First HST cycle complete (short review)

Ok, so I finished my first cycle of HST today.

If you want to know what HST is, go here:
http://www.hypertrophy-specific.com/hst_index.html

I did 12 reps for 2 weeks, then 9, then 6.

Starting weights were about 175 lb for bench and about 225 for squat to give you a baseline, and I was probably about 30 lb more max per cycle with 5-10 lb increases each lifting session depending on the week. The last two weeks, I did 6RM for the first week, and two lifting sessions of negatives with four days of rest in between.

My supplements for this cycle were:

BSN Cellmass
BSN NOxplode
BSN Syntha-6 protein
MHP Cyclin-GF
Centrum Performance

During non-lifting days, I did about 2 miles of HIIT.

Overall, I think the program was fairly effective.

Vital stats prior to program start:

Weight: 217 lb
Waist: 35.5"
Thighs: 25.75"
Chest: 44.75"
BF: 15.5%

Vital stats after 8 week program:

Weight: 228 lb
Waist: 35"
Thighs: 26.5"
Chest: 45.5"
BF: 14.5%

I will be doing strategic deconditioning for about a week, then start up with about 30 lb more weight than last cycle. For this next cycle I'm making a few changes. Instead of squat I will be doing leg press (with a bit more weight) and I will be doing wide-grip chest machines instead of pec deck/fly because I think it's a bit easier on my shoulders.

Therefore, my workouts will consist of:

Weeks 1-2:

2 sets of 12 reps of:

Leg Press Machine
Deadlift w/ barbell
Calf Raises w/ Leg Press Machine
Dumbbell shoulder press
Dumbbell incline bench
Barbell bench
Dumbbell shrug
Barbell bicep
Row Machine
Wide Grip Bench
Weighted Crunch

Followed by 9 reps of the same with higher weight, 6 weeks of the same with higher weight, then one week of 6RM and then one week of negatives (2 sessions separated by 4 days rest)

I was about 600-700 kcal in daily caloric excess during the last phase. I will be decreasing my caloric excess to about 300-400 calories in excess in the next phase, still with about a 55/30/15 P/C/F split.

We'll see how it goes.

The "maxes" I used for the system were probably a bit less than my PRs at those weights, because this was the first cycle and I wanted to make progress:

For this cycle the maxes for bench press were:
12 RM 225 lb
9 RM 255 lb
6 RM 285 lb

I never really did those exact number of reps before this, so I'm not entirely sure what my actual PRs at those weights are, but I've done more than 12 reps at 225 before, and my 1RM is somewhere around 335. I'd guess before the system my maxes were between 20 and 30 lb more than the weights I did.

As far as squat and deadlift go, the maxes for this cycle were far lower than my PRs, because I'm recovering from knee problems and didn't want to go too heavy. In any case, this is what I did in the cycle:

Squat:
12 RM 275 lb
9 RM 305 lb
6 RM 335 lb

Deadlift:
12 RM 225 lb
9 RM 255 lb
6 RM 285 lb

How HST works is that during the first two weeks, you'll go from the starting weight (185 for bench and deadlift, 225 for squat), and increase the weight 10 lb each time you lift until you're lifting the 12RM during the last lifting day of the two weeks. I then increased the starting weight for 9RM such that the max was 30 lb higher, and repeated, and so on for 6 RM. During the last two weeks, I did the 6RM for one week (3 lifting days) then did negatives on sunday and thursday (four days rest).

As I mentioned before, I'm going to increase the weight this cycle by 30 lb for the major lifts (and probably a bit less for the dumbbell lifts) and I don't think it will be a problem doing those maxes, given how I felt doing the ones this cycle.

Yeah, I'm not sure why that is, I think it could be a form thing, or perhaps I just feel more comfortable with squat, but it's always been higher for me, even before my knee problems.