I had an hour-long conversation with Pavel Tsatsouline on Sunday and, as usual, his probing questions stir up some things that I had forgotten. One thing he asked was, “Over the years, was there a single rep range that you preferred?” What was ‘normal’ for me? In other words, what rep range did I use most frequently in my weight training and why? Without hesitation I said sets of 5 reps. I was a little surprised myself with the speed of my response, but after some reflection I thought it might be worth sharing the whys and whys.
As a teenager, I wanted usable athletic strength, with an emphasis on explosive power. I was isolated and I followed the leads of John McCallum’s articles. Mac was the first expert to argue that high reps built muscle tissue and super low reps peaked, so finding a rep range that divided the difference would provide the balance between high rep and high rep muscle size. the pure torque of the low reps. Since 10 reps or more were ‘normal’ and 1 to 3 reps were ‘low reps’, 4 to 9 reps would be mid-range. Dividing the difference and 5-6 repeats seemed like the solution. Bill Pearl, another mentor, used 6 to 8 reps to build his incredible mass and Mac suggested Fives. I started using five reps, particularly on my squats, overhead presses, and power cleans. Being determined and ambitious and having all the training time I needed, over time I developed the ability to take a triple and turn it into a five, albeit with sheer willpower and guts.
In hindsight this was physiologically correct and to this day, once a person has gotten through the beginner stages and wants to take their physique to the next level, the 5 rep sets are my ongoing recipe. Later, when I started lifting weights and came under Cassidy’s tutelage, I found it ironic that he also used 5 as his ‘default’ rep range. By default, I mean unless the trainee was at his peak for a strength competition or athletic event of some kind (where low reps was appropriate) or deep ‘off season’ and was looking to add some size (where it was appropriate to use high reps) in normal times of training, the idea would be to push the 5 rep threshold up, always up, on all major lifts.
When I first started working with Ed Coan and Doug Furnas, it seemed more of a coincidence that they both used 5 rep sets more than any other rep range. Doug rose to the Hall of Fame Dennis Wright, who was a 5-rep big man. Doug finally squatted 900×5 in George Zangas’s old supersuit. I passed on my love for the 5 to Karwoski and they became the backbone of his training regimen. Typically, it will take 12 weeks for an athlete preparing for an event to reach the best conditions. The first 2-3 weeks are used for “conditioning” and generally the athlete will use sets of 8-12 reps. For the large middle section of the preparatory cycle, 5 are used. In the last 3-4 weeks, low sets of repetitions are used to achieve maximum power and strength. It is no coincidence that each of the men I mention developed incredible muscle mass and functional power. Furnas could do a standing back jump with a weight of 280 and could still execute a 4.7 forty.
Does any of this exotic “inside baseball” have anything to do with the training of normal people? Absolutely: In my experience, the average learner is obsessed with sets of 10 reps (or more) for a litany of lame reasons: “Low reps are dangerous” and my favorite, “I don’t want to build big muscles.” (As if it were that easy, like within a few weeks of making 5, they would build more mass than Arnold in 1975). This last excuse is universally used by women and challenges rational thinking and basic biology. We lift weights to build muscle and strength. Period. No other reason. We coordinate cardio and diet to oxidize body fat. All three elements are intertwined to deliver the complete package – greater muscle size and function combined with low body fat. No matter who you are (assuming you’ve passed the beginner stages of range), a dose of 5-rep sets can get you out of whatever workout routine you’re in. Forty-three years on the road of progressive resistance, I still believe that the 5 repetitions have magical attributes. Perhaps you should consider testing.