Download WEEK TWENTY-THREE :: What Is The Best Supersetting Workout

What Is The Best Supersetting Workout?
-------------------------------------------------------------------------I consider myself the king of super-setting. Supersetting is something I’ve learned to
do effectively. My workouts are based around supersets, and tri-sets, yet the
poundage I use doesn’t sacrifice. There are a few tricks on how to use super-setting
effectively so it gives it you gains, rather than just burning you out. Read on and I’ll
explain how I’ve made super setting something to love.
What is the best supersetting workout? Be specific.
Include exercises, sets, reps, rest, etc.
There are many ways to incorporate supersets into your workouts. Here I have
incorporated two ways to include them, one is for those wanting to increase their
intensity even more so on a HIT workout, whereas the other is targeted towards those
who prefer it medium-high volume. Please read on.
HIT Workout:
Monday:
Chest and triceps
Flat Dumbell Press with weighted dips – 2 supersets
Incline barbell press with flat dumbbell flyes – 1 superset
Close grip bench press with dumbbell extensions – 2 supersets
Tuesday:
Tuesday: Back and biceps
Barbell rows with weighted chin ups – 2 supersets
Seated pulley rows with one arm dumbbell rows – 2 supersets
Barbell curls with dumbbell curls – 2 supersets
Thursday: legs
Barbell squats with stiff-leg deadlifts – 3 supersets
Hack Squats with lying leg curls – 2 supersets
Machine calf raises with seated calf raises – 2 supersets
Friday: delts, traps, abs
Seated overhead press with side laterals – 2 supersets
Behind the back barbell shrugs with dumbbell shrugs – 2 supersets
Crunches with leg raises – 2 supersets
Medium- higher volume option:
Monday: Chest/back
Deadlifts – 2 sets
Flat dumbbell press with T-bar rows – 2 supersets
Incline barbell press with Weighted chin-ups – 2 supersets
Decline Dumbell press with one arm dumbbell rows – 2 supersets
Cable crossovers with hyperextensions – 2 supersets
Tuesday: Legs
Barbell squats with stiff leg deadlifts – 2 supersets
Leg extensions with lying leg curls – 2 supersets
Leg press with seated leg curls – 2 supersets
Machine calf raises with reverse calf raises – 2 supersets
Donkey calf raises with hack machine calf raises – 2 supersets
Wednesday: Arms
Lying tricep extensions with barbell curls – 2 supersets
Overhead extensions with incline curls – 2 supersets
Tricep pressdowns with concentration curls – 2 supersets
Reverse grip pressdowns with preacher curls – 2 supersets
Thursday: Chest/back
Deadlifts – 2 sets
Flat barbell press with barbell rows – 2 supersets
Incline dumbell press with Weighted chin-ups – 2 supersets
Iso hammer decline press with seated cable rows– 2 supersets
Dumbbell flyes with reverse hyperextensions – 2 supersets
Friday: Delts
Dumbell overhead press with side lateral raises – 2 supersets
Smith machine overhead press with bent over laterals – 2 supersets
Upright rows with cable side laterals – 2 supersets
Dumbbell front raises with face pulls – 2 supersets
Which are the best muscle groups to superset?
Why?
All muscle groups can be superset. Bigger muscles such as chest and back respond
well, so do legs as well as arms, delts, abs and calves.
There are very few restrictions as to what muscle groups you can superset, and
which you shouldn’t. The main thing to be cautious of though is the possibility of
overtraining.
Therefore, it’s a good idea to balance the amount your doing for smaller muscle
groups such as biceps, triceps and delts, especially if these muscles groups are under
the load of other intensity principles.
As abdominals seem to recover quickly, and usually only require bodyweight, you
usually don’t need the same sort of break in between sets as other muscle groups. I
find tri-sets and giant sets also respond well with abs for the same reason.
Calves are another muscle where exercises aren’t as physically draining as muscle
groups such as quads or back, so super-setting doesn’t usually rob you on the weight
you use.
Two muscle groups that respond particularly well are super-setting are Chest and
back. Here you are able to get an incredible pump through two of your biggest, and
most important muscle groups in one-hour. Volume for each muscle will have to be
split in half, so in this case its an idea to train chest and back twice a week if
possible.
In fact, supersetting any opposing muscle groups work well. This is because while
you are training one area, the opposing muscle group and its synergist muscles are
fairly inactive. This means you are basically resting one muscle group, while you are
working the other.
Supersetting biceps and triceps are another example of effectively supersetting
opposing muscle groups. There is nothing better than the look of having your whole
arms pumped at once; it feels great.
Even quadriceps and hamstrings work well. But training legs with supersets can be a
lot more draining than upper body, as well know how intense leg training can be. But
doing this, you can get a pump in your whole upper leg that will blow them up like
bubbles.
A lot of people find it hard to develop their legs, as well as calfes, so trying new
things and being open to new training methods is definitely the right state of mind to
have in this situation. Supersets might just be what you need for bring up those
stubborn muscle groups.
Using opposing exercises, as well as opposing muscle groups, work well for the same
reasons. Two examples include lying leg curls superest leg extensions, and calf
raises superset with reverse calf raises.
As balance in strength and size between muscle groups is vital to prevent strength
imbalances, injury and gaining overall symmetry, Supersetting opposing exercises
encourage maintaining that balance you need.
Later on in the article I will discuss whether it’s better to use supersetting for
isolation or compound movements, so read on.
What is the best rep range to use when supersetting
exercises?
All rep range works well, but the main thing to be cautious of again is over-training.
When supersetting with very high reps, anywhere between 12-20, you’re training
becomes more endurance-based.
If you’re whole workout regime including cardio relies heavily on your cardiovascular
system, you can quickly burn out, like I once learned.
Having said this, you can still use super sets with a higher rep range, and they can
be quite effectively for a sustained pump that is out of this world, but going too high
may just cause fatigue.
The amount of reps you use in supersetes should obviously be largely determined by
what routine you’re on: HIT trainers will find their usual 4-6 rep range will work well,
where using supersets will act to increase their intensity even more, while those on a
higher volume routine might find higher reps (9-12) will work well, encouraging an
even greater pump.
9-12 reps is what I personally prefer as I find it’s the best range for achieving “that
pump”, but I like to vary reps so I’m hitting all my muscle fibers. I eve used 20 reps
at times for tri-sets and even giant sets, but when doing I recommend not doing too
much.
There is no doubt supersets will work, as I’ve proven on my own physique. The
whole nature of supersets is to increase intensity while minimizing rest periods, and
I’ve found this can be achieved at varying rep ranges.
Is supersetting best used on compound or isolation
exercises? Why?
Using supersetes for Isolation exercises is easier because isolation movements are
less draining. Therefore, you will probably not have to sacrifice much weight.
On other hand, compound supersets give you a massive pump throughout the whole
muscle, or even 2 muscles, instead of isolating one area of a muscle. This can lead to
that desired full look throughout that whole area you’re working.
You can even superset compound and isolation exercises together. This is how I
train. I wrote another article on this site stating my favourite workout, and its based
on just supersets and tri-sets.
If I’m training chest on own for example, I find it a better option to superset a heavy
pressing movements with a less draining flye movement such as crossovers, rather
than supersetting two pressing movements. I find supersetting two similar
movements together, I have to decrease resistance a lot more, and fatigue earlier in
the workout.
Therefore its important to keep a few things in mind when selecting exercises to
superset:

Find two exercises that target a different area of that muscle ie: for chest:
choose an exercise that targets the upper chest with one that targets the
mid-lower chest, or you can choose to superset two different muscle
groups.

Use two different movements. For back as an example, it’s an idea to
superset two different movements such as rowing and pulldowns. These
both have a different range of motion, and will help prevent fatigue.

If you can, superset two exercises that are located close to eachother in
gym. This will prevent you from wasting time between movements.
How does supersetting stand up to other
methods, such as pyramids, drop sets, etc.?
Personally, I think any method one can use to increase intensity in their workouts is great.
If I had to choose just one principle though, it would sway towards selecting supersets.
Firstly, I find that supersets are a lot more recovery-friend than drop-sets. Drop-sets are
an excellent way at taking your muscles to that absolute limit while giving them an
incredible burn, but drop-sets can only be used in moderation, whereas supersets can be
used more often.
Pyramiding weight is another great principle for promoting hypertroyphy. It’s hard to
compare pyramiding and supersetting as they are both different in nature.
Pyramiding weight does help ensure you are following the progressive resistance
principle by always stimulating yourself under heavier workloads each set. Supersets on
the other hand, although weight stays the same, it has more of an overall affect on your
training intensity.
Personally I use both supersets and pyramid weight in my workout. In fact, both work
well together: Pyramiding weight on supersets. Give it a go.
Here are some other principles I like:
Tri-sets:
Tri-sets are supersets older brother. Tri-sets are using three different exercises, rather than
2, and like supersets, you should have minimal break between exercises.
One downside in comparison to supersets is that the amount of resistance you will be able
to use will have to be decreased, but none the less, tri-sets are still an excellent way to
shock your muscles into new growth.
Follow the 3 principles I outlined for supersets when selecting exercises to tri-set.
Giant-sets:
These have to be the most intense of all principles. Doing 4-5 exercises in succession
isn’t an easy feat, but when done with good form, the results will speak for themselves.
Be very cautious of overtraining here, like I once had to learn.
Pyramid weight:
As I described above, pyramiding weight is a great way to ensure you are progressing in
terms of the amount of resistance you’re using.
A lot of people decrease reps on each successive set by as little as one, but I like to hit all
muscle fibers within each exercise, so I pyramid reps from as high as 15 on my first set to
as low as 6 on the last.
This works particular well for compound movements, where weight is heavier.
Negative resistance:
These can be used during supersets for even greater pump. When using negatives with
supersets, 2-3 seconds on the negative portion of the movement is ideal, but training
super-slowly isn’t recommended as overall workout length and overtraining can become
issues.
You can also use negative resistance by getting a training partner help you lift the weight,
before you lower it on your own over a 5-10 second cadence. I’ve never heard of anyone
doing negative resistance supersets, but hey it’s another option.
Drop-sets:
If it wasn’t for the fact that these can quickly lead to overtraining, I’d be using drop-sets
like there was no tomorrow. The theory behind drop sets is this: When you’ve got the
absolute most out your working set, although you can’t possibly do another rep, if you
lighten the weight you will be able to.
Drop-sets allow you take that particular exercise as far as you can possibly go, robbing
your muscles of every last bit of cellular energy, with more of a focus on intensity than
resistance used.
To do drop-sets, after your working set, drop your weight by 25 percent and continue to
precede until failure, then continue decreasing weight by an additional 25 percent 2 times
until you literally fall to the floor.
Bonus: Which is the best (shocking) method for
building muscle?
Supersets are the winner. Tri-sets and negative resistance come a close second. Tri-sets
are an additional option when you want to take super-sets one step further and using
negatives is a proven technique that can be used on every exercise.
Pyramiding weight in my eyes should never be overlooked either, as the resistance you
use when lifting weight is one of the most important factors for growth.
Drop-sets are another method that rate very highly, but the overall intensity benefits of
supersets is the main reason I rate them as the number one principle for shocking muscle.
The amount of growth I have gotten from using supersets has been incredible.
Vascularlity and definition have also been a result of using supersets over an extended
period.
Things that encourage us to get the absolute most out of your workouts in the shortest
time should be maximized. Using supersets and tri-sets are one of those principles that
allows us to do this. I hope you apply on of the workouts in the article, and see yourself
the magic supersets can bring.
Thanks for reading.
Happy supersetting.