S&H breakdowns for maximum 2 sets

D

dpendleton

Active Member
[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON Oct-12-01 AT 01:50PM (Est)[/font][p]For those of you who might not have a full hour to workout and want to know how long each S&H tape would be if you only performed 2 sets where Cathe does 3, here's the breakdown:

S&H CHEST & BACK
Warm-Up 3min
Chest 18min (orig 26.5min)
Back 11.5min (orig 18min)
Supermans 3min
Planks 5min
Stretch 2min
TOTAL: 42.5min (orig 57.5min)

S&H LEGS AND SHOULDERS
Warm-Up 3.5 min
Legs 24min (orig 30min)
Shoulders 20.5min (orig 31min)
Stretch 2 min
TOTAL: 50min (orig 66.5min)

S&H TRICEPS & BICEPS
Warm-Up 2.5 min
Triceps 15.5min (orig 23min)
Biceps 16min (orig 24min)
Abs 7.5 min
Stretch 3 min
TOTAL: 45min (orig 60min)

I hope these numbers encourage folks to do S&H more often - I was definitely able to lift heavier than usual when I only did 2 sets. What an awesome workout series!

Dawn P.
 
Hi Mary! This all depends on how your body responds to weight training. For many, it will be fine using the two sets (but I would not suggest doing less than two sets for best benefits)while for others, they may find that they need the third set. Some may even find that they can rotate between doing one week of two sets and one week of three sets. See what works for you.
 
Thanks so much Cathe. You are always so helpful and what you said about 2 sets one week and 3 sets the next is a great option. There are mornings when my time is getting short and my last couple of sets, I might only 2 sets to make it all the way through. I figure 2 is better than none. I still like what you said on Ask Cathe forum about splitting the workouts, one in the morning and one at night without losing benefits and being able to get in the full 3 sets that way. Thanks again Mary

http://www.theunholytrinity.org/cracks_smileys/otn/animals/ride.gif http://www.theunholytrinity.org/cracks_smileys/otn/animals/ride.gif
 
Theory about 2 sets

Mary,

I think Cathe has great advice!

I do two sets based upon a university study last year that showed that 95% of strength gains were gained in the first two sets of heavy weightlifting. It wasn't a huge study, so I'm always interested in hearing if there is more research in this area. But if I only have time to complete 2 sets, it's good to know that I should get some pretty good results, and only lose 5% of the results I could achieve with 3..

I also believe to some extent the theory of HIT (high-intensity training) that says if you do fewer sets you can lift heavier, and therefore you should gain more muscle. If you want to learn more about HIT, you can read up on it over at www.cyberpump.com - here's a summary:
http://www.cyberpump.com/faqs/1.html

Good luck!
Dawn P.
 
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