Set strategies, including conventional sets (horizontal loading), supersets, pyramid sets, and drop sets, are described and compared in this course and systematic research review (SR).
Set strategies, including conventional sets (horizontal loading), supersets, pyramid sets, and drop sets, are described and compared in this course and systematic research review (SR).
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This course delves into various set strategies, including conventional sets (horizontal loading), supersets, pyramid sets, and drop sets. It examines the benefits and relative effectiveness of these strategies for enhancing strength (e.g., one-repetition maximum strength or 1-RM strength), strength endurance (e.g., increasing repetitions to failure), hypertrophy (e.g., muscle growth), and power (e.g., increased velocity and athletic performance). The course also provides recommendations tailored to different training experiences, covering novice exercisers, experienced exercisers, athletes, children, and elderly exercisers. Additional topics include the effects of set strategies on blood chemistry, hormones, markers of muscle growth, cardiovascular changes, body composition (body fat), electromyography, and post-exercise force production.
Some findings from the included systematic research review resulted in counterintuitive, or at least unconventional, recommendations. For example, pyramid set strategies (e.g., ascending, descending, pyramid, U-shaped, etc.) are likely to improve outcomes less effectively than conventional set strategies; therefore, they cannot be recommended. Additionally, drop sets may result in the most significant improvements in endurance, strength, and hypertrophy compared to other set strategies.
Movement professionals, including personal trainers, fitness instructors, physical therapists, athletic trainers, massage therapists, chiropractors, and occupational therapists, should consider acute variables essential knowledge for optimal exercise programming. Set strategies are one of these critical acute variables. This course is part of our ongoing effort to optimize recommendations for "acute variables."
The Brookbush Institute recommends that agonist/antagonist supersets (or circuit training ) are adopted to improve workout efficiency, and experienced exercisers who may benefit from larger volumes of exercise progress to drop-sets to improve outcomes (when resistance training is not immediately followed by sport).
Acute Variables
Note: Drop-sets result in a very large increase in exercise volume. One drop-set may include 3 or 4 loads and 20 - 30 repetitions and is likely equivalent to 2 or 3 conventional sets. It is recommended that drop-sets are used during larger movement patterns that are most relevant to the client's goals. Professional experience suggests that performing more than 2 or 3 exercises with drop-sets in a single session can make it hard to maintain optimal intensity and effort.
Routine: Upper Body
Routine: Lower Body
Acute Variables
Note: Drop sets result in a significant decrease in force production immediately following a set or session. This could imply that drop sets are less than ideal when the goal of a phase is increasing maximum strength, which generally implies performing multiple sets of heavy loads. However, a problem with maximum strength training is maintaining sufficient volume for optimal hypertrophy and maintaining muscle endurance. It may be ideal to combine conventional max strength training with a drop set performed on the last set of an exercise to increase volume without affecting force production during the initial sets.
Routine: Upper Body
Routine: Lower Body
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