A weird double split , HST style?

[Esperantistino]

I've been doing my own versions of HST for quite a while.
I'd like to know your thoughts on my latest project?
So , here I was.. reading a remark about my training method: why don't you do block training? You can't train for endurance and strength at the same time.
Since I had been reading about the influence of the menstrual cycle on performance a long time ago, I dreamed up a new training schedule.
My idea was to train for
- strength in the follicular phase by doing a 2-split (UB/LB) and lower reps from 10-8-6 in the 3 consecutive minicycles. Training every 2 days and to be followed by HIIT-style cardio (24 mins tops)
- endurance in luteal phase, again with a 2-split (UB/LB) but now only 3x/wk with 20-18-16 reps (perhaps lower, perhaps higher, perhaps with different reps over several months), with cardio that is a bit more geared to endurance (up to 45 mins sessions) as well as a bike ride every weekend (will start at a moderate distance of 50K and work myself up to 150K?).
This was in January. In the meantime I've kept cardio the same, but am alternating high-low reps in this fashion
low UB - low LB - high UB - high LB - low ..... up to 12 sessions in 27 days (length of my cycle, perhaps 11 in 25 days as this is the latest change for the past 3 mo.).
Reason for change was that I suddenly had the hardest time to do high reps after not having had a problem with them for a long time.. perhaps my body didn't know how to deal with high reps after 2 wks of low reps?
Could also be that my volume is too high.
Current schedule:
back Backs Chinning 9 sets of 1 rep
back Backs Barbell Bent Over Row  2s
back Backs Dumbbell Row 2s
back Backs Lat Pull-Down(front wide) s2
Shoulders Traps Shoulder Shrug 2s
chest pecs Bench Press(standard) 4s
chest pecs Incline Dumbbell Bench Press 2s
Arms pecs Chest Press 2s
Arms Biceps Barbell Curl 1s
Arms Biceps Hammer Curl 1s
Arms Biceps Preacher Curl 1s
Arms triceps Triceps Press Down(rope) 1s
Arms triceps French Press(EZ-Bar) 1s
Arms triceps Triceps Kickback 1s
Shoulders Delts Lateral Raise 2s
Shoulders Delts External rotation ? (for rotator cuff) 2s
I'm thinking of decreasing amt of exercises for bis/tris and do 2 sets of 2 exercises. Also decrease amt of sets for the 2 major groups from 2x9 sets to 2x7 sets. Like not chin on the high rep day as it is too taxing.. no assisted pull up & I'm a weak woman not able to do more than 1 rep at the time & replace this by narrow grip pull down.

Legs Hip squat lunge 4s
Legs Thigh Leg Press narrow 1s
Legs Thigh Leg Press wide 3s
Back Erectors Deadlift 3s
Back Erectors Romanian DL 3s
Legs Hamstrings Leg Curl 3s
Back Erectors Back Extension 3s
Abs Abs Wood Chop 2s
Abs Abs Abdominal Machine 1s
Abs Abs Swiss ball crunch 2s
Changes I'm planning to do is alternate between DL & RDL on the low & high rep day. Same for narrow & wide leg press
where's the HST element?
Increased weight every training.. I stop 1 rep short of failure and this month I do 8-7-6 reps for the low-rep range and 18-16-14 reps or something similar for the high rep range.
And mixing those... I know it's hard to see any HST in it, but I feel it has more HST than of any other program I know, except for Lyle's UD2.0 training schedules that have inspired me in a great deal.
Your thoughts are most welcome. Especially on which amt of sets would be OK for someone on a lowish-carb diet (approx. 100gm CHO on average) but eating @ maintenance.
I'm more interested in increasing strength while keeping weight stable than in anything else.
Espi

 

[Esperantistino]

So, I've been rescheduling the entire thing.

legs & lower back:
1 set less for squat lunge, do a sumo style DL & narrow stance leg press on low rep days & RDL plus wide stance leg press on high rep days.
Formerly: 20 sets plus 4 pump sets, now 15 sets plus 4 pumpsets

upper back: 6 sets of 1 rep for chinning on low rep day, and 2 sets of 1 rep for chinning & 2 sets narrow grip lat pull down on high rep day
chest: 1 set less for bb bench press, rest the same as before (pec deck on high rep day, cable cross over on low rep day)
total for back & chest: used to be 26+4 sets, will be 20+4 or 17+4 sets.

biceps
low rep day: preacher curl , high rep day: hammer curl, both days: bb curl

triceps
low rep day: French press, high rep day : tri kick back, both days : tri push down

Shoulders will be moved to leg day

Less volume will mean more quality, no?

Next 2 low rep sessions will look like

legs-shoulders-abs


Legs Hip squat lunge 3s
Legs Thigh Leg Press smal 3s
Back Erectors Deadlift 3s
Legs Hamstrings Leg Curl 5s (incl. 2 pump sets)
Back Erectors Back Extension 3s
Legs Thigh Leg Extension 2s (pump sets)
Shoulders Delts Lateral Raise 2s
Shoulders Delts Exorotation 2s
Abs Abs Wood Chop 2s
Abs Abs Abdominal Machine 1s
Abs Abs Swiss ball 2s

borst-rug-armen
back Backs Chinning 6s
back Backs Barbell Bent Over Row 2s
back Backs Lat Pull-Down(front breed) 4s (2 pump sets)
Shoulders Traps Shoulder Shrug 2s
chest pecs Bench Press(standard) 3s
chest pecs Incline Dumbbell Bench Press 2s
chest pecs Cable Crossover 3s
chest pecs Chest Press 2s (pump sets)
Arms Biceps Barbell Curl 2s
Arms Biceps Preacher Curl 2s
Arms triceps Triceps Press Down(rope) 2s
Arms triceps French Press(EZ-Bar) 2s

What do you think.. about both training plans?

 

[BIZ]

Quote[/b] ]I'm more interested in increasing strength while keeping weight stable than in anything else.
Espi

Aaron F has a good forum going on Strength Specific Training and he is quite knowledgable in that realm. Maybe browse that forum or send him a PM. In my experience, my clients who are very specified in their training goals such as strength without weight gain, then we usually avoid doing the traditional HST programs.

 

[Esperantistino]

Quote[/b] (BIZ @ Mar. 07 2005,3:52)]

Quote[/b] ]I'm more interested in increasing strength while keeping weight stable than in anything else.
Espi

Aaron F has a good forum going on Strength Specific Training and he is quite knowledgable in that realm.  Maybe browse that forum or send him a PM.  In my experience, my clients who are very specified in their training goals such as strength without weight gain, then we usually avoid doing the traditional HST programs.

Hmmzzz.. I went off the HST program as it was too hard mentally to not go to failure. By training in a double split every other day I can go (almost) to failure and not overtrain, at least not until I overdid in volume and started cutting again.

Aaron F really is everywhere.. I run into him frequently on www.bodyrecomposition.com

I've been trying to lose weight for a long time, but eventually I realized that I love eating too much and am also cursed with a tendency to put on too much fat and only decent amt of muscle.
So, I'd rather focus on strenght & endurance.. I like being stronger in both pure strength as well as for longer periods of time. After all, I've got a background as an endurance cyclist... used to cycle over 10.000 K every year.

But still: the periodization principle keeps appealing to me, so I refer a lot of people to HST as a method to put on muscle.

Psst.. if it's not clear, I'm a female.

 

[Old and Grey]

Esperantistino, would you please explain if there is a literal translation to your name. I believe that you are German, based on some language in your posts, but your name has a definite Italian, Spanish or Latin flair. Just curious.

 

[ZMT]

hehe esperanto perhaps

 

[Esperantistino]

I'm Dutch & speak indeed Esperanto, the int'l language of peace & friendship (invented in the 1880s & published in 1887 in former Russia, now Poland), so nearly 120 yrs old). At the time French & German was dominant in Europe , so 60% of the vocabulary is Latin/French based, some 30% German based (-in means 'female' in both German and Dutch: Freund/Freundin = male/female friend) and a smattering of several languages for the remainder, predominantly Slavic and a tidbit of Hebrew as the author/inventor was Jewish. Funniest word: tohuvabohuo = grand chaos is a Hebrew word for chaos.

But back to business.. one of the things that piqued my interest as well was the explanation that since endurance lycra clad weenies have often taken advantage of all the possible muscle gain in their type I (?) muscle fibers, they would profit from doing low rep exercises.
And vice versa for powerlifters or other strength focussed gym weenies.
Actually, I never liked training for endurance, it's boring as hell... I just love cycling in beautiful areas and get a kick from riding long distances (probably the serotonin/endorfins at work).

 

[BIZ]

Strength endurance doesn't get enough attention in athletics, at least not as much as it should. Here at the university, the strength and conditioning coaches focus so much on absolute strength it is kills me.

 

[Old and Grey]

I agree Biz. Real world activities require much more strength endurance than pure strength.

Thanks for the explanation Esperatistino. That cleared up the tohuvabohuo in my head.

 

[Esperantistino]

Only used for a chaos that is totally out of control, more like the biblical First Day @ so on.
The regular chaos is: ^haoso (pronunciation: gaosso) : ^ is on h but not possible here.

Outside endurance people there are very few people in the gym that focus on endurance strength. Even the endurance people themselves either train in winter on sheer strength (or so I believe) or not at all... I have extremely few acquaintances in my cycling circle who lift weights. Most of them wouldn't touch iron with a long stick. But then I was into the non-competitive long-distance stuff where time limits are very liberal. Was, as I haven't cycled much since Oct 2003, mostly due to a spondylodiscitis (infection in my back , probably food infection). Haven't even taken spinning classes!

My most memorable workout template was given by a cyclist.

I'd only train major body parts and do mostly basic exercises.
And rotate body parts...
Like this schedule
Mon: 5x5 legs 3x8 chest 2x15 back for each exercise
Wed:2x15 legs 5x5 chest 3x8 back for each exercise
Fri: 3x8 legs 2x15 chest 5x5 back for each exercise
No arms, no shoulders, no abs, no calves.. a very rapid schedule it was.. I was ready in less than 45 mins.

Felt guilty about omitting body parts and adopted HST.
Then I didn't like not going to failure all the time and would overtrain. So, I made adaptations in which I combined the schedule I just gave with the intensity & body part rotation and principles of HST (go down in reps). This proved to be a great combo... only problem always was and will be: tendency to overtrain either in volume or in intensity.

Women can be as stubbornly macha as men are