your results with HST...

Just finished my first eight weeks with HST (two weeks with 15s, two weeks with 10s, two weeks with 5s, and two additional weeks with 5s stopping when I wasn't able to increase the weight). I then re-evaluated my 15 and 10 rep maxes to prep for starting again after my de-load. I have an A and B routine, each consisting of eight exercises, which I alternate every other workout. For the first four weeks I was only hitting the gym three times per week (Monday, Wednesday, and Friday), and was only doing two sets per exercise. For the remaining time I upped it to working out every 48 hours, and for my 10s and 5s increased my volume to three sets per exercise.

Results are as follows:
  • Squat - (15s) start 145 lbs, end 200 lbs; (10s) start 185 lbs, end 225 lbs; (5s) start 225 lbs, end 250 lbs
  • Leg Press- (15s) start 300 lbs, end 380 lbs; (10s) start 350 lbs, end 470 lbs; (5s) start 400 lbs, end 490 lbs
  • Leg (hamstring) Curls - (15s) start 75 lbs, end 90 lbs; (10s) start 90 lbs, end 110 lbs; (5s) start 125 lbs, end 125 lbs
  • BB Bench Press - (15s) start 135 lbs, end 165 lbs; (10s) start 160 lbs, end 185 lbs; (5s) start 195 lbs, end 220 lbs
  • DB Decline Bench Press - (15s) start 65 lbs, end 70 lbs; (10s) start 75 lbs, end 80 lbs; (5s) start 85 lbs, end 90 lbs
  • Wide EZ Bar Curls - (15s) start 70 lbs, end 80 lbs; (10s) start 75 lbs, end 90 lbs; (5s) start 95 lbs, end 105 lbs
  • Skull Crushers - (15s) start 75 lbs, end 85 lbs; (10s) start 90 lbs, end 95 lbs; (5s) start 100 lbs, end 100 lbs
  • Bent Over Rows - (15s) start 125 lbs, end 135 lbs; (10s) start 145 lbs, end 165 lbs; (5s) start 165 lbs, end 180 lbs
  • Chin Ups - (15s) start assisted, end assisted; (10s) start body weight, end body weight; (5s) start 25 lbs, end 25 lbs
I made my most significant gains in my leg exercises, but I would attribute this to HST making me train legs consistent, versus my old routine "leg day" was a common day to find excuses to skip. Also, you may notice no shoulder exercise. This is because I started out doing seated military press, but about the time I started my 5s I decided to switch to OHPs. So there is no pre/post OHP comparison. My OHP numbers were (15s) 70 lbs, (10s) 95 lbs, and (5s) 110 lbs.

The one exercise made no gains in, at all, in was chin ups. No idea why, but it is vexing me. I've been stuck at a max of 10 with just body weight for a long, long time. Also, my 5s for skull crushers didn't go up. =(

Overall I can't tell any difference in the mirror, or with the measuring tape, but seeing how this was just my first time doing HST I'm going to stick with it since I know I'm increasing my max weights, which eventually will translate into muscle growth.
 
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Hi,

Are the exercises listed in the order that you worked them? ie; rows and chins last?
If so, that is likely your problem, as they will be knackered from everything else you have done first - especially the bicep work.
If you have a weakness, it is good to prioritise that for a while. Maybe four weeks. So work Chins first, and then rows, then legs and chest etc..

The most common reason for not seeing results, is, of course, not eating enough. What is your diet like?

Keep at it. Results will come
 
No, my order is as follows:

A routine
  • Squat
  • Leg curls
  • Bench Press
  • Chin Ups
  • OHPs
  • Wide EZ bar Curls
  • Skull Crushers
  • Calf Presses
B routine
  • Leg Press
  • Leg Curls
  • Decline DB Press
  • Bent Over Rows
  • OHPs
  • Wide EZ bar Curls
  • Skull Crushers
  • Calf Presses
Diet-wise during this 10 week period (from start of HST to end of de-load) I was bulking, so I was consuming ~3,200 calories per day (a carb/fat/protein ratio of 40/30/30 and ~190 grams of protein/day). I realized about halfway through I really should have done a cut first (because I was sitting at around 22-25% body fat when I started, and am still about there), but didn't want to disrupt things to much so I stuck with my diet. I was surprised because I thought eating that much (for me) I would gain a good amount of weight during the ten week period, but I gained at most ~eight pounds and I know much of it was belly fat since my pants are fitting a lot tighter now.

I just completed my de-load period and a few days ago started back on the weights. This time I've cut my calories back. My goal is 15% body fat and using some web-based calculators it pegs my TDEE at 2,717. To drop the fat I cut 500 calories per day out, so I'm targeting 2,217 calories per day (on and off workout days). Still shooting for a carb/fat/protein ratio of 40/30/30 and ~190 grams of protein/day.

once I get down to 15% body fat then I will start thinking about changing my diet in order to add lean muscle mass.

Anyway, looking back I can't complain too much since most mu lifts went up. Excited to see how things pan out after this next cycle ends.
 
Ok, so your workout looks fine. Yes, you need to drop to sub 15% bf before you start to bulk again. Fat isn't much use for anything, except keeping warm in the winter - and does make your chin ups harder!

You wont build much - if any - muscle and strength on a cut. So dont worry about your chins for now, just work hard with the compound exercises to maintain what you have already got.
Really I wouldn't worry about EZ curls and skull crushers and calf raises. Your arms will be worked enough with the chins and presses.

Personally, I always preferred dips for my decline chest work and covers triceps perfectly. Dips are your 'upper body squat'.

I am guessing that you weight 190lb - as per your protein intake. For me, on a cut - which, unfortunately, I seem to spend my life on nowadays.... I would be looking to aim for a higher protein intake. Probably around 1.5g per lb of lean bwt. I know it may seem a lot, but it still counts as 'calories in', so it makes sense to increase the nutrients that are hardest to store as fat cells.
My diet is to aim to hit 40% of my diet of protein, 40% carbs and about 20% fats.

Good luck.
 
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As @Brixtonian said you should be sub 15% before bulking again, if it was me I would get down to ~12% then bulk back to 15%, then cut down to 10% rinse and repeat.

Again as @Brixtonian said it would be better to up Protein to 1.5g when cutting not just for his reason but also for satiation.
 
Hit the gym two days ago after cutting 1,000/day calories out of my diet. My TDEE (per online website TDEE calculators) is 2,700/day. When I was bulking I was eating +500 calories (so 3,200/day), but now I'm consuming only 2,200 calories/day.

Holy heck I have no energy for my workout. I was absolutely wiped towards the end of my workout and had zero energy left for my usual 15 min stationary bike cool-down (made it 5 minutes and was dead). I also noticed the past two days by mid afternoon was was just wiped-out and had no energy. Usually I'm like the energizer bunny but past two days on the reduced daily calorie diet by the time 3p-4p rolls around I'm just exhausted and have no energy.

Hoping this is just a rough spot as my body adjust to eating 1,000 calories fewer per day and things will normalize soon.
 
This is natural if you have changed to a low carb diet. Your body will normalize usually in a couple of weeks but it is a rough two weeks. Be sure you have increased your protein intake in your calculations so as not to lose much muscle and, despite many nay-sayers, it is even possible to gain some muscle while cutting. Your body weight is not a reliable measure when doing this.

BTW, continuous YoYo type dieting like bulking and cutting is very unhealthy for certain organs. Cut slowly to where you want to be, usually no less than 10-12%, and then gain slowly while maintaining the same body fat percentage with the right diet and exercise. Adding fat is absolutely useless.
 
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Old and Grey said:
This is natural if you have changed to a low carb diet. Your body will normalize usually in a couple of weeks but it is a rough two weeks. Be sure you have increased your protein intake in your calculations so as not to lose much muscle and, despite many nay-sayers, it is even possible to gain some muscle while cutting. Your body weight is not a reliable measure when doing this.

BTW, continuous YoYo type dieting like bulking and cutting is very unhealthy for certain organs. Cut slowly to where you want to be, usually no less than 10-12%, and then gain slowly while maintaining the same body fat percentage with the right diet and exercise. Adding fat is absolutely useless.
Click to expand...

Good post, spot on.
I'd even add, that increasing bodyfat is not only useless, but counter productive. Higher adipose levels increase estrogen and even worse, increase insulin resistance. The more insulin sensitive a person is, the easier it is for nutrients to enter cells, and of course, it's way more metabolically healthy to have low resistance/higher sensitivity to insulin.
 
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