"Get Big Exercise"

C

cnegotiator

New Member
For my size, i'm as strong if not stronger then most people as a freshman in college. However, I have not very big at all. I have tried many routines that will "get you big" but they have only gotten me stronger, which isnt a bad thing but it would be nice to look like I actually lift now that i'm not associated with a sport anymore. I know i'm a good eater, very picky actually and don't eat anything sugary. I work in fish, meat, and a lot of vegetables a day as well as muscle milk and sometimes even whey protein supplements in my diet each day. I also take amino acid pills.


What is the best cycle to get big with HST? What should I focus on in terms of reps, exercises, and number of days training? I haven't started my cycle yet, i'm going to put it into action Monday and just wanted to really lay out all my options before I plan it.

Thanks guys!
 
You might not be getting "big" because your "very picky". You need to eat adequate amounts of carbohydrates and fat in order to put on significant amount of weight/size.

As for the exercises concentrate on compounds: Bench Press, Squat, Bent over Barbell Row, Dips, those are just a few.

Joe G
 
My advice is if you are below 15% bodyfat. I would bulk.

Eat Eat and Eat getting your protein in.

Workout wise keep it simple.
Squats, bench, rows, shoulder press all for 2 or 3 sets.

start with 15's and follow the program.
 
i'm over 15% for sure, i think i was about 23% or something.

Should I be doing heavy heavy weight with less reps or decent weight with decent reps?
 
That's the entire point of HST...

You have mesocycles or phases where you have lighter weights that are good for aerobics and your joints coming off SD, and then the heavy low-rep weights in the 5's and negatives.

If you are around 20%, I wouldn't be bulking... cut for a while using HST, and then start bulking and you will see gains.

-Colby
 
Like pretty much everyone has said already, it is the diet that will ensure your success or failure. If you have been lifting weights for years but you don't look like it, then your diet is the problem. Also, you may want to get your bodyfat checked with calipers to make sure you have an accurate assessment of where you stand right now before you decide whether or not to bulk.

For the routine, you could simply use the example routine in the HST article. See the big HST button up at the top. That one should work great.
 
If you are 23 % definatly cut.

I would cut down to 12 % if I could. Then bulk back up.

Especially if you have never been 12% or lower.

You will look twice as big. plus you can gauge your bulking cycle easier going forward once you are lean.

23% bf and still bulking just doesn't sound healthy to me.

Good luck :D
 
Yeah, cutting before bulking can make bulking a lot easier as well, since you won't have to consume as many calories to grow.
 
yeah i guess i should get like, really tested... i just used an online body fat calculator that you put in your height, weight, and age and it calculates it. As for my diet, within the past year is were I really started to get health concious and picky making sure i get all the food groups each day and a lot of protein staying away from sugary crap.

I dont know if its genetics or not but I used to be heavy when i was younger, and now each year i am getting leaner and leaner. As for me, I'm about 5'6 - 5'7 at about 140 - 150 pounds. However small i sound, my max bench press is 235, leg press 720(45 degree angle), biceps 45, tri extensions over the head 90, shoudler press, 70. Not to meantion i can do any weighted ab exercise longer then most college athletes. So i'm not a weak kid at all, and i'm a frosh in college non-the-less. So all this strength i have, i dont look it at all.

What would be the best way to cut my bodyfat lower? It seems from reading the HST gains thread that a lot of people had lowered their body fat here unexpectively while increasing muscle.

When is the best time to do negatives? After every rep bring it down slow? or Do an extra set of a few negatives?


Thanks guys i really apprechiate all the help and input!!! i'll make sure to post my gains at the end of my first cycle!
 
Couldn't resist!

[b said:
Quote[/b] ]As for me, I'm about 5'6 - 5'7 at about 140 - 150 pounds. However small i sound, my max bench press is 235, leg press 720(45 degree angle), biceps 45, tri extensions over the head 90, shoudler press, 70. Not to meantion i can do any weighted ab exercise longer then most college athletes. So i'm not a weak kid at all, and i'm a frosh in college non-the-less. So all this strength i have, i dont look it at all.
Click to expand...

I guess that makes me a strong guy, I am defintely 5'6", weight 154 or so, and bench, press, very much the same weights, never tried the leg press but squatted on the 290 mark for reps!
laugh.gif


Yeah, good.

Now for advice, the guys are right! Stick to the program, use compounds mostly and...eat...be picky only to eat clean, but eat a lot, check out the Berardi thread and download the e-book some good sense nutrition tips there!

Cheers mate and...hey welcome to HST! :D
 
Oh... well that bodyfat percentage you stated can't be considered anywhere near accurate then. You'll need some calipers to get a more accurate assessment. At that height and weight, I doubt you are obese, especially if you work out regularly. You can get calipers on ebay that will work well enough for like $5 if you look. I got mine for 99 cents plus a few dollars for shipping.
Can you see your abs at all? If you can, then don't bother cutting up at this point, since it is winter time - perfect time for bulking up.
 
totentanz~

no i am definintly not overweight or obese, however i have never really seen my abs. I mean i can see the outline of them but not to any impressive extent. What kind of stores would sell calipers? I'm sure finding out how to do it accurately wont be so tough if i look online.
 
If you can see the outline of your abs at all then I can just about guarantee you're not at 23 percent.. somewhere in the teens would be more like it.
 
Yep, low teens..

as for the calipers.. what totentanz said.. I probably have the same cheap ones that he has. They are plastic manual read calipers that I got off of ebay for like 3 bucks.
 
[b said:
Quote[/b] (cnegotiator @ Feb. 03 2006,3:46)]i just used an online body fat calculator that you put in your height, weight, and age and it calculates it [...and got a value of 23 out].
Click to expand...

Ah, from the sound of it, that was a BMI calculator - Body Mass Index, which isn't the same as body fat.

BMI isn't that useful for "athletic" people - i.e. people with above average muscle mass.

Calipers are probably the best, but try this in the meantime:

http://www.healthstatus.com/calculate/bfb
 
Yeah, BMI is worthless. My BMI is 30, yet I'm not horridly obese. There is a FFMI which takes bodyfat percentage into consideration, that one is pretty decent.

That calc chris posted seems alright. It put me at 14%, which is close to what my calipers say. You can use tape to measure skinfolds if you don't have calipers, it's not quite as accurate, but there are calculators out there for them.
If you get calipers, here is a decent site to help you out with measuring:
http://www.linear-software.com/online.html
 
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