531 for Football

dalexan242 · Post by **dalexan242** » Sat Apr 24, 2010 4:02 pm

This is more passing along another review & writeup of the weightlifting program than anything else, mostly because 531 For Football really is what it should be-- a manual for football coaches, which is something that I am not and really do not have much business commenting upon. But even though that should be kind of a no-brainer that something is what it should be, it still was a mild surprise, since so many sport-specific S&C books seem like they are aimed more for people who wish they played the sport than for those that actually coach/play the sport. 531 For Football really is written for a football coach and as such probably 85% of the book targets what the coach should have the players doing outside the weight room-- warmups, linear speed, football-specific drills, etc. and how to structure an annual program. Again, I have no business commenting on how someone should set up an annual S&C program for football, but Wendler gives a good amount of detail that in reading through it I felt like if someone had put me into the role of a S&C coach for football, that I would have an excellent template for the team.

So, the book's strength is probably also the reason why most people who aren't training specifically for football probably would not have much interest in buying the book and trying to apply it to a non-sport-specific training program. Again, that's not really a criticism per se, I just think there are a lot of people who have started 531 and enjoyed the main book so are looking for a way to see how Wendler would beef up the 531 with intense conditioning. There are some ideas on that you could glean from the book, but for the most part you'd probably be a lot better off just sticking to the original book and then some of the other stuff that Wendler has posted in his Q&A and testosterone.net thread(s) about how to incorporate conditioning. I mean, its good enough that if you just come across a copy of it you should read it, but you probably wouldn't want to prioritize buying it.

Wendler's actual weight training program does include power cleans and he readily acknowledges that olympic lifting will build explosiveness, but for the most part he feels pretty strongly that for a football program that various forms of jumping and medicine ball work is better-- HS kids in particular suck at form for the power lifts, let alone trying to teach them olympic lifts so jumps/med balls reduces chance of injury and with olympic lifts you ultimately need to stop the explosiveness with the catch, whereas with jumps and med balls you are just teaching yourself how to explode, not how to explode&stop.

REVIEW

Winter Training ( 8 weeks )
Spring Training ( 2 weeks )
“Going into Summer” ( 9 weeks )
Summer “Pre Camp” ( 6 weeks )
In Season Template

Here's the strength workouts..

Winter Strength Training ( 8 weeks )-
You have 4 basic workouts for Winter, 3 times a week
I’ll label them A, B,C,D and indicate which lifts you’ll use your 5/3/1 pecentage and the rep/sets

Workout A Winter-
--Military Press5/3/1 set/rep protocol)
--Squat: 3x5 (55%x5, 65%x5, 75%x5)
--*Chin-ups/Pull-ups: Do 1 set in between every set of squats
and military presses (including warm-ups). Sets should not
be taken to failure. Rather, take ½ of the athletes’ max
reps and have them perform that number per set (or even
less). For example, if an athlete can do 10 perfect
chins/pulls, have them do sets of NO MORE than 5 reps. If
an athlete cannot do a chin-up/pull-up, have them do band
assisted chins/pulls. When in doubt, have them do fewer
reps per set.
--Dips: 3 sets of as many reps as possible.
--Curls: 3 sets of 10 reps (have athletes superset these with
dips).
--Glute-Ham Raise/Sit-ups Circuit: 3 sets of each – reps
depending on athlete’s strength.

Workout B Winter-
--Trap Bar Deadlift: (5/3/1 set/rep protocol)
--Military Press: 3x5 (55%x5, 65%x5, 75%x5)
--DB Lunges: 3 sets of 6 reps/leg
--45-Degree Back Raises: 3 sets of 12 reps
--Med Ball Sit-ups: 3 sets of 20 reps
--Dips/Chins: superset these two exercises - 10 minutes of as
many sets/reps as they can perform.

Workout C Winter-
--Bench Press5/3/1 set/rep protocol)
--Squat: 3x5 (55%x5, 65%x5, 75%x5)
--Chins/Pull-ups: same sets/reps as before - perform between
sets of bench press and squat.
DB Bench Press: 3 sets of 12 reps
--Triceps Pushdowns/Biceps Curls: give the kids 10 minutes to
pump up.
--Sled Rows: Attach a 100 foot tug of war rope to a dragging
sled. Pull the sled toward you, hand over hand. Each
athlete should do 3 sets of this. The weight used depends
on the strength of the athlete.

Workout D Winter-
--Power Clean: (5/3/1 set/rep protocol)
--Squat: (5/3/1 set/rep protocol)
--Bench Press: 3x5 (55%x5, 65%x5, 75%x5)
--45-Degree Back Raise: 3 sets of 12 reps
--Roman Chair Sit-ups: 3 sets of 20 reps
--Dips/Chins: superset these two exercises - 10 minutes of as
many sets/reps as they can perform.

Week 1-
Monday – Workout A use 3x5 on Military press
Wednesday – Workout B use 3x5 on Trap bar Deadlift
Friday – Workout C use 3x5 on Bench

Week 2-
Monday- Workout D use 3x5 on Power Clean
Wednesday – Workout A use 3x5 on Military Press
Friday – Workout B use 3x3 on Trap bar Deadlift

Week 3-
Monday- Workout C use 3x3 on Bench Press
Wednesday- Workout D use 3x3 on Power clean and Squat
Friday – Workout A use 5/3/1 percents on Military press

Week 4-
Monday- Workout B use 5/3/1 percents on Trap bar deadlift
Wednesday- Workout C use 5/3/1 Percents on Bench Press
Friday- Workout D use 5/3/1 percents on Power Clean and Squat

Week 5-
Monday- Workout A use 3x5 on Military Press
Wednesday- Workout B use 3x5 on Trap bar Deadlift
Friday- Workout C use 3x5 on bench press

Week 6-
Monday- Workout D use 3x5 on power Clean
Wednesday- Workout A use 3x3 on Military press
Friday- Workout B use 3x3 on Trap bar Deadlift

Week 7-
Monday- Workout C use 3x3 on bench press
Wednesday- Workout D use 3x3 on Squat and Power Clean
Friday- Workout A use 5/3/1 percents on military Press

Week 8-
Monday- Workout B use 5/3/1 Percents on Trap bar deadlift
Wednesday- Workout C use 5/3/1 on Bench press
Friday- Workout D use 5/3/1 on Power Clean and Squat

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Spring Strength training( 2 weeks)-
**Note**Wendler Realizes not everyone does spring ball for 2 weeks, so if you don’t Skip it, these 2 weeks of getting back into the game only have you lifting 2 times per week.
--The difference is in rep/sets is you don’t go all out on your 5/3/1 lift on the last set. The Spring is DIFFERENT workouts, I’ll list the new workouts, applying for these 2 weeks of spring, You can do these anytime in the week, with sufficient rest.

Workout A Spring-
Squat: (5/3/1 set/rep protocol)
Bench Press5/3/1 set/rep protocol)
Chin-ups: 3 sets of as many reps as possible
Dips: 3 sets of as many reps as possible
Lying Leg Lifts: 3 sets of 25 reps

Workout B Spring-
Trap Bar Deadlift: (5/3/1 set/rep protocol)
Military Press: (5/3/1 set/rep protocol)
Glute-Ham Raise: 3 sets of 10 reps
Roman Chair Sit-ups: 3 sets of 20 reps

Week 1-
Day 1 – Workout A use 3x5 on Squat and bench
Day 2- Workout B use 3x5 on Trap bar deadlift and Military press

Week 2-
Day 1- Workout A use 3x3 on Squat and bench
Day 2- Workout B use 3x3 on Trap bar deadlift and Military Press

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Going Into Summer” Strength Training( 9 weeks)-
Again This Cycle of 9 weeks has Different Workouts, I’ll List them

Workout A- Going into Summer-
--Trap Bar Deadlift: (5/3/1 set/rep protocol)
--Military Press: (5/3/1 set/rep protocol)
--Chins/Pull-ups: perform a set of 3-5 reps between every set
of military presses (and even trap bar deadlifts if
possible).
--45-Degree Back Raises: 3 sets of 15 reps
--DB Lunges: 3 sets of 6 reps/leg
--Med Ball Sit-ups: 3 sets of 20 reps

Workout B- Going into summer-
--Bench Press (5/3/1 set/rep protocol)
--Chins/Pull-ups: perform a set of 3-5 reps between every set
of bench press and dips.
--Dips: 5 sets of 10-20 reps (reps based on athlete’s
strength)
--Curls: 3 sets of 10 reps
--Lying Leg Raises (or Hanging Leg Raises): 3 sets of 25 reps

Workout C-going into Summer-
--Power Clean: 5/3/1 (5/3/1 set/rep protocol)
--Squat: 5/3/1 (5/3/1 set/rep protocol)
--DB Bench Press: 4 sets of 10 reps
--Glute-Ham Raises: 3 sets of 10 reps
--Shrugs: 3 sets of 15 reps
--Roman Chair Sit-ups: 3 sets of 20 reps

Week 1-
Monday- Workout A use 5/3/1 percents on Trap Bar and military
Wednesday- Workout B use 5/3/1 percents on bench press
Friday- Workout C use 5/3/1 Percents on Powerclean and Squat

Week 2-
Monday- Workout A use 3x5 percents on Trap Bar and military
Wednesday- Workout B use 3x5 percents on bench press
Friday- Workout C use 3x5 Percents on Powerclean and Squat

Week 3-
Monday- Workout A use 3x3 percents on Trap Bar and military
Wednesday- Workout B use 3x3 percents on bench press
Friday- Workout C use 3x3 Percents on Powerclean and Squat
Week 4-
Monday- Workout A use 5/3/1 percents on Trap Bar and military
Wednesday- Workout B use 5/3/1 percents on bench press
Friday- Workout C use 5/3/1 Percents on Powerclean and Squat

Week 5-
None

Week 6- Deload week
Monday- Workout A use Deload percents on Trap Bar and military
Wednesday- Workout B use Deload percents on bench press
Friday- Workout C use Deload Percents on Powerclean and Squat

Week 7-
Monday- Workout A use 3x5 percents on Trap Bar and military
Wednesday- Workout B use 3x5 percents on bench press
Friday- Workout C use 3x5 Percents on Powerclean and Squat

Week 8-
Monday- Workout A use 3x3 percents on Trap Bar and military
Wednesday- Workout B use 3x3 percents on bench press
Friday- Workout C use 3x3 Percents on Powerclean and Squat

Week 9-
Monday- Workout A use 5/3/1 percents on Trap Bar and military
Wednesday- Workout B use 5/3/1 percents on bench press
Friday- Workout C use 5/3/1 Percents on Powerclean and Squat

-------------------------------------------------------------------

Summer Pre-Camp: 6 Week Training Cycle
Again This Cycle of 6 weeks has Different Workouts, I’ll List them

Summer Pre-Camp Workout A-
--Trap Bar Deadlift: (5/3/1 set/rep protocol)
--Military Press: (5/3/1 set/rep protocol)
--Chins/Pull-ups: perform a set of 3-5 reps between every set
of military presses (and even trap bar deadlifts if
possible)
--45-Degree Back Raise: 3 sets of 15 reps
--Med Ball Sit-ups: 3 sets of 20 reps

Summer Pre-camp workout B-
Bench Press: (5/3/1 set/rep protocol)
Chins/Pull-ups: perform a set of 3-5 reps between every set
of bench press.
Pushups: 5 sets of 20 reps
Face Pulls: 3 sets of 15 reps
Lying Leg Raises (or Hanging Leg Raises): 3 sets of 25 reps

Summer Pre-camp Workout C-
Power Clean: (5/3/1 set/rep protocol)
Squat: (5/3/1 set/rep protocol)
Glute-Ham Raises: 30 total reps (done in as few sets as
possible or as many sets as needed)
Roman Chair Sit-ups: 3 sets of 20 reps

Week 1-
Monday- Workout A use 3x5 on Trap bar and military press
Wednesday- Workout B use 3x5 on Bench press
Friday- Workout C use 3x5 on Power Clean and squat

Week 2-
Monday- Workout A use 3x3 on Trap bar and military press
Wednesday- Workout B use 3x3 on Bench press
Friday- Workout C use 3x3 on Power Clean and squat

Week 3-
Monday- Workout A use 5/3/1 on Trap bar and military press
Wednesday- Workout B use 5/3/1 on Bench press
Friday- Workout C use 5/3/1 on Power Clean and squat

Week 4
Monday- Workout A use deload on Trap bar and military press
Wednesday- Workout B use deload on Bench press
Friday- Workout C use deload on Power Clean and squat

Week 5-
Monday- Workout A use 3x3 on Trap bar and military press
Wednesday- Workout B use 3x3 on Bench press
Friday- Workout C use 3x3 on Power Clean and squat

Week 6
Monday- Workout A use 5/3/1 on Trap bar and military press
Wednesday- Workout B use 5/3/1 on Bench press
Friday- Workout C use 5/3/1 on Power Clean and squat

--------------------------------------------------------------

In Season Training-
Your Coach Will probably have a program for you, but if we doesn’t I really like what Wendler says to Do, its what I did all last year, and works well, He suggests Training these 2 days on Monday and Wednesday

Day 1-
Squat: 5/3/1 set/rep protocol
Bench: 5/3/1 set/rep protocol
Dips: 3 sets
Chins: 3 sets

Day 2-
Deadlift: 5/3/1
Military Press: 5/3/1
GHR
Situps

Holland Oates · Post by **Holland Oates** » Sat Apr 24, 2010 4:12 pm

Although it may not be ideal for the general population it may be perfect the meathead like me who wants to get stronger and move better but can't seem to stick with a template for more than a month or two.

It's a nice long program laid out in detail. You do this with the agility work and conditioning he recommends and you'll be strong and in shape.

Thanks for the review.

dalexan242 · Post by **dalexan242** » Sat Apr 24, 2010 4:39 pm

Ed Zachary wrote:Although it may not be ideal for the general population it may be perfect the meathead like me who wants to get stronger and move better but can't seem to stick with a template for more than a month or two.

Yeah, that's basically where I am. I did the ETK ROP with good success for 3 months, but wanted something with some more variety and conditioning and my past chronic injuries have mostly worked themselves out to where I now feel like I want to re-incorporate deadlifts and squats into my workout. I'm only 2 weeks into 531, but I think the basic template will provide a good base and then the ADD-fueled variety can be satisfied by modifying the focus of the assistance lifts.

For 531 + conditioning, there's the North of the Vag template but Jim also suggests in some 28-page thread on t-mag.com something to the effect of just add heavy conditioning to the end of DL/Squat workouts and light conditioning on the end of the Bench/MP workouts. I've also toyed with the idea of doing 2 assistance lifts and doing them in EDT fashion for more of a conditioning element, but for right now I'm basically doing it as Rx'd and supplementing it with 20m of elliptical after each workout and some heavy bag and YRG on the 'off' days for cardio.

dalexan242 · Post by **dalexan242** » Sat Apr 24, 2010 5:01 pm

T-mag thread where Jim Wendler answers a ****load of questions

From a successor thread on the same site:

Made it to the Wendler Seminar in Chicago, and he went over a few things that may be of interest:

For people who want to be strong, with an emphasis on getting bigger -

My notes basically say "5/3/1 + 5x10 + 30 min walking/3 days + increase caloric liquids"

5/3/1 routine for the strength, the 5x10 of whatever big lift you're doing that day, 30 mins of walking to keep some of the fat off and ensure you're not completely de-conditioned, and liquid calories are just easier to ingest.
_________________________________________________________

Conditioning:

Hard condition occurs on lower body day (sprints, hills, prowler...)
Light condition on Upper days as not to effect the lower body days
Basic limiting of cals/carbs, nothing crazy here

Sample for someone wanting to get into fantastic athletic shape, while trying to build/maintain strength:

30-40 mins easy conditioning in the morning
5/3/1 lifting at some point during the day, 3-4 days a week
Followed by hard conditioning, 4 days a week
Very strenuous
_____________________________________

He went over the importance of having easy conditioning, or (gasp!) steady state cardio, giving the example of an elite college football athlete who had an unusually high resting heart rate. They had him on a treadmill walking for extended periods of time and his heart rate plummeted.
1)Easy conditioning helps people adapt
2)Positively impacts strength by not overtaxing your recovery
3)Work capacity increases because of it
___________________________________________
People who want to be conditioned while gaining strength:

Get to a satisfactory level of conditioning (maybe 2 hard conditioning workouts a week), and simply maintain that amount, while building strength around it.
Amount of hills/trips on prowler should not increase but be maintained at a level that keeps you conditioned while allowing you to make strength gains. Some experimentation is necessary of course.

IGX

531 for Football

531 for Football

Re: 531 for Football

Re: 531 for Football

Re: 531 for Football