Supersets: rest is overrated

Super Series, or supersets, is one of the most used techniques in bodybuilding. How about trying the next visit to the gym?

This form of training has two additional advantages: it saves the time you spend in the gym and is a very intense technique that optimizes the results, showing faster results in muscle hypertrophy. The slogan of supersets is: no rest. That’s right, it is characterized by executing series in a row without the usual resting interval, or with a minimum interval. This is the basic principle governing the advanced technique of supersets.

There are several variations of the method of the supersets, as for example the supersets antagonists, agonists, for pre or post exhaustion. They may also be carried out to work the same muscle group or combine different muscle groups. In the latter case, you must pay attention to combine two large muscle groups and do not use a large and a small group.

Same muscle group

In this case two different exercises are performed, but to work the same muscle group. The principle is the same: accomplish two uninterrupted series, with minimal or no rest. What happens in this case is that the same muscles end up working more, with greater intensity and for longer. When you run two different exercises for the same muscle group you inject variety and the muscle fibers are more stimulated. However, the second series may need to be performed with a lower weight or less number of repetitions.

Advanced level practitioners, can still run composed supersets, that require the use of the same weight in both series, but it is recommended only for those who have an excellent practice of this modality.

Different muscle groups

Use supersets to train different muscle groups is also quite common. In this case, the objective is to work two different muscle groups as follows: performs an exercise for the upper body, and then performs another to the lower, or work the back and then the chest muscles.

The supersets training has the advantage of saving some training time, substantially increase your intensity, that is the main objective, and increase variety in exercises that leads to a faster hypertrophy.