'Supersets', i believe

[Sharky]

When i go to the gym and do a load of sets of... say... bicep curls...

whats the difference in overall development/stength if i do

a) light warm up then go for heavest weight i can lift to do like 8 reps. then take off a couple of kg, then do another set. this would be done till i done like 7-10 sets and i end up struggling with just the bar by the end of it! * (see below)

b) sometimes i start with just hte bar, then add a couple of kg, basically (a) reversed. i don't do this much.

c) 12 x 8 x 4. This was recommened to me by a friend. it's only 3 sets, but you do 12 reps of a pretty heavy weight, 8 reps with heavier weight, then 4 reps of heaviest you can do.

d) finally what about doing just a 'medium' kinda weight, 8-10 reps, then slowly building up to you maximum (as opposed to starting with just the bar).

* = i usually do this (a) for most things. that way i get to gauge what my max lift is and also work the muscle like hell.

so, what's the real difference in these strategies? i know there are loads more i have read lots about them in my books.

cheers

[SevenStar]

If I had to choose between those, I'd choose C, as it's closer to what you need for strength development.

If I was trying to gain size, I would do A

I wouldn't worry about B or D.

I would modify them both some though. I'll write more in a bit.

[Ford Prefect]

A) These are called Strip Sets They are great for increasing work volume for a work out. Bodybuilders like Arnold usually picked one exercise/body part a week to do strip sets on to really shock that muscle into adaption. (strength/hypertrophy)

B) Never really heard of anybody doing this. It would be good to completely fatigue the body part, but you couldn't get the same volume as with strip sets.

C) Sounds like a standard strength/hypertrophy pyramid. Other pyramids include 15-12-10-8, 5-4-3-2-1 etc. Depending on the rep range and rest, they focus on strength, hypertrophy, or both.

D) That's the a-typical bodybuilder workout. 3 sets of 8-10. Good for hypertrophy in general.

[ElPietro]

I prefer to use the heaviest weight I can in my first set, for the fewest reps. Then I will decrease the weight and increase the reps in the following sets. I focus this more on compounds though...I could care less about bicep curls, such an insignificant muscle group compared to most others.