There are a variety of ways to progress toward your training objectives. Both casual gym-goers and competitive strength athletes use giant sets in specific ways to increase strength, bulk up, and sharpen their athleticism.
Giant sets are a popular training technique that can help you make huge gains in a short period. But what are Giant Sets, and how do you use them? This article will answer those questions and give tips on incorporating giant sets into your workout routine.
Keep reading to learn more!
What are Giant Sets?
A giant set is a workout routine where you perform multiple exercises back-to-back with little or no rest in between.
Giant sets are great for building muscle and burning fat because they elevate your heart rate for an extended period.
Compound exercises are one of the best ways to do a giant set. Compound exercises involve multiple muscle groups and cause your body to burn more calories than traditional exercises. Some good compound exercises in a giant set are the squat, bench press, and deadlift.
If you're new to giant sets, start by doing three or four exercises back-to-back. As you get stronger, you can gradually increase the number of exercises until you're doing eight or nine. Just make sure you leave enough time for a good warm-up and cool-down.
Related Article: What is a Weightlifting Superset? 5 Types of Supersets and When to Use Them
Why are Giant Sets Effective?
With giant sets, you can lift a lot of weight and get a lot of reps in, which is why they're so effective. This training style stimulates the recruitment of more muscle fibers, leading to greater increases in both strength and size.
More calories are burned during giant sets than regular sets, making them an excellent strategy for slimming down and toning up.
Giant sets work many muscle fibers at once. A large set of repetitions with a light weight will accomplish this. To build muscle, it is necessary to trigger the release of hormones like testosterone and growth hormone in these specific muscle fibers.
The increased lactic acid production that results from doing Giant Sets is also helpful for muscle development. Because they work so many muscles at once and keep your heart rate up, giant sets are a highly efficient training method. You're getting a full-body workout in a short amount of time, which is a huge time saver.
Both strength and stamina can be improved by performing giant sets. Perform several exercises in rapid succession with little rest in between to maximize muscle fatigue and stimulate adaptation. This makes them hardier and more resilient, boosting their performance over time.
How to Program Giant Sets
When programming giant sets, you'll want to ensure that the exercises you choose are compound. That is, they work for more than one muscle group at a time. This will allow you to get the most out of your time in the gym and stimulate as many muscle fibers as possible.
Use the following tips to incorporate it into your schedule:
- Lifting three times per week can be done on days that work best for you. However, it is suggested that you rest for a full day between each training session; for example, you may work out on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.
- Use the stair-stepper or incline treadmill for 15 minutes to warm up before each of the three sessions.
- Allow 75–90 minutes for each training session. Utilize the rest periods in between sets. It’s vitally important that every set is done with 100% energy.
- Add 30–40 minutes of low-intensity cardio on off days if you're worried about gaining weight (especially around the holidays).
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How to Use Giant Sets
Consideration should be given to where and how giant sets are used in the context of the overall program. Your long-term training goals, short-term training goals, and the rest of your session's activities will all play a role.
Objectives
The type of exercise you do during your training heavily depends on your aim. Your rep ranges will be lower, and your intensity will be higher if building muscle strength is your primary training objective. If the exercises you're doing are really important, they'll likely come earlier in the program, where your huge set will be.
The sequencing of exercises may not be as important if building muscle or losing weight is your primary training objective, and you may choose to perform additional sets of 12 to 15 reps instead.
Sets, Reps, and Intensity
Your gigantic set's effect on your workout and the week as a whole will be proportional to the number of sets you perform. Your ability to complete other exercises will be greatly hampered if you perform many huge sets at the beginning of the session.
- One or two giant sets are a small quantity.
- Three to four giant sets are regarded as a medium number.
- More than four giant sets are generally regarded as a High number.
Exercise intensity and repetition count are interdependent. It's impossible to accomplish multiple sets of reps with heavy weights; thus, using lighter weights is essential for performing high reps. Consider the following when making plans:
- Aim for six reps or fewer on each exercise for increased strength.
- Six to ten repetitions are recommended for increasing muscle mass.
- Choose exercises with 11 or more repetitions to increase muscular endurance.
For the most part, larger rep schemes can be used with cable workouts than with dumbbells or barbells, regardless of the target. You may perform a few extra repetitions when working with cables.
Intra-Set Exercise Order
A giant set's effectiveness depends partly on how the individual exercises are combined. The first exercise in the giant set will have a pre-exhaustion effect on the second exercise if the same muscle group is worked in both activities. A greater amount of strain and exhaustion will be placed on that group of muscles as a result.
Depending on your goals, this may or may not be the desired outcome. This is the right approach if you want to intensify your muscle-building workouts. Pre-exhausting a muscle group can make it harder to perform a subsequent activity with proper form.
Inter-Session Exercise Order
When discussing the placement of the giant set within a workout, the term "inter-session exercise order" is sometimes used. In the grand scheme of things, the location of the giant set is less critical if bulking up or increasing stamina for weightlifting is your primary objective.
Muscle strength training places a premium on exercise order. Your giant set, like a back squat or deadlift, may instead focus on building strength. If this is the case, you should do it earlier in your workout session. You can save the giant set for the end of your workout if the exercises within it are not, like isolation exercises.
Rest and Recovery
How you schedule your giant sets (in terms of sets, reps, and intensity) will determine how much time you spend resting and recovering. The recommended rest period between giant sets for increasing muscular mass or decreasing body fat is two to three minutes.
With higher weights and a focus on building maximal strength, rest periods should be kept to no less than three to five minutes.
Related Article: The Science of Muscle Recovery: How Much Rest Between Workouts for Muscle Growth?
Giant Sets Advantages and Benefits
Following are some common advantages of incorporating giant sets into your workout routine.
An Efficient Way to Train
Giant sets are an incredibly efficient way to train. When you do multiple exercises back-to-back, you save time and get more work done in a shorter period. This means you can either do more sets per workout or just make your workouts shorter.
Giant Sets can save you time in the gym. If you're short on time or just want to get in and out as quickly as possible, Giant Sets are a great way to do that. This is especially beneficial if you’re short on time, as it allows you to get the same results in a shorter period.
They Allow You to Lift Heavier Weights
If you’re serious about building strength and power, giant sets can be a great way to do it. When you do multiple exercises back-to-back, your muscles are forced to work harder and lift heavier weights than they would if you were just doing one exercise. This helps you build strength and power more quickly than traditional training methods.
A Great Way to Shock Your Muscles Into Growth
Giant sets are also a great way to shock your muscles into growth. When you do multiple exercises back-to-back, your muscles are put under more strain than they normally would be. This helps stimulate muscle growth and can help you make huge gains in a short period.
Giant Sets can also help increase athletic performance. By fatiguing muscles more quickly, you can improve your overall sports performance.
Improve Strength and Overall Power
Giant sets are especially effective for building strength and power in your legs. Whether you want to do squats or deadlifts, giant sets are an effective way to make huge gains quickly.
Giant Sets are an excellent way to improve muscular endurance. By doing a Giant Set, you can fatigue a muscle group more quickly than if you were to perform multiple sets of the same exercise. This leads to improved strength and power in your legs, allowing you to lift heavier weights for longer periods.
Workout Variety
Giant sets are also great for adding variety to your workouts. If you’re bored of the same old exercises, giant sets can be a great way to mix them up and challenge your muscles differently.
This will help keep you motivated and ensure that you’re making progress. Giant sets are a great way to build strength and power in your legs.
Drawbacks of Giant Sets
Some drawbacks can be deal breakers for many people, so it has to be discussed. Following are the common drawbacks of using Giant Sets in your workout routine.
Monopolizing Fitness Equipment
The main drawback of giant sets is that they can be difficult in a commercial gym. To complete a giant set, you’ll need to monopolize several pieces of fitness equipment. This can be problematic in a crowded gym, as other users may be waiting to use your equipment. This can be an issue if you don’t plan, so make sure to plan your sets in advance.
Cardiovascular Fatigue
Another drawback of giant sets is that they can strain your cardiovascular system. Jumping from one exercise to another with no rest in between can cause your heart rate to skyrocket.
If you get too out of breath, you may not be able to finish your giant set, or you may not be able to lift as much weight as you would if you had taken rests. Therefore, paying attention to your body and knowing when enough is important.
Overtraining
Finally, giant sets can be a double-edged sword in overtraining. On the one hand, they are an efficient way to quickly get a lot of work done. On the other hand, they can put excessive stress on your muscles and lead to overtraining if you’re not careful.
Therefore, it’s important to be aware of your body and take rest days if necessary. It’s also important to adjust the intensity of your training depending on how you feel. Giant sets are a great way to build strength and power, but if you don’t listen to your body, they can harm your health.
Zero Breaks in Between Giant Sets
Finally, giant sets involve doing multiple exercises back-to-back with zero rest in between. This can be difficult for some people, as they may not be used to this intensity. Therefore, it’s important to ensure you are prepared for the intensity of a giant set before you attempt one.
Start with lighter weights and shorter sets, and gradually increase the difficulty over time as your body gets used to the intensity. This will help you get the most out of giant sets without putting yourself in danger.
More Intense Than Basic Sets
Giant sets are more intense than basic sets, requiring more strength and stability. If you’re doing the heavy lifting with giant sets, make sure you have a spotter or use machines that provide stability. This will help ensure your safety and prevent injuries.
FAQs
1. How are giant sets different from traditional sets?
Giant sets are typically used to target a specific muscle group, whereas traditional sets are used to target multiple muscle groups. For example, a traditional chest workout might involve bench presses, flyes, and push-ups, while a chest workout using giant sets might involve four or more exercises focusing exclusively on the chest.
2. What are the risks of giant sets?
The main risk associated with giant sets is that they can lead to overtraining if done too frequently. Additionally, because they're so intense, there's a greater risk of injury if you don't use the proper form. Therefore, listening to your body and giving yourself ample time to recover between giant set workouts is important.
3. How often should I do giant sets?
Generally, you should only do one or two giant set workouts per week per muscle group. If you're starting with this type of training, you should limit it to one giant set workout every other week. Remember to listen to your body and give yourself enough time to recover between workouts.
4. What exercises should I include in my giant sets?
There are endless possibilities when it comes to designing your own giant set of workouts. However, it's important to make sure you choose exercises that complement each other and that target the same muscle group.
For example, if you're doing a chest giant set, you might include the bench press, flyes, push-ups, and dips. When selecting your exercises, it's also important to consider which will allow you to use the heaviest weights. This will help ensure you get the most out of your workout.
The Bottom Line
If you're looking for a quick, effective way to make huge gains in muscle mass and strength, then giant sets are your workout routine. Giant sets are a great way to get your heart rate up and burn fat, and they can be easily incorporated into any workout routine. Give giant sets a try today and see how they can help you reach your fitness goals!
