I know you asked this 3 months ago, but just wanted to give my two cents:

I ran 5/3/1 for 6 years. I started at 27 and stopped it when I was 33. I saw huge gains with it and it was fun for a while. But it wasn’t sustainable. Jim Wendler explicitly markets this program as one you can do forever. My experience completely contradicts this and your success with this program entirely depends on your age and quality of recovery. I would never recommend his program if you’re not in your prime.

After the spike in gains over the first two years, the constant push for PRs absolutely burned me out and left me bored. And then I ended up getting seriously hurt in a number of different ways. My body just couldn’t take it anymore. I had to get shoulder surgery. Then I had to PT my knees. Then finally I fucked up my back in a way that won’t ever fully recover.

I spent a year going barely 1x/WK because I was so tired of the program and the intensity constantly aggravated old injuries. I finally got 100% back to the gym regularly, but I did so by throwing that 5/3/1 book away.

I just want to look good naked. The old school thinking was that hypertrophy was hugely dependent on lifting low volume, heavy weight. More recent studies contradict this and show that high volume lower weight can have the same effect. So that’s what I’ve chosen to do, my program focuses on this, I’m getting good gains in mass and I’m finally not leaving the gym in pain anymore.

I guess what I’m saying is, use 5/3/1 and all variants at your own risk. It might be perfect for you depending on your goals & age, but consider a different approach to lifting if you want this to be a hobby you’ll enjoy for many years to come.

I really enjoy 531 BBB, the baseline workouts are so straightforward, and the results have been extremely impressive for me personally. The only downside is I have outgrown my entire wardrobe, and it’s really difficult to find pants that will fit around my big ass and legs.

Regarding difficulty and injuries, just a reminder for everyone to read what Jim Wendler says about one rep max versus training max, and to start lighter than you think. If you are really crushing the plus sets you could consider upping your training max next cycle, but sub maximal is the idea. If the BBB sets are too easy at 40%, up them to 50 or 60%, or even FSL if you’re feeling really strong.