Rep Counters! Cover your ears!
So if I were to ask 10 people who exercise, how they know they are making progress, the majority of them would say “more weight or more reps.” While this is commonly true, I want to introduce a new technique you can add in that is bound to up my “hate mail.” I say this with all seriousness…are you ready for the secret?
Timed Reps!
Thats right these are, to put it lightly, very hard! I’d say I have a love hate relationship with them but they are effective. The principle is simple. You do an exercise…for time. Sounds simple right?
A typical set “for reps” takes under 30 seconds for many its around 20 sec. Imagine that you now have to lift for 60 seconds straight! Its not for the faint of heart. Its 2-3 times longer than what you are used to. There is no rushing to finish…its all timed. Now we’re talking intensity!
So here is how you do timed reps:
- Take a exercise/weight that is moderate, something you know you can control.
- Begin the exercise, start the clock (60 sec is good to start with).
- Keep the reps under control, don’t rush! (the clock doesn’t move any faster if you do)
- Try to keep moving as much as you can, if you need to rest, only rest as long as it takes to do a couple more.
- Try to keep going until the time is up.
If you get through it on the first set without much struggle, up the weight just a little, the next sets will catch up with you pretty quickly.
Some benefits of this type of training:
- You increase your work capacity tremendously, by building endurance strength.
- It will force you to “dig deep” and keep going which is essential for breaking plateaus.
- These are great for interval type training.
Some great exercises to try this with: bench press, squats, shoulder presses, seated cable rows, abdominal work. Basically any exercise that is a compound (not so much isolation) exercise.
This should give you something to love/hate for a while. You can be sure you’ll find them tough, but you’ll make more progress in the gym and feel like you’ve had a great workout in the process.
Give them a try and let me know what you think!
(4 votes, average: 4.75 out of 5)
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Dude, tried this with military press x 5 sets, 60sec each. First set, no problem, but it does start to catch up to you. By fifth set, I wanted to cry. I kept looking at my watch on my knee hoping it would go by faster. Delts already sting, and it hasn’t been a full day yet.
I agree Mat! I typically will only do 1-3 sets of an exercise.
The other day I decided to finish my workout with timed sets. It broke down to:
60sec of pullups
60sec of Standing Military Press
60sec of Close Grip Pushups
This was after doing 3 rounds of Bench Press straight to Bodyweight Dips, no rest.
The timed stuff really is tough, very good for building up intensity and really learning what you’re made of.
Keep at it!