Training with Supersets - M:I - Muscle Intelligence with Tyrone Bell
“We’re going to cover the critical areas of this technique so you can effectively implement supersets, taking all needed considerations into account and reap the full benefits that this very effective training technique can bring.
What Are Supersets?
Supersets in themselves are a simple technique; essentially just two exercises performed back to back, one after the other, with little or no rest in between. But all too often, because of the simplicity, trainers tend to throw any two exercises together, not really considering the full potential benefits that the right pairing can bring. So, we’re going to have a look at that.
Why Perform Supersets?
There are three main reasons why you’d want to perform supersets. First, simply from a time conscious point of view. The use of supersets gives you the ability to structure more volume. Second, the use of what’s called a pre-exhaust superset for a fresh type of stimulus. A method you can use to effectively push relatively easy beyond failure generating more metabolic stress and anabolic responses. We’ll look into this as well. Third, with the right structure and the right exercise pairing, supersets give us the ability to increase the intensity and stimulate the targeted muscles at different points of the muscles range. This means you target more of the targeted muscle’s full profile as well as encouraging growth responses such as muscle cell swelling and metabolic stress.
Time Efficiency
In your traditional, classic training format, you complete all of the sets of one exercise before moving to the next, resting for a period of time between sets. So naturally, a large percentage of your session is rest. With supersets though, that required rest period is cut right down and a lot of it is used to complete a set of another exercise instead. This allows you to complete the same amount of exercises in a much shorter period of time. So it gives you the ability to structure more density to your training session as you have more time up your sleeve. This results in a greater level of fatigue and metabolic stress creating a favorable hormonal response, which may lead to greater muscle growth.
Now, here’s the thing guys. When using supersets for time efficiency, your most favorable superset option is what’s called an agonist/antagonist pairing, or muscle groups that are opposite of each other. For example, pairing a bicep exercise with a triceps exercise, pairing a chest exercise with a back exercise, or pairing a quads exercise with a hamstring exercise. There’s a couple of reasons for this. First, from the point of view of rest. Let’s say you just completed a set of dumbbell chest press. The pecs are near fatigue, not to mention your assisting triceps and front deltoids. For optimal performance in your next set, they need rest. So if you hit it again with another compound chest exercise, your performance is seriously going to drop. But if you stack your second exercise of the superset up to be a back exercise – the antagonist muscle group to your chest – and in particular, a rowing exercise, you’re using a completely fresh set of non-fatigued muscles. So this would mean, while you’re working your back, your chest has a chance to recover so it’s ready to go again next set. Now not only from an interest of a rest point of view, but the antagonist/agonist pairing also holds some performance benefits as well. Several studies have shown that these types of supersets can actually increase force output during the agonist contraction because of reduce inhibition by the antagonist muscle and an increase in stored energy in the muscle. That means that if you precede your bicep curls with a set of triceps pushdowns, you actually may be able to perform more powerful contractions. This means greater mechanical tension and in turn, more muscular growth.