No matter how committed you are to strength training, there's a good chance that, eventually, your workouts will start to feel like a senseless chore. What is a simple way to improve your mood, make working out fun again, and build muscle simultaneously?
Play with some pyramid workouts!
In this article, we'll go over what a pyramid workout is, some key features and benefits, and a quick bench press pyramid workout. Pyramid exercises are a unique way to organize your strength-training sessions and put your muscles through different loads and repetition ranges.
You'll start by doing a lot of repetitions of one exercise with a lightweight. Then you'll lower the rep range on your subsequent set, increase the weight you're using, and do so for the next sets.
You can also do reverse pyramid sets, which involve beginning your workout with a few repetitions of an exercise with a heavy weight, then decreasing the load and increasing the reps with each additional set.
Alternatively, you can perform a triangle pyramid set, combining the regular and reverse pyramid exercises. This is where you start with a lightweight and a high number of reps, progress to a heavyweight and a low number of reps, then reduce the weight and increase the number of reps once more.
Pyramid training is quite time-efficient, depending on the number of sets you choose to perform during a workout.
When you perform pyramid strength exercises, your muscles work in different ways. Slow muscle fibres are primarily activated, giving your muscles an endurance workout.
The pyramid sequence is effective because the first set functions as a warm-up, increasing blood flow to your muscles while working on muscular endurance. As you increase your weight, your muscles heat up and prepare to meet the increased challenge of heavier weight.
It also works nicely if you've hit a plateau or are tired of lifting the same 8 to 12 reps every set. Switching up your routine boosts motivation and provides a new challenge.
If you've noticed your progress slowing, a pyramid workout is a great way to shock your muscles with a new stimulus to promote growth and development.As previously stated, there are three types of pyramid sets: standard, reverse, and full pyramid, also known as the triangle pyramid. This method requires more sets due to the increase and decrease of weights.
The barbell bench press is deemed one of the best ways to develop upper-body strength and size. We'll incorporate this into the triangle pyramid workout.
- Mighty Grip Plates Set of 245 lb Plates - Pairs of 2.5s, 5s, 10s, 25s, 35s, and 45lb
- Onyx Powerlifting Cerakote Bar
- Power Rack 5.1 – Light Commercial
- Powerlifting Flat Bench
- Load up the bar with your lightest weight plate on each sleeve.
- Do five reps on every set until you're out of weights or you have reached five rep max
- Select a different weight for each set. It should be heavy enough that you will reach failure towards each set's end.
- Once you've reached the maximum ascending weight, reduce the weight on the way back down
- AMRAP (As Many Reps As Possible) at each weight as you descend
Pyramid workouts can be done with any compound or isolated exercise as long as you vary the weight used for each set. Pyramid workouts can add a ton of volume to your fitness regime, and volume is one of the most important factors you need to grow.
If you're stuck at a plateau or simply aren't getting the results you want in the gym, use the pyramid methods to optimize your training.
Start using this technique right away, and your results will undoubtedly improve.
