First cycle and the results are in......

N

nlmorgan

New Member
Before I outline what happened let me say that I was skeptical that HST would put much muscle on me. I'm 6ft4 - 1.90cm - and have always struggled to put on muscle. I am a self confessed hard gainer. I know there are many of you out there that will say that there is no such thing, but I have to disagree. Aged 18 I was about 11stone not exactly Mr O. genetics. Anyway I've been training 3 or 4 times a week for 15 years and reckon to have put on about 2 1/2 stone of muscle. But I've always wanted just a little bit more and no matter what programme I followed, just couldn't seem to put on any more muscle. I had felt like I had reached my genetic maximum which seemed ridiculous given that I was still pretty skinny. So I thought the scientific basis of HST warranted a proper trial. Ah yes, the results ok.....

Starting weight - 196
weight after 8 weeks - 194


waist - 36 inches
after 8 weeks - 36 inches

left and right biceps increased by about 3 cm

left and right quads increased by 4 cms

chest - exactly the same - 41 inches - no gain at all.

Kneck - increased by 1/2 inch



To say that I'm confused is a bit of an understatement. The results don't seem to make any sense, how could I have lost 2 pounds in overall weight, yet my body fat % appears to remain unchaged (waist) whilst my legs and arms are bigger.

So on the one hand I was delighted that my limbs are getting bigger but where I would really like to have had some real growth is the chest/back.


I did cable presses (same as a dumbell press but with cables!), weighted chins, weighted dips, squats, incline bicep curls, tricep press downs, dumbell shoulder press and stiff legged deads. The only wavering from the strict HST methodology was the last 2 weeks. I just couldn't do any negatives so repeated the 10s with a marginally higher weight.



So here's my 1 question I would welcome feedback on. Given I did some pretty classic chest and back exercises how the bloody hell do I get that chest measurement to grow?? Oh and please don't tell me I'm not eating enough. I'm confident that my diet is spot on see Kleiner - Power Eating.
 
Some of us just have parts that don't grow well or at all. For me, legs, chest and bi's.
Same rule as for arms probably applies: for every 15lbs. BW, you can gain up to an inch for arms. I suppose legs and chest go the same route.
 
If weight did not increase then you need to eat more then eat even more until your almost puking at every meal. Thats how "hard gainers" or people with high metabolisms will gain weight.

As for your measurements, they seem very positive.

Did you measure them cold or post workout each time?

I wish I could put an inch on my left and right bicep in 8 weeks. Congrats, i am jealous.
 
If you are on a bulk and you are not gaining weight then you are not eating enough. This would make your diet insufficient. It doesnt matter who made your diet or what its named. Get more calories.

Wheres your BB rows? I would do bench instead of cable/DB presses since, in general, one can do much more weight that way.

IMO all you did the last 2 weeks was burn cals. You should have stuck with the 5s and tried to push for new 5RMs or max stim'd it.
 
You lost two pounds, obviously you aren't eating enough. I don't care what diet you are on, it's not working. The only sure fire way to make sure you are eating enough is to start counting calories. At the very least, estimate calories. Diets like the one you are on aren't going to work for you because they are not based on you.
Try eating 18 x bodyweight in pounds every day (3492 calories at 194 lbs) adjusting that as you gain weight. If you don't gain a couple pounds a week over the first few weeks, increase it to 20 x bodyweight in pounds. Make sure about 200 grams of those calories comes in the form of protein. Keep adjusting calories upward until you are gaining about two pounds a week.

If you aren't gaining about two pounds a week, you are not eating enough. And if you aren't eating enough, it won't matter what program you are doing, because no program can put muscle on you unless you eat an excess of calories.
 
As others said, your diet is the key to your problems. Check out the link in my signature for more information on figuring how many calories you need.
 
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