Drop sets are an advanced resistance training technique used in bodybuilding and weight training to continue an exercise with a lower weight once muscle failure has been achieved at a higher weight. The technique is also known as dropsets, descending sets, strip sets, the multi-poundage system, the stripping method, triple-drops, down the rack, or running the rack. The goal of drop sets is to gain more muscle than you would doing conventional sets.

The benefits of drop sets include the promotion of muscle growth and muscular endurance, as well as shorter workout duration. Drop sets promote muscle gain by fully fatiguing all muscle fibers in a specific muscle. When you train a set to failure, you’re fatiguing all of your smaller muscle fibers. By then dropping the load and immediately asking your body to perform another set, it’s forced to recruit your larger fast-twitch muscle fibers as well. This can promote more muscle growth than a conventional set could.

To perform a drop set, you start with a heavy weight and perform as many reps as you can with good form until your muscles fatigue, or you can no longer maintain proper form. At that point, you immediately lighten the load and perform the same exercise to fatigue again, without resting between load changes. You can drop the weight 2-3 times within the same set to further fatigue the muscles.

Some researchers suggest that drop sets more fully fatigue the muscles, which can enhance muscular adaptations. However, drop sets should not be incorporated into every set or too frequently in your overall training regimen. You should be strategic about when you incorporate drop sets into your workout and choose one exercise per workout, one time per week, to prevent overtraining. Drop sets should only be considered if you’ve been lifting weights for a while.