Quick q's on HLM.

[Middle-aged Dad]

Bio:
44/Male.
5'9" 227 lbs.
Finished LP (I think), programming HLM.
<1 week on HLM.
Starting BW was 241 on 10/2015.
Increment is N/A.
Caloric intake is always >2600/day. 1-2 protein and creatine shakes per day.
Set rest is >=7 minutes on Squats, 3-5 on smaller exercises.
Currently (@3x5) 315 Squat, 115 Press, 165 Bench, 295 Deadlift (Overhand grip only).

HLM questions:

-Does setting up my days Friday/Heavy, Monday/Light and Wednesday/Medium negatively impact the program? Is a significant point of an HLM to arrange the 2 day rest to fall before the heavy day?

-Regarding a comparison between the Starr 5x5 model and other examples of HLM in that section of the PPST, am I right that the Starr model includes scaling weights in the work sets that in the 'standard' sets (or the LP) would be considered warm up? For instance, an example given for a Starr system is a 5x135, 165, 195, 225, 255 for Squats on a heavy day that is recorded as 5x255. In LP (and other HLM examples that use 3x5 instead) you would have to actually run 3 sets of 5 at 255, so the 135, 165, etc are essentially considered warmups and not recorded.

I'm not dead set either on Starr's 5x5 HLM version or any of the others, and I'm likely to try a few different setups to find a best fit, I just wanted to make sure I was properly understanding the text.

Thanks in advance.

[Michael Wolf]

Having two rest days before heavy days is the standard set-up, because it's better from a recovery and readiness standpoint. But of course, this is in a vacuum. If in real life, for example, you have a very physically active Sunday every week, then having the heavy day Monday would probably not be a good choice, since Sunday is not really a rest day for you. But yes, in the theoretical model, Monday is the heavy day because of the two rest days before it.

The Starr model as I remember it is a ramping sets model (is this what you mean by "scaling sets" ?). Where you ramp 5 sets of 5 reps (in the basic scheme, anyway) to a top set, at a certain % of your true 5RM, with the general starting point being 100%, 90%, and 80% for the Heavy, Medium, and Light days respectively. But that won't last forever before having to use other set and rep schemes as well so it's probably not worth worrying too much about.

HLM is a general organization that can incorporate a variety of loading schemes. I liked Andy's series of articles on HLM as a supplement to PPST. Check out Part 1 here: Simplifying the Heavy Light Medium System - Part 1: Introduction & Squats - Baker Strength Coaching