strenosYour Texas Method week with every weight worked out.
Enter your max and get the Texas Method week: volume, recovery and intensity day with plates per side, plus next week's 5RM for any result on the heavy set. Same math as the Strenos app.
- free, same math as the Strenos app
- volume, recovery and intensity day
- next week's 5RM for any result
Your Texas Method week
Volume, recovery and intensity day with every weight and plate. Enter how the heavy set went to see next week's 5RM.
Is the Texas Method for you?
The Texas Method is a three-day week built around one number: your 5-rep max. The first day is volume, the second is light, and on the third you go for a new 5RM. It's the classic next step for lifters who can't add weight every workout anymore but still get stronger week to week.
A good fit if
- You've run a beginner program like GZCLP and can't add weight every workout anymore.
- You can train three days a week, every week.
- You like having one hard set to aim for each week.
- You want to run one to three main lifts, each three times a week.
Pick something else if
- You're new to lifting. GZCLP adds weight every workout and is easier to start with.
- You want lots of volume and more lifts. nSuns gives you both.
- You can't recover from heavy work on the same lift three times a week. 5/3/1 is easier on you.
What to expect
- Volume day is the hardest. Five sets of five at 90% of your 5RM. How you recover from it decides how the week goes.
- The light day really is light. Two sets of five at 72% of your 5RM. It keeps you practicing the lift without adding fatigue.
- Intensity day is one set. One set of five at your full 5RM. Get all five and the whole week moves up.
- Progress is weekly, not every workout. Lower-body lifts add weight every week, upper-body lifts every other week.
What a week looks like
In Strenos the Texas Method runs three days a week with one to three lifts, and every lift you pick shows up on all three days:
- Day 1 Volume: 5×5 at 90% of your 5RM
- Day 2 Recovery: 2×5 at 72%
- Day 3 Intensity: 1×5 at your full 5RM
How to run it right
- Start from an honest max. Your starting 5RM is 85.7% of your 1RM. If intensity day is a grinder in week one, your max was too high.
- Rate the heavy set. An easy five, at RPE 7.5 or less, doubles the week's jump. Strenos takes that into account.
- Don't skip the light day. It's short on purpose. It keeps you practicing the lift without eating into recovery.
- Got four reps? Repeat the weight. Four reps holds your 5RM. Three drops it 5%, and two or fewer drops it 10%.
- Eat and sleep for it. Volume day at 90% is hard work. Short on food or sleep, and intensity day stalls first.
Where the Texas Method comes from
The Texas Method is credited to coach Glenn Pendlay and became widely known through Mark Rippetoe's book Practical Programming for Strength Training. It's built for intermediate lifters: they can't add weight every workout anymore, but they don't need a monthly cycle yet.
The three days
The light day runs at 72% of your 5RM, which is 80% of the volume day's weight, as in the original.
| Day | Sets × reps | Weight | What it's for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Volume | 5 × 5 | 90% of your 5RM | Builds the work |
| Recovery | 2 × 5 | 72% of your 5RM | Keeps the lift fresh |
| Intensity | 1 × 5 | Your full 5RM | Moves next week's number |
How the weight goes up
Intensity day decides the week. Get all five reps and your 5RM goes up by the week's step: 5 lb (2.5 kg) every week for lower-body lifts, and the same every other week for upper-body lifts. An easy five, at RPE 7.5 or less, doubles the step. Four reps holds the weight, three drops it 5%, and two or fewer drops it 10%.
Strenos rounds to the plates in your gym. If your smallest plate is 5 lb, the bar moves in 10 lb steps.
What about the deadlift?
In Rippetoe's version, the deadlift gets one heavy set of five once a week instead of three days of work. The calculator shows all three days for every lift. If you follow the original, use just the intensity day for your deadlift.
Common mistakes
Going heavier than 90% on volume day. Five sets of five is enough work as it is. Add more and intensity day suffers.
Treating the light day as optional. It's what lets you come back fresh for the heavy set.
Grinding out every heavy five. An all-out five still moves the weight, but do it week after week and you'll stall.
Fighting the drop. When three reps keep showing up, take the 5% and build back up.
Texas Method, GZCLP or 5/3/1?
GZCLP is for lifters who still add weight every workout. The Texas Method is the stage after that, when progress comes weekly. 5/3/1 moves once a month and suits lifters who want a plan for years. You can compare all five programs on the programs page.
Read next
6 min readBBB vs FSL: which 5/3/1 supplemental template to runBBB is 5x10 at 50–60% of your working max and builds size. FSL is 5x5 at your first-set weight and builds strength. Here's how to choose.
7 min readGZCLP failure protocol: what to do when you miss repsMissed reps on GZCLP? Keep the weight and drop a stage. T1 goes 5x3+, 6x2+, 10x1+ and T2 goes 3x10, 3x8, 3x6. Here's how each reset works.
Then let the app run the week
Strenos runs the Texas Method three days a week with one, two or three lifts. Volume, recovery and intensity day come with the weights for your plates. Do the heavy set, rate it, and Strenos decides how much goes on next week.
- All three days laid out for you
- Intensity day sets the next jump, RPE included
- Weighted pull-ups and dips work too
Free on the App Store. Week one is free.
On a computer? Point your iPhone camera at the code to open Strenos in the App Store.
Questions about the Texas Method
What's a reference 5RM?
The weight you can lift for five reps. The whole week is built on it. Strenos starts it at 85.7% of your 1RM, by the Epley formula, and moves it after every intensity day.
What if I get four reps on intensity day?
Your 5RM stays where it is, and you try the same weight again next week.
Why didn't my bench go up after a good week?
Upper-body lifts move every other week in the Texas Method. On the off week, your 5RM stays put even after a clean five.
Does RPE change anything?
An easy five, at RPE 7.5 or less, doubles the week's step. If you didn't rate the set, five reps count as a normal step.
How many lifts can I run?
One to three in Strenos, three days a week.
Can I run it with weighted pull-ups and dips?
Yes. Strenos counts your bodyweight in the percentages, and the belt moves half a barbell step at a time.
Does the calculator match the app?
Yes. It uses the same starting 5RM, the same percentages and the same weekly rules as the app.
Is it free?
The first week is free in Strenos. The full program, your whole history and every chart come with Plus, which you can get monthly, yearly or as a one-time Lifetime purchase.
Is this an official Texas Method app?
No. Strenos isn't affiliated with Mark Rippetoe, Glenn Pendlay or anyone behind the program. It runs the widely published structure of the program.
Your next set is already worked out.
Strenos runs five programs on iPhone and Apple Watch. You log sets on your wrist, and the weights are ready before you chalk up.
Free on the App Store.