Save time with drop-sets
To perform a drop-set, begin a movement with the heaviest weight you plan to use for that session. (If you’re using a lot of weight or are prone to injuring the body part in question, warm up first with a couple of lighter sets.)
Perform as many reps as you can while maintaining good form. When you reach failure, immediately reduce the weight and again do as many reps as possible without sacrificing form. When you fail, reduce the weight again, and continue till you’ve failed with the lightest weights you plan to use.
It’s easy to do drop-sets with machines that have a weight stack–all you have to do is move the pin up a notch–or with dumbbells.
One of my favorite dumbbell movements is standing lateral raises, for deltoids (shoulders). I’ll start with 15s, drop to 12s, drop to 10s, drop to 8s, drop to 5s, and finish with tiny 2.5-pound dumbbells. By the time I’m done, those small bells feel awfully heavy.
Lately I’ve been using drop-sets during my leg workouts, for seated knee flexion (leg curls), hip abduction, hip adduction, and knee extensions. One drop-set per movement is all I need to exhaust whatever muscles I’m working, and although the intensity is high, I can give it all I’ve got because I know I just need to get through one set, albeit a long one.
The point is that even if you have only 20 minutes to work out with weights, you can accomplish a lot.
