AES-26 – Hypertrophy Cycle Starting from 22nd of March

Written by Squad 5 Training

On March 20, 2026

Build Muscle Without Losing Your Edge

AES-26 is about getting stronger, building muscle, and actually feeling the difference Not random workouts. Not just sweating. Real training. Real progress.

The Flow of the Week

🟥 Sunday – Upper Body
Upper body sessions with a strong focus on pressing power and arm development. Primary lifts close grip and wide grip bench press and standing Arnold press.

There will be 2 Primary stations. Each will last 14 minutes. Then 2 stations of 6 minutes each

🟩 Monday – Lower Body
Primary Lift is Cluster Back Squat and Deadlift.

We’re attacking squats with cluster sets:

  • Week 1 → 4.4.4
  • Week 3 → 3.3.3
  • Final → 2.2.2

How it works: Do your reps. Rack the bar. Rest 15 sec. Go again. You’ll have 16 minutes for 4 sets. No rush. This is where you build real leg strength.

There will be 2 Primary stations. Each will last 16 minutes. Then 1 station of 6 minutes. Finally 3 minutes core station.

Tuesday & Saturday – Hyrox Days
These days are dedicated to conditioning and pacing. The goal is to build aerobic capacity and efficiency so your engine can support the strength and volume demands of the week.

🟦 Wednesday and Friday – Full Body
Full body sessions combine upper and lower movements with multiple exercises per station. Expect compound lifts paired with accessories, minimal downtime, and constant transitions. These days reinforce endurance and coordination under fatigue. You will discover new exercises like Frankenstein squat that will teach yu how to stay upright, brace properly and own your squat. Better position = better strength everywhere else.

🟨 Thursday – Choose between Hybrid or Athletic
AES-26 has similar sessions to AES-25 but with the addition of a new ATHLETIC sessions:

ATHLETIC Class is a performance-based group training experience built around strength, skill, barbell work, gymnastics, and conditioning. Expect to learn and practice movements like barbell cycling, cleans, jerks, snatches, and handstand push-ups in a structured, coached environment. Because these movements are technical, we strongly recommend attending our workshops first. They run twice a month on Friday and are designed to help you build the foundations, improve your form, and feel confident before stepping into full class flow.

We will still provide Hybrid classes as usual:

Week 1 is heavy lifting under fatigue with a calorie target and a short cardio window (1:00).
Week 2 keeps heavy lifting under fatigue but uses fixed weights and a longer cardio window (2:15), forcing better pacing.
Week 3 is the 1000 reps workout. Simple movements, shared work, and sustained effort.
Week 4 repeats the structure of Week 1.
Week 5 repeats the structure of Week 2.
Week 6 1RM testing. First-timers stick to 4RM.

Make sure to check the weekly schedule on Thursday to book for the right class you plan to attend

⏱️ More rest = better results

On key exercises, you’ll sometimes get up to 2 minutes rest. That’s not to make it easier. It’s to make you better. If you’re always out of breath, you can’t lift properly. If you can’t lift properly, you don’t build muscle effectively. recover → perform → progress

You May Also Like…

AES-20: Starting Sunday 6th of July

AES-20: Starting Sunday 6th of July

AES-20: The Strength & Conditioning Cycle at SQD5 AES-20 is a 6-week training cycle at SQD5 Training built around progression, structure, and results. The goal of this cycle is hypertrophy — gaining muscle across all major muscle groups. You’ll...

read more

Thursday on AES-19: New Hybrid Conditioning + Strength Day

THURSDAY – CONDITIONING + STRENGTH (NEW FORMAT) This is a new setup we’re adding to the cycle.Until now, we always did strength and conditioning on separate days. Not anymore. This session mixes both — and it’s going to challenge you. How it works:...

read more

AES-19: New Cycle starting Sunday 25th of May

Welcome to AES-19 Training Program This 6-week program is made to help you get stronger and build better endurance. We’re going back to a split routine, which means each day has a different focus — like lower body, upper body, or full body. Most...

read more