Finishing with High-Rep Pump Sets
Weight-training Question:
Say on a day when i do arms, would it be such a bad thing to drop and hit 2 sets of say pushups, each set until failure? To fully exhaust my tri’s ? Although i can do alot of pushups, so i would end up doing way over 10, but would this high rep last chance exhaustion really help out or would it do more damage?
Answer:
Try doing push-ups at the end for a few weeks. Then resume ‘normal’ training after.
One study showed that ending an exercise (they used squats) with a set of 20 caused more progress to be made than not doing so. One study is nothing to hang your hat on, but should make you think a bit.
Sure, this would tax your recovery a bit, but it may still be beneficial (as was shown in the study).
I often do a couple high reps sets for a given body part at my workout – immediately followed by intensely stretching that body part. Over time this may (and I think does) help to stretch the fascia surrounding the muscle, allowing the muscle to expand a bit.
Best,
Dr Clay
I think adding this to your workout routines can be a great intensity shift and will do more good than anything else, because the body won’t be expecting it.
That change of intensity works great for building muscle, as long as you don’t do it too often and are offering the body different types of challenges, you should be just fine.
I occasionally introduce random changes to my routines if it feels right. This intuitive approach can be very beneficial. Good Luck!