Getting physical results in a workout is not as easy as it seems. If your goal is to increase muscle strength or size (hypertrophy), you need to find different methods that challenge your muscles and don't make them stagnant. One of them is the descending series.
This type of training can promote muscle growth and definition. If you are interested in improving your performance and not wasting time when you go to the gym, we teach you how to incorporate these series into your exercise routine.
What are the descending series?
As is also the case with supersets, descending is one more way to structure your training and provide muscle-building benefits. It's especially useful if you've gotten stuck in progress and don't know how to continue to improve.
A drop set involves performing an exercise with a specific amount of weight for as many repetitions as you can with good technique. Then you can rest as long as necessary before doing the same exercise but with a lighter weight and repeat it again for as many repetitions as you can until you reach the Fatigue muscular.
For example, if you're doing a 10 pound dumbbell bicep curl, you'll first do as many reps as you can with your chosen weight. Then you will choose some 5 kilo dumbbells and repeat the exercise until you cannot do one more repetition.
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Any of these types should be reserved for experienced lifters and used sparingly.
traditional drop set
This is the classic drop series technique mentioned above. We will choose an exercise from the previous list and perform a normal series. Then we'll drop the weight 10 to 20 percent and continue to lift quickly. We will drop the weight one last time and finish the series. We will take as little rest as possible.
An example would be barbell curls: 35lbs x 12 reps, 30lbs x 10 reps, 25lbs x 8 reps.
maximum weights
This type of drop set is best used with dumbbells. We'll start with the heaviest weight we can do for the exercise of choice, do one set to failure, and then move on to the next lighter pair of dumbbells. We will continue descending until we run out of weight.
This technique works incredibly well for moves like curls and lateral raises. We'll choose a pair of dumbbells and do a set of lateral raises. We will continue lowering with each pair of dumbbells.
For example, for the dumbbell lateral raise: 17kg x 12 reps, 15kg x 10 reps, 12kg x 10 reps, 10kg x 10 reps, 7kg x 8 reps, 5kg x 8 reps, 2kg x 5 repetitions.
Mechanical drop set
This drop set is unique in that it will drop the weight we're using and adjust the grip so the muscle is being worked at a slightly different angle. Some lifters believe that changing the angle helps increase the muscle's ability to resist fatigue.
We can try the lat pulldown for this drop set as it allows us to easily adjust our hand position with this exercise. We will start with a standard overhand grip and do 12 repetitions. Then, we'll drop the weight, grab an underhand grip, and do 10 reps. Finally, we will bring our hands closer and do eight repetitions with 10 kilos less than with which we began the series.
It would look like this: 75 kilos x 12 repetitions (wide grip), 70 kilos x 10 repetitions (low grip), 60 kilos x 8 repetitions (close grip).
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Drop sets are an effective way to promote muscle hypertrophy, or increases in muscle size and muscular endurance. They also help if we exercise for a short time.
build muscular endurance
Muscular endurance is defined as the ability of muscles to exert force over and over again. That is, how many repetitions we can complete.
A study in 9 untrained young men found that single-drop set training, measured by one-rep max at 30% of a one-rep max, increased muscular endurance. This held even with less training time than typical resistance exercise protocols.
That means that even with less training time, dropping sets can help you build muscular endurance.
Be efficient with time
Since there is minimal rest involved in a descending set, we will be able to complete the sets of each exercise in less time than if we were to do the same number of conventional sets. And while there are proven benefits of drop sets, they shouldn't be incorporated into every set, or too often into the overall training routine.
When done correctly, this training approach is very taxing on the body. Training to failure has been shown to elevate adenosine nucleotide monophosphate levels, compared to training without failure.
Help build muscle
Drop sets are one strategy that can promote muscle growth. When you exercise to fatigue, the glycogen in your muscles (their source of energy) is depleted, which damages the muscle fibers. As a result, your body repairs these damaged fibers, building bigger, stronger muscles.
They are also a way to increase the total training volume. Your training volume is the number of reps you do, multiplied by the weight you use, multiplied by the number of sets you achieve.
By adding more volume to your training routine, you will increase muscle growth. And science confirms it. Muscle hypertrophy increases as your overall training volume increases.
Incorporating drop sets can also help improve muscle definition. Technically, muscle "tone" is actually a muscle permanently in a semi-contracted state. Drop sets can help increase the motor activity of your muscles, causing them to remain partially contracted even after your workout is complete.
How are they used?
The great thing about this type of training is that you can do it with almost any exercise, whether you're using machines, dumbbells, or barbells. Even so, it is easier to make them with machines. Ideally, your rest should be as short as possible, so you'll want to keep your lightest pair of dumbbells handy.
When you are programming descending series in your training, it is advisable to reserve them for the last set of a given exercise. Remember that the goal is to use them to bring the muscle to full fatigue, so technically you shouldn't be able to perform drop sets one after the other.
It is best to use them only once per muscle group per workout, because they exhaust the muscles. This type of training is used for advanced athletes because they are really strenuous and can drain your energy for the rest of the workout.
Although they are not dangerous in themselves, you must be aware of your technique. Doing a drop set with poor form or relying on momentum completely defeats the purpose and won't give you the results you're looking for. Also, your risk of injury increases as your muscles fatigue and your technique deteriorates.
A drop set is an advanced resistance training technique where you focus on completing a set to failure, or the inability to do another rep.
In general, a drop set can be:
- Series 1. We will do 6 to 8 repetitions.
- Series 2. We will lose weight by 10-30%, we will do 10-12 repetitions.
- Series 3. We will lose weight again by 10-30%, we will do 12-15 repetitions.
We'll start with a heavy load, one where we can only complete 6-8 reps. Little or no rest between sets is recommended. It's always important to pay attention to technique during each rep, but it's especially key during a dropping set when we're working to exhaustion. This can help prevent injuries.
Recommended exercises
Certain exercises are better suited to drop sets than others. For example, performing drop sets in squats will likely result in us running out of breath before we can achieve true muscular failure. And it is not a very effective result when we run out of breath before finishing stimulating all the muscle fibers.
The exercises that are ideal for performing descending series are:
- chest flight
- Machine chest press
- lateral pull
- Straight Arm Pulldown
- rowing on machines
- Machine Shoulder Press
- side flight
- pull face
- leg press
- leg extension
- hamstring curl
- Seated Calf Raise
- Any curl variation
- wire push
There are many variations of machines. This is by design. As we fatigue during the drop sets, form can be severely compromised. The machines will help us keep our form intact, allowing us to continue to push each set.
Also, most of the above moves are isolation exercises. We won't see squats or deadlifts on the list. Performing drop sets for large multi-joint movements can result in exhaustion before muscle fatigue sets in.
Example of descending series
In your next upper body workout, we encourage you to do this biceps dip set. First, you will perform biceps curls with a moderate weight. Then you'll switch to lighter dumbbells and do as many hammer curls as you can.
dumbbell curl
- Begin standing with your feet hip-width apart, arms at your sides with a dumbbell in each hand.
- Squeeze your core, and on an exhale, curl the dumbbells up to your shoulder, keeping your elbows close to your sides.
- Lower the dumbbells to your side with control.
Curl Hammer
- Stand with your feet hip-width apart, core tight.
- Grab a dumbbell in each hand, palms facing in and arms at your sides.
- Keeping your elbows close to your sides, bend your hands to shoulder height.
- Slowly lower the weights with control.
Use one drop set per muscle group and perform it at the end of your workout to avoid excessive mid-workout fatigue and poor posture.