I understand your frustration. I’m not sure what HD means unless it’s Mike Mentzer’s Heavy Duty system. (I knew Milke well and even produced his Heavy Duty logo and T-shirts.) But I’m very familiar with HIT and was one of its early adopters in the 1970s.
What drew me to HIT was its overarching philosophy that underpinned its principles. That philosophy was hammered into me by Arthur Jones, Ellington Darden, and Mike Mentzer. They all agreed on one all-important governing law of muscle. Here’s what they taught me:
Do only the exercise required to produce the most significant gains. Adding more work is counterproductive (by definition), yielding less than optimal results. It can also hinder exercise recovery, potentially leading to a decrease in performance and loss of muscle mass.
There were differences between Jones, Darden, and Mentzer. But no one ever harped on going to failure. The focus was on effort intensity, exercise performance, rep quality, workout pace, and efficiency. They trained no less than three times per week. There was a lot of experimenting with methods and techniques for effect and to hit body parts better.
I’ve learned that you often discover the best solution to a problem by asking yourself the best question. And that the genius is not in seeing the solution; it’s in asking the question.
A few HIT community members continue asking better questions, especially about neuromuscular physiology, leading to breakthroughs.
I can tell you this for sure:
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It doesn’t take much of the right training system to make impressive, consistent gains.
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Going to failure is unnecessary, unmanageable, and counterproductive.
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Three times per week works best for almost everyone, including elite athletes.
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The “secret sauce” is in the layering of methods and techniques, and methods and techniques dictate the volume.
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Exercise machines, equipment, and devices are tools, not solutions.
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Specialized nutrient support DURING a workout can significantly enhance muscle growth, strength gains, exercise performance, work capacity, and recovery.
Getting any more specific would require designing a workout. A properly designed workout embodies all of the above.