Stronglifts 5×5 Lite Spreadsheet

Updated:

4m read

Updated:

4m read

Here’s the official Stronglifts 5×5 Lite spreadsheet updated for 2024.

  • It calculates your starting weights
  • It automatically adds weight each week
  • It adjust your weights if you miss reps

Tap the button below to download it for free:

Download spreadsheet

Let me show you how to use the Stronglifts 5×5 Lite spreadsheet to calculate your starting weights and log your workouts.

Copy the Stronglifts 5×5 Lite spreadsheet

The Stronglifts 5×5 Lite spreadsheet is hosted on Google Sheets. Before you can edit this file, you need to make a copy for yourself.

  1. Open the Stronglifts 5×5 Lite spreadsheet
  2. Tap “File” in the top right corner
  3. Tap “Make a copy”

Like this:

Copy the Stronglifts 5x5 Lite Spreadsheet

This will copy the Stronglifts 5×5 Lite spreadsheet to your Google Drive. After that you can use it like this…

  1. Go to your Google Drive
  2. Open your copy of the Stronglifts 5×5 Lite spreadsheet
  3. Use that spreadsheet to calculate your weights

Don’t request access to edit my Stronglifts 5×5 Lite spreadsheet. If I did that, everyone would use the same sheet. Someone else would overwrite your data, making the spreadsheet unusable for all of us.

Make a copy of the spreadsheet for your own use.

How to Use The Stronglifts 5×5 Lite Spreadsheet

Here’s a screenshot of the main workout area…

Stronglifts 5x5 Lite Spreadsheet

Each workout in the program has a different color. For each workout you’ll find the exercise, sets, reps, and weights.

Calculate your starting weights

The Stronglifts 5×5 Lite spreadsheet automatically calculates your starting weights for you. It does this based on:

  • Your recent best lifts
  • Your increment settings
  • Your on-ramp settings

Once you’ve set these settings, the Stronglifts 5×5 Lite spreadsheet will increase your weights each workout if you completed all sets. If you fail, it will repeat the weight next workout instead of adding more.

Here’s how to set up the spreadsheet…

Enter your best lifts

Enter your best lifts in the spreadsheet. These should be lifts that you’ve done in the past 3-4 weeks (not a year ago or so).

  1. Select lb or kg in C16-20
  2. Enter how much weight you lifted in D16-20
  3. Enter how for how many reps you lifted that weight in E16-20
  4. Enter the RPE for that set – how many more reps you could have done (0=10RPE, 1=9RPE, 2=8RPE, 3=7RPE).

Like this…

Enter your best lifts in the Stronglifts 5x5 Lite spreadsheet

The Stronglifts 5×5 Lite spreadsheet will use the information you entered to estimate your one rep max (how much weight you could lift for one rep).

This estimate will show in the gray cells G16-20.

Estimated one rep max calculated

The spreadsheet uses your estimated one rep max to calculate your starting weights. Don’t change these values in the gray cells G16-20. If you do, your spreadsheet will break. It needs this data to calculate your starting weights.

Set the on-ramp

Stronglifts 5×5 Lite uses an on-ramp period. The first three weeks are easy to give your body time to adapt to the workouts, volume and exercises. The program gets harder week by week as you add weight on the bar.

Two settings control the on-ramp period:

  • Increments: how much weight you add per week (5lb is 2.5/side). Smaller increments work better than bigger ones, particularly on upper-body exercises like the Bench and Overhead Press.
  • On-ramp: how many weeks it takes before you match your previous best lifts. By default this is set to four weeks.

You can find both settings in the yellow cells H16-I20 of the spreadsheet…

On-ramp settings Stronglifts 5x5 Lite spreadsheet

Avoid the common beginner mistake of starting with a short on-ramp because you want to progress faster. This usually results in slower progress because you will get more sore and your body doesn’t get time to adapt to the program (this can potentially result in aches and pains).

The goal isn’t to lift heavy once. The goal is to consistently add weight on the bar. Start with easy weights that give you room to progress. This also gives you time to get used to the new exercises that you may not have done before. You can focus on proper form before the weights get heavy.

By default, the spreadsheet gives you four weeks to reach your previous best lifts that you achieved before starting this program. You can set this to five or six weeks if you’d like more time to get used to the workouts and exercises. Less than four weeks on-ramp is not recommended.

Log your workouts

You can log your workouts using the Stronglifts 5×5 Lite spreadsheet. The reps and weights are prefilled for you. They automatically increase each week if you complete all sets. If you fail and log that in the spreadsheet, the weight will repeat next workout. Example…

Automatic weight increase

Here’s how this works:

  1. You Squat 310lb in workout A but did three reps instead of five.
  2. The weight on the Squat repeats next time you do this exercise.
  3. If you complete all sets next time, the weight will increase again.

Notice also how your back-off sets are automatically calculated based on your top set. The weight is automatically lowered by 10%.

Stronglifts 5×5 Lite Spreadsheet vs Stronglifts app

The Stronglifts app does everything the spreadsheet does but better. It also does a lot more than the spreadsheet. Compare…

FeatureSpreadsheetStronglifts App
Starting weight calculator
Workouts planned for you
Automatic weight increase
Repeat weight if fail
Warmup calculator
Plate calculator
Rest timer between sets
Workout duration timer
Progress graphs weights
Progress graphs volume
Log with Apple watch
Exercise videos
Exercise instructions
Add assistance work
Log any program
Ease of use★ ★ ★ ★☆ ★ ★ ★ ★★

If you print the spreadsheets, you better be good at math. You’ll have to calculate how much weight to add on each side of the bar between sets. If you make a mistake and put the wrong weight, you can fail reps by mistake.

The Google Sheets app is a pain to use on mobile devices. It’s made for accounting on a big screen, not logging workouts on a phone. The cells are hard to tap. You need to zoom in and out all the time. There’s no rest timer.

The Stronglifts app was made for lifting. Logging sets only takes a tap. The rest timer notifies you for your next set. You don’t need to switch between half a dozen apps during your workout. Everything you need is in the same app – warmup, plate calculator, history, graphs, videos, etc. It’s much easier to use than Google Sheets.

Other workout apps don’t create your Stronglifts 5×5 Lite workouts for you. Nor do they add weight automatically. You have to do that yourself. This wastes time better spent lifting and makes mistakes more likely.

Use the Stronglifts app to log your Stronglifts 5×5 Lite workouts.

Written by Mehdi Hadim

Lifter, coach and author. I have over 25 years of experience lifting weights, and 17 years of experience coaching people. Before I started lifting, I was so weak I couldn't do a single pushup and even lost armwrestling to a girl. Since then I've Squatted 440lb, Deadlifted 500lb and competed in powerlifting. In that process I gained 45lb of muscle. Read my story.

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