Drop
sets is a popular and advanced weight training technique which
can allow you to push yourself further in your bodybuilding workout
by starting with a heavier weight and progressively switching
to lighter weights without rest in between. The goal is to stimulate
your muscle fibers for more growth.
If
you're stuck in a routine doing the exact same thing time and
time again, you can hit a plateau and your muscles won't respond
anymore for growth. This is where you need to be creative with
your training and make changes so that your muscles can continue
to adapt for growth. Drop sets definitely give a whole new dimension
to a stale workout and make it more challenging as well. Here
are a few reasons why drop sets are good to build muscle fast:
Intensity
Training
with intensity is a sure-fire way to shock your muscles. For muscles
to grow faster, you need to put them under enough stress. Honestly,
there is no better way to shock your muscles than with drop sets
in order to increase muscle mass. Since there is no rest time
in between sets, you'll experience intense workout sessions with
your muscles under heavy continuous stress.
If
you had to lift a heavy weight only, you won't be able to perform
as many sets as you could and train your muscles to failure, so
you'll be lacking in intensity.
No
Rest Time
A
common way to train is to perform a set and rest 45-60 seconds
or so before resuming with the next set. But that's not the case
with drop sets. As mentioned above, there is no rest time for
drop sets as the goal is to continue working your muscles till
exhaustion. Since you're decreasing the weights from set to set,
you can allow yourself no rest time.
The
good thing about no rest time is once blood starts rushing to
your muscles after the initial set and you keep cranking sets
after sets without break, you'll get amazing pumps and this is
usually an indicator of a good workout. By not losing the blood
flow to your muscles with too much rest time, you'll keep the
pumps and make better muscle gains.
Lactic Acid Build Up
Performing drop sets creates a lot of lactic acid build up, which
is the burning sensation you get in your muscles while working
out. Lactic acid stimulates the release of natural growth hormones
by the pituitary gland of your brain, thus promoting muscle building,
growth and performance.
Strength
Drop
sets boost your testosterone levels and as a result, build more
strength. This is a good thing as having more strength enables
you to lift heavier weights and build bigger muscles with time.
Drop sets can be done with either isolation exercises or compound
exercises although the latter is usually more common since you
can add more weights. Having a training partner can be beneficial
notably when you have to remove the weights from a barbell bar
and you have to do it quick as you can't rest. It's definitely
an advantage to have a helping hand. One word of caution though
is don't perform drop sets too often as you'll fatigue your muscles
too much and easily overtrain them. Since drop sets is an advanced
weight training technique, I don't recommend them if you're just
getting started.