The Heavy-Light-Medium-Light Program

 

A Bill Starr-Inspired Program for Advanced Strength and Power Athletes

     One of my favorite programs for strength athletes is the heavy-light-medium program as it was designed by Bill Starr.  I’ve written about the HLM system aplenty over the years—including my recent 7-part series on how to train with it.  (Consider this an unofficial Part 8.)  Once you’ve used it for a lengthy period of time, it’s wise to add an extra session so that you are training more than just 3 days a week.  This is exactly what Starr himself recommended.  He utilized a heavy-light-light-medium system for this extra day of training.  If you’ve been training Monday (heavy), Wednesday (light), and Friday (medium) then you move to an extra light day on Tuesday, one with an even lower workload than the Wednesday workout.  I have recommended that exact plan myself.  However, as the years have gone by and I have trained more and more lifters, and myself, with it, I now prefer a heavy, light, medium, light rotation.  Using this plan, you train, say, Monday (heavy), Tuesday (light), Thursday (medium), and Saturday (light).  In this article, I want to outline how to use this method of training.

     I’m not going to outline the tenets of the H-L-M system here.  If you’re unfamiliar with it, then please read at least a couple of the articles in my previous series before continuing with this one.

     Without further ado, here’s an example program:

Monday - Heavy

• Squats: 5 sets of 5 reps, 2 back-off sets of 8.  Work up over 5 progressively heavier sets of 5 reps.  The last set should be all-out, or close to it.  If you manage 5 reps on the final set, add weight at the next heavy session.  Once you’re finished with the 5x5, drop down in weight and finish with 2 back-off sets of 8 reps.  A good weight selection for these 2 sets are what you used for your 3rd set of 5.

• Bench presses: 5 sets of 5 reps, 2 back-off sets of 8.  Same format as the squats.

• Deadlifts: 5 to 7 sets of 3 reps.  Work up over 5 to 7 progressively heavier sets to a max, or near-max, triple.

• Barbell curls: 5 sets of 5 reps.  Same format as the squats and bench presses but without the back-off sets.

• Ab wheel: 1 to 2 sets of 6-8 reps.

• Optional - loaded carry of your choice: 1 to 2 hard, but not all-out, sets.

Tuesday - Light

• Squats: 5 sets of 5 reps.  For your light day, work up to the weight used on your 3rd set from yesterday’s workout, and stick with this weight for the 4th and 5th set.

• Military presses: 5 sets of 5 reps.  Work up over 5 progressively heavier sets of 5 reps, same as the squats and bench presses from the heavy day but without the back-off sets.  Remember that workload is what constitutes heavy, light, and medium.  This movement constitutes “light” for your shoulder girdle since the weight lifted even when training all-out won’t approach what you could use on the bench press.

• Power snatches: 5 sets of 3 reps.  Work up to a max, or near-max triple.

Thursday - Medium

• Squats: 4 sets of 5 reps, 1 set of 3 reps; 2 back-off sets of 8 reps (optional).  Work up over 4 progressively heavier sets of 5 reps, using the same weight for these sets as your heavy day.  For the 5th set, use a weight that is heavier than your 5th set from Monday but for a triple.  The goal is to then, at your next heavy session, do a set of 5 reps with what you are using here for a triple.  If you want, you can also do back-off sets the same as Monday.  Whether you do the back-off sets or not will depend on how advanced you are and how well you respond to higher volume.  Some lifters will need these back-off sets and some won’t.

• Bench presses: 4 sets of 5 reps, 1 set of 3 reps; 2 back-off sets of 8 reps (optional).  Same format as the squats.

• Power cleans: 5 sets of 3 reps.  Work up to a max, or near-max triple.

• Barbell curls: 5 sets of 5 reps.  Work up to a weight used on your 4th set from the Monday session.

• Weighted incline situps: 1 to 2 sets of 6-8 reps.

• Optional - loaded carry of your choice: 1 to 2 hard, but not all-out, sets.

Saturday - Light

• Squats: 5 sets of 5 reps.  Same format as the Tuesday session.

• One-arm dumbbell overhead presses: 5 sets of 5 reps.  Work up over 5 progressively heavier sets of 5 reps.

• Weighted chins:  Work up to a heavy set of 5 reps.  If you make it to your heaviest set by the 2nd or the 3rd set, stick with that weight for the remainder of the sets.  Doing chins on this day, instead of cleans or snatches will prepare your lower back for the following heavy session.

     Keep in mind that the above program is just an example program.  As with Starr’s original program, there are a myriad of ways that it can be used.  But the above is a very good starting point for the advanced strength athlete.

     Since it is meant for the more advanced lifter, there are a few changes you can make within a few weeks of using it.  Here are some other suggestions for the program:

• As you advance in the program, you will want to begin to rotate to some different set/rep combinations.  I like this format: After a few weeks of the above, switch over to 2 weeks of progressively heavier triples.  After 2 weeks of triples, switch over to 2 weeks of higher reps, such as progressively heavier sets of 8.  And after 2 weeks of 8s, switch over to singles for 2 weeks.  Then repeat.

• As with all of the HLM programs, as you advance further, it’s also a good idea to rotate your volume and intensity.  Over a month of training, this is a good system: The 1st week can be moderate.  The 2nd week can be hard, but not all-out.  The 3rd week can be very hard, perhaps even brutally so, where you are fairly “wiped” by the end of the week.  On the 4th week, take a deload week, with your total workload 50-75% of week 1.

• Another good approach is to utilize multiple sets of low reps, doubles or singles.  Starr was fond of a “modified Hepburn” method.  I wrote about Hepburn’s method of high-set singles in my last article on my personal favorite split training routines.  It uses as many as 10 singles in a workout.  Here, since you are training more frequently, you will want to use less sets, however.  Starr liked 5 singles.  Select a weight on the heavy day where you know you can get at least 3 singles.  Stop when either you fail on a single or when you get 5 singles.  If you manage 5 singles, then add weight at the next workout.  You can also use singles on the medium workout.  Do 5 singles on the medium day with a weight that is 90% of what you used on the heavy day.  On the two light days, use a more standard set/rep format.  You can also choose doubles instead of singles, but use the same format as the singles.  Since variety is important, especially for the advanced lifter, you could do 2 or 3 weeks of doubles and then follow that up with 2 or 3 weeks of singles.

• Yet another advanced option is to do straight sets of 5x5 instead of 5 progressively heavier sets.  However, when using this alternative, I like to do 5s the first week, 4s the 2nd, and triples on the 3rd, but you do it like this:  For the first week, on your heavy day, select a weight where you know you could get 8 to 10 reps if you were doing the exercise for one all-out set.  Do 5 sets of 5 reps with that weight.  In other words, there should be no doubt that you will get all 5 reps on all 5 sets.  On the following week, add 5 to 10 pounds to the lift—5 pounds for the bench presses and 10 pounds for the squats and deadlifts; if you’re already incredibly strong, you might only add 2.5 to the benches and 5 pounds to the squats and deads—and do 5 sets of 4 reps.  On the 3rd week, add the same amount of weight and do 5 sets of triples.  Then, on week 4, do 5 sets of 5 reps with the weight you previously used for 5 sets of 4.  Week 5, this means you would do 5 sets of 4 with what you used for triples on week 3.  Week 6, add the same weight again and do 5 triples.  Stick with this method for consecutive weeks until you struggle to get 5 sets of 5 reps.  At that point, it’s time to change things up.  When using this method, do the same amount of reps on your light and medium days as what you use on your heavy days.

     If you’re an advanced strength and power athlete, consider giving this program a try.  Of all the programs advanced lifters could use, I feel as if this is one of the absolute best!  This program might be just what you need to take your strength, power, and mass to the next level.