Supersets Might Be All You Need to Increase Gains

If you’re working on gains and feel like you need a little boost, adding some supersets to your routine might be the answer. Some research that was written up in the Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research found that supersets might be the most effective way to increase gains since they allow you to lift more weight in less in time and work your muscles harder. Supersets are essentially a tactic where you don’t take a rest between sets of exercises.

The study took a look at 15 men doing bench presses and seated rows, but compared their results doing them as normal sets and doing them as supersets. The researchers found that when the men were doing the sets as supersets, they ended up bench pressing 10 percent more and rowed at 23 more weight.

To incorporate this into your own routine, consider choosing opposing muscle groups to pair up into a superset. You might for example focus on the chest and back, or even the shoulders and the back.  If supersets are new to you don’t feel alarmed if your endurance isn’t quite there. You’ll get the hang of them quickly and once you do you will probably grow to love the routine. (Especially once you notice how much stronger you’re truly getting.)

Not only will supersets increase your gains and allow you see more physical progress more quickly, you will also be able to shave time off of your workout schedule if you’re pinched for time certain days. This way you can be time efficient without sacrificing any effort. Do keep in mind however, that with the added intensity of supersets, it’s also easier to overdo working out specific muscle groups and increase overuse injuries.

To avoid injury, here are a couple things to keep in mind. For one thing, you want to avoid over fatiguing your stabilizing muscles. The core for example can be challenged from an isometric or dynamic stability standpoint, but do two different exercise that tax it in the same way and you might place excess stress on it.

You also don’t want to choose exercises that are going to over compress your spine. Know the difference between exercises that compress the spine and that decompress it, and be sure to mix them up. As an example squats will compress the spine, while a chin up or pull up will decompress the spine. Alternating them properly will help you to avoid back pain while you are working out.

When it comes to the upper body, remember that you need to add in exercises that both pull and push. A bench press is a fine place to start, but follow it with a back exercise to even out your core and shoulder muscles. Keep in mind as well that continuing to switch things up and continuing to challenge yourself is going to be the most important thing that takes your fitness goals to the next level.