Drop Sets Are the Secret to Building Muscle Fast
At its base, a drop set is simply a technique where you perform a weighted resistance training set of any exercise to failure, drop some weight, and then continue the set with that reduced weight to failure, then drop more weight, and so on. But what makes this effective for muscle growth and how can you use? Let’s take a look.
Brock Armstrong
If you have been following me for a while you will know that I am generally all about natural movement, focusing on functional fitness first, and often shunning workouts that are mostly for vanity sake. Well today, I am embracing my inner bodybuilder and going full gym rat.
The bodybuilding technique known as the drop set has gone by a bunch of different names, like breakdowns, descending sets, triple-drops, down the rack, strip sets or, my personal favorite, the stripping technique. But despite the different names, they all use the same simple principle: lift one weight until you can’t lift it anymore, reduce the weight slightly, and continue lifting. Simple, right? Absolutely. Effective? You bet!
Sidenote: in the book Arnold’s Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding, the creation of this method is credited to Body Culture magazine editor, Henry Atkins, and it was originally called the “multi-poundage system.” That is a pretty accurate name for it but I still prefer the stripping technique.
When to Use Drop Sets
No matter what you call them, drop sets have one main goal and that is to build muscle. There are many ways to build strength, power, and speed while also maintaining a sleak and lean physique, but this is not one of them. If you want to put on muscle mass, this is for you. If you are a sprinter who wants to get stronger but not bigger, this is not for you.
Now that we have that out of the way, the reason why drop sets work so well for muscle gain is due to how effectively they break down muscle tissue. Normally, when you perform a single set to failure, you don’t get a chance to activate every fiber in the chosen muscle group. During a limited set, you only recruit the necessary fibers required to lift that particular weight for that particular number of repetitions. But by stripping off some of the weight and then continuing to extend the set, you wind up cumulatively recruiting more and more of what can be thought of as your reserve muscle fibers that only join in the party once the main fibres have been exhausted.
You can think of it like this: drop sets eventually activate the more stubborn or hidden muscle fibers that are deep down in that muscle group. By doing that, you can cause hypertrophy (muscle growth) that isn’t achieved with a standard set.
How to Do Drop Sets
Unless you have friends who don’t mind spending their workout time watching you get all the benefits while they just shuffle barbell plates around for you, you are best off choosing to use exercise machines or dumbells for your drop sets.
On a machine, all you need to do is stop the set, reach over and move the pin on the weight stack (or turn the knob) and you are right back at it. For example, let’s take a chest press machine. On that apparatus, you don’t even have to leave your seat to change the weight, and quick weight change is the key to taking full advantage of this technique.
On the other hand, using dumbbells, you can do something called “running the rack.” For example, if you’re doing dumbbell flies, you could start with the 50 lb weights, lift to failure, then swap dumbells for the 35 lb weights. Then after you go to failure with the 35 lb weights, swap for the 30 lb weights. You just keep going down the rack until you are done or until you hit the embarrassingly small weights and need to take a water break.
Drop Set Tips
- Keep your rest intervals as minimal as possible—ten seconds max.
- Make sure you have everything you need before you start. Fumbling around will act as recovery time which will allow your muscles to recover and lessen the effects of the workout.
- Don’t be a machine or barbell hog. Pro-tip: do this workout when the gym is at its emptiest so your extended set doesn’t upset anyone else’s workout.
- What is called the triple-drop set is the most effective. After you have dropped the weight three times, the effectiveness also drops. Try to reach maximum muscle failure by your third drop set.
- Remember that it is important to reach failure on each weight before stripping it. I suggest aiming for the six to twelve rep range for the first few drop sets and then finish strong with a few extras.
Drop sets, combined with adequate nutrition and recovery, are an effective way to increase your muscle mass. They also take less time than a traditional weight training session and are an easy way to raise your heart rate, increase blood flow to your muscles, and ensure that your workout is fatiguing your muscles enough to create some serious muscle hypertrophy.
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About the Author
Brock Armstrong was the host of the Get-Fit Guy podcast between 2017 and 2021. He is a certified AFLCA Group Fitness Leader with a designation in Portable Equipment, NCCP and CAC Triathlon Coach, and a TnT certified run coach. He is also on the board of advisors for the Primal Health Coach Institute and a guest faculty member of the Human Potential Institute.