A Noob full of questions

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imported_deolmstead

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I'm planning on starting HST for the first time after ~6 months on a 2-4x/week workout schedule. But after reading over the FAQs and the main article, I still have some questions, but I'll try and keep it minimal...

First, and most importantly: What exercises should I do? Heretofore I've been working on a machine circuit of 8 exercises. I want to concentrate on upper body for two reasons: I have bad knees and can't put much strain on them, and I feel as though I get good lower body work with my biking and hiking. Also, as far as vanity goes I'm perfectly happy with my legs, but not so much above the belt.

I'm thinking, using the eight-compound exercise guideline, of Chin-ups, Dips, Benchpress, Row, Crunches, Shoulder Press, Bicep curl, Tricep lifts. Sound OK? What's the best order to do these in? I don't have a gym partner, so for many of these I'll need to use a machine of some sort, but I'm guessing I should stick with the ones that don't isolate too much?

Second: Although I AM interested in putting on muscle on my upper body, it's not my only interest and I lead a rather active lifestyle - with a lot of cycling, hiking and rockclimbing on the weekends and when I can fit it in during the week. Is there any conflict or downside to doing all these activities alongside HST? What if I just did HST Monday/Wednesday and went climbing on Friday or Saturday? My hunch is that this is ok, but not optimal, and the gains I'll make won't be as significant - which is fine (I'd rather be happy and active than grudgingly spending my summer in a stuffy gym). But I want to be sure the answer isn't "don't bother with HST if you're going to be doing all this other stuff."

MY BACKGROUND
I'm 30, 6'4", 175lbs. I started my exercise program in September of 2006, when I weighed 217, purely to drop weight. I went on a hypocaloric diet and started light workouts at the gym. As my weight went down, my enjoyment of exercise increased and I added spinning, outdoor road cycling, rock climbing, and endurance hiking to my regimen, as well as bumping my weightlifting from once to twice a week. I still find the gym pretty dull, compared to the sports stuff.

Now, 40 pounds lighter, I'm happy with where my weight is - I've dropped four inches from my waist, and am feeling great. I feel like my upper body is underdeveloped, though, and my current goals are to add muscles to my shoulders and arms, and to increase definition in my chest and abs (I'm attaching a current pic). I'm not interested in being burly, but would like to look a bit more lean & mean - more Brad Pitt than Ahnold, as it were.

This forum/website seems to be pretty much what I've been looking for - intelligent and friendly analysis in a supportive environment. I admit that a LOT of what I'm reading here is overwhelming and over my head at first glance, and it will take some time to absorb it all. If anyone can offer any tips or pointers, I'd greatly appreciate it.

Many thanks,
Daniel
 
Hi Daniel. Welcome aboard!

I'll try to answer a few of your questions but do read the FAQs as they will do a better job and answer many questions that you won't have even thought of yet!

HST is all about hypertrophy so you've come to the right place for advice on how to pack some pounds on your recently reduced frame. At 6'4" you are going to be able to pack on a lot of lean mass without looking bulky. Please bear in mind that the Arnold look that you don't want is unattainable anyway (even for most of the folks who are on steroids). Getting to the Brad Pitt level is possible though, but it will still require that you add a fair few pounds and then diet away the fat to reveal the chiselled look that you desire.

Firstly, if at all possible drop the machines and start lifting free-weights. There are very few resons for you to be using machines – one valid one is if you don't have access to anything else at your present gym! In that case, I would suggest changing gyms if that's an option.

You say you have bad knees, well, I don't know your history but have you taken medical advice about this? It is quite often the case that certain exercises can improve joint health when performed correctly. A year and a half ago I would have said I had a bad back and yet now it is one of my strongest body-parts. That's mainly due to deadlifts.

I would suggest that you don't leave out leg training altogether unless your condition really does preclude you from doing so. Leg training is hard but the benefits are many. Compound exercises like squats and deadlifts while working the legs hard also work your entire core and support musculature. At 6'4" the chances of you getting bulky legs from leg work are very slim indeed but the other benefits will definitely be worth it.

As far as exercies go, it's compounds all the way at this stage. Just focus on deadlifts, squats, chins, dips, bench press, rows, and presses (standing) for now. If you read the Simplify and Win thread you will get some ideas on how to arrange these basic exercises into a workout plan. To help you enjoy your time in the gym more you could use two alternating routines like:

A deadlifts, bench press, chins, presses
B squats, dips, rows, presses

To those basic plans you could add in some ab work or arm work if you fancy it - you don't need to do much though.

Your other activities will not impact greatly on your gains as long as you are eating enough and getting plenty of sleep/rest. At your stage three times a week training would see you making great gains for a while to come but two days would be good also and if that fits in better with your other activities then great.

I can't stress enough that you will have to eat plenty of food and make sure your diet is decently divided between protein, carbs and fats (again, see the FAQs for more on this).

Anyway, get a program together and post it so the helpful crowd here can offer some suggestions. Don't worry if it all seems too much to take in at first. That's what your first SD can be for - swatting up on all this stuff and getting all geared up for your first cycle.
 
Thanks Lol,

Last time I saw my doctor about my knees, I was given strict instructions: no torque, no resistance past a shallow angle. I was a dancer in college and didn't take care of myself as well as I should have, which combined with poor genetics has given me very loose kneecaps. The loud crack I hear when I bend my knees under pressure reinforces the doctor's orders, so I'm just not going to go there. It is about time to visit my doctor again for a checkup, though, so I'll ask about it when I go back.

After reading through Simplify and Win and browsing the exercise database at Bodybuilding.com (great resource!), I think I have a better idea of my workout. In general I prefer dumbbells to barbells (dunno why), so I'm thinking:

Dumbbell press (incline?)
Dips
One-arm rows
Chins (military overhand)
Military Press
And maybe bicep or tricep isos, although I've read posts saying I probably shouldn't do these...

I like ab crunches on the exercise ball, and get the sense that people tend to do ab work outside their regular HST routine, so I figure I'll just keep doing them this way, which is the most comfortable for me. I don't really keep count of these, I just go until I can't anymore, rest a bit, then do it again.

Some more quick questions: people seem to prefer standing shoulder presses and incline bench presses over sitting and flat - is there a reason why?

Also, I've been playing around with the calculator. I'll be going to the gym tomorrow to figure out my 15 RMs, but there are a couple numbers I can reasonably guess at now based on my current routine...and some of these starting numbers seem ridiculously low. I understand the theory about muscles responding to change as well as load, but I'm really wondering about whether I can get any microtrauma at all with such easy exercises. Part of it is that the weight-assisted chin/dip machine only goes in increments of 10, so the initial numbers seem very low. Should I slow my cadence wayyyyyy down during the 15's to maximize strain? Or start at a higher number and repeat weights?

As for nutrition, I plan on nailing that down during my upcoming SD. Based on my recent diet I have a pretty good idea of what is maintenance for me, so I'll just add 500 calories onto that and start there. I'm also vaguely following the Berardi diet of proteins/fats before workout, and carbs/proteins afterwards. Protein is a challenge as I'm a vegetarian, but I do have some experience and recipes from the last several months to go on there so I think I can work it out. I'll also be supplementing with whey, and just bought my first jug o' creatine. I'm thinking 5g daily, with an additional 5g in a pre-workout protein/carb drink.

Thanks again,
-Daniel
 
Two-arm barbell exercises are usually preferred for mass gains because it is normal to be able to use more load than with a single-arm db exercise. This is not always the case however and sometimes dbs are preferred due to shoulder/rotator cuff issues or because they allow a greater range of motion.

Standing presses are recommended over seated variants partly because of the need to recruit more stabiliser muscles in your core and elsewhere just to keep your balance. It's a kind of 'more bang for buck' type situation. The other plus is that you can switch to push presses once ou geet to the end of 5s to allow you to continue to increment the loads a bit more.

Incline bench (at around 10-15º) is better for some folks with shoulder issues. Also it tends to put a little more strain on your upper pecs and so is a good mix with dips that tend to focus more on the lower area (although both do hit the whole pec muscle as each pec has a single insertion on each humerus). Once the loads are heavy each pec is going to be working as hard as possible for either lift.

As far as calculating weights goes, try this:

75%, 80%, 85%, 90%, 95%, 100% RM for each mesocycle.

Start your cycle with either 75% of your 15RM or about 50% of your 1RM (which is about 55% of your 5RM) for each exercise, whichever is the greater. If that means you have to use a few loads more than once, so be it. It's not a problem. Don't forget that you will be using these lightest loads immediately following SD at which time your body should be deconditioned enough for these light loads to have some effect.

I would recommend that you do underhand (supine) grip chins (or if you can do parallel grip even better) as this will allow your bis to work in a stronger position which should allow you to use more load at the end of the cycle.

5g daily of creatine is fine. No need to take more. If you can eat eggs and milk you can get a lot of protein from them.

Hope that helps a bit. All the best with your knees mate. I would definitely see a sports physio about it too.
 
With a first name like Daniel, you are obviously on the right path for some great workouts! (mine is too so I don't sound like a weirdo) From reading your mini-bio it looks like what you are more focused on is overall fitness and to kind of "tone-up" your upperbody. Which is great and I think HST can really help you do that.

I think Lol's advice on your exercises and whatnot is right on... even if you took out the legs. What I wanted to tell you is that, I wouldn't be so concerned about not having a spotter. Even though I work out with my pops in the morning, we don't "spot" each other.. an aspect of HST is not to train to failure anyways. So if you can tell you are getting close to that point, or your form is going sour, rack the weight.
 
Wow, more great stuff.

I chose the military overhand grip is because in form it's the most similar to rockclimbing, which part of the intention of my training is to improve. Of course, I don't REALLY know how muscles work so I don't know if that makes any difference.

I'll fiddle around with barbells and dumbbells today when I go to figure out my 15's, and see what I find.
 
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(deolmstead @ May 25 2007,17:53)</div><div id="QUOTEHEAD">QUOTE</div><div id="QUOTE">I chose the military overhand grip is because in form it's the most similar to rockclimbing, which part of the intention of my training is to improve.</div>
That's a great idea. I didn't think of that. Stick to your plan. Pull-ups (overhanded) are still a fine exercise and it's great if strength gains from working out have a carry over to your activity of choice.
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