SKILL/TREE

Wendler 5/3/1 cycle generator with BBB, FSL, and Building the Monolith

Enter your squat, bench, deadlift, and OHP training maxes — get every working set, AMRAP, deload, and 5x10 assistance set calculated and loaded for all 4 weeks.

$3.99
Works in Claude (Pro/Max/Team) or ChatGPT (Plus/Team) · paid AI plan required
Both Claude + ChatGPT packages included — you can't pick the wrong one.
Updated
Included
01Calculates every working set and AMRAP for all 4 weeks across all 4 lifts — no more 'what's 67.5% of 285' at the rack
02Full assistance prescriptions for Boring But Big, First Set Last, and Building the Monolith — sets, reps, exercises by day
03Plates-per-side loading for every working weight — handles microplates, bumpers-only home gyms, and kg conversions
04Injury subs for lower back, knee, shoulder, wrist — trap-bar at 85% of conv. DL TM, safety squat bar, floor press, etc.
05Back-calculates a conservative TM from a recent rep PR using the Wendler formula — no tested max required
06Trifecta output: printable HTML cycle card, CSV log, and Google Sheets formula block with next-cycle TM increments

What it does

Every 4 weeks you sit down and redo the same arithmetic: 90% of your max, then 65/75/85, then the BBB volume sets, then figure out what that is in real plates on a 45 lb bar. This Wendler 5/3/1 cycle generator does all of it in one shot. Give it your four training maxes and a template — BBB, FSL, or Building the Monolith — and it hands back a full 4-week cycle with exact weights, plates-per-side, every assistance movement prescribed by day, and a log sheet you can screenshot at the rack. It covers the three most-run 5/3/1 assistance templates: Boring But Big (5x10 at 50-60% TM for volume), First Set Last (back-off AMRAP at the first working weight), and Building the Monolith (Wendler's 3-day high-frequency block with 100-rep chin/dip accumulation). The bundled `assistance_templates.md` carries the full prescription for each. The voice is a 15-year platform lifter: AMRAP rep count is the data point that matters, the deload is the program, and template-hopping mid-cycle is not on the menu. The bundled references — `tm_and_progression.md` (Wendler TM formula and reset rules), `rep_maxes_and_logging.md`, `plate_loading.md` (microplates, bumpers, kg conversions), and `injury_substitutions.md` — are the reference material the skill pulls from when you ask it to back-calculate a TM from last week's 185x5, load 287.5 lb with microplates, or sub trap-bar for conventional deadlift while your lower back settles down. Three-rep PR misses get a Wendler reset, not a hero program.

Frequently asked

How do I calculate 5/3/1 percentages without doing the math every cycle?
Give it your four training maxes once. It computes every set across all 4 weeks (65/75/85, 70/80/90, 75/85/95, 40/50/60 deload), rounds to your equipment (5 lb standard, 2.5 lb microplate, 10 lb bumper-only, 2.5 kg metric), and shows plates-per-side. You read off the bar, you don't do math.
Does this include assistance work or just the main lift percentages?
Full assistance work. BBB is 5x10 at 50/55/60% TM across the cycle with rows, face pulls, leg curls, etc. by day. FSL is the back-off AMRAP plus 3x10-15 assistance. Building the Monolith has the specific 3-day Squat+Bench / Deadlift / OHP+Squat pairing with 100-rep pull-up and dip totals.
I don't have a tested 1RM — can it still build me a cycle?
Yes. Give it a recent AMRAP set (e.g. '185 lbs x 5 on bench') and it uses the Epley formula to estimate true max, then takes 90% for TM and flags that the number was estimated. Test a real max after one cycle to refine it.
Can I run this with a cranky lower back or shoulder?
Yes — `injury_substitutions.md` covers lower back (trap-bar deadlift at 85% of conv. DL TM, front squat at 80% of back squat TM), knee (box squat, belt squat), shoulder (landmine press, floor press, football bar bench), and wrist. Subs are flagged in the artifact and the skill applies the Wendler 'don't try to be a hero' rule for sustained pain.
Why not just ask ChatGPT to write a 5/3/1 cycle for free?
Generic prompts slip on the percentage math at rounding boundaries, the BBB/FSL/BtM distinctions, plate loading across lb/kg/microplate/bumper, and injury sub TMs. This skill has the full Wendler programming rules, loading tables, and substitution logic baked in as bundled reference files, not guessed at.
Is it included in the Skill Tree subscription or a separate buy?
Standard-tier skill at $3.99. If your subscription covers standard skills, you've already got it. Otherwise it's a one-time buy — runs in Claude or ChatGPT with no install.

Install — no Terminal required

After checkout you land on a page with a one-click download and a pre-built install prompt. Pick the AI you already pay for — both packages are included, so you can't pick wrong.

What you'll see the second your payment clears
Your license key
ST-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX · permanent
Pre-built install prompt⧉ Copy
ChatGPT package (ZIP)⬇ Download

No setup work before you buy — copy, paste, done.

Have Claude Pro, Max, or Team?
Copy the prompt, paste into Claude

Copy the pre-built install prompt from the success page, paste it into any Claude Code chat, and Claude installs the skill itself — about 10 seconds. Using the app instead? Drop the downloaded folder into a Claude Project's knowledge and ask Claude to use it.

Have ChatGPT Plus or Team?
Build a Custom GPT — ~2 minutes
  1. Click Download ChatGPT package (included with every purchase).
  2. Unzip it — inside is a SETUP.md and a knowledge/ folder.
  3. Go to chatgpt.com → your profile → My GPTs Create a GPTConfigure.
  4. Paste the Name, Description, and Instructions from SETUP.md into the matching fields.
  5. Under Knowledge, upload every file in the knowledge/ folder.
  6. Click Create/Save, open your GPT, and describe your task in plain English.

A paid plan on either platform is required — Claude (Pro, Max, or Team) or ChatGPT (Plus or Team). Comfortable with Terminal? A one-line npx skilltree-network install path is available too.