HST and abs

M

mftii42069

New Member
Ok, when i designed my program, i was assuming that abs would be done in a similar fashion to the rest of my exercises. I do cable crunches and decline situps. For the decline situps, i just use a decline bench and stack weights on my chest. I am doing a 12 8 4 rep routine. For my 12 reps, my max was 105lbs which i succeeded in doing. 8s will be 120 and i think i can do it. But for 4 reps, its supposed to be like 160... First of all, i dont think that i can hold that many weights. Second of all, it seems like that is going to be way too much weight and i am going to end up hurting myself. Should abs not be done in the same way? Didnt really think about this before hand... Any info will be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
 
I would use a higher rep range IMO for safety if nothing else. I use 20/15/10 as my template. Abs/core get heavy work with squats and deads as stabilizers so some general higher rep weighted stuff is sufficient.
 
Thank you for the reply. So, in the future, I will use a higher rep range for abs. The problem now is that I am in the middle of my cycle.... Any suggestions on what i should do for the rest of this cycle?
 
Since your only 2 weeks in it won't hurt to make the switch now. That way you can see if you like the rep scheme better.
 
I am actually about to start my 4th week. If i am going to do a 20 15 10 ab routine, should i start with 15 since i am on my second mini cycle? Am i too far along to switch? Thanks again, friend!
 
When I train abs, I train abs exactly the same as everything else. Yes, it gets heavy during the 5s. Just take it easy, don't force out reps and keep form. If you truly tested your maxes on it, then the weight should not be too heavy. I use a weighted crunch/situp machine at the gym and push the full stack when I get to the heaviest part of my cycle. I haven't died yet, so I'm assuming it isn't anything too terrible to be doing.
 
I tested my maxes for 12 reps and used the calculator for 8s and 4s. I was doing max ot prior to this and it is all 4 reps.... Except abs. So, i already had all of my maxes for 4s. I did 12s and didnt even think about abs. I will try it and see how it works.
 
Is there a specific reason you are doing 12, 8 and 4?

I would have tested at least a 5 RM for abs. They are a little different than other muscle fibers and the correlations between RMs doesn't seem to hold true for abs. It's possible you overestimated a lot if you used a calculator.
 
There are a couple different reasons why i did 12 8 4. First of all, I was doing 4 reps before. I know there is not much of a difference between 4 and 5 reps but i have my 4 rep numbers down to the T. Secondly, I seem to gain more from doing lower reps. I gained a lot doing the 4 rep routine I was doing. I also really enjoyed it. Problem was, it was taking its toll on my body... Lastly, my cardio sucks. I figured that I would do 12 8 4, gain a bit of cardio and next cycle i could maybe try the standard 15 10 5 and compare my gains between the 2.

I actually think that the calculator overestimates period... At least for me it does. Maybe its because my body is used to doing 4 reps. I have no idea. Could i just drop my max for abs down a bit? Then when i com to the last weeks of fives I could try to add a little weight each time?

Thanks a lot for the replies!!!
 
The only reason I ask about the reps is because I find that low reps for longer periods starts to get rough on the joints and etc.

I would say that dropping the max down a bit would be a good idea. If you dropped it too low, you can always just progress the weight like you already thought of doing. Whatever load you end up using will likely be effective anyway.
 
Yeah, Max OT worked very well for me. I had very good strength gains and enjoyed doing the workout. After a while, my joints started to bother me quiet a bit. Which is why i am here! I will be trying the standard 15 10 5 routine on the next cycle. Thanks for the help!
 
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