A few questions for HST experts

[Louno]

Hi, i have quite a few question hopefully i can get some answers, at first hst was simple but its getting really complicated now , im at my 3rd cycle and i want to get the most out of my efforts...

I keep reading everywhere that the best exercises are
Squat/Deadlifts
Dips
Chinups
But i dont do them...
the problem is, i had an injury a long time ago doing squats and im a bit hesitant on doing them again, are leg presses equal to squat ? i feel its safer and therefore i can put alot more weight,(like this)
Same thing with deadlifts, its a bit hard on my back, i do leg curls instead...
Dips i never feel them working my pec like im told it should, i feel my pecs worked much more by doing flys and flat bench press...Also with dips i wouldnt be able to do much progression since id have to start at my body weight
Chinups... i cant do them because i aint strong enough, i can do a few but never enough to get near 15 or 10 i do pulldowns instead, are they as good ?

What is the technics one should go about, because im starting to see tons of new stuff, pulse , loaded strech, strech point, static hold, dropsets, burn set, negative , partials, etc ...
its getting confusing, what should i do and when do they need to be done and how many times ? ( during 15/10/5/extended 5s , how many sets ? do you add them to ure normal routine after ure normat sets, or replace them ? how often? how do you do them? ) I really think the FAQ should be updated with all these new technics explained clearly

Is it a problem if my workouts last 2hours at most , i take a pre workout shake, and a post workout shake, and i also take a mix of gatorade + a little wheyprotein + water WHILE in the gym

thanks ! i know i forgot something ill post back..

 

[Fausto]

Louno

Quote[/b] ]Dips i never feel them working my pec like im told it should, i feel my pecs worked much more by doing flys and flat bench press...Also with dips i wouldnt be able to do much progression since id have to start at my body weight
Chinups... i cant do them because i aint strong enough, i can do a few but never enough to get near 15 or 10 i do pulldowns instead, are they as good ?

Hey dude, many of us go by feel, for one I have had to drop dips due to a shoulder problem, tough! I am not too unhappy using a alternate of incline and decline coupled with pulsed flyes, sure feels nice and hard but rather rewarding

Chinups - this is a tough one for most guys, here is a take, start them off from 5's or even from 10's even though you cannot do 10, maybe 8 or so. But up to there you can use latpull downs to build up strength for the chins.

Double this up with some real heavy bent over rows and...you'll soon have wings to fly with LOL

, no serious, hit those lats as hard as possible with whatever you can.

Quote[/b] ]What is the technics one should go about, because im starting to see tons of new stuff, pulse , loaded strech, stretch point, static hold, dropsets, burn set, negative , partials, etc ...

These are techniques one may use to tweak as one gets more knowledeable about BB, however I would not worry too much right now, rather concentrate on getting the basics going.

I'll give it a bash though:

Pulses - Repetition is repeated continuously within the strong range of movement, thus the name pulse

Loaded stretch - as the name implies, a stretch mostly used on pulling exercises or chinups, where the muscles are loaded to a certain weight, the stretch occurs mostly on the fully extended position, sometimes a little flexion is used, it is believed to cause hypertrophy in casaes where sticking points are sometimes reached. - Sometimes the extreme of this is called static hold.

Stretch point - point in a exercise where maximum stretch is reached.

Dropsets - technique used to load muscles, any exercise can suit this practice, start with a heay weight low reps and proceed without rest to a lower weight with higher reps, can be done up to 6 sets.

Burnset - something like the 21's, a curls exercise where with a moderate weight one does 7 full reps, 7 half up reps and 7 half down reps all in one big burnset.

Negative - Important for HST, only the negative part of the exercise is done by the person, the positive part is done by a partner or at least heavily assisted, allows a person to ge beyond his/her normal capacity.

Partials - Doing an exercise only partially, i.o.w. it is either not fully extended or fully contracted, (eg: military press, instead of letting the weight get to the shoulder level do it only up to the head and back up again) also allows one to increase load bearing capacity.

Hope this helps, dude!

 

[Fausto]

bump

 

[imported_dkm1987]

I agree with Fausto on the chin ups, I can only do 9 with my body weight, so I start with pull downs on a high pulley then work up to my body weight and take it form there.

Dips are an exercise you have to learn, IE it takes some time to get to doing them correctly. You body angle is important as is the Mind Muscle connection (visualization). You can do assisted dips by using a chair behind you and using you feet to help push you up.

Leg Press can be used in lieu of squat, but the overall effectiveness isn't there. Leg Press will definatley hit your legs but heavy leg presses most often are done incorrectly by allowing your lower spine to curl on the bottom of the press. This is caused by sitting position and trying to go too low. Unfortunatley there isn't much else that hits the postural muscle as well as squats either, unless you want to add hyperextensions, crunches, hip adduction, hip abduction, and oblique training.

 

[Louno]

what if i dont curl my lower spine ?
or what if i use the assisted squat bar

the thing is that im pretty sure i can go alot more heavier with the leg press, but if its not worth it and safety squats are way better, ill switch...

 

[imported_dkm1987]

Safety squat would work. Please understand we can't tell you what's best for you, you'l have to find out what works for you and how you feel doing it. Yes you can load much heavier in Leg Press than squats, that because you are taking all the weaker links out of the picture, but it's also these weaker links that need work also.

O&G has a great Core Routine he posted not too long ago, PM him and see if he'll share it again. If you are going to do leg press I would recommend his Core Strengthening Routine with it.

 

[Louno]

Hi,
thanks i know i have to figure some stuff by myself , i already learned alot, thanks to my personnal experience but also thanks to everyone in this forum, i dont want to be annoying, im only trying to figure things out hopefully one day ill be the one with the knowledge helping other people in here !

I think ill give a try at the safety squats this cycle during the 15s and 10s then i might switch to leg press to lift heavy. i dont know my maxes for safety squats so ill have to guess and increases by feel along the way.

thanks

 

[imported_dkm1987]

You're not annoying. You could also seek out professional help with the squat form, find a good instructor in your area to help you perfect the squat form.