Novice 5×5 Linear Progression
By Mehdi Hadim · From Original Source
Also known as: stronglifts · stronglifts 5x5 · sl5x5 · 5x5 · mehdi
The most popular beginner barbell program. Squat every session; add weight after each completed workout (2.5 kg, 5 kg on the deadlift). Two alternating full-body sessions built around five compound lifts — simple, proven, and brutally effective for building a strength base.
Free to use · auto progression, rest timers & PR tracking built in
What is Novice 5×5 Linear Progression?
The Novice 5×5 Linear Progression is the routine most people mean when they say they are "doing 5×5" — StrongLifts 5×5, created by Mehdi Hadim in 2007. Two workouts cover five barbell lifts. Workout A: squat, bench press and bent-over row, all at five sets of five. Workout B: squat, overhead press, and one heavy set of five deadlifts. You train three days a week and alternate — A-B-A, then B-A-B — which means you squat every single session.
There is nothing else to it, and that is the point. No percentages, no rep ranges to interpret, no accessory list to manage: do your five sets of five, add weight next time, go home. Fifteen squat sets a week supply the muscle-building volume; the relentless session-to-session increases supply the strength.
Is Novice 5×5 Linear Progression right for you?
This is a true novice program — for someone whose lifts still go up simply because they trained. If you have never followed a structured barbell routine, few things will put weight on your squat faster over six months, and the sheer repetition teaches the movement patterns better than any tutorial. It is a poor fit if you already have a year of serious lifting behind you (every-session jumps will stall within weeks) or if arms and shoulders are the priority — there is zero direct isolation work here. The 5×5 + Accessories version in Durata keeps the identical strength engine and adds that bodywork.
How progression works
Squat, bench, press and row add 2.5 kg every completed workout; the deadlift adds 5 kg. Fail to get all your reps at a weight three sessions in a row and that lift drops 10%, then works back up. Because the squat climbs 7.5 kg a week, starting light is not cautious — it is how you buy months of runway before the first stall. Durata's auto progression handles the increments and the deload arithmetic, and its rest timers hold you to the breaks the later sets genuinely require: three minutes on squat, bench and press, two and a half on rows, four on deadlifts.
Durata runs this progression for you — there are no percentages to work out, so each session's target carries over from what you logged last time and the weight moves when you hit or miss the prescribed reps.
Novice 5×5 Linear Progression — every set, every session
Week 13 sessions
Workout A
| Exercise | Sets × Reps | Rest |
|---|---|---|
| Squat (Barbell) | 5×5 | 3:00 |
| Bench Press (Barbell) | 5×5 | 3:00 |
| Bent Over Row (Barbell) | 5×5 | 2:30 |
Workout B
| Exercise | Sets × Reps | Rest |
|---|---|---|
| Squat (Barbell) | 5×5 | 3:00 |
| Overhead Press (Barbell) | 5×5 | 3:00 |
| Deadlift (Barbell) | 1×5 | 4:00 |
Workout A
| Exercise | Sets × Reps | Rest |
|---|---|---|
| Squat (Barbell) | 5×5 | 3:00 |
| Bench Press (Barbell) | 5×5 | 3:00 |
| Bent Over Row (Barbell) | 5×5 | 2:30 |
Week 23 sessions
Workout B
| Exercise | Sets × Reps | Rest |
|---|---|---|
| Squat (Barbell) | 5×5 | 3:00 |
| Overhead Press (Barbell) | 5×5 | 3:00 |
| Deadlift (Barbell) | 1×5 | 4:00 |
Workout A
| Exercise | Sets × Reps | Rest |
|---|---|---|
| Squat (Barbell) | 5×5 | 3:00 |
| Bench Press (Barbell) | 5×5 | 3:00 |
| Bent Over Row (Barbell) | 5×5 | 2:30 |
Workout B
| Exercise | Sets × Reps | Rest |
|---|---|---|
| Squat (Barbell) | 5×5 | 3:00 |
| Overhead Press (Barbell) | 5×5 | 3:00 |
| Deadlift (Barbell) | 1×5 | 4:00 |
Novice 5×5 Linear Progression — common questions
Should I start with the empty bar?
For squat, bench and press, yes — 20 kg is fine if you are brand new, and at +2.5 kg per session the program catches up quickly. Rows and deadlifts need plates on the bar to sit at the right height, so start those around 40 kg.
Isn't squatting three times a week too much?
Not at novice weights — you recover inside 48 hours when the bar is far from your limit. It only becomes too much months down the line as loads get heavy, and that fatigue is exactly the signal that you have outgrown the program.
How long does a workout take?
About 40–50 minutes. Once the weights are heavy and you are taking the full three-minute rests across 15 working sets, expect sessions to run longer than that — the creep is normal.
What do I do when I keep stalling?
Repeat the weight. Fail at the same weight three workouts running and the lift drops about 10%, then climbs back up, and Durata does that for you. Smaller jumps help once reps start failing: 1.25 kg or less, especially on the bench and overhead press.
Is 5×5 better than 3×5?
Neither is better, they trade differently. Five sets gives more volume per session and a bit more size; 3×5 routines like the Basic Beginner Routine or Fierce 5 finish faster and leave more recovery headroom. If session length is a constraint, take the 3×5 style.
Is there an app that runs Novice 5×5 Linear Progression for you?
Yes. Durata runs Novice 5×5 Linear Progression as written, free: the 3-day-a-week schedule, every set and rep, and the progression built in. Log your sets and the next session's weights are worked out for you, with the stalls and deloads the program calls for; a tap on any lift shows why the weight moved. It is on iPhone and Android, works offline, and your history from Hevy or Strong imports free.
Source: Based on StrongLifts 5×5 by Mehdi Hadim
Durata is not affiliated with or endorsed by the program's author. The program structure (sets, reps, exercise selection) is presented as published methodology.
Run Novice 5×5 Linear Progression in Durata
Automatic progression, plate calculator, rest timers and PR tracking — the whole program, ready to log.
