Good points, all. As for HIT splenda. If you understand intensity, and can actually cause enough muscle hypertrophy in the one set, then go for it. It's a great program for people that have jobs, or play other sports because fatigue is removed from the equation.

As for your points above, the biggest mistake most lifters make is too much weight. You need to remember what the goal is. Are you specifically after strength or is it about the muscle. Would you rather be the best looking , most ripped guy in the gym, that benches 145lbs, or that big fat power lifter that benches 450lbs. It matters. How you train is what you acheive. The guys squatting 850lbs never look in the mirror, they wear baggy clothes, and don't care about form. It's about moving the weight. If you look in the mirror, at your body, and care about how you look, then you need to lift with form, full range of motion, and work every fibre in the muscle. Squeeze the weight at the top, get a contraction, lower the weight with resistance, and tear the muscles fibres. If you want to bench 500lbs then, learn to throw weights, learn how to rebound and forget about eccentric contractions, get the reps, build tendon strength.

And yes learn more than one exercise for each muscle group. Never wait for a machine or a bench. Grab some dumbells and get the set.

Couple other quick tips, never stretch cold muscles, if your trying to gain muscle eat, and the most important meals are: soon as you wake or soon after, and immediately after your workout, this is key. You must get fast acting foods to the muscle( protein and carbs). Every minute after you are done working out your body is catabolic. It will start feeding on it's own muscle to start rebuilding the damage you just caused. If you have a high metabolism, what you eat and when can make a huge difference in your physique. Learn when to eat, what to eat, and how much. I've seen skinny guys that couldn't put on 5 lbs in a year make gains of 10lbs a month in muscle, just by sipping protein and carbs "during" the workout, not just after. If your trying to lose weight, whole new ball game. Interval cardio on an empty stomach, in the mornings, lower carbs except right before your workout(yes before not after) and working at maintianing muscle mass. Most fat guys have some muscle already, the key is not to get catabolic and lose your metabolism we're working so hard to boost up. Don't do slow paced cardio.