Completing sets

[Jabcor]

Hey all

I'm curious what the way to go about this is. Unfortunately, I do not have anyone to spot for me, so I am cautious when I go up in weight. I don't go up much, but I'm not totally sure I'm going about my sets the best way.

Lets take bench press for example, because this is what I run into this problem the most with. When I go up in weight, I seem to have a hard time completing the last set. What I am wondering is, would it be best to:

A. Just stop once I reach this point.
B. Reduce the weight so that I can complete my reps/sets
C. Reduce the weight prior to the set that I know I'm going to have trouble with.
or
D. Other (please explain)

I know that I'm seeing improvements, but my upper body strength has always been my biggest challenge. I want to know that I am doing it as efficiently and as safely as I can under my current circumstances.

Thanks!

[Prophet]

They are all good options. B anc C are both the best ones IMO. It depends on what your goals are. If you want to increase max strength, then I would not drop the last set all together. What I do (when I dont have a spotter(rare)), is "c". I lower the workload before my final "work set" so I dont drop the weights on myself haha.

If youre more interested in conditioning or weightloss, B would probabaly be a better option.

[Shortfuse]

i often have the same issue as well. Generally during the last set, i use the weight i plan to use but only do the maximum number of reps without killing myself :p. Thats usually enough at this point in my weight training, allthough i wish i could push out more with a spotter.

[Mr Punch]

If youre more interested in conditioning or weightloss, B would probabaly be a better option.I'm definitely no expert at weights, but failure is something I know a bit about! :D

I don't think it's just for conditioning or weight-loss regimes.

The way I see it is, at the kind of weight it takes to make your body fail to lift, apart from the actual physical limitation of your muscles, you are actually sending a lot of messages through your nervous system advising your body not to atempt to push that one because it will cause damage to your tissue. In the literature, lot of lifters seem to talk about 'burning out' or feeling 'fried' after an intense workout especially involving failure. This is a result of your central and peripheral nervous system screaming out!

So, after failure, I always like to do what's sometimes called a drop-off set: drop off to a weight you're more comfortable at (usually the last increment before your failure should do it, but that depends on how little you went up) or more importantly, you're confident you can complete, and complete the reps you'd set yourself to do.

This is good psychologically (to finish on a note of completion rather than on a note of failure) and good for your nervous system (to get it back in working order after the stress of failure).

[Prophet]

I'm definitely no expert at weights, but failure is something I know a bit about! :D

I don't think it's just for conditioning or weight-loss regimes.

The way I see it is, at the kind of weight it takes to make your body fail to lift, apart from the actual physical limitation of your muscles, you are actually sending a lot of messages through your nervous system advising your body not to atempt to push that one because it will cause damage to your tissue. In the literature, lot of lifters seem to talk about 'burning out' or feeling 'fried' after an intense workout especially involving failure. This is a result of your central and peripheral nervous system screaming out!

So, after failure, I always like to do what's sometimes called a drop-off set: drop off to a weight you're more comfortable at (usually the last increment before your failure should do it, but that depends on how little you went up) or more importantly, you're confident you can complete, and complete the reps you'd set yourself to do.

This is good psychologically (to finish on a note of completion rather than on a note of failure) and good for your nervous system (to get it back in working order after the stress of failure).

All well and good, but I prefer to never (or vary rarely) go to failure, if only for the increased recovery times, and as a result, more frequent training sessions.

[Mr Punch]

All well and good, but I prefer to never (or vary rarely) go to failure, if only for the increased recovery times, and as a result, more frequent training sessions.Sure, my aim isn't ever to actually go till failure: just to do a higher weight than the last time. But then, I'm still pretty new to this malarkey so I'm still making my way up to the next big plateau.

Plus the original poster was asking what to do if he couldn't complete a set... which is failure.

[bwhite55]

well, what i do w/o a spotter(i rarely have a spotter, so i can't get the gains i want to as often as i'd like.) is i do my working sets w/ lets say flat bench. then i'll go to incline and decline or visa versa....i always mix it up. then i go to dumbells, a machine, or the smith press....dumbells is still a risky one cuz a slip in the dumbell press can mean a torn shoulder, so i normally go smith or machine, normally a smith, and i'll load it up w/ a weight, and i'll do that, and when i can't do any more, cuz of the smith spinny bar thingy, i just rack the weight when i can. or if i'm at home, i just leave the collars off and work out so i can dump my weights. i don't recommend doing this if you aren't advanced cuz it can be dangerous....and i don't do it at the gym cuz of the danger level of bystanders. and some people call it stupid, but oh well, i love doing as heavy and hard as possible, just cuz i've got the powerlifter genetics and mentality.

[Prophet]

well, what i do w/o a spotter(i rarely have a spotter, so i can't get the gains i want to as often as i'd like.) is i do my working sets w/ lets say flat bench. then i'll go to incline and decline or visa versa....i always mix it up. then i go to dumbells, a machine, or the smith press....dumbells is still a risky one cuz a slip in the dumbell press can mean a torn shoulder, so i normally go smith or machine, normally a smith, and i'll load it up w/ a weight, and i'll do that, and when i can't do any more, cuz of the smith spinny bar thingy, i just rack the weight when i can. or if i'm at home, i just leave the collars off and work out so i can dump my weights. i don't recommend doing this if you aren't advanced cuz it can be dangerous....and i don't do it at the gym cuz of the danger level of bystanders. and some people call it stupid, but oh well, i love doing as heavy and hard as possible, just cuz i've got the powerlifter genetics and mentality.

Right on, :topic: here, but how many people have done the "roll the barbell down off them from a failed bench with no spotter"

*raises hand :p

[bwhite55]

hahaha, my first time was in hs when i got 200 stuck on my chest at home and didn't know what to do so my mom helped me roll it down...


a lesson i will never forget...haha

[Mr Punch]

Raises hand... done that.

hahaha, my first time was in hs when i got 200 stuck on my chest at home and didn't know what to do so my mom helped me roll it down...


a lesson i will never forget...hahaHaha, she really has got the powerlifting genetics and mentality too then eh?!

[Ad McG]

Right on, :topic: here, but how many people have done the "roll the barbell down off them from a failed bench with no spotter"

*raises hand :p

*Raises hand too*

Sometimes that last one just surprises you :D

[Orangeseger]

Happened to me too. But sometimes I'll be stubborn and hold the darn thing until I recover enough to push it back up.

That's why I like the machines...

[Trick Nasty]

I like to let one side of the bar go so the weights slide off it, then just say I missed the rack. ;)

[bwhite55]

lol trick nasty....i do that. and yes, she's got the aggressive mentality of a powerlifter, and she's really strong for a 52 year old w/ a bad hip....LOL. i get my powerlifting abilities and muscle type/body frame from my father. he was a powerlifter when he was young and all of his brothers had the same beastly/scary genetics....unfortunately, it comes naturally w/ a slower metabolism so i gotta do alot more cardio than most people and watch my diet a lot more than someobdy w/ an endomorphic frame.

[gj5940]

Right on, :topic: here, but how many people have done the "roll the barbell down off them from a failed bench with no spotter"

*raises hand :p


Guilty of that one... too many times lol :topic:

[Jabcor]

I've come close to that and hope I don't have to ever roll it off me. My bench has several notches to place the bar on if I feel like I'm getting to that point. I have had to squirm my way out from under the bar when I had to put it on the last notch however.

[gj5940]

the best thing to do is form failure. When you feel like your gonna struggle on the next rep and you can no longer maintain strict form then stop as to continue will be bad for your health (bar on chest,throat type of thing) lol

[NaughtyKnight]

Hey all

I'm curious what the way to go about this is. Unfortunately, I do not have anyone to spot for me, so I am cautious when I go up in weight. I don't go up much, but I'm not totally sure I'm going about my sets the best way.

Lets take bench press for example, because this is what I run into this problem the most with. When I go up in weight, I seem to have a hard time completing the last set. What I am wondering is, would it be best to:

A. Just stop once I reach this point.
B. Reduce the weight so that I can complete my reps/sets
C. Reduce the weight prior to the set that I know I'm going to have trouble with.
or
D. Other (please explain)

I know that I'm seeing improvements, but my upper body strength has always been my biggest challenge. I want to know that I am doing it as efficiently and as safely as I can under my current circumstances.

Thanks!

Stop when you reach the point where you cant physically raise the bar anymore. Once you complete the target amount of reps, raise the weight and repeat.

[bwhite55]

the best thing to do is form failure. When you feel like your gonna struggle on the next rep and you can no longer maintain strict form then stop as to continue will be bad for your health (bar on chest,throat type of thing) lol

i can see how bar on throat can be bad for your health.

[Jabcor]

Really? I was told that was the best way to strengthen your throat muscle. ;)