The Five Percent Solution

by Charles Poliquin | 07/31/98

You may or may not be a mystery reader. Regardless, you've probably

heard of the greatest sleuth of all time, Sherlock Holmes.
Unfortunately, Holmes had a little habit that, today, would likely have
qualified him as a Jeopardy answer in the category, "Guys Who Have
Bunked With Dan Duchaine in Prison." You see, Holmes was an opium
addict, and he was partial to a very precise mixture which he called the
seven percent solution.

Well, I too have my own version of the seven percent solution, only it
has nothing to do with illegal opiates. Instead, it has to do with rep
schemes. I call it my Five Percent Solution. Let me elaborate.

There are a lot of effective rep schemes, but the fact is, they're only as
good as the time it takes you to adapt to them. For beginners, a
particular workout, coupled with a particular rep scheme, might
guarantee progress for 4 to 6 weeks. After that, they'd be performing
the exercise equivalent of getting stuck in a revolving door. Advanced
athletes, on the other hand, might have to change their programs every
week. Some even have to change their program every single workout!

Although some experts promise a lifetime of continuous results from

doing the same routine day after day, ad nauseum, it's a cruel lie. Not
only will your body adapt, but you'll probably quit because you'd be
bored silly. For instance, one infamous trainer exhibits a fanatical
obsession with one training method his to the exclusion of all others.
His system requires only a fraction of the time required by most other
programs, but it's difficult to do it for more than a few weeks because it
requires that the trainee be either mentally disturbed or addicted to
amphetamines in order to keep up the degree of effort required.
I recommend variety, of course, but there are some set-rep schemes
that I tend to favor over others. I like them because they're mentally
stimulating and physically challenging. Moreover, I like them because
they're effective. One in particular is the aforementioned Five Percent
Solution. It's effective regardless of where you are in the bodybuilding
hierarchy. You can be a rank beginner, or master of the universe. In
short, it gets your heart rate going and your muscles growing.

A Closer Look...

The Five Percent Solution involves a set pattern of progression. In a

nutshell, you'll increase the amount of resistance by 4 to 5% each
workout, while simultaneously reducing the number of reps by one
each time. After you recover from the sixth workout, you'll have
increased your strength in each lift by approximately 10%!

People in the know in the field of strength training realize that the
number of reps is the loading parameter to which an individual adapts
the fastest, and the Five Percent Solution takes advantage of this fact.
I'm sure people like Tony Little have no idea what I'm talking about, but
no matter. The Five Percent Solution is based on the principle,
"success breeds success".

Whenever people achieve goals, whether it's in business or athletics,

testosterone levels rise. When T levels rise, your recovery ability
improves. And, because you recover more quickly, you make more
gains. Because you have more gains, you have more success and you
make more testosterone, and so on and so on.

Before I give examples of the workout, let's talk about the loading
parameters of the Five Percent Solution.

The Intensity Zone

Select a 3-rep bracket to start the cycle. The number of reps should fall
between 3 and 8. For instance, choose to do sets of 3-5 reps, 4-6 reps,
5-7 reps, or 6-8 reps. The decision is somewhat arbitrary; just make
sure you write down the rep bracket you selected and stick with if for
the duration of the program.

Tempo

The tempo (the time it takes you to complete one rep) should be the
same throughout the 6 workouts of the phase. Depending on your
goal, the total time under tension per set determines the chosen
tempo. For example, if mass is your goal, the set should last at least
40 seconds. If relative strength is the desired goal, the total length of
the set shouldn't exceed 20 seconds.

Let's say the rep bracket you selected is 4 to 6 reps and your goal is to
build mass. That means that it should take at least 40 seconds to do
your 4 to 6 reps. Therefore, a suitable tempo for a set of six might be
412, where 4 is the number of seconds it takes to lower the weight; 1 is
the number of seconds you pause; and 2 is the number of seconds it
takes to raise the weight. Therefore, each rep would take about 7
seconds and since you'd be doing 6 reps, 6x7 equals 42. That means
your total time under tension would be 42 seconds for that particular
set.

Rest Interval

In order to allow the phosphagens to replenish and give the central

nervous system enough time to recover and be able to activate the
high-threshold fibers again, you need to rest 3 to 4 minutes between
sets.

It may be difficult for many of you to take that much rest, but believe
me, your discipline will pay big dividends in the long run. In fact, failure
to take adequate rest between sets will negate the positive effects of
this program. I recommend using a stopwatch that beeps after the rest
interval is over. As a note, strength athletes generally rest between 4
and 5 minutes after sets of the Power Clean or other Olympic lifts. The
technical element of these lifts is much greater than that of
conventional lifts; thus the demands on the nervous system are much
greater.

Number of Exercises

I don't recommend doing more than 1 to 2 exercises per body part

because you'll be doing a high number of total sets. Of course, the odd
genetic freak or the steroid assisted athlete might be able to handle 3
exercises.

Exercise Selection

I recommend that you select compound exercises that recruit a lot of

muscle mass. Therefore, exercises like rows, squats, deadlifts, or
presses are the best choices for this method. Hopefully, you can use at
least 100 pounds in a given exercise because it makes the math
easier. It also makes it easier to change the weight since 1 1/4 pound
plates are a rarity. Of course if your strength levels are low, you can
always use PlateMates or Record Disks to meet the 4 to 5% weight
increase.

Frequency

Work every body part once every 4 to 5 days. Here's one possible split:

Day 1: Chest and Back

Day 2: Legs and Abs
Day 3: Off
Day 4: Shoulders and Arms
Day 5: Off

Duration

This program is designed to be used for 6 workouts per body part.

Overload Mechanism

Do your initial workouts with the chosen number of reps and the
predetermined weight. You'll then increase the load by 4 to 5% every
workout for two workouts in a row. Concurrently, you'll also reduce the
target reps by one rep for every weight increase. Then, after the third
workout, you'll reduce the weight 4 to 5% but bring the number of reps
back to the original starting point. If you've done this correctly, you'll
have increased your strength by 5%.

If you're confused, I don't blame you, so let me offer an example:

The Five Percent Solution

Let's say you have a weak brachialis muscle and you want to improve
your reverse curl strength. And, for the sake of this example, we'll say
your best performance for the reverse curl is 100 pounds for 7 reps.
This is what your rep/set cycle would look like:

Workout 1:
4-5 sets x 7 reps at 100 pounds

Workout 2:
Increase the weight from the last workout by 4-5 percent and do 1 rep
less per set: 4-5 sets x 6 reps at 105 pounds
Workout 3:
Increase the weight from the last workout by 4-5 percent and do 1 rep
less per set: 4-5 sets x 5 reps at 110 pounds

Workout 4:
Use the load you used in workout #2 for the workout #1 rep target. In
this case, you're shooting for: 4-5 sets x 7 reps at 105 pounds

NOTE: If you achieve your goal, it means you're already 5% stronger!

Workout 5:
Use the load used in workout #3 for the workout #2 rep target: 4-5 sets
x 6 reps at 110 pounds

Workout 6:
Increase the weight from the last workout by 4-5 percent and do 1 rep
less per set: 4-5 sets x 5 reps at 115 pounds

By logical extension, if you did workout 7, you'd now be able to do 7

RM (repetitions maximum) with 110 pounds! That's a 10% percent
increase in strength over 6 workouts, and that's excellent! (I don't
actually map out the seventh workout because it would just be an
exercise in vanity-the nervous system typically adapts to any workout
program in 6 workouts and after that, it's time to move on to another
type of program.)

Obviously, because of neuromuscular fatigue, you won't be able to

achieve your rep target every set, but as long as you hit your goal on
the first set of every workout, you're doing fine.

The Five Percent Solution Applied to Squats

Biomechanists have determined that when you do a squat, you're in

fact squatting 75% of your bodyweight, plus the load on the barbell
(Although it seems like you're squatting all of your bodyweight, you're
not. After all, the legs are lifting the upper body; they're not lifting
themselves off the ground). Keep that in mind when you adjust your
squat poundages up by 5%. For instance, let's say you weigh 200
pounds and you're squatting 350 pounds for 5 reps. When increasing
the weight five percent from workout to workout, the load increases
would look like this:

Weight increase: 5% (load of barbell + (75% x bodyweight))

Weight increase: 5% (350 pounds + (75% x 200 pounds))
Weight increase: 5% (350 pounds + 150 pounds)
Weight increase: 25 pounds

So, in this particular case, a 5% increase would bring our hypothetical

200-pound bodybuilder's load to 375 pounds for his sets of 4 in his
next workout.

Tips for the Five Percent Solution

In order to perform this program properly, I strongly urge you to keep a

detailed journal of the exact number of sets and reps performed, load
used, and rest interval taken. Furthermore, only count the reps done in
strict form. Go ahead and do forced reps for the last rep of every third
workout, but don't count them as complete reps.

Wrap Up

I hope that the Five Percent Solution isn't too confusing. I think that
you'll find it well-worth all the head scratches and furrowed brows it
took to figure it out, though. If enough of you find that you like it, let me
know and I'll fill you in on the Advanced Five Percent Solution.

In any event, if there's such a thing as one singly unifying theory of

training as Mike Mentzer claims, it's that the best system is the one
that constantly changes. As your body adapts, it's recovery ability
increases and higher levels of volume and intensity of training are
needed to ensure further growth.