Super (Duper) Sets!

Higher or Simpler Math?

There is a resistance-training 201-level concept termed “super sets”, of which most of you are familiar. If you aren’t, then I will cover this here quickly. When your exert your muscles using relatively heavy weights, adenosine triphosphate (ATP) provides the energy required. Think of ATP like a battery that only has about an hour’s worth of charge in it. When you use it, it takes a little while to regenerate itself. Some studies indicate you have about four minutes after such an exertion to get your ATP back above 90 percent and to therefore allow you to make your next set near-maximum effort, making the most of your resistance training. What will you do while you wait?

Supersets allow you to do something while you wait to do your next “primary” set. The simple solution has become to perform a secondary set that opposes your primary set. Examples would be bicep/tricep, quadricep/hamstring, pectoralis/trapezius, latissimus dorsi/deltoid, and so-on as primary/secondary. Not only does this allow you to do something productive with your secondary set, the resistance of the muscles from your primary set is less due to the exertion. In essence, by doing super sets, you are doubling the amount of work you can get done in the four minutes, and you are actually increasing the amount of work you can do in each set! Double bonus!

The next benefit is that you are bumping your heart and respiration rate by doing two sets instead of one every four minutes. In essence, you are getting in a light interval training session. Some will choose instead to do another primary set quickly, to keep the heart rate up, but this is a mistake if you are seeking the body of an athlete. If you want to look like Arnold, then the quick-fire primary sets may be your path, but I implore you to use your time in the gym to instead make you a better you.

Can we take this concept further? I say “heck, yes.” I often find a third exercise I can do after my secondary set within any super set to make it a super-duper set (SDS). Some examples would be doing forearm curl after I complete my bicep/tricep portion of the super set, or putting a military press after my chest/back portion of the superset. Why do I do this? There are two very good reasons. The first, I answered above. I can amp up my interval-training benefit of my superset if I throw another unrelated exercise in. There is another reason too.

For most of us, our bodies begin to fatigue significantly at around 50 or 60 minutes into our routine, and I wouldn’t be surprised to find out the fatigue accelerates as the workout continues past that point. If you can keep your workouts to no less than 30 minutes but no greater than an hour, you are probably maximizing the per-hour worth of your time in the gym. If you do super sets, 60 minutes in the gym is about 30 sets maximum. Dr. Michael Colgan claims, in his book “The New Power Program” that after about 24 to 26 sets, you are bumping up against limitations.

What if you could do three super-duper sets, for three major opposing body parts, using up to four sets per exercise? You could do 3 combinations x 3 sets/SDS x 4 SDS/combination = 36 sets in about…4 minutes/SDS x 4 SDS/body part x 3 body parts = 48 minutes! So you can keep your time in the gym within some pretty strict time guidelines that help me fit resistance training into my life. You also maximize the amount of resistance training you get in the gym for that time period, while increasing significantly the interval-training benefits!

Say you want to stick to Dr. Colgan’s recommendation and keep our workout to 26 sets or less? Well, we can do the reverse math and find out that you could either do 3 body groups x 3 sets/SDS x 3 SDS = 27 sets total, which gets you out of the gym in 3 x 3 x 4 = 36 minutes! Also, you don’t always have to do an SDS. Perhaps you want to do an SDS for your pecs/lats/delts and do 4 SDS, which would get you a total of 12 sets, then you could finish with three normal super sets for two more body groups to get you out of the gym with 24 total sets.

Anyway, the point here isn’t to confuse you with math. The point is to consider doing something more in the interval while you are waiting for ATP to regenerate. This will maximize your output per minute in the gym, allowing you to either reduce your gym time or increase the benefit of the time you spend. The side-benefit will be an uptick in your interval/cardio training without having to resort to short rests that prevent ATP regeneration from reaching its full potential. Now go forth and do your Super Duper Sets and reap the many rewards!!!