Supersets

I’m not generally someone who likes to move outside of my comfort zone. For example, when it comes to trying new foods, I would rather not. However, when it comes to trying new things in the gym, I am ALL for it. Whether it’s a new exercise, machine, combination of sets, I embrace the opportunity to grow.

Feeling bold, I decided to construct my whole leg day routine around supersets. I wasn’t very familiar with supersets, just that they entail 2-3 exercises done continuously without a break in between. I decided to do a little bit of research and found out the following about supersets:

• 2 exercises back to back with no rest period OR
• 2 exercises that target opposite muscle groups (like chest+back or quads+hamstrings)

I was even more humbled when I found out that supersets go even further into things like compound sets: exercises that are different but target the same muscles. For example, hamstring curls and RDLs (Romanian deadlifts) would be two exercises that could make up a compound set.

Armed with this new knowledge, I took on the task of reconstructing my current leg day routine to truly embody this superset aspect:

In my very modest life and experience of lifting, I admit that this was the hardest but also the best workout I had ever done. I prefer not to be “that person” that is like “I couldn’t walk up the stairs… that’s how bad my legs hurt” but it is true. It took me longer than usual to get back to the dorms and they are right across the gym! Not to mention, the superset workout took 2.5 hours when my usual leg days take around 1.5. My legs (and my whole body for that matter) were not used to that much strain for an extended period of time. Try explaining that to the very, very impatient guys that were walking behind me on the stairs.

Reflecting back on the moment, I just want to crawl into a hole and not come out. Imagine a sleep-deprived, orange-legged madwoman (because my leggings are orange) walking/running around the White building trying to understand how she could be so stupid to superset leg day. It must have been a show for everyone that was around me because if it wasn’t the manic pacing, it was laying on the floor, contemplating my decision. Although, the pacing did relieve some of the pain in my legs, I admit I looked pretty funny from the side.

It was nice to think about the comic session I had, however I learned  A LOT about myself, working out, and common sense for leg day. First off, NEVER, EVER do leg day on four hours of sleep. That is, and was, suicide. Lack of sleep means your muscles from the previous day’s excursions and maybe workouts have not recovered. Thus, the next day was very, very difficult to get through. The second thing I realized was that when supersets are done, it is best to start with a lower weight than if the exercise was done on its own. Since supersetting two exercises is pretty taxing on the muscles, using a lighter dumbbell or plate for a particular movement helps with getting through the set effectively. This goes back to the most important rule in fitness (in my humble opinion): QUALITY OVER QUANTITY.  Five good squats at 135 pounds are better than 10 iffy squats at 150 pounds. The last (and maybe one of the more important) takeaways from this session is simple: never forget your headphones to the gym. Just thinking about how awesome it would have been to be blasting “Ice Ice Baby” and “It’s Raining Men” would have made the session ultimately 10 times better that it already was. Oh well, you learn as you go…