LNT Hits the Iron and Hopes It Doesn't Hit Back

[Lifting N Tx]

About Me

I've been active on here for some months but haven't kept a journal. I have lifted on and off since my youth, not always too seriously. I'm now old enough to have sons that lift, and decided a couple of years back to get strong before I got too old. I was working pretty hard at bench and curls, not too hard at other things. My bench finally stalled at a max of 275 and I started trying to learn more about better methods of training.

In the last 8 months I've done Max-Stim (similar to HST with a few unique aspects), Madcow's Intermediate 5x5, and for a time an upper/lower split of my own invention. Now I'm going to do HST for a while, something that I've been meaning to do for some time.

I'm 6'0? and currently about 225lbs, slowly losing weight. I'm aiming for about 2-3 pounds per month while hopefully still getting stronger. If I can't keep that up, I may rethink and go to a more stringent diet, but so far it seems to be working. Unfortunately, I'm currently probably well into the 20s in body fat percentage. In other words, fat.

I'm not too worked up about fancy supplements. I do take a bunch of vitamins with the idea that it may be good for my health. As far as what is useful for bbing, I take 5gms creatine/day, some fish oil caps, and enough whey protein to get to roughly 1gm protein per pound of body weight. I try to eat lean meats, lowfat milk, and a decent amount of fruits and vegetables. I think maintenance is about 3000 calories and I'm shooting for the 2600-2800 range. I track things so that I don't get over. Near the end of a day if I'm way short I'll find a source of calories, even if it's a pop tart or the like, because I don't want to go way under, either.

For those not familiar with HST, you might wish to check out hepennypacker52's thread HST for Dummies. The HST web site can be found here, and it also has an excellent forum with a great FAQ section. I've already started the HST 15s last week, so I'll post what I've been doing next.

[Lifting N Tx]

Here's what I've done for the first few workouts. All are 1 set at 15 reps unless otherwise noted. I've done 4 workouts on the last Weds Sat Mon Weds, and am just going to list the weights separated by commas. An "x" signifies not done that day, as there are a couple of exercises that I'm alternating.

ATG Squats (hi bar, narrow stance) - 100, 105, 110, 115
Leg Curls - 25, 35, 45, 55
Leg Extensions - 30, 40, 50, 55
Hyperextensions (60 Degree) - 5, 10, 15, 20
Calf Raises (20 reps) - 230, 235, 240, 245
BB Incline Press (25 Degree) (Weds/Mon) - 130, x, 140, 150
Bench Press (Sat) - x, 155, x, x
Pendlay Rows (alternate with Lat Pulldowns) - 110, x, 120, x
Lat Pulldowns (med width) - x, 120, x, 125
Behind Neck Press - 65, 70, 80, 85
Barbell Shrug - 175, 180, 185, 190
Incline DB Curls (weights funny as I'm using dbs with spin on collars. The db bar plus collars weighs 4 pounds) - 24, 34 (this was a mistake), 29, 29
Misc (Sit ups, neck exercises, some RC work and sometimes grip exercises, not done with HST progression. I'm probably not going to list poundages and reps. It's not that significant an amount of work.)

Workout times have been about 1 hour. Some of the weights were a bit of a guess, and I've adjusted on the fly. For instance if I started too high I might make the increments small or keep the same weight for a workout or two. I have a reasonably close idea of my 5 and 10 RM weights for some of the exercises, but didn't test exact RMs before starting.

Yes I know that my squats suck. As mentioned I used to work bench and arms a lot more than lower body and back. I was doing a couple of sets of pretty much half squats in the mid 200s. When I became convinced maybe 6-8 months ago to do ATG squats and work lower body harder I had to drop to the low 100s . I've made enough progress to get my 5RM to 190, but the 15 rep squats are killer and I just can't do much weight.

In contrast when I did 5x5 my deadlift was at least semi-respectable. I got to 300x5 and 315x3 fairly easily, but was pretty close to stiff-legging them because my back is much stronger than my legs. I may add some deads in the 5s, maybe sumo style to keep more upright. I'm not doing them in the 15s, though. As for bench, well I'm already strong on it, and want to work more on inclines and OH pressing. I just didn't want to drop flat bench entirely, so I'm doing them once a week.

I'm planning on looking up the rep maxes that I have recorded and may post them later or just indicate them when I get near the end of the 10s and 5s. I'm planning to do 2 sets in the 10s and 3 in the 5s. Consequently I'll likely change a few things when I get there so that the workouts don't take too long.

After this I'll list the workouts individually. The next one will be Saturday.

[mjw8204]

I was wondering if you were ever going to start up a journal. Consider me in.

[Lifting N Tx]

Thanks, Matt. Hopefully I'll be able to make a decent go of HST that is worth checking out.

[jason_bh]

In. And good luck to ya. Don't hold anything back when talking about the 15 rep weeks.

[Lifting N Tx]

ATG Squats (hi bar, narrow stance) - 120
Leg Curls - 60
Leg Extensions - 60
Hyperextensions (60 Degree) - 25
Calf Raises (20 reps) - 255
BB Incline Press (25 Degree) (Weds/Mon) - not done
Bench Press (Sat) - 185
Pendlay Rows (alternate with Lat Pulldowns) - 130
Lat Pulldowns (med width) - not done
Behind Neck Press - 90
Barbell Shrug - 195
Incline DB Curls - 34
Misc (Sit ups, neck exercises, some RC and grip work, not done HST style)

Notes
I seem to be getting a little better endurance with the high rep squats. After the first rep I adjusted my stance slightly, then cranked out about 6-7 reps before stopping for a couple of breaths. After that it was do a couple of reps, then huff and puff for a few breaths. I'm not exactly a world beater on squats, my 5 RM is around 200 lbs, which is about what it is for Pendlay rows. For both of those I'm using a very light weight and still huff and puff a lot.

On exercises that I'm alternating, like BB incline with flat bench, I calculate out a normal HST progression, then just use the weight that I'd use for the days I'm doing that exercise. So, doing bench only once a week, the weight jumped 30lbs. Probably I should have bumped it more, as I think I could have done at least 20 reps, and this is the next to last workout of the 15s. The 185 was actually my 15RM maybe 8 months ago, but I'm definitely stronger now, despite not emphasizing flat bench much.

The behind neck press, at about half the weight of the flat bench, is illustrative of why I'm not emphasizing flat bench. I need more balance in my strength. I did get up to 135x5 recently for regular overhead presses, but that compares to at least 255 for my 5RM on flat bench. I'm now doing OH presses from behind the neck, as I started noticing a bit of discomfort when raising my left arm. Not when doing the presses, at other times. I think that I was pushing extra hard at the start of the OH presses right at the start, where I'm weakest, with the bar perhaps a bit out front. I'm thinking it probably put extra strain on my RC.

Doing them from behind the neck it's more of a straight vertical lift, as easier to do with perfect form. I know that some people don't like BHN pressing, but I have no problems with it.

My wife and I are supposed to be working on a budget this weekend. However, if I get the time, I'm going to try to decide what changes I may make for the upcoming 10s and look up what I have in the way of PRs for 10s. I don't have much recent data for 15RMs, so what I see in the last workout will be about the best data I have. I'll miss the 15s so much ... NOT.

[Lencho]

...another f'ing journal for me to follow.

j/k

Not many HST journals around that are worth paying any attention to. Glad you started this one. This goes without saying, but...


*subscribes*

[MISSINGLINK]

Glad I could be on the ground floor for this one.

[DallasLynx]

Good luck with the HST, I'll be following.

[Lifting N Tx]

Thanks, fellows. Funny thing, I had attempted to put the link to this journal in my sig. a couple of days back, but it didn't work. I added two lines to the sig, this link, and directly above it a line saying:

Now *or*uring myself with: HST

Replace the "*" with "t". The two added lines never appeared. Eventually I deduced that the word above with the "*" must be a forbidden word. I guess the forum software figured anything with that word must be porn spam and omitted my sig. from that point forward.

I did find some 2-3 set RMs for 10 reps for some of my exercises. I now have a decent idea of what to target for most exercises and how I'll revise things a bit to avoid getting workouts too long in the 10s and 5s. Tonight will be the last day of 15s, then I plan to start 10s on Weds. I'll wait until after this last 15s workout to describe the modest adjustments that I have in mind or else just do so when I post the first workout for 10s.

[Lifting N Tx]

ATG Squats: 125
Leg Curls: 65
Leg Extensions: 65
Hyperextensions (60 Degree): 30
Calf Raises (20 reps): 260
BB Incline Press (25 Degree): 160 (17 reps)
Lat Pulldowns: - 135
Behind Neck Press: 95
Barbell Shrug: 200
Incline DB Curls: 39
Misc: (Sit ups, neck exercises, some RC and grip work, not done HST style)

Notes
This workout was pretty tiring. I forgot to time it, but I'm sure that it was easily more than the roughly 1 hour that the previous 5 each took. This further convinces me to pare things down a bit before the 10s. I'll probably work on finalizing my modified routine tonight.

Despite not having good recent 15RM tests most exercises were pretty challenging, so I think my estimates were pretty close. I decided to push the BB inclines and got the 17. I would not have gotten 18. I've done the lat pulldowns on a pulley attachment on my power rack. I don't know how much resistance 135lbs really is after accounting for friction and the pulley system, but I almost came off the bench pulling down the first rep (at 225lbs) so it's more than 135 for sure. I'd do chins but at this weight I can't do 15 .

Funny thing is after the pulldowns my traps and delts (lateral too) were torched, even though I wouldn't expect that from this exercise. I wound up waiting close to 5 minutes before doing the behind neck presses.

Anyway, decent workout, but I'm glad to be on to the 10s.

[Dave76]

*subscribes*

[mjw8204]

I'm interested to see what modifications you will make for the 10s.

[DallasLynx]

Nice work LNT. Sound like you have a good home gym setup. I wouldn't worry about the pulldowns. As long as you use the same setup every time the actual weight doesn't really matter. You just need to keep track of it.

[Lifting N Tx]

Thanks Dallas. I've got a 2-1/2 car width garage, none of which is devoted to cars. It's not all home gym, but around half is. It's Houston, cars don't need to be inside.

Sometimes I can work from home, which means that my after work gym commute is walking downstairs to my garage. Today, I'm meeting a colleague in the office, so I'm gonna wrap up here and head out.

Still gotta finish the revised routine, but it won't be anything fancy. Mainly I'll likely just drop a couple of exercises, keeping some A/B variety, otherwise the routine will be too long. More interesting will probably be how I go about post-5s, but that's a few weeks away.

[MISSINGLINK]

Nice work LT. I like using the garage as a weight room. If I did not have so much clutter and it didn't get below 0 where I live, I would probably do the same.

[Lifting N Tx]

Nice work LT. I like using the garage as a weight room. If I did not have so much clutter and it didn't get below 0 where I live, I would probably do the same.

Thank, Link. Here it's nice now. In the summer it will approach outside temperature in my garage, which could be up around 100 at times. Towels then become an important piece of equipment.

I'll post what I'm planning for the 10s shortly.

[Lifting N Tx]

I'm planning on doing the most common set/rep pattern: 1x15, 2x10, 3x5, which keeps the volume relatively constant. So, sets will go up as the load does, and it will take more time. I think that I'm good for about an hour of fairly intense effort. When I make my workouts longer, eventually it catches up with me, and my recovery suffers. So, although like many I have a hard time believing that less is more, I think it is.

So, as I've said, I wish to shorten my routine a bit. I also intend to incorporate "zig-zag". That's the term in HST for starting the next rep range with weights a bit low than those that you hit at the end of the previous 2 weeks. It gives you a bit of a deload. I view the 15s, and to a large degree the 10s mainly as preparation for the 5s and post-5s so I don't want to burn out before then.

That said, I hate to not get decent coverage for all muscle groups, and am about as bad about trying to make everything complicated as the average person who posts a ?critique my routine thread?. So, I've tried to make things as complicated as possible while still making the routine short enough to accommodate doing two sets for most exercises. Due to the day that I started (Weds), my workout week is Weds Sat Mon and I'm showing things in that order. Here's what I'm thinking for the next two workout weeks:

ATG Squats: 2 x 10 W M W M
Sumo Deadlift: 2 x 10 Sa Sa
Leg Extensions: 1 x 10 Sa Sa
Hyperextensions: 2 x10 W M W M
Calves: 1 x 15 W M Sa W M Sa
BB Incline: 2 x 10 W M W M
Flat Bench: 2 x 10 Sa Sa
Pendlay Rows: 2 x 10 (alt w Pull Downs)
W M Sa
Supinated Pull Downs: 2 x 10 Sa W M
BN Press: 2 x 10 W Sa M W Sa M
Incline Curls: 2 x 10 W Sa M W Sa M
Misc (same as before): W Sa M W Sa M

That gives me 7 HST exercises per workout plus the misc (abs, neck, rotator cuff and grip), which takes about 10 minutes. Excluding the misc. it's only 11-12 work sets. Seems like I ought to be able to do it in less, but past experience shows me that with warm ups, time to change weights, rest between sets, plus the misc exercises it'll take about an hour, especially in the last workout or two.

I think I'll get at least reasonable work for hams and traps from other exercises, so decided that leg curls and shrugs were expendable. Presses hit my triceps decently well, but pulling exercises don't seem to hit my biceps as much so I'm keeping curls. Experience has shown that my calves suffer without some direct work, though I'm only doing one set. When I hit the 5s I'll probably keep some curls and calf work, maybe 12 reps calves and 8 for curls. I'll probably drop the leg extensions at that time. It's at the 5s and beyond that a shorter workout will really pay off, as otherwise too many sets could make workout times quite long.

[Dave76]

Thank, Link. Here it's nice now. In the summer it will approach outside temperature in my garage, which could be up around 100 at times. Towels then become an important piece of equipment.

I'll post what I'm planning for the 10s shortly.

You are a better man than I am! With the Houston humidity, I don't think I could make it during the summer. I played golf in Kingwood a couple of years ago in September. I was drenched in sweat before I got through the warmup.

[Lifting N Tx]

ATG Squats: 2 x 10 x 115
Hyperextensions (60 Degree): 2 x 10 x 25
Calf Raises: 1 x 15 x 255
BB Incline Press (25 Degree): 2 x 10 x 155
Pendlay Rows: 2 x 10 x 120
Behind Neck Press: 2 x 10 x 90
Incline DB Curls: 2 x 10 x 34
Misc: (Sit ups, neck exercises, some RC and grip work, not done HST style)

Notes

As promised, I put in a small zig-zag, using weights a bit less than I finished the 15s with. Only doing 10 reps, the 2 sets makes a little more volume, but no individual set being very tough yet.

Next workout will be Saturday afternoon or evening, as I have a commitment in the morning.

[milk mustache]

I can't find it in your thread right now, but you had a good idea about keeping the weights a bit lower in the 15s and 10s so you had some juice left for the 3x5s. I stole it from you. Thanks man.

BTW, you might be able to up the intensity on the exercises that you alternate if you felt up to it.

[Lifting N Tx]

I can't find it in your thread right now, but you had a good idea about keeping the weights a bit lower in the 15s and 10s so you had some juice left for the 3x5s. I stole it from you. Thanks man.

BTW, you might be able to up the intensity on the exercises that you alternate if you felt up to it.

I'm always glad to be of assistance .

Yeah, I'm starting at a bit less than the last weight for 15s. I don't want every workout to be a grind, and the HST forums have a FAQ that specifically mentions that weights can be lower for a couple of workouts though they do need to climb higher than previously before the end of each two week period.

Good point about the alternating exercises. They might recover a bit better. We'll see. That might be helpful when I get to the 5s and post 5s.

[Lifting N Tx]

HST 10s, Workout 2 of 6

Sumo Deadlift: 2 x 10 x 225
Leg Extensions: 1 x 10 x 70
Calf Raises: 1 x 15 x 260
Flat Bench: 2 x 10 x 180
Supinated Pull Downs: 2 x 10 x 145
Behind Neck Press: 2 x 10 x 95
Incline DB Curls: 2 x 10 x 39
Misc: (Sit ups, neck exercises, some RC and grip work, not done HST style)

Notes

I'm doing sumo for the reasons that I mentioned in post #2. I'd been looking forward to doing some deadlifts, though I hate high reps for deadlifts. I thought it good to introduce them in the 10s to get a better feel for form with sumo style. These were not hard in terms of weight, just the rep range. I didn't feel much strain in my quads or hams and glutes at 225, but did in my knees. No pain, but knew there was some strain there.

Other than that it was a fairly easy workout, as should be the case at this stage of the 10s. I did take some extra time playing with my form in warming up for the sumos. I also took 4-5 minutes between the 2 sets and worked a bit slowly for a couple of exercises afterward. Total workout time thus ran about 1 hour 20 minutes.

I changed the lat pulldowns to supinated narrow grip, similar to chin ups. I plan to do chins in the 5s, but at 225lbs can't do 2 sets of 10 chins, so I'm doing the pulldowns.

Next workout will be Monday evening.

[littlechick]

Looks like a good workout high rep deads are killer...

love the title of your log

[Lifting N Tx]

Thanks for the nice words, LC. I'm afraid some of the reps on my deads became more touch and go than should be, but I'm not too worried about that at high reps.

I check out your journal from time to time, but by the time I get to the current page anything I have to say has already been said. The thing moves like along like a Ferrari.

[littlechick]

Thanks for the nice words, LC. I'm afraid some of the reps on my deads became more touch and go than should be, but I'm not too worried about that at high reps.

I check out your journal from time to time, but by the time I get to the current page anything I have to say has already been said. The thing moves like along like a Ferrari.

I think you are a crazy man for them high rep deads...get me past 5, and I am dying

ya...my journal..gotta be fast to keep up..don;t worry you are not the only one who feels that way...

Have a happy St. Patty's day

[mjw8204]

Thanks for the nice words, LC. I'm afraid some of the reps on my deads became more touch and go than should be, but I'm not too worried about that at high reps.

You don't find it harder to focus on form when doing high reps? It seems like it would be harder to keep each rep crisp and tight. That's part of the reason I actually dropped down from fives to triples recently.

[Lifting N Tx]

You don't find it harder to focus on form when doing high reps? It seems like it would be harder to keep each rep crisp and tight. That's part of the reason I actually dropped down from fives to triples recently.

Actually, I do. Ideally I'd probably have kept doing only hypers, or maybe SLDL or good mornings until I hit the 5s. But 225 is not too heavy and I think I was able to keep pretty good form. At that weight, even if I did a total stiffleg it wouldn't hurt me as my back is waaaay stronger than my legs. I probably won't bump the weight much when I do these again in a couple of workouts.

Mainly I wanted to get some work in on these before I hit the 5s and get to the heavier weights. I've done sumo so little that even high rep work should help with my feel for the lift.

[Lifting N Tx]

HST 10s, Workout 3 of 6

ATG Squats: 2 x 10 x 130
Hyperextensions (60 Degree): 2 x 10 x 35
Calf Raises: 1 x 15 x 265
BB Incline Press (25 Degree): 2 x 10 x 165
Pendlay Rows: 2 x 10 x 130
Behind Neck Press: 2 x 10 x 100
Incline DB Curls: 2 x 10 x 39
Misc: (Sit ups, neck exercises, some RC and grip work, not done HST style)

Notes

Decent workout, took about 1hr 10 minutes including the misc stuff and a few warm up sets that I don't list. Tens don't require a lot of warm ups though.

Only now am I even squatting 130 pounds. I wondered if my legs would be fresher after only DL on Saturday. They were for a few reps as I almost sprang up, as should be the case with such a light weight. By the time I approached 10 reps, though, I was breathing hard and taking a breath or two between reps. I hate having to use such light weights. My squats are light enough even when doing 5s, but at least there I expect to finish at roughly 200lbs.

I may keep the BN press at 100lbs next time as the 2nd set was fairly hard. I think I'm somewhat weaker at these than OH presses from the front, as is probably the norm. I don't want to fail a set except possibly on the last day.

Next workout on Wednesday.

[Lifting N Tx]

ATG Squats: 2 x 10 x 135
Hyperextensions (60 Degree): 2 x 10 x 40
Calf Raises: 1 x 15 x 270
BB Incline Press (25 Degree): 2 x 10 x 175
Lat Pull Downs: 2 x 10 x 155
Behind Neck Press: 2 x 10 x 100
Incline DB Curls: 2 x 10 x 39
Misc: (Sit ups, neck exercises, some RC and grip work, not done HST style)

Notes

Squatting more than 5 reps still sucks. Starts out very easy, ends up hard. Hypers were fairly hard and it was awkward holding a 35 and a 5 behind my head. Maybe good mornings would have been a better choice. Inclines were pretty hard also on the second set. Repeated the weight on BN presses, and it was a little easier.

The pull downs almost became pull ups. I'm not one to brag about having something big between my legs, but... I held a couple of plates between my legs to help keep from lifting off the chair that I was sitting on for the pull downs. I guess I need some of MJW's pocket weights.

Next workout Saturday.