What Are Pyramid Set and Should You Do Them?

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Pyramid sets is one of the many training strategies used to maximize muscle growth. But what exactly is it? And is there any scientific research or evidence that shows that it's actually worth it? In this video, we'll cover some key points about pyramid sets and whether they are worth adding to your own training program!
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Any information in these videos should not be taken as personal healthcare advice. If you have questions about your health, please speak directly to your personal healthcare professional. #cardio #gains #lifting

[VTFFTW]

Pyramid sets have such a bad connotation; I prefer to call them multi-layered-muscle sets, or mlm sets for short

[xJHNx]

By far my favourite way to train is reverse pyramid!! Warm up to a top set then 3 sets all to failure 5, 10, 20 reps

[Davide]

4-6 reps at 90% 1rm?
in which universe?!?

[scottpope]

Same here. I train both sides of the pyramid, and have been getting in some great workouts lately. I like hitting a different weight every set and changing the reps accordingly. After 50 years of lifting, variety has become increasingly important

[jeffgoode]

The mouth animations are so good.
Also, I never felt like I was getting anything out of pyramids, so I'm glad you made this video.

[CaptainCorobo]

I do think there are some strength gains to be made tho. You have to lift heavy to get stronger. I generally start with a warm up set, then a heavy set of about 4-5 reps, then 2 sets in the 8-10 rep range. It combines the neuro stimulus needed for strength increase aswell as having sufficient volume for hypertrophy

[colaramme]

I’ve found a similar method stimulates the most growth in myself. I start with the heaviest amount I can do, go nearly or to failure, drop it to a lower increment immediately or within about 30 seconds, repeat until it’s a weight that isn’t heavy enough for me to fail on. It saves a ton of time in my sets with my busy schedule, has gotten me plenty of volume-related PRs, and allows me to feel high levels of exertion for way longer than I otherwise could with just one weight increment.

[kaoskatana]

I am actually fascinated with this topic as it is my primary training method. I do the ascending pyramid (Cresent pyramid) and I have to tell you guys, I have gotten some serious gains from it and it works. Provided you keep notes and track that your training volume is always increasing. And combined with the right supplementation, I can tell you from experience that it actually works for maximal gains. 💪😁❤

[MarcelNL]

But some people say you must let go of 12 reps and get less reps with higher weights?
I have been doing this piramid stuff without even knowing it was a thing, lol!

[Voidward]

I use pyramids to warm up to a top set while leaving reps in reserve, hit failure on the top set and essentially do drop sets to failure all the way down.

Most of my volume will end up being multiple sets of 1 step down from the top set, until set to set volume starts to drop.

I've liked the results for bench pressing with this so far. Most of my volume is still where it's should be, it lets me test new PRs regularly and I can go beyond failure relative to normal sets.

[johnlowe]

Been doing pyramid sets for the last couple of years of training (been training for 20 years). I actually dp a higher rep range though. 30 (which is sort of the warm up set), 20, 15, 12, 10. Had great sucess and minimized any injuries with this.
Each set is 1-2 reps from failure.
Also think it helps to ge some higher qnd lower rep work in too. Covers all bases.

[marksball]

I’ve been working through a 5x5 program. To shake things up, I complete a 5, 5, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 pyramid. The first sets of five are the same weight. Then, I add ten pounds each set. It is the same number of reps as a 5x5, two additional sets though. However, the volume ends up being more and you get to practice moving heavier weight. I like it.

[SamplePerspectiveImporta-hqip]

I feel like the conclusion in this video is a non sequitur.

Anything that makes training more interesting and more fun is a MASSIVE win to me, because it means more expected training volume simply by virtue of me being more interested in training. That's obviously very subjective and will vary from person to person, but if you're someone who thrives on variety and challenges, these could take sessions from boring and samey to really fun, and in the long run that *will* net out in more gains.

Also, some of us love math. Literally before you even went into examples, I was already thinking about how I bet you could find configurations of pyramids that might actually net you more volume in a single session, and how easy it would be to find them. I think I'm gonna try it, if only because optimizing things is fun for me, and will engage me with my training even further!

[wowwhyisthistaken]

Jumping into straight sets causes a lot of joint issues for me, even with a traditional warmup.

[P_Mann]

While I do a pyramid warmup, I’ve changed from considering the volume score to simply counting sets that are at or beyond 3 RIR as working sets, with targets per week of working sets (i.e. sets near failure) per week and per meso using the rep range I feel works best for each exercise, and I see pretty good results overall while still managing fatigue and recovery. YRMV.

[sofienchaieb]

Thank you Picturefit, can you do the same thing for rest-pause training but with comparison vs same training duration : that means more volume for rest pause

[rogerherrington]

For years, I considered warm-up sets a waste of time. When I first read about pyramiding, I decided if I worked warm-up sets into my workout, I would be more likely to include them. While I did 2 working sets per muscle group, I now do 1 set @ 50%, 2nd set @ 70%, 3rd & 4th set @ 80% (working sets).

[JayyyMcGraw]

I do, 5 set… set one 12 reps then 10, 8, 6, 4 each set getting more weight, this is normal right? People really just do the same weight over and over?

[jaygee]

Whether or not it stimulates more growth, I find pyramids to be very useful for warming up. I tend to do 60% 1RM for 15-20 reps for 1 or 2 sets to warm up. Then got to 80% 1RM for 8-12 reps for 1 or 2 sets, then go to 90% for 5-8 reps (closer to 5 tbh) as a 'top working set', or 2. But if I'm training that same muscle group in multiple different exercises, I won't do this for every exercise, only the initial one. The subsequent exercises will typically be in the 80-90% for 6-12 reps depending on how early in the workout they are, and how much focus I am putting on that muscle group for that meso cycle. And I've found it to be physiologically and psychologically beneficial to do this as it safely warms up my muscles to be able to effectively exert stimulative effort with a massive buffer to the injury risk while performing the heavier sets, and it helps me assess (roughly) what my top end is going to be, as each day brings its own levels of fatigue before even entering the gym

[strength]

haha, of all the fitness folks out there your the one the nailed my training style with cresent pyramid, it's worked great and the results prove themselves, still though interesting input, always open to improvements