’s in “Beyond 5/3/1”, you do 5 reps for all work sets and you can do more sets working up in 10% (of training max) increments, all for sets of 5. Very straightforward. Apparently Wendler has an article that explains it as well.

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Thanks Guys. Ive looked at his books on the internet and I Will buy them for shoure

No problem man, pick a program and start a log. Any of the programs listed in this thread as of right now are reputable.

Ive made This Excel sheed. Do you Guys think This would be a good way to go for me? Or Should i go with a three times a week 5’s progression?

Im still Fairly new to weightlifting but my form for Squad, dead and Bench are good enough to go to my True max. My Press needs Some work tho.

Thanks for All the help Guys!

I thought that as well, even after reading Rippetoe’SS and videotaping my form. I still managed to herniate a disc… but I am also twice as old as you… Slow and consistent progress is the way to go. If you start slightly below your “True Max”, you might feel a bit underworked at the start, but it also allows your tendons and ligaments to develop with the rest (they develop much slower than muscles)

Others are probably much better qualified to comment on the overall exercise selection and volume, but I am not a big fan of leg extentions/curls for powerlifting. Add some face pulls for shoulder health.

On a different note, if you are in a commercial gym you should add rounding and increments to your table. You won’t be able to load a barbell to 0.25kg increments as only very few gyms have 0.125kg plates.

Also, 30 reps with DB Rows seems a bit high.

With respect to exercise selection:

SQUAT: The Squat is least benefited by muscle isolation work. Your squat assistance should focus on hip hinge movements (good morning, RDL, SLDL, swings, pullthroughs), Core stabilization movements (Carries, walkouts, single hand deadlifts, planks, side planks, ab wheel rollouts).

DEADLIFT: The same movements that I mentioned above would also help the deadlift. Additionally you can do rack pulls, block deadlifts, deficit deadlifts, halting deadlifts. Heavy bentover rows seem to help. I find pulldowns/pullups work to provide traction after heavy compression work.

BENCH PRESS: Build muscle. When you think you have enough, build some more. I found close grips, floor presses, pin presses, spoto presses, and overhead work. If you’re lifting raw build up the shoulders and the pecs first, then the triceps.

Finally exercise selection should be added when there is a weakness. Do a minimalist program first, then see what needs work. Be patient. This shit takes a looooong time to get right.

Good luck

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I know a bunch of people would suggest 5/3/1
Here’s a link:

Didn’t you already start another thread to ask the same question? What makes you think you will get a different answer this time? Why didn’t you follow any of the suggestions you got last week?

Some people post questions to get a pat on the back and feel better.

This guy has some kind of mental problem, he just started another thread with the exact same question and numbers but with a different account. Why?

LOL. We all have a mental problem. Normal people don’t do what we do to ourselves.

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I suggest running this program for a while until you get really good at squatting, benching, and dead lifting. Since you are new you can definitely add a ton of weight to your total with a program like “Faleev’s 80/20 Routine”.