Steiner Five Day Layout and New Book - C.S. Sloan

 

https://www.amazon.com/Ultimate-Mass-Power-Essays-Collection-ebook/dp/B0DT7CMDW1

June 11, 2025. 

From the Author: 

This book is a follow-up to my first book in this series, "Ultimate Mass and Power." That book is primarily a collection of different training programs to help you get incredibly strong and massively big. This book is concerned with the same topics - building massive amounts of strength, power, and hypertrophy - but it is a collection of essays instead of programs. Oh, there are some programs thrown in here and there. But this is for anyone who wants to be informed and (hopefully) entertained with some of my thoughts and ideas when it comes to building the ULTIMATE in Mass and Power. 

If you enjoy reading the likes of "old school" writers such as Bill Starr, Bradley Steiner, and John McCallum, or modern-day writers such as Dan John or Pavel, this collection of essays should be right up your alley. 

Note: Oh Hell Yeah! I loved the first book this fine gentleman published, and come Saturday when the above arrives, I can pretty much guarantee you I'll be all smiles. 

If you like this blog, you'll love C.S. Sloan's work. 

https://cssloanstrength.blogspot.com/#google_vignette

Here's a sweet layout that features overhead pressing and curling on two days, with the remainder of the work being done three days a week. It's very adaptable to each individual, and respects the lifter enough to allow for fine-tuning, tweaking and makin' that routine-suit fit just right. 

Okay then . . . back to the real deal: 

Anyone familiar with the writings of Bradley Steiner (and I'm sure you readers of this blog are), might be surprised that he actually recommended a form of split training. He called it the "Rugged Size and Strength Split Program." I have a good feeling that it was the only split program he ever wrote about. 

So, what's this program look like? 

We'll take a look at the major tenets of the routine, then I'll offer some suggestions for making the routine work for you. These suggestions will be based on both my own observations and those of Bradley Steiner.

Steiner said that this routine might be better described as a "divided" workout schedule instead of a "split" program because you divide up a total body workout and you don't use anything close to what's normally considered a split routine. Here's how the thing works: 

On three non-consecutive days each week you perform the following: 

Bench press

Bentover row

SDL

Squat

An ab exercise

On two other days during the week you perform the following: 

Behind-the-neck press

Barbell curl

That's it. Pretty conservative for a "split" routine, isn't it? It  can work wonders for your strength, however, if you follow these guidelines: 

1) Don't perform the exact same set/rep scheme every training day and every week. Change things up! Some days (or weeks) use a 5x5. Some days, a 3x3. Other days, use heavy singles. And on some days you might want to go with 5/4/3/2/1. 

You don't have to use the same set/rep scheme on each exercise. For instance, you might use the 5x5 on bench presses and bent rows, then use heavy singles on the deadlifts, and triples on the squats. 

2) Make one or two days each week "light" days. This DOESN'T mean using high reps. It means cutting back on the poundages you are using. This helps recovery and keeps you from burning out. 

3) Steiner recommended taking a week layoff every five weeks of hard, steady, progressive workouts. I think it is a good idea to take a break every five weeks, but I don't think you should take a complete layoff. Layoffs of an entire week tend to breed bad habits of being inconsistent with your training. Instead, have a down-week every five weeks where you cut back on the number of sets, the number of reps, and the amount of weight you are lifting. This will prevent overtraining while still not allowing you to miss workouts. 

4) After every five-week cycle, don't be afraid to change the exercises around. Instead of bench presses, incline presses. Instead of SDLs, rack pulls. Instead of PBNs, standing overheads. The only exercise I don't want you changing, and Steiner and I would agree wholeheartedly on this, are the SQUATS. 

5) Eat appropriately and rest well. 

Is it Saturday yet? 

Enjoy Your Lifting!