nSuns 5/3/1 Linear Progression

By Will Jay On In Fun Stuff, Misc

Do you ever have fitness-related nightmares? Do the cool gym rats in the hellish world of your mind made fun of you for fitting neatly through doorways, or for having a skull with a shorter circumference than your arms? Well, have I got a solution for you! It’s called the nSuns 5/3/1 Linear Progression, a program I stumbled across on Reddit about a month ago. So far it’s been a great template for me and offers a lot of benefits over something I would put together on my own. Here’s the deal:

  1. It’s auto-regulating, meaning there is very little guess work for progression. If you beat your rep target for the week, you increase the weights an amount that is reflective of that.
  2. Data-tracking is minimal. You are only tracking one of your heaviest sets per workout and basing your next week’s training max from that. It is important to finish the other sets/reps, but they shouldn’t affect next week’s numbers.
  3. Accessory work, and therefore total training volume, is dictated by the individual and their specific goals, which is what helps make this program one-size-fits-all. There are some soft recommendations for accessory lift body parts for each day beyond the two primary movements, but those can be foregone if there’s something that needs additional work.
  4. There are multiple variants to account for differences in free time and workload.
    – 4-day – The most basic level of the program for when you’re strapped for time.
    – 5-day – Incorporates an additional day to test overhead press training max. This is the most popular version of the program.
    – 6-day (squat/deadlift) – Adds an additional day of either squat-focused or deadlift-focused speed/technique work. Try the 5-day variant first and see how your legs feel after a few weeks before trying this one out.

I could keep going, but if you’re interested, your time is probably better spent in the subreddit. Just remember that when you start picturing yourself in your dreams with lats like pterodactyl wings, each leg shaped like an hourglass, and some magic 8-ball shoulders, the nSuns program is doing its job.