Well, here I was so excited last Friday about starting up my first Hypertrophy Specific Training cycle this week, and well, I ended up postponing it...
I wanted to be completely and utterly prepared for this, so I want to make sure that I have no distractions and that I have everything that I need set in place. Also, I thought I might as well do a full 2 week deconditioning phase before I even got started up.
That...and for some unknown reason I have been dog tired for the past month or so...
Hope to come back with good news next week...
Today is the day of "The Blonde Myth"
That's right, I felt like posting some pics of Lee Priest. Why?
Just take a look.
PURE INSPIRATION RIGHT THERE!
Just take a look.
PURE INSPIRATION RIGHT THERE!
Getting excited. Can't wait to start the new routine next week.
Ok, this is it. It's coming down to the last couple of days before I embard upon the training known as HST, or Hypertrophy Specific Training. I have it all worked out, and the next 8 weeks are completely planned out for me.
I really do hope to get the results that one would expect from going for strict hypertrophy. I know, it's not strength like I am used to, but still, I want some size before I go back to focusing on strength. I started out as more of a strength trainer, and it was okay at first because I was making rapid gains...but then it tapered off rather quickly, and rather than making gains in size I have been making only gains in strength.
Now, that's not all bad, not at all. I am glad that I can boast being able to squat over 400 pounds, and that my bench has broken through many plateaus...but I still like the idea of being as big as my strength implies.
As always, keep motivated, and keep looking for what works for you.
I really do hope to get the results that one would expect from going for strict hypertrophy. I know, it's not strength like I am used to, but still, I want some size before I go back to focusing on strength. I started out as more of a strength trainer, and it was okay at first because I was making rapid gains...but then it tapered off rather quickly, and rather than making gains in size I have been making only gains in strength.
Now, that's not all bad, not at all. I am glad that I can boast being able to squat over 400 pounds, and that my bench has broken through many plateaus...but I still like the idea of being as big as my strength implies.
As always, keep motivated, and keep looking for what works for you.
Arnold Schwarzenegger
I think that perhaps this man's physique was ideal.
He had all of the good traits of a bodybuilder, without overdoing it. He was big, vascular, and lean.
Today's bodybuilders seem to focus more on sheer size, less on aesthetics. Arnold was from a time when a bodybuilder looked much more like they were chiseled from stone.
Here are some pictures of Arnold to look back on what bodybuilding used to be like.
He had all of the good traits of a bodybuilder, without overdoing it. He was big, vascular, and lean.
Today's bodybuilders seem to focus more on sheer size, less on aesthetics. Arnold was from a time when a bodybuilder looked much more like they were chiseled from stone.
Here are some pictures of Arnold to look back on what bodybuilding used to be like.
Thinking about trying a fat burner...
Hmm, okay, so I am bouncing all around with new ideas and trying to change this and that all at once...
I have way too much going on in my head all at the same time, gets a little crowded in there...
I am definitely thinking about trying a fat burner. I know, I am normally all about losing the fat with my lifting and burning it with the extra muscle that is built in the process....but I am becoming desperate. I was down to exactly where I wanted to be, and now it has jumped back up to being not quite what I want...so now to put a little extra help in there....
I think that I may end up going with Nutrex Lipo 6x... Why? Because, after doing a month's worth of research, which I know isn't much, but still, it was rather intense research, I have seen more good reviews and more good feedback on Lipo 6x than other products, so why not give it a try? It also has a very good ingredient profile, and that definitely doesn't hurt.
Just like with my HST, once I start on the Lipo 6x I will be sure to report back with progress/changes/likes/dislikes.
Until then...
I have way too much going on in my head all at the same time, gets a little crowded in there...
I am definitely thinking about trying a fat burner. I know, I am normally all about losing the fat with my lifting and burning it with the extra muscle that is built in the process....but I am becoming desperate. I was down to exactly where I wanted to be, and now it has jumped back up to being not quite what I want...so now to put a little extra help in there....
I think that I may end up going with Nutrex Lipo 6x... Why? Because, after doing a month's worth of research, which I know isn't much, but still, it was rather intense research, I have seen more good reviews and more good feedback on Lipo 6x than other products, so why not give it a try? It also has a very good ingredient profile, and that definitely doesn't hurt.
Just like with my HST, once I start on the Lipo 6x I will be sure to report back with progress/changes/likes/dislikes.
Until then...
Hypertrophy Specific Training (or HST for short)
Okay ladies and gentlemen, I am about to embark on another fun offset journey in my weight lifting... I have been trying to figure out lots of things about bodybuilding, and powerlifting, and in the end, I have come to realize that most of what I have been doing is powerlifting and not getting bigger. Granted, my lifts continue to go up and my strength keeps increasing, but my size is pretty much stuck in one place.
I have to get out of this rut...well, I keep saying that...
So, I stumbled upon the idea of training just for the sake of hypertrophy. Namely, the kind of hypertrophy that promotes size moreso than strength.
Don't get me wrong, one of the main things that I want out of this is strength, but, if I can get a great deal of mass and then pick back up on the strength later, what would that hurt?
The idea of HST is very simple, yet very difficult all at the same time. What makes me say that? Well, let's go over the basics, shall we?
For starters, your training is broken up into 8 week "cycles". Your first 2 weeks are based around 1 set of 15 reps for all of your lifts. Your second 2 weeks should fall somewhere around 20 total reps for each lift, meaning you could break it up into 1 set of 10 and 2 sets of 5, or 2 sets of 10. Basically, that second week is "supposed" to be your 10s week, but you have to be creative and mostly try to get 10 in there somehow. And finally, you hit your 2 weeks of 5s. This is where you are still trying to total 20 reps, however the way that you do it is all up to you. My plan is to do 4 sets of 5. After that, you have a few choices as to what to do with the final 2 weeks, but my plan is to continue with my 5s and see how far I can go with it.
The way that you should ideally split this up is into 3 intense, full body workout days. That way, you give your body plenty of time to recover, and you will be hitting those same body parts 3 times a week.
Another rule of thumb is that you will go up EVERY single time you do another lift. And it takes a bit of math, but it's not OVERLY complicated, especially if you use a RM calculator to figure it out for you. What you want to do is find your max for each of the rep ranges, and that is the number you want to be at by the END of that specified length of time. For example, if your 10 rep max is 140, you should go something like this:
Week 1: 115 120 125
Week 2: 130 135 140
See, simple in its complexity....
Oh well, that is the gist of it. I will be keeping you all updated though on how this ends up working out for me.
In the meantime, lift heavy and eat heavy!
I have to get out of this rut...well, I keep saying that...
So, I stumbled upon the idea of training just for the sake of hypertrophy. Namely, the kind of hypertrophy that promotes size moreso than strength.
Don't get me wrong, one of the main things that I want out of this is strength, but, if I can get a great deal of mass and then pick back up on the strength later, what would that hurt?
The idea of HST is very simple, yet very difficult all at the same time. What makes me say that? Well, let's go over the basics, shall we?
For starters, your training is broken up into 8 week "cycles". Your first 2 weeks are based around 1 set of 15 reps for all of your lifts. Your second 2 weeks should fall somewhere around 20 total reps for each lift, meaning you could break it up into 1 set of 10 and 2 sets of 5, or 2 sets of 10. Basically, that second week is "supposed" to be your 10s week, but you have to be creative and mostly try to get 10 in there somehow. And finally, you hit your 2 weeks of 5s. This is where you are still trying to total 20 reps, however the way that you do it is all up to you. My plan is to do 4 sets of 5. After that, you have a few choices as to what to do with the final 2 weeks, but my plan is to continue with my 5s and see how far I can go with it.
The way that you should ideally split this up is into 3 intense, full body workout days. That way, you give your body plenty of time to recover, and you will be hitting those same body parts 3 times a week.
Another rule of thumb is that you will go up EVERY single time you do another lift. And it takes a bit of math, but it's not OVERLY complicated, especially if you use a RM calculator to figure it out for you. What you want to do is find your max for each of the rep ranges, and that is the number you want to be at by the END of that specified length of time. For example, if your 10 rep max is 140, you should go something like this:
Week 1: 115 120 125
Week 2: 130 135 140
See, simple in its complexity....
Oh well, that is the gist of it. I will be keeping you all updated though on how this ends up working out for me.
In the meantime, lift heavy and eat heavy!
I think that pictures really can say a million words..
I promise that my posts will become more informative again soon, I just have little bursts as of late and thought, why not? I'll just get some pics and movies up to keep inspiring everyone, but only if they are good quality pictures of course...
So, here we go with another day's worth of pictures.
Ronnie Coleman!
So, here we go with another day's worth of pictures.
Ronnie Coleman!
Pictures of Markus Ruhl
Okay, I have been doing research on this man and I am quite impressed by him on many different levels. For starters, he's actually a very fun loving guy (or at least he lets off that kind of vibe).
You see him laughing a great deal, as well as being playful, and he seems to love his wife dearly...
And, on top of all of that, you cannot deny his size. He is massive, all over, not just in choice spots here and there.
You see him laughing a great deal, as well as being playful, and he seems to love his wife dearly...
And, on top of all of that, you cannot deny his size. He is massive, all over, not just in choice spots here and there.
Frank McGrath
I thought that today I would throw in some pictures of a guy that I was introduced to from the Animal Arms DVD that I got with a purchase from bodybuilding.com.
This guy is HUGE, not only that, but his arms are MASSIVE. Highly impressive. Take a look for yourself!
This guy is HUGE, not only that, but his arms are MASSIVE. Highly impressive. Take a look for yourself!
Video of the Day
Today's video isn't so much a motivational video as it is an instructional video.
Today we will be taking a look at the proper form to be used for close grip bench press.
This lift focuses on the triceps.
Today we will be taking a look at the proper form to be used for close grip bench press.
This lift focuses on the triceps.
6/9/2009 Motivational Video of the Day
Markus Ruhl, if you know who I am talking about, this man is a MONSTER.
He is huge, and he definitely puts in the effort to be big, take a look for yourselves!
He is huge, and he definitely puts in the effort to be big, take a look for yourselves!
What to do...lost in a sea of testosterone...
Okay, I know, pretty cheesy sounding title, but maybe as I go on you'll understand what I mean...
Looking back on when I first started, it feels like it was only yesterday... literally...though yesterday feels so far away...
I remember back before I lost the fat, before I got into some sort of "good shape"...I really didn't think too much about my day other than enjoying myself and enjoying my life (well, whatever I had that I called a life that is)... I would eat whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted, I would go home and just game to my heart's desire, I did the things that, at the time, I thought were fun. What is sad, is more than anything, the fact that I have always felt that girls just never looked my way twice has made me want to push myself more and more to be better looking.
And now, here I am, a few years later and it seems that everything has to be in place, every single day, and if I even slip slightly it's frustrating. I have to eat at certain times, every day. It has to fit into what is "healthy" and "muscle building". If any fat shows up on me at all, I freak out and try to figure out what in the world I could have possibly done wrong when I haven't changed my diet at all. Every day is about going home and working out before I can do anything else, and then as soon as I get done working out I am back in the kitchen cooking up another meal to eat before I can relax.
Looking back, I kind of miss not having so many "obligations" during the day. I mean, yeah, I look better, sure, but when it comes down to it, but is it worth it? I don't even try to have any "fun" anymore really, and normally, after being at work for 9 hours a day and then working out as soon as I get off, I really don't even have any real time to relax...
What should I do...?
Looking back on when I first started, it feels like it was only yesterday... literally...though yesterday feels so far away...
I remember back before I lost the fat, before I got into some sort of "good shape"...I really didn't think too much about my day other than enjoying myself and enjoying my life (well, whatever I had that I called a life that is)... I would eat whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted, I would go home and just game to my heart's desire, I did the things that, at the time, I thought were fun. What is sad, is more than anything, the fact that I have always felt that girls just never looked my way twice has made me want to push myself more and more to be better looking.
And now, here I am, a few years later and it seems that everything has to be in place, every single day, and if I even slip slightly it's frustrating. I have to eat at certain times, every day. It has to fit into what is "healthy" and "muscle building". If any fat shows up on me at all, I freak out and try to figure out what in the world I could have possibly done wrong when I haven't changed my diet at all. Every day is about going home and working out before I can do anything else, and then as soon as I get done working out I am back in the kitchen cooking up another meal to eat before I can relax.
Looking back, I kind of miss not having so many "obligations" during the day. I mean, yeah, I look better, sure, but when it comes down to it, but is it worth it? I don't even try to have any "fun" anymore really, and normally, after being at work for 9 hours a day and then working out as soon as I get off, I really don't even have any real time to relax...
What should I do...?
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