I have been lifting for almost two years on and off. I say on and off because at the beginning of the summer I stopped lifting to focus my training on a full-contact fighting tournament that I had planned to do. Unfortunately in early/mid July I got slammed into a wall while training and broke my left clavicle. After a lot of research I plan
on doing my first HST routine whenever my clavicle fully heals. I have done a few other routines before, most of which I came up with on my own (many were fairly
complex high-intensity type stuff) and gained about 50lbs of LBM since I started lifting and have trained many of my friends who have subsequently made similar gains. The most I ever weighed was between 175 and 180 at 8 to 12%BF. After not lifting for 3 months I am now around 150 with a little less BF. Basically I am just looking for an overall increase in mass but it should be noted that my traps are by far my best body-part and do not need to be trained directly and my quads are also pretty big so one compound move will suffice for them. Naturally a lot of the gains I plan on making will be from muscle-memory but I expect to exceed my previous weight before the cycle is over. I would rather alternate exercises every other workout for variety. Here are the exercises I most prefer for each body part:
Exercises sets: 1
Squats
Decline DB
Bent-over row
Calves W/ bb
DB Military Press
(Preacher cambered-bar curl
Close-grip Bench)
Kneeling ab cable crunch
Exercise set: 2
DB Lunges
Dips
Rack Deadlifts
Toe Press
Incline Db lateral raise
(Close-grip chins/lat pulldowns
Reverse grip bench press)
V-ups
Notes: I cannot do free-weight triceps extension due to inexplicable pain in my elbows and I cannot do full deadlifts due to limited tendon flexibility in my hips/hamstrings (causes low-back muscle strains).
Arm exercises can be dropped if necessary.
My diet is as good as I can possibly make it (being really anal) even
though I am at school, so that is taken care of. (Exercise Science major, Nutrition minor)
One workout a day, 3 days a week is the maximum
amount I am able to perform be cause of my schedule.
Also, some of the gains may be hampered because of the high-intensity
fight training (I am going to train for the same tournament next year
) I do 2-3 times a week and should be taken into consideration
when evaluating the progress I will post later.
I understand all of the basics but I am not 100% about what Volume, Clustering and post-5s Optimization/Specialization/metabolic techniques I should be using despite extensive reading.
What I have so far:
No zigzagging of weights, repeat if necessary.
Use increments of 5-20 lbs. per workout (5 for curls, ~20 for deadlifts etc)
For both weeks of the 15s I am guessing that I should have a volume of 30 reps per non-arm exercise so about 150 reps per workout but done with straight, ‘normal’ sets.
For the 10s I would do ~25 reps per exercise completing each exercise in a ‘one-set’/cluster fashion, as I never-ever go to failure (or at least never over-fatigue) but stop when form starts to falter, rest for 15-30 seconds then continue as many times as necessary to complete rep total. OR Hit 10 reps, then rest fully, then cluster the next set.
Begin performing Pulse-stretches or Loaded-stretches after final set of each body-part and increase weight over time when needed.
For 5s and post-5s do ~13 reps per exercise. After completing assigned reps per exercise do a 15-rep burn-set with a light weight.
For the Post 5s add weight once every week. Replace full-ROM sets on rowing movements with stretch ROM partials continually adding weight and using a cluster style and same reps as before (does this include curls, rows and deadlifts?)
These are the main questions bugging me:
When do I add eccentrics if at all?
When would I add in direct arm work if I do not start the 15s with them? Should I?
When would I alternate deadlifts and squats each workout, or cut one of them out entirely? The 2nd week of each rep block?
Thanks,
Shwaym
on doing my first HST routine whenever my clavicle fully heals. I have done a few other routines before, most of which I came up with on my own (many were fairly
complex high-intensity type stuff) and gained about 50lbs of LBM since I started lifting and have trained many of my friends who have subsequently made similar gains. The most I ever weighed was between 175 and 180 at 8 to 12%BF. After not lifting for 3 months I am now around 150 with a little less BF. Basically I am just looking for an overall increase in mass but it should be noted that my traps are by far my best body-part and do not need to be trained directly and my quads are also pretty big so one compound move will suffice for them. Naturally a lot of the gains I plan on making will be from muscle-memory but I expect to exceed my previous weight before the cycle is over. I would rather alternate exercises every other workout for variety. Here are the exercises I most prefer for each body part:
Exercises sets: 1
Squats
Decline DB
Bent-over row
Calves W/ bb
DB Military Press
(Preacher cambered-bar curl
Close-grip Bench)
Kneeling ab cable crunch
Exercise set: 2
DB Lunges
Dips
Rack Deadlifts
Toe Press
Incline Db lateral raise
(Close-grip chins/lat pulldowns
Reverse grip bench press)
V-ups
Notes: I cannot do free-weight triceps extension due to inexplicable pain in my elbows and I cannot do full deadlifts due to limited tendon flexibility in my hips/hamstrings (causes low-back muscle strains).
Arm exercises can be dropped if necessary.
My diet is as good as I can possibly make it (being really anal) even
though I am at school, so that is taken care of. (Exercise Science major, Nutrition minor)
One workout a day, 3 days a week is the maximum
amount I am able to perform be cause of my schedule.
Also, some of the gains may be hampered because of the high-intensity
fight training (I am going to train for the same tournament next year
) I do 2-3 times a week and should be taken into considerationwhen evaluating the progress I will post later.
I understand all of the basics but I am not 100% about what Volume, Clustering and post-5s Optimization/Specialization/metabolic techniques I should be using despite extensive reading.
What I have so far:
No zigzagging of weights, repeat if necessary.
Use increments of 5-20 lbs. per workout (5 for curls, ~20 for deadlifts etc)
For both weeks of the 15s I am guessing that I should have a volume of 30 reps per non-arm exercise so about 150 reps per workout but done with straight, ‘normal’ sets.
For the 10s I would do ~25 reps per exercise completing each exercise in a ‘one-set’/cluster fashion, as I never-ever go to failure (or at least never over-fatigue) but stop when form starts to falter, rest for 15-30 seconds then continue as many times as necessary to complete rep total. OR Hit 10 reps, then rest fully, then cluster the next set.
Begin performing Pulse-stretches or Loaded-stretches after final set of each body-part and increase weight over time when needed.
For 5s and post-5s do ~13 reps per exercise. After completing assigned reps per exercise do a 15-rep burn-set with a light weight.
For the Post 5s add weight once every week. Replace full-ROM sets on rowing movements with stretch ROM partials continually adding weight and using a cluster style and same reps as before (does this include curls, rows and deadlifts?)
These are the main questions bugging me:
When do I add eccentrics if at all?
When would I add in direct arm work if I do not start the 15s with them? Should I?
When would I alternate deadlifts and squats each workout, or cut one of them out entirely? The 2nd week of each rep block?
Thanks,
Shwaym
o all exercises Eccentric, then stretch ROM partials(pulses) + loaded stretch + 15 rep burn set after 2nd set on each exercise. 