hello and a question

M

mrben

New Member
Hi there

I've previously been casually involved in strength training as a hobby, at my strongest I was 6' and 215lbs so certainly nothing much but I do know I have the ability to grow even without a real plan or proper nutrition.

I have decided to give HST a go after nearly 2 years out of the gym and I'm a little more committed to eating properly, etc. I'm prepared to follow the program to the letter but I have a question about the calculation of max weights for each of the rep ranges.

It seems to me there is something inherently inaccurate about trying a weight, waiting a few minutes then trying again until you manage to hit on what seems to be your max weight for a given rep range. So many variables including CNS exhaustion, partial hypertrophy, psychological factors, etc, seem to come in to play, making it near impossible to figure out what the "true" limit of your strength is.

With that in mind, how accurate are the various 1rm calculators floating around the web? They seem to give a fairly standard formula for calculation of max weight for any given rep range, and, while they don't totally remove the complexities and potential inaccuracies of testing in the gym, surely they would at least amelioriate them, provided of course the formula they rely on is accurate (which I guess is the pertinent question). Any comments would be great.
 
Oh man, typical of me to ask a question in the FAQ :)

It's not that I insist on guessing, it's more that there are a number of factors working against me personally, primarily

-lack of ability to spend extended time in the gym. I would imagine that if you wanted to figure out all your maxes properly it would take at least a few hours...this is not too easy for me to do in my current situation.
-lack of a friend who will safely hang around and spot me for that amount of time.

I'd rather do it the "right" way, but it would seem to me that both the experimentation and the formula method have their possible downfalls.
 
Few hours? Try 30-40 minutes, if not less. But of course, depends on your routine. I'd say an hour to be safe, but this is for one of your rep maxes.

Monday - Find your 15 rm's
Wednesday - Find your 10 rm's
Friday - Find your 5 rm's

About an hour each session, if not shorter.

I highly suggest to just find your true Rep Maxes and not to calculate.
 
hello

I also have a question regarding 15/10/5 RMs. (I have read most of the FAQ and couldn't find what I was looking for).

When calculating the RMs, how difficult should the final rep on each set actually be? Should you be unable to complete even 1 more rep (i.e. stop 1 rep before failure)?

Thanks!
 
If you're doing HST for the first time (like I'm doing) I'd say don't worry too much about it.. just as with everything else you'll have to do it a couple of times to really nail everything down perfectly.

Normally just try to find out max weight you can take 15 times at the day you measure it, and stick with that for your first HST..

It's actually better if you're not at your optimum when you measure it because it means you won't overdo it later on.

I'm in my second week of 5s right now, and it's tough man, so don't worry about it.

Just go over everything, take mental notes for the future and check to see what you can do better next time around.

S.
 
[b said:
Quote[/b] (monkeydan @ Feb. 24 2005,4:58)]hello
I also have a question regarding 15/10/5 RMs. (I have read most of the FAQ and couldn't find what I was looking for).
When calculating the RMs, how difficult should the final rep on each set actually be?  Should you be unable to complete even 1 more rep (i.e. stop 1 rep before failure)?
Thanks!
Click to expand...
From the FAQ - Submaximal WOrkouts

[b said:
Quote[/b] ]Simple technique to avoid failure

Since rep speed deteriorates before technical breakdown, end a set when a rep is noticeably slower than the first. So - if you slow down, you STOP. This ensures that you stay at a safe rep number short of failure. The reps decrease as the load increases and fatigue accumulates - you never lower the weight to reach a rep target or to get more sets.
Click to expand...
 
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