HIT Training Routine

IF you're looking to build as much mass as possible then you need to make sure you 'feel' the movements. So a smooth solid movement all the way through, squeezing the muscle you are working and feeling a burn.
 
Tomorrow is the last of my 15RM days so I thought I'd post my progress so far:

Squats x2 15 -> 15 - I think this was mostly down to trying to get used to the excercise, hopefully with the 10RM's I will do much better. (I have very weak legs!)

SLDL x2 30 -> 45 - Very happy with the way this is progressing


Dumbell Press x1 16 -> 20 - Not too suprised with this
Incline Dumbell x2 16 -> 18 - Ditto

Lat Pulldown x2 40 -> 40 - No real suprise as I can't even do one pull-up!
Dumbell Row x2 20 -> 20 - Not too suprised by this

Shrugs x1 24 -> 24 - The grip is the main problem with these.

Side Lateral Raise x1 8 -> 8 - Once again no real suprise
Shoulder Press x1 8 -> 10 - I should have used back support from the start!

Hammer Curls x2 8 -> 9 - My left arm gives in way before the right and is holding me back.
Tricep Extension x2 17.5 -> 20 - Happy with this.

Calf Raises x2 130 -> 140 - Happy with this also

Overall not much in terms of gains (I wasn't really expecting any), but I have noticed a big increase in stamina and overall strength. I think I am now primed to hit the 10RM's hard and with good form in everything that I do....roll on next week! :D
 
Finished my 10RM's yesterday:

Squats x2 17.5 -> 17.5 - I had to actually reduce the weight for two sessions as I was unable to fully complete 10 reps - not too sure what happened there! Nevertheless I am happy with how my form is and I am getting a better feel when doing it.
SLDL x2 45 -> 55 - Very happy with the way this is progressing.


Dumbell Press x1 22 -> 24 - Not too suprised with this
Incline Dumbell x2 18 -> 20 - Ditto

Lat Pulldown x2 45 -> 45 - No real suprise as I can't even do one pull-up!
Dumbell Row x2 24 -> 26 - Not too suprised by this, I did attempt a set of 28's but couldn't complete the 10 reps.

Shrugs x1 24 -> 24 - The grip is the main problem with these.

Side Lateral Raise x1 10 -> 10 - Once again no real suprise
Shoulder Press x1 12 -> 16 - Very happy with this.

Hammer Curls x2 10 -> 12 - Once again, my left bicep is holding me back.
Tricep Extension x2 22.5 -> 22.5 - Happy with this, but I will be looking to change this one when I start the next course.

Calf Raises x2 160 -> 170 - Happy with this also

Once again, not much in terms of gains but there is a quite visible increase of muscle mass. I am going to start including a 20 minute brisk walk after my 5RM's to try and shift my spare tyre.

A question about the 5RM's - what should my target rest period be inbetween sets?
 
@if ®afiq said:
Does 14lbs of muscle gain in 6 weeks sound plausible?
Possible if you...
had your diet nailed,
slept deeply for 8-10 hours every night,
had the perfect workout with exactly the right reps and weight for your dominant muscle type (fast twitch vs slow twitch)
had no stress in your life what so ever,
had zero injury allowing you to work with 100% effort every workout,
had a pro trainer psuhing you at the exact right times by the right amount,
had the genes of a body building god,
was making a comeback and had some quick gains to come from muscle memory,


oh and had more than a little help from Chris the Chemist down the gym ;)
 
Chong Warrior said:
Possible if you...
had your diet nailed,
slept deeply for 8-10 hours every night,
had the perfect workout with exactly the right reps and weight for your dominant muscle type (fast twitch vs slow twitch)
had no stress in your life what so ever,
had zero injury allowing you to work with 100% effort every workout,
had a pro trainer psuhing you at the exact right times by the right amount,
had the genes of a body building god,
was making a comeback and had some quick gains to come from muscle memory,


oh and had more than a little help from Chris the Chemist down the gym ;)

In that case, it's time for some new scales! :p
 
@if ®afiq said:
In that case, it's time for some new scales! :p
lol :D

It's possible to gain 14lbs in 6 weeks, though a lot of it would be water and I'd imagine there'd be more fat gain than muscle aswell. In 6 weeks a natural is looking at about 3lbs of muscle gain at the most really.
 
I'm really annoyed I didn't weigh myself properly at the start of this course!:mad: :rolleyes:

Today is the last of my first two weeks of 5RM's and I've been doing a 20 min incline walk at the end of each circuit to help shift some flab - is there anything better that I can be doing after the end of each day?

Also what do you recommend I do for my one week break after the next two weeks? I'd like to shift more flab - but without burning up too much muscle and spending too much time. Or should I just rest?
 
So I've finally completed my first HST course, it lasted a total of 8 weeks and included 2 weeks of conditioning followed by 6 weeks of pretty intensive workouts, but I have no regrets with choosing this type of routine.

Here is how I progressed with my 5RM's:

Squats: 20 -> 22.5 - I have finally managed to get the mind-muscle connection sorted and although I haven't progressed much in terms of weight, I am now going lower and have good sturdy form. I did actually do two sessions of 25KG but brought the weight down.

SLDL: 55 -> 72.5 - Very happy with the way this has progressed! Although there was some confusion to start with as the bar used for the free weights did not have their wieght on them.

Dumbell Press: 22 -> 28 - Very happy with this, I wasted three sessions doing bad reps on 30KG! :(

Incline Dumbell: 22 -> 26 - Very happy with this :D

Lat Pulldown: 50 -> 50 - No real suprise here, my initial 50KG figure was (in hindsight) a cheated weight and 45 would have been more correct.
Dumbell Row: 28 -> 34 Very happy with this how this has progressed :D

Shrugs: 30 -> 32 - No real suprise, I think I may change this to using a BB, as grip becomes an issue over 30KG.

Side Lateral Raise: 12 -> 12 - Happy with this also, I could have done better but wasted two session trying to use the 14KG's.

Shoulder Press: 16 -> 20 - I was not using any back support for a number of sessions so with that in mind I am quite happy with this

Hammer Curls: 16 -> 14 - I think I must have had the 16x5RM from concentration curls - I've also had a bicep injury for the last 5 workouts so progress here has been slow than I expected.

Tricep Extension: 27.5 -> 27.5 - No real suprise - I need change this exercise.

Calf Raises: 190 -> 220 - Happy with this - these have always been hard to get any size on, but I am very happy with what is happening to them now.

No big gains, but then again I wasn't expecting much. Couple of things I've picked up in this last part of my course: its a good idea to have someone spot you when doing heavy weights, if only to avoid injury from trying to get the weight into place! 5 good reps are better than 5 bad ones (simple but very important fact) - dropping a weight can be more beneficial then trying to strugle with your limit, BREATHE!

Overall, I have gained some good visible muscle mass, some fat seems to have been lost and a big improvement in stamina - I was completing my 23 sets in just over 40 mins!

I am also going to change some of the excerises: DB flat press for the BB, side laterals for rear laterals, hammer curl for preachers, narrow grip tricep extension for v-bar, not too sure about DB shrugs, I may stick with them for now - any suggestions or opinions?

I've got one week of (much needed) rest ahead of me and have some new supplments (WMS, BCAA, Slow-release protein) on order for the start of the next course. I'll also remember to weigh myself properly this time as the scales were dodgy before and I seemed to have gained a stone!:eek:

I think I've learnt quite a lot from the course I've just finished and hope I can translate that to even better gains. :)
 
It was my first day back yesterday and it felt good to be back, although I little weird lifting the light wieghts! I wasn't able to do the BB bench press as we only have one and it was being used so had to revert to DB's instead. The V-Bar that we have is pants (chunky, wide and sharp edgey bits) and I've requested they get a new one, not too sure if they will though - the Rear Lateral Raise was easier than I thought it would be.

I decided to start squatting without using any protection on the bars and have also started to use some plates for my feet to help work my hams better when doing the SLDL's - I can certainly feel the difference that it has made! I'm also making more of an effort to keep my wrists straight as I was tending to bend it with the heaveir weights. I was quite happy with the concentration I was putting in with feeling my muscles work - hopefully I can continue with this throughout the course and the little changes should also help a fair bit.

Couple of questions:

1) How much water do you mix your WMS with?

2) Would drinking 50g with 500ml water over 10 mins be OK - or is that too long a period?

3) I bought some Calcium Caseinate by mistake (was meant to get the slow releasing Micellar Casein) and try to mix it with milk last night but it didn't mix very well - any tips?

4) What are your opinions on using the suana? I tend to spend at least 10 mins after my workout - is this a muscle burner?

5) Is it OK to take Cissus 15 mins before Taurine/ECA stack? (45 mins after meal) Or maybe I should just mix it in with my PWO shake/meal?
 
@if ®afiq said:
Couple of questions:

1) How much water do you mix your WMS with?
I mix 35g of WMS in a full shaker of water PWO.
2) Would drinking 50g with 500ml water over 10 mins be OK - or is that too long a period?
I just neck it if I can. Though sometimes if I start flagging at the end of the workout I'll start sipping on the WMS. At the end of the day you can do as you please, it really won't make that much difference in the end
3) I bought some Calcium Caseinate by mistake (was meant to get the slow releasing Micellar Casein) and try to mix it with milk last night but it didn't mix very well - any tips?
Sorry I'm confused :confused: Casein is casein and it's all slow releasing. Or do you mean you meant to get milk protein?
As for mixing get a hand blender, they can be picked up for peanuts.

4) What are your opinions on using the suana? I tend to spend at least 10 mins after my workout - is this a muscle burner?
No it just dehydrates you. Just make sure you drink lots of liquids, you'll be fine
5) Is it OK to take Cissus 15 mins before Taurine/ECA stack? (45 mins after meal) Or maybe I should just mix it in with my PWO shake/meal?
No one really knows with any certainty. I take the Cissus with my pre-workout stack as it has some stimulant properties. Try taking it before bed and you'll see what I mean :)
Comments in green
 
Chong Warrior said:
Comments in green

As awlays - many thanks! :)

As for the casein - yes, I meant that I should have bought the milk protein but got th eother one instead - but as long as they are both slow releasing then that is fine.

I think I've got a hand blender at home - I'll give it a whirl :p
 
Finished week 2 of my 15 RM's:

Squats: 15 -> 15 No real suprise here, I did try 16.25 but the set wasn't very good.

SLDL: 35 -> 45 - Very happy with the way this. I've changed my form a little and it's working my hams more.

Dumbell Press: 16 -> 20 - Happy with this, I tried using the BB, but didn't enjoy it as much so stuck to DB's.

Incline Dumbell: 16 -> 16 - I think I need to push myself on the flat press less so I can push harder on this.

Lat Pulldown: 40 -> 45 - I'm bringing the bar down to the top of my chest and really feeling the squeeze on this. Happy with the increase.

Shoulder Press: 8 -> 10 - I'm doing two sets on this now and have dropped the other isolation excerices.

Hammer Curls: 8 -> 9 - Tinitus in my arm is still effecting me, although the Cissus has reduced the pain.

V-Bar Tricep Pushdown: 17.5 -> 17.5 - I've changed from the normal tricep pushdown to this and can feel it working my tri's a lot more.

Calf Raises: 130 -> 130 - No real progress with this.

Tomorrow I start my 10RM's and will hopefully make some better gains all around. :)
 
Finished week 2 of my 10RM's on Friday and started my 5RM's yesterday:

Squats: 17.5 -> 18.75 No real suprise here, I did try 16.25 but the set wasn't very good.

SLDL: 55 -> 65 - Very happy with the way this.

Dumbell Press: 22 -> 24 - Happy with this.

Incline Dumbell: 20 -> 20

Lat Pulldown: 45 -> 50 - Happy with the increase.

Dumbell Row: 26 -> 28 - Happy with the increase.

Shoulder Press: 16 -> 18 - Good increase.

Hammer Curls: 12 -> 12 - Tenodinitus in my arm is still effecting me, I've orderded some Cissus caps as the powder tasted like poo.

V-Bar Tricep Pushdown: 25 -> 25 - A little disappointed with this.

Calf Raises: 170 -> 180 - No real progress with this.

I started my 5RM's yesterday, but also have Ramadan starting on Wed/Thurs. I've decided do my normal routine, albeit starting 8:30pm, on Thursday and see how it goes. I'll be cutting out my 10 mins of rowing and instead will be jogging to the gym for my warmup and will not be doing my 20 mins walk afterwards in order to cut down on the amount of time/energy need per session.

The only real problem is Sunday's as I will have to squeeze my routine into 30mins - I think this should be poss. if I cut out the hammer curls, v-bar, calf raises and flat bench press and just stick with the others.
 
I'm doing HST now, it seems very effective although its psychologically tough because you always feel like your neglecting parts.

It is also without a doubt the hardest regime there is, ive thrown up on two occasions already (only just finished the first section).

Once ive done one cycle im gonna run a log on here so if you follow that it'll give a good overall assesment. Expect it in about 4/5 weeks!
 
Finished week 2 of my 10RM's on Friday and started my 5RM's yesterday:
I don't understand how you've worked the weights out, some show no increase :confused:
I'm doing HST now, it seems very effective although its psychologically tough because you always feel like your neglecting parts.
How have you worked out the routine? I've never felt like that.
It is also without a doubt the hardest regime there is, ive thrown up on two occasions already (only just finished the first section).
Lol, gotta love the 15's :D
 
How have you worked out the routine? I've never felt like that.

Its just coming off a complete 3 day split, i dont mean i feel underworked its just in the 3 day split i would do say 12 sets on shoulders, now i do about 2. Same for Bi's and triceps etc its just a psychological thing

Lol, gotta love the 15's :D

The worst by far is one id have never suspected, the skulcrushers superset with curls, jeesus christ 30 reps in succession and i truly want to die by about 12reps of biceps
 
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