If you’re somewhat of an experienced lifter, you probably already know this program. Most programs that use a numbering scheme—like 5×5—have stood the test of time for a reason.
But if you’re newer to making gains, then you’re going to love this one.
So, what exactly is the 5×5 workout, and is it worth doing?
What Is the 5×5 Workout?
The 5×5 program is about as simple as it gets: you show up, focus on progressive overload, hit your lifts, and head home. It’s built around the big compound lifts: squat, bench, and deadlift.
While the name might make it seem rigid, the 5×5 format is surprisingly adaptable and can suit a wide range of fitness levels and goals.
Fitness level: Beginner through advanced
Duration: Can be used perpetually
Workouts per week: 3 workouts per week
Average workout duration: Up to 90 minutes
Equipment needed: Full gym or minimal equipment
Goal: Build muscle and gain strength
Spoiler alert: This is one of the best programs for beginners. It’s straightforward and laser-focused on one thing: getting stronger week after week. Every session revolves around adding a bit more weight to the bar over time.
The 5×5 system is designed to improve strength and muscle mass but can also help with fat loss, flexibility, endurance, and mental toughness.
One thing you’ll notice? There are no isolation exercises in this program—no bicep curls, no tricep pushdowns, no leg extensions. It’s all about the essentials.
5×5 Details
The 5×5 plan is meant to be long-term—you can stick with it for years if you like. The first few weeks might feel odd as you adjust to the idea of adding weight every session, but that’s the magic of progressive overload.
It’s built for anyone:
- Beginners
- Intermediate lifters
- Even advanced trainees who want to reset their strength base
That said, it may not be ideal if you’re already very strong or if you’re someone who dislikes hard, consistent work.
Strength Training Program
Gaining muscle mass is pretty simple — you eat a ton, lift a ton, and sleep even more. But gaining strength is actually slightly more complex. It requires you to use certain rep ranges and compound lifts and focus on movement patterns as well.
It’s worth noting that the 5×5 plan is meant to be used for building muscle and gaining strength.
But how does it achieve this? Well, it’s rather simple… use the same workout over and over again.
There are actually two different workouts in 5×5:
Workout A:
- Squat: 5×5
- Bench Press: 5×5
- Barbell Row: 5×5
Workout B:
- Squat: 5×5
- Overhead Press: 5×5
- Deadlift: 5×5
You’d typically do week one as ABA (with one rest day between each session), and the following week would be BAB (with one rest day between each session).
Why This Simple Split Works
This might seem counterintuitive compared to every other program you’ve seen online. But there are actually plenty of benefits to a plan like this, such as:
- Time-saving: Many of the muscles used are the same, which means less time warming up.
- Energy-efficient: With fewer warm-up sets, you’ll have more energy to focus on the main lifts.
- Easier progression: Doing the same core lifts over and over allows you to truly master them, making it easier to measure progress and load up the bar.
You could even do this in a home gym, since all you really need are a barbell, a rack, and weights.
Most people don’t need other exercises at first because the compound lifts cover so many muscle groups. For the general population, this program is perfectly fine as-is.
Professional strength athletes often follow a similar approach: a strict focus on the basics, with only occasional tweaks to their programming. The key is starting light and gradually increasing the load to allow your body to adapt—especially when squatting multiple times a week.
The next question you might be asking is whether or not you even can squat three times per week — I agree. It’s a tall order, but they have an answer for that as well, “The trick is to start light to let your body get used to squatting three times a week.”.
Same Weight As Last Week? Something’s Wrong…
Now, you may have heard of the progressive overloading method. Without sounding too scientific, you’d simply add more weight each week until… you either pop a pec or die. Damn, sounds like a party.
In reality, the progressive overloading method is the single best method to use for isolation exercises as well as compound exercises.
This part might get a little tricky, but I’m going to try to get it across as clearly as possible:
Week 1: Monday – A
- Squat: 5×5, 20kg/45lb
- Bench Press: 5×5, 20kg/45lb
- Barbell Row: 5×5, 30kg/65lb
Week 1: Wednesday – B
- Squat: 5×5, 22.5kg/50lb
- Overhead Press: 5×5, 20kg/45lb
- Deadlift: 1×5, 40kg/95lb
Week 1: Friday – A
- Squat: 5×5, 25kg/55lb
- Bench Press: 5×5, 22.5kg/50lb
- Barbell Row: 5×5, 32.5kg/70lb
Week 2: Monday – B
- Squat: 5×5, 27.5kg/60lb
- Overhead Press: 5×5, 22.5kg/50lb
- Deadlift: 1×5, 45kg/105lb
Week 2: Wednesday – A
- Squat: 5×5, 30kg/65lb
- Bench Press: 5×5, 25kg/55lb
- Barbell Row: 5×5, 35kg/75lb
Week 2: Friday – B
- Squat: 5×5, 32.5kg/70lb
- Overhead Press: 5×5, 25kg/55lb
- Deadlift: 1×5, 50kg/115lb
As you can see, the only difference from week to week (or even workout to workout) is the simple addition of more weight! This is the key to increasing muscle size and strength.
Is this perfect? No, for a few reasons.
For one, eventually, you won’t be able to add more weight because you’ll simply have no more means to recover. In fact, you might need to spend two or three sessions on the same weight because you can’t make the next cut.
You also kinda have to have good form, or you might run the risk of a serious injury. Light weights have a lower risk of injury. Thus, pushing the weights (especially every week) does increase your injury risk.
Also, for some, this is boring. There’s not really anything to discuss here. Some people just don’t find progressive overloading the weight weekly “interesting.”
Veering Off Plan
So, it might seem boring to some. While weightlifting in this manner works extremely well (and the muscle growth from their results proves this), it’s just not for everyone. In fact, there are quite a few sections in the plan about altering the program or veering off it.
Firstly, they advise against this. There’s technically no reason why you’d need to alter it, but let’s start with the assistance work.
Assistance work is what strength athletes call any movements that aren’t powerlifting or Olympic lifts. But between you and me, some even call light cardio “assistance”…
Assistance Work (Do You Need It?)
One of the big appeals of 5×5 is its simplicity. The main lifts hit almost every muscle group: your arms work during rows and presses, your core stabilizes during squats and deadlifts, and your legs do the heavy lifting.
Most people don’t need extra exercises at first. The general advice is:
- Stick to the basics for the first 8 weeks
- After that, if you want to add variety, include moves like chin-ups, dips, lateral raises, or bicep curls
But remember: 80% of your results will always come from the core compound lift
What About Cardio?
Cardio can complement your strength program in a few ways:
- Fat loss: Cardio helps burn calories, but it’s most effective when paired with proper nutrition.
- Heart health: Regular cardio supports overall cardiovascular health.
- Endurance: Better conditioning helps you last longer in the gym.
Common types of cardio often recommended alongside 5×5 include:
- LISS (Low-Intensity Steady-State): Easy effort cardio
- HIIT (High-Intensity Interval Training): Short bursts of intense effort
What’s interesting is that most people are pretty adamant about you using HIIT to allow for an “afterburn.” They claim that — compared to the other cardio styles — you’ll burn more calories over the following 24 hours… Right.
The problem is that studies have shown this afterburn effect has been overstated and is actually only really active immediately after the cardio has been done. Doing HIIT also brings the problem of impairing recovery.
For a program that states it’s all about more gains and wants you to lift heavy, the advice related to HIIT training is counterintuitive. Harder cardio means less recovery, which means less load on the bar and, therefore, less muscle growth.
Simple math.
4 5×5 Pros
1. It’s Remarkably Simple
Since you’re only doing compound lifts (and literally only a few), you won’t have to learn how to do a bunch of isolation movements or different compound movements. This not only makes it a lot easier on your mind but also saves you a lot of time.
Less time warming up, less time learning new movements, and — in reality — a decreased risk of injury. You’re extremely prone to injuries when doing a lot of different movements. So by sticking to 5 movements, you’ll simplify things.
2. Strength or Size
Or better yet, strength and size. You can do all the exercises in the book, but unless you simply increase the load on the bar over time, you won’t grow. Since the entire program is based on adding load to the bar week by week, you will be gaining muscle.
You’ll also be gaining plenty of strength, as the movements included are the most important ones. Just make sure you use a proper form…
3. You Could Lose Body Fat
This comes with a caveat. Any program can be used to lose body fat as long as you’re in the right caloric state. They do give some info on losing weight, and it certainly is possible, but that doesn’t seem like the main goal of the plan.
Regardless, you can. Just diet (don’t expect dieting advice from them, though).
4. Builds Mentality
Let’s not beat around the bush: training for a long time is hard. Training hard for a long time is even harder… This program might be one of the most intense ones you’ll ever do.
The workout routine has you squatting multiple times a week! So the first few weeks are going to be hell, but you’ll learn an awful lot about your own grit and mentality…
3 5×5 Cons
1. Your Progress Is Limited
There’s no doubt the chance to increase muscle growth here. Doing the basics will certainly build muscle, but you’re also limited by only using free weights.
They break it down to say free weights are better because they’re harder, but they just aren’t always better!
You can build a great solid foundation of muscle mass and continue the weight gain process by doing machines or dumbbells. You have more stability and freedom. You can isolate movements… it just makes sense.
2. The Rep Range Ain’t Perfect
The idea that lower weight builds more muscle isn’t really true. In fact, any weight can build muscle as long as you get within two to three reps of failure. The plan mentions nothing about getting to failure.
This is a phenomenal method of training for beginning lifters. You get to learn what failure is, and you get to learn what RIR and RPE are as well. But by limiting yourself to only 5 reps, you’re seriously running the risk of not gaining all the muscle you can.
3. Some People Don’t Like It
I’ve trained a ton of people. More than 80% of the people I’ve trained simply don’t enjoy the whole “adding weight every week” thing. It’s boring, it’s repetitive, and it’s not sexy.
I get it. Training is supposed to be fun, and if you aren’t having fun, you probably won’t be as interested in sticking to it. That’s why you should stick to the training plans you like doing. This works, but is limited with movement patterns, etc. is boring to some.
Final Thoughts
The 5×5 workout is a proven, time-tested method for building strength and muscle. It’s straightforward, effective, and especially great for beginners who want to master the basics. While it may lack variety, its simplicity is also its biggest strength.
If you’re looking for a no-nonsense way to build a solid foundation of strength, the 5×5 plan is a fantastic place to start.
