Heavy-Light Split vs HLM

[Nate7out]

i just finished garage gym warrior(it worked)

Also I am now starting a little more aggressive HLM like this

day 1
Heavy squat 85x4-6 back off 75%x3x5-8, 90x2-4 back off 80%x3x4-6 95x1-3 back off 85x3x3-5)rotated weekly
heavy bench same
chins

day 2
power cleans
heavy press
light squat i do about -10%for 2-3x5

day 3
heavy deadlift same except I go 70,75,80% for minimum reps of the heavy day
medium squat same as deadlift protocol
chins

so its a good bit of Amrap@10 sets but I got this idea of of Andy.

Press 2x per week only?

[Eric Larousse]

sorry about that yea i do medium OHP on day 3

[Euby]

I've noticed that the Light day in HLM is tough due to the fatigue from the Heavy day 2 days prior. The Medium day is tough due to the weights being closer to what is used on Heavy day. I notice I have similar fatigue in the evening following the medium day workout as I do on Heavy day. Not quite as extreme but it is there nonetheless. What I don't know is whether or not that is contributing significantly to muscular gains (size and/or strength). If it is not contributing to either in a significant way, then I almost wonder if that is time wasted.

In re-reading the sections on intermediate training and Heavy/Light in PPST3 and BP40, there is some language in those books regarding the Light day being non-essential for some lifters in a Heavy-Light approach. The purpose of training, particularly for older athletes, is to lift heavy with high intensity in order to disrupt homeostasis, recover, and then repeat. I feel like the Light day helps recovery. I'm not sure a Medium day does anything other than add weekly volume.

So, it seems that a Heavy-Light approach might be tweakable to achieve great results. According to BB40, I could add another set of 5 to the heavy day to provide more volume at intensity. I could also do a bit more volume at lower intensity on the Light day. This would approach the volume of an HLM approach, but with only 2 days instead of 3. It would also open the doors for more conditioning work since you'd have more non-lifting days involving the lower body, which I feel more and more is something that I need as I age. I also allows me to have more time to pursue more upper body volume work for power building which is also a concern with aging.

I know an HLM works well for me, even if I feel drained and a constant fatigue from it...it's sustainable. I think I just need to try the H-L approach and see how it goes.

[Nicky85]

Personally I prefer 3 day full body workouts, my body responds better on full body compare to split model, I had a feeling I was getting fatter on upper/lower split + squatting first thing is perfect for warming up. If you are a busy individual go with an HLM and just dedicate 1 day a week doing serious barbell work.

[Euby]

Being busy is what has made HLM feel more difficult to fit in. All the lengthy rests between the big lifts made for extremely long workouts. 90 minutes easily. On the H-L I'm experiementing with I can workout in 45-50 minutes easily, and get more assistance lifts in at the same time. So far it feels much better for me.

[vav]

Being busy is what has made HLM feel more difficult to fit in. All the lengthy rests between the big lifts made for extremely long workouts. 90 minutes easily. On the H-L I'm experiementing with I can workout in 45-50 minutes easily, and get more assistance lifts in at the same time. So far it feels much better for me.

Have you tried this approach from AB?: Client Q&A #3: Heavy-Light-Medium Set Up & Gym Time Saving Tip ? Andy Baker

"However, for me, the biggest time saver of all is fitting your warm up sets for the next exercise in between the 2nd and 3rd work set of the exercise you are currently performing. This obviously fills up some downtime between sets (should be minimum 5-8 minutes between work sets) but it also eliminates some dead time that occurs between exercises. Time you might otherwise get on your phone, chat with a buddy at the gym, or otherwise just fuck around between exercises. (As an aside – put your phone away while you train. You won’t die if you don’t text, email, or watch a video for 90 minutes. If you HAVE to have it for the use of the Starting Strength App or for videoing yourself, fine, but have the discipline to stay out of texts, email exchanges, or video watching. This will save time for most people as well).

The way this will look in execution is something like this:

Squat (warm ups + 1st and 2nd work sets)

45 x 5
95 x 5
135 x 3
165 x 1
195 x 1
225 x 1
250 x 5 (5 min rest)
250 x 5 (5 min rest)
Start Bench Press Warm Ups……

45 x 10
95 x 5
125 x 3
145 x 1
Finish Squat (3rd work set) 250 x 5

Start Bench Press Work sets (1st and 2nd work sets)

165 x 5 (5 min rest)
165 x 5 (5 min rest)
Start Deadlift (warm ups)

135 x 5
185 x 3
225 x 1
255 x 1
Finish Bench Press (3rd work set) 165 x 5

Deadlift Work Set 285 x 5.

Done."

[Euby]

Thanks for the tip, but since I work out in my home gym I don't have equipment to do this.