How to use pyramid sets to build strength and spice up your workouts

How to use pyramid sets to build strength and spice up your workouts

No matter how obsessed you are with strength training, there's a good chance your fitness routine will feel like a chore at some point. An easy way to boost your mood, put fun back into your workouts, and build muscle while you're at it? Bring pyramid sets into play.

To help you out, Shape enlisted a fitness expert to share the key features and benefits of pyramid sets. She also shares tips on how to incorporate pyramid workouts into your routine to break out of your fitness rut.

What are pyramid sets?

Simply put, pyramid sets are a unique way to structure your strength training and challenge your muscles with different loads and rep ranges. You start by performing a large number of repetitions of a specific exercise with a light weight. On your next set, reduce the number of reps and increase the weight you use, then continue that process with each set you tackle, says Tina Tang, an NCSF-certified personal trainer and strength coach in Jersey City, New Jersey. Take a look at the following example which may help explain further:

Example of a bent row pyramid

• Satz 1: 15 Wiederholungen mit einem 10-Pfund-Gewicht
• Satz 2: 10 Wiederholungen mit 15-Pfund-Gewichten
• Satz 3: 5 Wiederholungen mit 20-Pfund-Gewichten

But that's not the only way to use the technology. You can also do reverse pyramid sets, where you start your workout by doing a few reps of an exercise with a heavy weight, then lower the load and increase the reps with each subsequent set, says Tang. Or you can use both the regular pyramid and inverted pyramid techniques in one set, known as a triangular pyramid set: You start with a light weight and a high number of reps and work your way up to a heavy weight and a low number of reps, then reduce the weight and increase the reps again.

When to use light and heavy weights during your lifting sessions

How much weight you add or remove with each set depends in part on the total number of sets you want to complete, says Tang. For example, if you do five sets of shoulder presses, you'll likely make smaller increases in load with each round than if you only did three sets of the exercise, she explains. That said, the equipment you have on hand also plays a role, as you may not be able to consistently increase or decrease your weight by, say, exactly five pounds for each set, she adds. TL;DR: There is no “right” way to adjust your load during pyramid training; it just depends on the weight options available to you and your goals.

The benefits of pyramid sets

Not sure if pyramid sets are worth trying? Consider the following key benefits that the strength training technique has to offer to your health and fitness.

Brings variety to your strength training

Of all the potential benefits pyramid sets have to offer, their ability to spice up your workout is one of the most notable, says Tang. "In terms of strength training, there are only so many ways to do things and only so many movements your body can do, and I think that's where these different protocols, like pyramid sets, come into play," she explains. “It helps provide variety for people who do strength training often and don’t want to get bored.”

Supports muscle growth

In addition to refreshing your workout, mixing pyramid sets into your workout routine can help promote hypertrophy (aka muscle growth), says Tang. In fact, a small, eight-week study found that pyramid sets are an effective strategy for improving muscle strength and growth.

The reason for these improvements is twofold. For one thing, high-intensity resistance training creates small muscle tears that, when repaired properly, ultimately lead to muscle growth, research shows. Additionally, using pyramid sets during resistance training helps increase overall training volume, according to an article published in the Health & Fitness Journal of the American College of Sports Medicine. ICYDK, training volume refers to the amount of physical work performed in a single training session or throughout an entire training program. It is calculated by taking into account the weight used in each set, the number of repetitions performed and the total number of sets in a workout, according to information published by the American Council on Exercise (ACE). The good news: As training volume increases, muscle strength and hypertrophy also increase—as long as you recover properly between workouts, according to Health & Fitness Journal.

Prepares your muscles for your workout

By starting your strength training with lighter weights and gradually increasing the load during traditional pyramid sets, you'll gradually warm up your muscles so they're ready to handle the heavier movements that come, says Tang. In this case, the weight you use won't feel as shocking to your body and mind as if you started with a heavy weight, she explains. However, if you're starting with an ultra-heavy weight, you may need to warm up thoroughly beforehand to reduce your risk of injury and maximize your performance, research shows.

Who Should Do Pyramid Sets?

Given their potential benefits, pyramid sets can be incorporated into anyone's workout routine, even beginners who want to experiment with different rep ranges and weights, says Tang. "It's an option for everyone," she adds. "...[It's] not just a physical workout, but becomes a mental workout. [With triangle pyramids specifically,] you think, 'What, I just got off the pyramid and now I have to get back up?!'"

However, pyramid workouts don't have to be a key component of your workout routine. "It's not necessary to do them frequently," says Tang. "Whatever goals you have for your strength training or workout, pyramid sets are not necessary to achieve them." Instead, you should focus on the basics of strength training (remember: choose weights just heavy enough to complete 10 reps) and think of pyramid sets as something you sprinkle into your workout every now and then to add some tension, she suggests. This is especially true for people who focus on powerlifting and testing their one-rep maximum, as pyramid sets are too tiring to perform regularly, says Tang.

How to add pyramid sets to your strength training routine

Now if you're convinced to give pyramid workouts a chance, steal these ideas on how to effectively add them to your training plan.

Be strategic about your rest breaks

Before you give pyramid workouts a try, you first need to know how much downtime you should plan into your workout session. There is no set-in-stone recommended rest time between sets of pyramids, so you should consider your goals and the purpose of the workout when deciding how long to take a breather. If you're doing pyramid sets of a single exercise as a workout finisher, try to keep your rest between rounds to a minimum to keep the intensity high, suggests Tang. “The benefit of not resting or resting a little is on the metabolic side, where your heart rate increases,” she explains. “It’s almost like doing a sprint, but with weights.”

However, if you're hoping to make gains in the muscle department, aim to take a minute-long breather between sets. “A rest much longer than 60 seconds would compromise the metabolic stress aspect of training and reduce the potential for muscle growth, but a rest of less than 60 seconds does not allow enough recovery for the muscle to perform well in the next set,” Sabrena Jo, the senior director of science and research at ACE, told Shape.

Use them to create entire workouts

Consider resistance training consisting entirely of pyramid sets once a week or month, suggests Tang. Choose three to five of your favorite exercises—either upper, lower, or full-body exercises—and decide whether you want to do pyramid, inverted pyramid, or triangle pyramid sets. Then do five sets of each exercise, she suggests. For example, if you're doing a triangle pyramid, your goal reps might be 10 for set one, eight for set two, six for set three, eight for set four, and 10 for set five, increasing and decreasing your weight as necessary, she says.

Try them for a killer finisher

If you want to burn out a specific muscle group at the end of your strength training, use pyramid sets to get the job done. Pick an exercise — say, the glute kickback — and perform three consecutive sets of the movement, increasing from five to 10 and then to 15 reps as you reduce the weight, suggests Tang. This finisher will test your muscular endurance, get your heart rate up, and get your booty shaking—in a good way, of course.