Gamefreak501s training log & form check - Stronglifts 5x5

The routine that Freefaller is on is mental haha!

I think after a couple years of lifting, I could probably start something similar at lower weights, but right now, I consider myself weak and in need of some practice!

Edit: Thanks for that advice about OHP Cookeh - I'll take it on board and make sure I only add 2.5kg to it every week.

I hit my plateau very quickly when I went to the gym a few years back - ended up lifting the same weights over and over then I got bored... with a better diet and routine, shouldn't be the case now :)

My macros weren't so good the last few days:

Wednesday:

55% Carbs
27% Fats
18% Protein

Thursday

46% Carbs
41% Fats
13% Protein

Friday

40% Carbs
43% Fats
17% Protein

Hopefully I can bring back up my protein ratio by tonight.

I want to try to go for 50% carbs, 30% protein and 20% fats. But I'm sure those numbers can move a little bit still for a balanced diet. I'll be doing some shopping over the next few days, to make sure I'm hitting my macro goals.
 
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Today was my last session for this week.

Workout A

BB Squats - 5x5 @ 50kg

BB Benchpress - 5x5 @ 50kg

BB BOR - 5x5 @ 50kg.

For some reason my benchpress didn't feel very strong. Despite the weight being the same as last time it seemed to weigh more :confused:

Still, I completed my set.

At present my macros look like this:

42% Carbs
21% Protein
37% Fats

I should be able to get this to 45% carbs, 25-30% protein and 25-30% fats by the end of today, which is what I want to try and get - whilst maintaining 3300 kcals. I've still got 1827 kcals to gain today!
 
It's still quite difficult to get my macros where they need to be but I'm trying to stick to around about the following:

45-50% Carbs

20-25% Protein

25-30% Fats.

As of Saturday and Sunday, macros were as follows:

Calories: 3310 | 2486
Carbohydrates: 324 | 134
Protein: 166 | 87
Fats: 118 | 83

I think I need to make a good meal plan on a weekly rota - I had such a busy weekend that I haven't been able to do proper food shopping or fit in all my calories on the Sunday.

This week is looking like this:

Day 1 - Workout B

BB Squats 5x5@55kg
BB OHP 5x5 @ 32.5kg
BB Deadlifts 1x5 @ 65kg

Day 2 - Workout A

BB Squats 5x5 @ 55kg
BB Bench Press 5x5 @ 55kg
BB BOR - 5x5 @ 55kg

Day 3 - Workout B

BB Squats 5x5@55kg
BB OHP 5x5 @ 32.5kg
BB Deadlifts 1x5 @ 65kg

I've added 5kg to each weight and 2.5kg to my OHP as that's my weakest exercise at the moment.

If I stick to 5kg a week and maintain 3300kcals a day - am I likely to reach my plateau or might I be better off adding just 2.5kg to each exercise?

Thanks and regards,
 
Stick to 2.5kgs per workout and you should be fine, if you sort your diet out. You will eventually plateau but proper diet and sleep will help to prevent that happening for as long as possible. Once you do plateau its not the end of the world and SL give yiu advice on how to deal with it. When you do eventually feel you're completely stuck on a lift you can change programmes slightly, either move to 3x5 or to Madcows 531 or another program entirely, though most people tend to reach at least a 225lb squat and close to 300lbs dead by that point :)
 
Thanks Cookeh - I do struggle to get more than 6 hours of sleep at night. I want to try to get that to 7.5 or 9 hours. I may need a sleeping aid to help me.

I'll stick with 2.5kg instead just to be on the safe side. Hopefully I won't reach my plateau for quite some time :)

Going to go for these weights instead:

Day 1 - Workout B

BB Squats 5x5 @ 52.5kg
BB OHP 5x5 @ 32.5kg
BB Deadlifts 1x5 @ 62.5kg

Day 2 - Workout A

BB Squats 5x5 @ 52.5kg
BB Bench Press 5x5 @ 52.5kg
BB BOR - 5x5 @ 52.5kg

Day 3 - Workout B

BB Squats 5x5 @ 52.5kg
BB OHP 5x5 @ 32.5kg
BB Deadlifts 1x5 @ 62.5kg
 
If it helps, I think I hit 85kgs before I hit my first squat plateau, repeated it the next workout and got it. My first 'proper' plateau was at 97.5kgs, had to deload twice before I hit that, and then ruined my back (out of the gym) :D You should have a while to go as long as you're hitting your 3k cals :) If you're struggling with protein intake, have you considered supplementing with whey?
 
Thanks Cookeh,

I should reach 85kg on squats by week 15 if I add 2.5kg each week and maintain more than 3000kcals daily :)

I'm going to chart my progress with Excel.

I have some whey left, but that will need restocking again soon. I currently use Pharma HT+ strength and size, so will probably be looking to replace that with something quite similar!

Thanks mrthingyx,

Usually my body naturally wakes up around 06:15 on weekdays 15 mins before my alarm goes off. Whether I get enough sleep or not, I always wake up at 08:30 without fail on weekends.

I'm reducing my nights out to once a month or less so that I don't wreck my sleep too much and I don't plan on getting in later than 10pm anymore when I am out - which should guarantee me 8+ hours of sleep on weekdays.

It's mainly disciplining myself that's the issue. I like to play my guitars or keyboards quite late though if I'm not seeing friends and I do start to get a little yawn around 9pm to 10pm which I think I should listen to more.
 
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So today, I've got almost perfect macros yay :)

50% Carbs
23% Protein
26% Fats

Made up of

3158 kcals

334g Carbohydrates
154g Protein
77g Fat; 29g saturated, 1g poly, 5g mono, 0g trans.

I did workout B today as well as part of my SL routine as follows:

Workout B

BB Squats 5x5 @ 52.5kg
BB OHPs 5x5 @ 32.5kg
BB Deadlifts 1x5 @ 62.5kg

I found it quite tough mid way through my OHP set, then I took slightly longer breaks in between sets and they felt a lot better.

So tomorrow I get to have a rest day before I do workout A on Wednesday.

Todays diet was:

Breakfast

1x Bowl Porridge, semi skimmed milk, 1x teaspoon honey
2 slices wholemeal bread with salted butter and marmalade

Snack

Sliced pork, in wholemeal sandwiches with mayonnaise and mint sauce

Lunch

3x slices of wholemeal pitta bread, packet of turkey breast tikka chunks, 150g Cottage cheese, 60g 30% less fat Humous

Afternoon meal

100g white pasta with tin of tuna and mixed veg

Post workout

Protein bar

Dinner

Chicken Roast with veg incl. broccoli, and tomato & onion sauce

Snacks

50ml Orange juice
100ml semi-skimmed milk
1/4 can of carrot and coriander soup

I don't think there is a great deal wrong with my diet today really so feeling positive :) Would have liked to add a bit more fruit, so will have that tomorrow with breakfast.
 
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Owing to my consistent numbers the last time I did a strong lifts routine, I'm thinking of doing the following tonight:

Workout A

BB Squats : 5x5 @ 55kg
BB Benchpress : 5x5 @ 55kg
BB BOR: 5x5 @ 55kg

And the following on Friday/Saturday

Workout B

BB Squats : 5x5 @ 57.5kg
BB OHP : 5x5 @ 35kg
BB Deadlift : 1x5 67.5kg

I think if I stick to the same weights on a 5x5 every week, I could be affecting my progress. I've read that I should be adding 2.5kg more weight per workout if I manage a consistent 5x5 at a given weight and 5kg on my deadlifts as well if I mange this consistently. What are everyone else's thoughts on this?
 
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Hehe thanks GSVBagpuss!

Well today I managed Workout A at 55kg so I'm happy :)

BB Squats 5x5 @ 55kg
BB Benchpress 5x5 @ 55kg
BB BOR 5x5 @ 55kg

Funnily enough, I found the barbell rows easier than the benchpresses.

I got to set three on the Benchpress and thought that I might not make it to the five, but I took a rest and then found the last 2 sets very easy.

So my numbers can go up again for my workout B yay :)
 
I've been maintaining my 3300kcals/day diet, and I think it's paying off - no plateaus and I'm still making gains

Workout B

BB Squats : 5x5 @ 57.5kg
BB OHP : 5x5 @ 37.5kg
BB Deadlifts 1x5 @ 70kg

I had to make a bit of a jump on Deadlifts, from an intended 67.5kg to 70kg because the lower-weight plates were all used up and I was running late - I promised to help someone move today but I'll do another 70kg next time so that my body has time to get used to it before I go up to 72.5kg.

All the lifts felt strong and although the OHP felt a little tough after set 1, I managed it. So thats it for this week, next workout will be Workout A on Monday, so should see 60kg on the squats.

I'll be back to where I was before in no time at all :)
 
So today's session wasn't that great.

I managed to injure my shoulder and back with my roller skating yesterday so my bench press suffered the most.

Workout A

BB Squats 5x5 @ 60kg
BB Bench press 5x5 @ 57.5kg
BB Bor 5x5 @ 57.5kg

The numbers look okay but my bench press sets were challenging I had to take a break during my last and first sets with my shoulder complaining so much.

Hopefully by Thursdays session my shoulder will be mostly better.
 
After taking roughly a week off weight lifting after pulling the muscles on my rotator cuff (I fell backwards on my skates, all my weight went on my right shoulder) and letting my diet slip for a couple of days, I'm now back in the game.

Today I did Workout B

BB Squats 5x5 @ 62.5kg
BB OHP 5x5 @ 40kg
BB Deadlifts 1x5 @ 75kg

Overall it was a good workout. I managed to get all my weights up and only my very last rep on set 5 of my over head press was a bit of a struggle. A sign I might be reaching my plateau in this particular exercise.

Still want to combine this with my roller skating practice and might get in to amateur boxing as this runs in the evenings and will keep my mind off things.

I'll probably go up to 3,500 to 4000kcals on the boxing/roller skating days. My legs and skills aren't strong enough to meet minimum standard for the roller derby team yet, so as disappointed and annoyed as I am, I must push on! I just need to put more practice in.
 
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Yesterday I had a very good session in the gym

Workout A

BB Squats 5x5 @ 65kg
BB Benchpress 5x5 @ 60kg
BB BOR 5x5 @ 60kg

The numbers on my Benchpress and BOR are now on par with the sorts of weights I was doing regularly before (not including 1RM) but were also what I reached a plateau with previously, so there are concerns.

But with a good clean diet and discipline, I think the previous plateaus can be smashed.

When I was doing squats previously, I think I got up to 80 or 90kg on a working set, but it was a while back.

Carrying on at this rate, I will probably reach 95kg in the next 4 weeks for Squats.

Likewise, my Benchpress and BOR to should be to 75kg (bearing in mind I may plateau) my Deadlifts should be up to 100kg and my OHP at 52.5kg.

Previously, my Deadlifts got up to 120kg where they stopped, so I'm hoping I get nearer to 150kg with time.
 
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Thanks Cookeh! Really helpful videos on your form too, must make sure I'm keeping my form in check as my weights carry on going up.

My Benchpress and BOR form are miles better than they ever have been though since starting with Stronglifts.
 
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