Today I’m sharing an advanced Drop Set workout for those of you who like your training “old school” - you start with the heaviest dumbbells you can handle with good form and then as you move through the circuits, you’ll move to lighter weights.  In fact, if you don’t HAVE to move to lighter weights in a drop set workout, that’s a clear indication that you’re not lifting heavy enough!   You can also use bands for this workout or kettle bells – just start with whichever level will provide the heaviest resistance you can handle before moving to lighter or no resistance.    I’ve also included a chart at the bottom of this page should you want to print this workout for easy reference.  As usual – should you have any questions at all, please ask! 

“The Lord gives strength to his people.  The Lord blesses his people with peace.”  Psalm 29:11   (NIV)   

I figured I’d share that verse with you as you need to head into this workout fully prepared to need some extra strength!    

Hope you’re having a wonderful week and God bless!

steph

Drop Set Workout

The purpose of drop sets is to exhaust muscle groups in as little time as possible.  Therefore you start each set with the heaviest weight you can use with good form, and then you pyramid down in weights as you move through the workout as needed.  That means that even if you can just do the first 5 reps with the heavier weight and then you have to pyramid down before you are done with the set, that’s just fine and that means you’re working hard. 

How many reps and sets??  I’ve found the best way to do this is by using a clock with a second hand so you don’t actually have a set number of reps.  You do as many reps as you can in a controlled manner for 45 seconds and then you have 15 seconds to move to the next exercise.  You’ll do each mini-circuit three times in a row.  That means cycling through each circuit takes 9 minutes so if you do this workout straight through you’re done in 27 minutes.  Sometimes to change things up I’ll do one complete 9 minute circuit cycling through all three of them at one time  (doing either upper body OR lower body) and then add in 5-6 minutes of cardio such as plyometrics or lunges off of a step between each circuit.  This will take you to about a 45 minute workout as after the last circuit I’ll throw in some ab/core work and then stretching.   If you don’t want to do drop sets but just want to hit your muscle groups quickly and effectively, you can also just move through each exercise one time for a short 9 minute upper body workout or a short 9 minute lower body workout.  Looking for a quick express workout?  If you manage to do each exercise I’ve listed here for 45 seconds before taking 15 seconds to move to the next one, you can get your ENTIRE body in less than 20 minutes.  (as you can see there are TONS of options so do what you want to make this YOURS!)

Warm Up

2- 3 minutes light cardio with big motions.  (and if you’ve been doing some heavy housework, playing with the kids..etc…  I count that as warm-up!)

Upper Body Circuit

Circuit 1

Overhead Press

Hammer Curls

French Press

Circuit 2

Incline Biceps Curls

Lying French Press (sometimes called skull crushers…)

Upright Row

Circuit 3

Triceps dips

Medial/Anterior Flyes

Angled Curls

Lower Body Circuit

Circuit 1

Regular Stance Squats

Alternating dips R/L

Plies (as wide as you can go – toes turned out to side)

Circuit 2

Dead lifts wide stance (feet a little wider than hip distance, toes turned in slightly, knees slightly bent)

Closed squats (feet almost touching)

Alternating lunges R/L (You can also lunge onto a step or if you love doing leg presses off of a tall box- insert them here and I’d start on top so that you’re just alternating which foot will slowly move toward the floor – NOT crash to the floor!!)

Circuit 3

Alternating side lunges R/L

Dead lifts regular stance (feet almost touching, toes forward)

Wide stance squats (feet wider than hip distance and toes forward)

Etc:

• Don’t forget to stretch!!
• If you’re not comfortable with using the clock interval training method, just go with a traditional approach with a set number of reps per set.  I recommend 14-16 reps per exercise if you’re not going to use the clock.