Thank you

thank you!

Beautiful! Wish I'd had this when I was starting out... that PDF really is atrocious. And your description of it made me quite literally laugh out loud. I get that most of his audience is male, but it does sort of irk me that he's not doing anything at all in his power to help change that up a little. And it really wouldn't be difficult - just stop the DUDE BRAH YEAHHHH!!!! crap.

Ah well. Tis why we've got this group.

Yeah, so much this.

I've been getting his emails and it's just as bad. The first email had the word "guys" in it no less (and possibly more) than 16 times, as in "the top ten things guys do wrong in the gym!!!"

Um, what's wrong with "people" instead of "guys"?

He has a couple of posts where he sort of says, "Yes, women can do this, too" and he knows he has women on his forums, and yet everything is men, men, men.

I know he says something like 93% (or whatever) of people using his program are men, but I highly doubt it. I bet it's more like 75% and he's just a sexist *kitten*.

Oh, well, if we can modify the program and make it work for us, so much win.

This would have saved me a boatload of time when I started, and lots of "Oh crap! I'm doing it wrong!" Adjustments.

Easiest way to remember your workout is "overhead and dead" for deadlift day. While the lableing (A/B) is immaterial other than for tracking purposes, it is really important to do overheads and deads and benches and rows on the same days because you need to work the antagonistic muscles on the same day.

If overheads are really difficult for you or you have shoulder problems, do seated dumbell presses instead keeping your back flat against the upright bench, so as to train your body not to overarch your back.

Fractional plates: you need to have at least 2 2.5s in order to increase 5lbs/session. You don't need more than those and 2 1.25s. Also for newbies if you can't do 45 or 35lbs use a standard bar to start, they are super easy to come by on craigslist and they generally weigh 15 lbs. If you are starting with a squat rack and can't afford a power rack and/or gym membership, use chairs on either side with the back of the chair facing the same direction as your butt to catch the weight should you fail on your lift. I figure most chairs should be able to handle 250lbs each which should be more than enough. Be as certain as you can that your form is correct before adding weight.

Important form checks:
Squats:
knees should not pass the vertical plane of the toes
Before you add even the bar, squat like you're going to poop in the woods... is it comfortable (esp on knees)? If not adjust until it is, if so add the bar but don't go all the way down. Low bar squats with a thumbless grip seem to be the easiest on your shoulders and the easiest to enable you to "sit" in the squat and press from your glutes and hams. Also, drop a $20 and get a bar pad, alternatively the one piece foam pipe insulation will work.
As you decend and push out of the squat, the bar should stay in it's original vertical plane. "In the hole" (bottom of the squat) you should feel it in your abs from the work you have to do to keep yourself from folding over at the waist. This will become more apparent as the weight grows. Have a focus spot slightly above neutral when you are standing. Keep your eyes on that spot for the ENTIRE lift. This will help you keep your back in proper alignment. If when you are done, you feel it more in your lower back than your but and hamstrings, you are folding over at the waist. If you feel it more in your quads, then you are not "sitting" in the squat enough and pushing through your heels. You can do all of these checks with out another person, mirror or video cam, except maybe your paralell position of your thighs. Don't be discouraged if you fix something only to have another form problem pop up. It's totally normal and progresses as the weights progress. Sometimes this is an indication that you have some rehabilitation work to do on a complemementary muscle group. In the case of folding over it is abs although lots of people seem to think it is upper back, to me that is more of a matter of bar position.

OHP: I only have some ideas on this one. if you feel it in your lower back you are over arching at the point where you go accross your face with the bar to the chest. If your elbows hurt then you are not bringing the bar to the full ROM.

The fix for ROM is to drop your weight until you aren't shorting the rep and for back arching is to do them seated with your back all the way up against the raised bench.

Deads: the plane of the weights should stay the same through out the lift including the top and on the way back to the floor (most common error). Usually what people (if I was medhi I would have said 'guys' he he. ) do wrong is heave back on the bar at the top and then lower to the floor withought bending the knees and instead bending at the waist. Obviously the fix is to lower using your knees and keeping your back straight. At the top, instead of heaving back on the bar and thereby arching your back, thrust your hips forward to get your hips more under the weight.

Rows: back should be parallell to the floor, head down maybe spot slightly in front of you on the floor throughout the lift. I've found most comfortable the grip to be slightly outside shoulder width and on the lift try to push my hands together while gripping the bar.

Most common mistakes: curl the wrist at the top and comming up with the shoulders. I think the fix for this is to start out with your feet further under the bar and your grip wider.

Bench: Back arched upper back pressing into the bench, transverse abs taught like you are trying to do an extended leg lift, grip shoulder width apart, looking at the bar or slightly above. LIft the bar from the rack and pull to starting bench position in what feels much like a lat pulldown. Bench to nipples (touching if you have big girls!! just above if not). During the lift while gripping the bar, try to pull your hands apart. Remember to breathe during the lift. Exhale up, inhale down. Don't short the lift, elbows should end about paralell to the bench. Wrists straight.

That's all I can think of atm.

OH and thanks for distilling all that stuff for us!

So much good stuff here!! Thanks, ladies!!!

Thank you so much for all of this! I started 5x5 a month ago and I was worried with my "translation" of his PDF. Glad to see I'm on the right track ands all the tips are great!

ok, I can't find it. Rest between sets? is there a prescribed rest period? I just rest until I can do it again...

He says (I think) 90 seconds to three minutes, depending on how hard it was. If you fail, then rest 5 minutes before the next set. Bring a book, the day could get long

I do bring a magazine. Dancing isn't rest

Looks really useful - thank you

Thanks, great info. I am going to try it today:)

Beautiful! Wish I'd had this when I was starting out... that PDF really is atrocious. And your description of it made me quite literally laugh out loud. I get that most of his audience is male, but it does sort of irk me that he's not doing anything at all in his power to help change that up a little. And it really wouldn't be difficult - just stop the DUDE BRAH YEAHHHH!!!! crap.

Ah well. Tis why we've got this group.

Yeah, so much this.

I've been getting his emails and it's just as bad. The first email had the word "guys" in it no less (and possibly more) than 16 times, as in "the top ten things guys do wrong in the gym!!!"

Um, what's wrong with "people" instead of "guys"?

He has a couple of posts where he sort of says, "Yes, women can do this, too" and he knows he has women on his forums, and yet everything is men, men, men.

I know he says something like 93% (or whatever) of people using his program are men, but I highly doubt it. I bet it's more like 75% and he's just a sexist *kitten*.

Oh, well, if we can modify the program and make it work for us, so much win.

I've been using the iPhone app and today it asked me if I had any recommendations on how it could be improved, so I suggested that it could be made 'female' friendly, but I doubt that anything will change.

Tell them to make a droid app!!! ****er hates women and droids.

^this

Fabulous!