531 Intro

A few weeks back I bought Jim Wendler's new book, Beyond 531.  I immediately loved it, but was already committed to a 6 week mini cycle from Strength Life Legacy.  I used the Strong-15 short timer to hit a 500 lb no belt pull and 185lb behind the neck press.   I think I programmed for 455 and 175, so it definitely worked.  Its a nice short run routine to have in my toolbox.  With that said, the short-timer is exactly as Paul Carter described - a routine to run for a short time.  Its a strength peaking routine.  It doesn't really "build strength" so to speak.   But it was the right decision at the time. I had something semi-structured and hit some nice weights before the bar exam.

I move to DC on August 27th. So now, I'm in my usual position of having a short time to try to make some gainzzz before I move somewhere.  Part of me just wanted to say fuck it and play things by ear, but whatever. I'm going to do a 4 week intro run of a new 531 variation.  If I like it, I'll keep running it when I get to DC.  I can treat the move-in week as a deload if need be.  Chances are however, I can just keep on going with the routine even if I'm a couple days behind because...

I have great news for Deadlifts and Sandies:

I signed an apartment lease that is one block away from the gym. Literally a block.  It should be pretty easy to maintain a schedule even with the new job.

At the same time I need to be honest with myself and realize I might not be doing a damn thing at all for a while.  As soon as I get back on insurance I'll need to get my knee checked out.  I'm fairly confident I'll need surgery. If that is the case, I'm just going to do it as soon as possible.  My training has been severley compromised without squatting.  It hurts my fucking soul not to squat.  Its not like I don't want to try either.  My knee just easily is inflamed and still feels unstable as shit just in everyday life.  If I only have a partial tear, I'm not going to make it worse by squatting.  I'm getting creative and finding ways to progress in the gym anyways.

Without further adieu, here is my split.  The only thing I may change is some of the assistance:

Day 1

1.  BTN Press.  5/3/1 + joker + first set last (sets of 8)
2a.  Chins.  3 sets
2b.  Pushups. 3 sets
3a.  Facepulls.  3 sets, high reps
3b.  BB Curls 3 sets
4.  Side Plank. 2 sets per side

Day 2

1.  Deadlift.  5/3/1 + jokers (singles only) + first set last (triples)
2.  Stationary lunge - forward foot incline and elevated.  3 sets.
3a.  Leg drops. 3 sets.
3b.  3 Month Position pullover.  3 sets

Day 3

1.  BB Incline.  5/3/1 + jokers + first set last (sets of 8)
Same assistance as Day 1, but windmills instead of the plank

Day 4

1.  Pendlay Row.  5/3/1  + jokers + first set last (triples)
2.  Bulgarian Split Squat (3 sets)
3.  DB Row  (3 sets)
4a.  Hypers (2 sets high reps)
4b.  Hanging knee raises  (2 sets high reps)

Quick explanation

This is a little unconventional but I'm running with it.  I know my body and this is what I care about right now.  It seems like a lot of little assistance work, but thats all gravy and basically very low impact stuff.  Almost 50% of my assistance is bodyweight stuff.  The new 5/3/1 setup is significantly higher volume as compared to former 5/3/1 variations.  Its essentially 200% more work in the main lift.  That is where all the stimulus is coming from.

As such, my assistance work is basically centered around light stuff to keep me mobile and to address some of my problem areas.  The single leg work will all be bodyweight for a while, because thats all I need.  I found out I can do both of these movements without knee pain.  I think because my shin remains completely verticle.

Pendlays are weird for a main lift, but I don't care.  Its a legit heavy barbell exercise.  If 4 days are too much, I'll just combine days 3-4 and make move the pendlay rep scheme to assistance.

Beyond this, I'll do small workouts here and there for additional core work and the like.  Although I don't have any dedicated conditioning, I'm playing golf almost everyday now that I'm done with the exam.  Obviously this isn't the same intensity as what I've generally done in the past, but its good enough for a short period.  I'll get back to more intense conditioning in DC.