In bodybuilding

Bodybuilding

Bodybuilding is a form of body modification involving intensive muscle hypertrophy. An individual who engages in this activity is referred to as a bodybuilder. In competitive and professional bodybuilding, bodybuilders display their physiques to a panel of judges, who assign points based on their...

 and weight training

Weight training

Weight training is a common type of strength training for developing the strength and size of skeletal muscles. It uses the weight force of gravity to oppose the force generated by muscle through concentric or eccentric contraction...

, using drop sets is a technique for continuing an exercise with a lower weight once muscle

Muscle

Muscle is a contractile tissue of animals and is derived from the mesodermal layer of embryonic germ cells. Muscle cells contain contractile filaments that move past each other and change the size of the cell. They are classified as skeletal, cardiac, or smooth muscles. Their function is to...

 failure has been achieved at a higher weight. It is most often performed on weight machine

Weight machine

A weight machine is an exercise machine used for weight training that uses gravity as the primary source of resistance and a combination of simple machines to convey that resistance to the person using the machine...

s because reducing the weight quickly is thought by some to be extremely important, but it can also be performed with dumbbell

Dumbbell

The dumbbell, a type of free weight, is a piece of equipment used in weight training. It can be used individually or in pairs .-History:...

s and other free weights.

Example

While performing a biceps curl

Biceps curl

The biceps curl is any of a number of weight training exercises that target the biceps brachii muscle in order to develop one or more of the following attributes:*size*definition*strength*endurance*power...

, the person lifting the weight would start with a 25 pound

Pound (mass)

The pound or pound-mass is a unit of mass used in the Imperial, United States customary and other systems of measurement...

 dumbbell and do as many repetitions as possible without significantly compromising form. Then a 20 pound weight would be used until exhaustion is reached. One could continue to "drop" down as many times as he or she wishes, but some bodybuilders recommend using no more than three distinct weights e.g. 25, 20, 15.

Variations

There are many variations possible while using the same basic concept of reducing the weight used. One way is to do a specified number of repetitions at each weight (without necessarily reaching the point of muscle failure) with an increase in the number of repetitions each time the weight is reduced. The amount or percentage of weight reduced at each step is also one aspect of the method with much variety. A wide drop set method is one in which a large percentage (usually 30% or more) of the starting weight is shed with each weight reduction. A tight drop set would remove anywhere from 10% to 25%. These definitions are somewhat arbitrary, of course, and not everyone will agree on the exact definitions.

Cautions

As it is very easy to "over train" with drop sets, it is highly recommended that no more than one to two drop sets be done per muscle group on any given workout. This technique is also not recommended as a long term regimen. The primary focus on drop setting is to "shock" the muscles by adding stress, thus incenting additional hypertrophy. As such, drop sets are not recommended for individuals whose primary goal is endurance versus additional muscle weight gain.

Other names

Drop sets and the technique also go by the names breakdowns, descending sets, triple-drops (when a total of three different weights is used), down the rack or running the rack (when using dumbbells), up the stack (because with a weight machine, the pin is moved up the stack of plates with each drop in weight), strip sets (when you "strip" weights off the ends of a bar), or the stripping technique (so called because of "stripping" weight plates off with each drop in weight).

External links

• Drop sets at bodybuilding.com
• Drop sets at abcbodybuilding.com