I F**KING LOVE SUPERSETS AND GIANT SETS

Holy shit I LOVE supersets and giant sets as hypertrophy tools for non-bodybuilding athletes!!

Athletes who compete in non-bodybuilding sports like a field sport, weightlifting, martial arts etc, need to gain muscle mass in a shorter time frame so they can dedicate more resources to either training for their actual sport or recovering. The best, and most simple, way to do this is with supersets and giant sets.

Supersets

What is a superset? Get two exercises, and do them alternating with shorter rest periods between each set. For example, you do one set of exercise 1, rest 1 minute, then 1 set of exercise 2, rest for another minute, and repeat for 3-4 rounds. The best type of supersets (and the only ones I recommend) are antagonist supersets. For the purposes of simplicity, and 'antagonist' muscle is one that stretches whilst another contracts. For example, the antagonist muscle for the biceps is the triceps, since when you curl (or flex) the biceps, the triceps muscles are extended/lengthening. Here are all of the superset variations I use:

Upper body:

1. Horizontal Press + Horizontal Pull: ie. bench press + barbell row
2. Vertical Press + Vertical Pull: ie. strict press + pullups
3. Biceps + Triceps: ie. barbell curl + skullcrushers
4. Upper back + Side Delts: ie. Rear delt fly + Lu Raise

Lower body:

1. Quads + Hamstrings: ie. split squats + RDLs
2. Core + Hips: ie. weighted situp + hip adduction
3. Calves + Tibialis: ie. standing calf raise + tibialis raise

With only a handful of supersets, you are able to get a total body workout! Why are antagonist supersets the best? Because each exercise does not greatly fatigue the other. Since horizontal presses use completely different muscles to horizontal pulls, we can do these 2 exercises back to back without massively reducing performance in either. 

Giant Sets

Giant sets are similar to supersets, but are usually 3 exercises done back-to-back. Also, giant sets usually target a single limb, whereas supersets train 2 opposing limbs. Some of the giant sets I use are:

1. Shoulder giant set: front raise + lateral raise + rear delt fly
2. Calf giant set: Standing calf raise + seated calf raise + tibialis raise
3. Core giant set: Russian twists + V ups + Side Planks

Giant sets are good since they target the multiple functions of a single muscle group/limb. For example, when people talk of 'core' training, they always think of some spine flexion exercises like situps or leg raises. However, the 'core' is also responsible for isometric trunk stability and trunk rotations. By doing the giant set mentioned above, we can target all of these functions in a short amount of time. With giant sets, the rest between each individual exercise should also be short (just like in supersets), usually 1-2 minutes. 

Top 3 Most USELESS variations of the Snatch for Weightlifters!

I made a post recently of the top 3 most useful snatch variations for weightlifters which I could comfortably program for any of my lifters. However, there are other snatch variations which would only benefit a fringe minority of lifters, and hence for most, they are utterly useless. So although these lifts CAN have some use, they are likely not very useful for YOU. In no particular order:

1. High Hang Snatch

The high hang snatch really only works on the 3rd pull. Plus, it does not train the acceleration of the barbell between the 1st and 3rd pulls. Although people may use it for back strength, I think the low hang snatch is better in every scenario. 

2. Muscle Snatch

The muscle snatch really doesn't train anything useful for the snatch. If an athlete really had problems with overhead strength then they should be doing more snatch balances and overhead squats, not muscle snatches. Plus, many do not even know how to muscle snatch properly and end up dropping their elbows during the 'press'. Although it may be useful as a technique primer, there are other movements that work much better as primers like tall snatches or no hookgrip no contact variants.

3. Snatch off Blocks

The snatch of low/high blocks completely neglects the first pull. However, the first pull is literally the most important (or at least, one of) aspects of the snatch. Perhaps low block snatches may be useful in targeting the second pull, but high block snatches are a complete waste. Plus, most athletes don't even have access to blocks, so setting up snatches from blocks can be tedious, inconvenient, and potentially dangerous.

Active Recovery is STRAIGHT BS! I DEMAND you REST on REST DAYS!!!

I used to think that active recovery on rest days was a good idea. I was dead wrong.

I'll keep it simple. This study shows that active recovery is total BS. Even just thinking about it logically, exercise is only building up fatigue, and fundamentally, the best way to rest the body is literally to REST. 

This means that REST days should not be composed of micro-workouts OR cardio sessions (both of which some consider 'active' recovery). These rest-day sessions have NOT been shown to increase recovery speed or performance in trained athletes, and could potentially INCREASE the body's fatigue!!

In my opinion, the ONLY acceptable forms of 'training' on recovery days are (1) mobility work and (2) rehab work. Since both of these need to be done at fairly high volumes to actually be effective, it is acceptable to do a bit of this work even during rest days. Plus, most mobility and prehab/rehab work won't disrupt homeostasis as much as a 30 minute Zone 2 cardio session will. 

I'm not sure where the idea of doing zone 2 work/"active recovery workouts" on rest days came from. The reality is, if you are training hard enough, you SHOULD be LOOKING FORWARD to your rest days! I think this notion that rest days must involve exercise just came from bored gymcels who wanted to spend more time in the gym. As long as you don't sit inside all day, your daily movement (ie. NEAT) like walking to work, working, moving around the house, doing chores etc. will be more than enough to stimulate your body whilst allowing for full recovery. If you literally have a job where you do not move for hours on end, 10-20 minutes of walking (zone 1) could help.

So how many rest days should you have? Like most questions, this depends. However, for all athletes I train, they usually have 1 or 2 rest days. According to the literature, event experienced athletes need at least 1 full day of rest per week. However, for intermediate athletes or those in weightlifting, I prefer 2 full days of rest, and even 3! But 1 rest day is a sure minimum.

 

Top 3 MOST Helpful Variations of the Snatch for Weightlifters

When you look at free, cookie-cutter lifting programs, it can be easy to get confused with the endless variations of lifts that coaches implement. In reality, however, an athlete's technical issues can be easily addressed with only a handful of variations of the olympic lifts. Here are the top 3 most helpful variations of the snatch that likely have a place in the programs of most olympic weightlifters (in no order):

Lift	What does it do?	Which athletes is it for?
Low Hang Snatch	encourages athletes to maintain a constant back angle in the first and second pull encourages the maintenance of a rigid upper back, neck and head position	Athletes who cannot stay over the bar Athletes who have an inconsistent 1st/2nd pull Athletes with weak pulls/backs
Pause Snatch	Encouraged the hamstrings to stay "loaded" during the first pull Ensures the lats are tucked hard and the bar is kept as close as possible to the body Ensures the back is in a safe and strong position	Athletes who cannot stay over the bar Athletes who tend to contact the bar too early (ie. their hips shoot forward too early)
No Foot Snatch	Forces the athlete to "connect" with the bar during the second pull and the finish, allowing for a more proper overhead position	Athletes who struggle with triple extension (or finish vertically) Athletes who tend to jump forward/backwards after extension Athletes who bump the bar excessively

Honorable Mention: Snatch + Overhead Squat complexes

Yes these are good for beginning lifters. Anything like a snatch balance, snatch + OHS or snatch push press + OHS is good for getting used to the bottom position of the snatch. However, the value of these complexes diminishes as lifters get more experienced and more comfortable with the snatch, in which case the aforementioned variations become more useful.