All About Weight Lifting Sets

What is a Set?

In its simplest form a set is a number of repetitions performed doing a single exercise, until the muscle being worked reaches the point of failure.

For example, if you were doing a set of bicep curls you might raise and lower the weight 10 times, at which point your muscle would fatigue and you would no longer be able to lift the weight. This is one set.

How Many Sets do I do?

The answer to this question depends on how fit you are and which muscle the exercise is working. Here are some general rules:

• Perform 1 light warm up set first, using a weight about half as much as you could lift. Do not perform this set to failure, but instead do 15-20 repetitions.
• For smaller muscles, such as those on your shoulders and arms, I recommend 3 total sets per exercise.
• For larger muscles, such as your chest, back, or leg muscles, I recommend 3-5 total sets per exercise.
• If you're just starting out and your fitness level is low, you will want to do only one or two sets per exercise and gradually work your way up. Otherwise you might not only get sore, but injured to boot.

How Long Do I Rest Between Sets?

The idea here is that you want to give your muscle a chance to recuperate before throwing another set at it. You want to be able to do nearly the same number of repetitions as in the previous set, if you keep the weight the same. Expect to lose a couple repetitions per set if you're exercising the muscle to the point of failure. Here are some general guidelines for determining how long to rest:

• Smaller muscles tend to recuperate more quickly than larger ones.
• For higher repetition sets (those that contain 8+ repetitions), 30-60 seconds of rest between sets is about right.
• For lower repetition sets (those that use heavier weights and contain less than 8 repetitions) 90 seconds may be more appropriate.
• Use trial and error to find out what works best. Typically, when your heart rate begins to slow down near your resting rate, it's time to do another set.

What are Super Sets?

A superset is a set of one exercise immediately followed by a set of another exercise. The exercises can work either the same muscle or opposing muscles (such as biceps and triceps).

Super sets and other advanced methods of lifting weights are discussed in more detail on my advanced weight lifting methods page.

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