If you are losing weight then you are on lower-than-maintenance cals. Increase your cals a bit on workout days and see if that helps - specifically, make sure you have a pre-workout shake with carbs and protein.
Simplify and Win!
- Thread starter Fausto
- Start date
If you are losing weight then you are on lower-than-maintenance cals. Increase your cals a bit on workout days and see if that helps - specifically, make sure you have a pre-workout shake with carbs and protein.
jzawisza75
New Member
no im not starting the workout halfway through. i was starting to feel weak halfway through this routine. I have egg whites with a english muffin, then a protein shake and a coffee. then about a hour later i hit the gym. then after the gym i have my protein shake. And i do take a multi vitamin. I just saw my doctor last week he said my blood pressure was fine, I also got some blood work but havnt got the results yet.
ClevDawg802
New Member
HST routine...
here's my current plan for MWF: feel free to critique or swap exercises for certain days
Monday:A
Squat
Bench
BB Row
Chins
Wed:B
Deadlift
OH Press
Dips
Friday:A
Squat
Bench
BB Row
Misc. (abs / maybe chins and/or dips)
Should I alternate these workouts? Meaning A / B / A / B / A..etc...Or should I keep it ABA..ABA.. every week?
Should I do BB Row and OH Press 3x per week? Or should I keep them split up as I have them now? (As they are in my current Madcow 5x5 routine)...
I feel like I'm not getting enough exercises on my B (Wed.) workout.....especially considering I can only do about 5 Dips with no extra weight...should I add in upright rows? Should I scratch my plan and do all my compounds 3x per week, only alternating Squats and Deads (Squats twice per week, Deads once)????
here's my current plan for MWF: feel free to critique or swap exercises for certain days
Monday:A
Squat
Bench
BB Row
Chins
Wed:B
Deadlift
OH Press
Dips
Friday:A
Squat
Bench
BB Row
Misc. (abs / maybe chins and/or dips)
Should I alternate these workouts? Meaning A / B / A / B / A..etc...Or should I keep it ABA..ABA.. every week?
Should I do BB Row and OH Press 3x per week? Or should I keep them split up as I have them now? (As they are in my current Madcow 5x5 routine)...
I feel like I'm not getting enough exercises on my B (Wed.) workout.....especially considering I can only do about 5 Dips with no extra weight...should I add in upright rows? Should I scratch my plan and do all my compounds 3x per week, only alternating Squats and Deads (Squats twice per week, Deads once)????
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jzawisza75
New Member
Is there any reason why i'm not really gaining size and losing strength using this routine. I'm just feeling so weak doing this. Anyone else feeling the same way. should i change anything. or go back to the original platform?
twindeltatandem
New Member
jzawisza75,
What are you eating? Whatever it is, add a gallon of milk a day to your existing diet.
How long is your cadio and how many days a week are you doing it?
What are you eating? Whatever it is, add a gallon of milk a day to your existing diet.
How long is your cadio and how many days a week are you doing it?
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twindeltatandem
New Member
OK--I went back and read your previous posts and see that you're doing 15 mins of elliptical for cardio. Not excessive.
Your volume isn't excessive. Neither is your cardio. You've got a couple of cycles under your belt, so you're not suffering from the shock of it all.
Either you're ill (very unlikely) or you're not eating enough. Egg whites and a muffin seems very light to me. Get some fat. Consider keeping at least a couple of yolks. Consider chocolate milk for your post-workout drink (cheap and effective). What does the rest of the day look like? Reading between the lines (trying to lose lower belly fat) it sounds like you're probably restricting your calories. It that's the case you shouldn't be surprised if you're feeling weak.
I'd recommend upping your calories if your main objective is strength. Seriously, GOMAD works very well (unless you're older than about 30-35, in which case you probably don't want quite that much unless your metabolism is very high). If your main objective is weight loss, then you should probably take on a very structured diet to ensure you can at least maintain strength. Lyle McDonald has a lot to say about this on his website, and offers some excellent e-books.
Your volume isn't excessive. Neither is your cardio. You've got a couple of cycles under your belt, so you're not suffering from the shock of it all.
Either you're ill (very unlikely) or you're not eating enough. Egg whites and a muffin seems very light to me. Get some fat. Consider keeping at least a couple of yolks. Consider chocolate milk for your post-workout drink (cheap and effective). What does the rest of the day look like? Reading between the lines (trying to lose lower belly fat) it sounds like you're probably restricting your calories. It that's the case you shouldn't be surprised if you're feeling weak.
I'd recommend upping your calories if your main objective is strength. Seriously, GOMAD works very well (unless you're older than about 30-35, in which case you probably don't want quite that much unless your metabolism is very high). If your main objective is weight loss, then you should probably take on a very structured diet to ensure you can at least maintain strength. Lyle McDonald has a lot to say about this on his website, and offers some excellent e-books.
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Simplify and Win spreadsheet
Gang,
Attached is a spreadsheet for tracking a Simplify and Win routine.
Notes:
Gang,
Attached is a spreadsheet for tracking a Simplify and Win routine.
Notes:
- Assumes an "A-B-A" split
- Dips & chins allow for negative numbers to reflect Assisted movements. For example, bodyweight = 160lbs and 60lbs on Assisted Dip machine translates to -100lbs value.
- 5RM period assumes Deadlift 1x/week (as per Lol's 9/06 post)
- Automatically inserts dates
- Ignore sample weights - Yes, I'm weak!
TheSeeker07
New Member
A
Dips
Deadlift
Rows
Chins
Shrugs
B
Bench
Squat
Shoulder Press
Pull ups
C&J
Comments or suggestions would be much appreciated.
EDIT: I've added Shrugs and C&Js.
Dips
Deadlift
Rows
Chins
Shrugs
B
Bench
Squat
Shoulder Press
Pull ups
C&J
Comments or suggestions would be much appreciated.
EDIT: I've added Shrugs and C&Js.
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_tim
Well-Known Member
OK - couple thoughts...
I did a push/pull type setup for years. What I've realized over time is that you can create a decent amount of fatigue unintentionally and negatively affect some of the core lifts due to overuse. A great example of this is your triceps with bench press and shoulder press. Now to be honest, I'm a huge fan of beating the snot out of my tri's, but in terms of an HST cycle with 15/10/5/?/? looming in the distance, I think it would be wise to break things up a bit. So, I'd make your cycle look like this...
A
Bench
Deads
Chins
Shrugs
B
Rows
Squat
Shoulder Press
C&J
Make Dips and Pullups float lifts; if you have a bunch left in the tank, do 'em. Pullups for A, Dips for B. I'm not sure how you're going to do the C&J work HST-style; 15 cleans even with a light weight is going to rob a ton of your energy. That's very, very metabolic in nature. The main thing is to pay attention to how you feel, and adjust both load and volume if necessary. I hope that makes sense.
TheSeeker07
New Member
15/10/5/?/? - I thought you only would continue the 5s one week then do SD or am I missing something?
The thing is that right now with what I currently do, I have a lot of energy left. It's also summer so I sleep like crazy and already have x amount of energy from that alone. You're right 15 cleans are gonna take a lot of energy but I think I can muster through it.
Thanks for help btw
_tim
Well-Known Member
I liked taking my HST cycles out a bit. I did 3's, 2's singles and negatives (sometimes) after the 5's before I called it quits. Hence the two ?'s...
I have a thought, but let's take this discussion to your log - Simplify and Win is sacred ground..... (Insert a humble bow to the HST Gods here)
Muscular Man
New Member
I am thinking of making a move to an A B routine of the type mentioned in this thread.
I have a question regarding poundage increments.
Normally my chest routine would be (using a 5kg progression):
Bench 100 105 110
Incline 90 95 100
Combining the 2 exercises, should it look like:
Bench 100 Incline 90 Bench 105
Or:
Bench 100 Incline 95 Bench 110
The first option would take more than 2 weeks to reach my maximum and the cylces are 2 weeks long.
The second option has a big jump in weight increment for each individual exercise. I perform a 100 kg bench press on Monday and the next time I do bench press on Friday the weight has leapt up to 110 kg.
What is advised?
In addition, am I compromising HST principles by alternating exercises like this? Does the frequency principle apply to different exercises for the same muscle group or is it somehow distorted?
I have a question regarding poundage increments.
Normally my chest routine would be (using a 5kg progression):
Bench 100 105 110
Incline 90 95 100
Combining the 2 exercises, should it look like:
Bench 100 Incline 90 Bench 105
Or:
Bench 100 Incline 95 Bench 110
The first option would take more than 2 weeks to reach my maximum and the cylces are 2 weeks long.
The second option has a big jump in weight increment for each individual exercise. I perform a 100 kg bench press on Monday and the next time I do bench press on Friday the weight has leapt up to 110 kg.
What is advised?
In addition, am I compromising HST principles by alternating exercises like this? Does the frequency principle apply to different exercises for the same muscle group or is it somehow distorted?
First of all, I just want to say this thread is amazing 
.
Im about to start a cycle, and want to build my workout around these 8 exercices:
Squats - Deadlift
Incline Bench Press - Seated Row or Inverted Row
Dips - Upright Row
Shoulder Press - Pull-Ups or Chin-Ups.
I was wondering how to organize it. I know from experience that I can do 'em all in one workout, in antagonist supersets, and it takes about 45 minutes.
Should I try that out, or split it into days A & B and alternate? Is it too much for one workout? Because I figure it might be better for the frequency principle to do all of them every workout...
Thanks in advance.
.Im about to start a cycle, and want to build my workout around these 8 exercices:
Squats - Deadlift
Incline Bench Press - Seated Row or Inverted Row
Dips - Upright Row
Shoulder Press - Pull-Ups or Chin-Ups.
I was wondering how to organize it. I know from experience that I can do 'em all in one workout, in antagonist supersets, and it takes about 45 minutes.
Should I try that out, or split it into days A & B and alternate? Is it too much for one workout? Because I figure it might be better for the frequency principle to do all of them every workout...
Thanks in advance.
Anavation05
New Member
Hey guys I created a pretty sweet excel template for tracking all of your HST cycles but I can't seem to figure out how to upload excel sheets onto this forum...words from the wise?
Absolutely! Do two full-body workouts and do a bit more volume for each body part each session than you would do if you were doing a 3 x weekly program.
As a rough guide to volume (from the FAQs - How many sets and how to determine it):
Increase volume if:
You are never sore
You are never tired
You are not growing
Maintain volume if:
You are slightly sore most of the time
You are tired enough to sleep well, but not so tired you lose motivation to train.
You are noticeably “fuller”
Decrease volume if:
You are experiencing over use pain, and strain symptoms in joints and/or muscles.
You are tired and irritable all the time, yet don’t sleep well.
Strength levels are significantly decreasing.
Hi guys,
I'm currently doing a very simplified routine, aka
A: Squat
Incline Bench Press
BB Row
Upright Row
B: Deadlift
Overhead Press
Weighted Dips
Weighted Chins
...and even though it's starting to get heavy, I am very rarely sore or tired from my workouts. If I were to add a little bit of volume to my workouts, what would be my best bet?
I'm getting plenty of core work, at least I feel, from my workouts and from sports, btw.
Thanks.
I'm currently doing a very simplified routine, aka
A: Squat
Incline Bench Press
BB Row
Upright Row
B: Deadlift
Overhead Press
Weighted Dips
Weighted Chins
...and even though it's starting to get heavy, I am very rarely sore or tired from my workouts. If I were to add a little bit of volume to my workouts, what would be my best bet?
I'm getting plenty of core work, at least I feel, from my workouts and from sports, btw.
Thanks.