Madcow 5x5 is an intermediate barbell program with three workouts a week: a medium day, a light day and a heavy day. Each lift ramps up through sets of 5 to a top set, and the top sets go up about 5 lb (2.5 kg) a week. It suits lifters who have stalled on a beginner 5x5 and can no longer add weight every session.
Key takeaways
- Monday (medium): squat, bench and row ramping to a top set of 5. Wednesday (light): lighter squat, incline bench or press, and deadlift. Friday (heavy): a new top triple plus a back-off set of 8.
- Ramp sets climb in roughly equal steps to the top set, so only one set per lift is truly heavy.
- The top sets go up 5 lb a week on squat and deadlift and 2.5 lb on bench, row and incline.
- You start four weekly jumps below your current 5-rep max, reach it in week 5, and set new PRs after that.
- Miss the top set? Repeat that weight the next week until you get all 5 reps.
In this guide
What is Madcow 5x5?
Madcow 5x5 is a weekly linear progression for intermediate lifters. It is based on coach Bill Starr's heavy, light and medium 5x5 system and was popularised online by a lifter going by "Madcow". Instead of adding weight every session, you add it once a week and hit a new top set every Friday.
That slower pace is the point. Once you have stalled on a beginner 5x5 workout or Starting Strength, your body needs more than 48 hours to adapt to a heavier squat. Madcow spreads the stress across the week: one medium day, one light day, one heavy day.
The StrongLifts Madcow 5×5 workout guide describes it as a program for intermediate lifters, with three exercises a workout, three times a week.
What are the three Madcow workouts?
Most people train Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Monday is a medium day of five ramp sets. Wednesday is a light day with fewer, lighter sets and the deadlift. Friday is the heavy day: four ramp sets, a new top triple, then a back-off set of 8.
| Monday (medium) | Wednesday (light) | Friday (heavy) |
|---|---|---|
| Squat 5×5 ramp | Squat 4×5 (light) | Squat 4×5 ramp, 1×3, 1×8 |
| Bench press 5×5 ramp | Incline bench or overhead press 4×5 | Bench press 4×5 ramp, 1×3, 1×8 |
| Barbell row 5×5 ramp | Deadlift 4×5 ramp | Barbell row 4×5 ramp, 1×3, 1×8 |
On Friday the triple is 5 lb heavier than Monday's top set of 5. The back-off set of 8 uses the weight of your third ramp set. Rest a few minutes before it: rack the bar, strip the plates, and treat it as its own set rather than a drop set.
How do the ramp sets work?
Ramp sets climb in roughly even steps to the top set, about 12.5% apart. Only the last set is truly heavy; the earlier sets are practice and warm-up that still count as volume. With a 275 lb top squat, Monday looks like 135, 175, 205, 245 and 275 lb, all for 5 reps.
| Set | % of top set | Example squat (top 275 lb) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 50% | 135 lb × 5 |
| 2 | 62.5% | 175 lb × 5 |
| 3 | 75% | 205 lb × 5 |
| 4 | 87.5% | 245 lb × 5 |
| 5 | 100% | 275 lb × 5 |
The example weights come from the StrongLifts guide and are rounded to plates you can load. Wednesday's light squat stops after the first few ramp sets, which keeps your legs fresh for Friday.
How much weight do you add each week?
The top sets go up once a week: 5 lb (2.5 kg) on the squat and deadlift, and 2.5 lb (about 1.25 kg) on the bench press, row and incline or press. Friday's triple is always 5 lb above Monday's top set, and that triple weight becomes next Monday's top set of 5.
The upper-body jumps are small, so you need fractional plates: 1.25 lb a side for 2.5 lb jumps. Small, steady jumps are what make Madcow last for months instead of weeks.
How do you pick your starting weights?
Start from your current 5-rep max, the most you can lift for 5 good reps. The guide recommends a four-week on-ramp: start a few weekly jumps below your max and climb back to it. In the official spreadsheet, week 1 is four jumps below your 5-rep max, so with a 300 lb 5-rep max and 5 lb a week you start at 280 lb and match your old best in week 5.
Our free Madcow 5x5 calculator works out every set for weeks 1 to 12 from your 5-rep maxes, in lb or kg.
Starting below your max feels slow, but it is the most important part of the setup. The on-ramp lets you build momentum, so the first new PRs come when you are already in the groove. If you are coming straight off a beginner 5x5, your last working weights are a good stand-in for your 5-rep maxes.
In ReadyLift (our app), you enter your current 5-rep max for each lift when you pick Madcow 5×5. The app builds the on-ramp, works out every ramp set and rounds each weight to plates you can actually load.
What do you do when you stall?
If you miss reps on Monday's top set, don't add weight the next week. Repeat the same top set until you get all 5 reps, then carry on with the weekly jumps. According to the StrongLifts guide, a lifter who gets 280 lb for 3 reps in week two stays at 280 lb in week three.
Most lifters run Madcow for several months. When repeated weeks stop helping and the weight stalls across all three lifts, you have finished weekly linear progress. That is the time to move to a monthly program like 5/3/1 Boring But Big.
Is Madcow right for you?
Madcow fits lifters who have finished a beginner program and still like the 5x5 format. If you want more volume and percentage-based training, nSuns is a higher-volume option; if you want a slower, monthly cycle with lots of back-off volume, 5/3/1 is the classic choice.
| Program | Days/week | Progress | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Madcow 5x5 | 3 | Weekly | Lifters fresh off a beginner 5x5 who want the same lifts |
| nSuns 5/3/1 LP | 4 to 6 | Weekly, from AMRAP sets | Intermediates who want high volume and long sessions |
| 5/3/1 BBB | 4 | Monthly | Long-term strength plus size |
Why it works. Madcow gives each lift one hard set a week and lets the medium and light days build volume around it. You get a new Friday PR almost every week without grinding every session. ReadyLift does the ramp math for you, so you never stop between sets to work out 87.5% of a top set.
Frequently asked questions
How long can you run Madcow 5x5?
Most lifters get several months out of it. You run it until repeating a top set no longer gets you past it. At that point weekly progress is done and a monthly program such as 5/3/1 is the next step.
Can a beginner start with Madcow?
It works, but a beginner usually progresses faster on a session-to-session plan like a standard 5x5 or Starting Strength. Adding weight every workout gets you strong sooner. Switch to Madcow once those per-session jumps stop.
Do you need fractional plates?
For the bench press, row and incline, yes. Those lifts go up 2.5 lb a week, which means 1.25 lb on each side. Without small plates you would have to jump 5 lb, which most lifters can only sustain for a few weeks on upper-body lifts.
Incline bench or overhead press on Wednesday?
Either works. The guide lists the incline bench with the overhead press as an option. Pick the one you want to improve and keep it for the whole run, so the weekly jumps stay consistent.
Can you add accessories to Madcow?
Yes, a little. The guide lists optional assistance work on each day. Keep it light, such as some arm, core or back work after the main lifts, so it never eats into recovery for Friday.
Sources
- StrongLifts, Madcow 5×5 Workout Guide (workouts, ramp sets, weekly increments, starting weights, stalls).
- Bill Starr (1976). The Strongest Shall Survive: Strength Training for Football.
- American College of Sports Medicine (2009). Progression Models in Resistance Training for Healthy Adults. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 41(3), 687-708.
General training information, not medical advice. If you have an injury, a heart condition or another health concern, check with a doctor or physical therapist before starting a new program.
Written by the ReadyLift team. We build ReadyLift, a lifting log that runs Madcow 5×5 and other proven programs with the load math done for you. We link the original program write-ups and the research we rely on. Questions or corrections? Get in touch.