I’m dropping the hammer on your muscles with drop sets – an intensity-boosting technique that I’ve used on myself and others for decades to produce stellar results in both muscle size and fat-burning. I call this four-week training program Drop Set Countdown, as you’ll be counting down the reps from 10 to 1 on every exercise as a means of packing on significantly more lean, shredded muscle mass.
If you’ve followed at least a few of my programs, you know I frequently add drop sets to boost training intensity and allow you to train past muscle failure. This leads to greater muscle fatigue, which is a form of overload that instigates muscle growth. I typically employ drop sets on only the last set of an exercise so that your muscles are fresh and rested on earlier sets to maximize strength and workload before going all out to failure and beyond to finish off the exercise. But this isn’t your typical program; I’ve changed things up a bit.
My Drop Set Countdown program uses drop sets constantly and exclusively throughout each workout to maximize fatigue on every major muscle group. This works great for short periods of time to break through training plateaus and push muscle growth or simply as a way to mix up your training if you’re looking for a change.
Defining the Drop
A standard drop set entails taking a set to muscle failure, then immediately reducing the weight by around 20%-30% and continuing to do more reps until you hit muscle failure again. For a given exercise, you’d typically do 1-3 drop sets, depending on how far you want to push yourself.
For my Drop Set Countdown workouts, I tweaked this format rather dramatically. Here’s what you’ll do for each exercise: Start with a weight that allows you to complete 10 reps. Once you reach muscle failure, immediately reduce the weight enough to allow you to complete nine reps. Once you reach failure at nine reps, immediately reduce the weight enough to allow you to complete eight reps. Continue in this manner, dropping enough weight to do seven reps on the next drop set, then six, then five, then four, then three, then two and, finally, one rep. In essence, you’ll have done 10 sets for one exercise as one grueling, non-stop drop set.
Most people will find that at somewhere around five or six reps they don’t need to drop weight to hit the next lower rep count; the brief rest period you get from putting the weight down and picking it back up again is enough to complete one fewer rep on the next set. You may even find that when you get down to one or two reps, you’ll need to increase weight to make sure it’s challenging enough. If you don’t add weight for the last drop set and find that you can do more than one rep, keep going until you reach muscle failure. If you did the Drop Set Countdown properly, it won’t be more than two or three reps, tops.
Once you’ve completed all drop sets for a given exercise, you’ll move on to the next one. Most large muscle groups will involve three exercises per workout. Make sure to rest about 2-3 minutes between exercises – your muscles will need the break to be strong for the next series of drop sets!
To watch me perform the Drop Set Countdown technique, check out this video:
A Drop in Progress
Your goal during the four weeks of the Drop Set Countdown program is to increase your starting weight on as many exercises as possible, while reducing the amount of weight you need to drop on each successive drop set. Most people will improve to some degree over the four weeks of using the program. But even if you don’t, you’ll notice gains in muscle growth. Plus, when you go back to regular straight-set training, you’ll notice that you need less rest between sets and will be able to get more reps on successive sets. In other words, the progress you make from Drop Set Countdown will enhance your results and performance on subsequent programs you do.
For a greater challenge, feel free to add an exercise to each muscle group as your body adapts to the program. And yes, be sure to use the 10-to-1 drop set technique on the added exercise. Conversely, if you find the program is too intense or too high volume as written, feel free to remove one exercise from each muscle group.
Drop Set Countdown Split
I designed this program to follow a five-day training split (shown below) that trains each muscle group once a week. Due to the intense nature of the sets, your muscles will need the added rest that a once-weekly frequency provides. You’re essentially doing 10 sets per muscle group with almost no rest between those sets – and you’re doing this for multiple exercises per body part! This will cause some serious fatigue in the muscle fibers and probably leave them quite sore. Although the most common way to use a five-day training split is to train Monday through Friday and take Saturday and Sunday off, you can train any five days of the week that fit your schedule.
Five-Day Training Split
| Workout | Muscle Groups Trained |
|---|---|
| 1 | Chest, Abs |
| 2 | Legs, Calves |
| 3 | Shoulders, Traps, Abs |
| 4 | Back, Calves |
| 5 | Triceps, Biceps, Forearms |
If finding five days to train each week is tough with your schedule, you can convert the Drop Set Countdown training into a 4-day split. Simply tack triceps onto the chest workout and biceps and forearms onto the back workout, as shown below. The most common way to schedule a four-day split is to train Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, with Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday off. However, if you prefer a different schedule, train any four days of the week you like.
Optional Four-Day Training Split
| Workout | Muscle Groups Trained |
|---|---|
| 1 | Chest, Triceps, Abs |
| 2 | Legs, Calves |
| 3 | Shoulders, Traps, Abs |
| 4 | Back, Biceps, Forearms, Calves |
If you prefer working each muscle group more than once per week, use the four-day training split and instead of taking scheduled rest days, do the four workouts back to back. This will allow you to train each muscle group twice a week over the course of eight days, or nine days if you take a rest day.
Countdown to Muscle Mass
The main goal of Drop Set Countdown is to build muscle mass, as the high-intensity nature of the drop sets promotes hypertrophy. But that growth will only come if your nutrition plan is in proper order. Proper supplementation is also key to ensure maximum recovery. To make certain your nutrition and supplementation are on track, read my Muscle-Building Nutrition Rules article.
Countdown to Fat Loss
The high-intensity training plus the large workload and non-stop pace of the workouts also make this a great program for fat loss, provided you’re eating appropriately. For guidelines and sample meal plans to combine with the Drop Set Countdown program to maximize fat-burning, look no further than my Dieting 101 article.
If you’re trying to decide how to fit cardio into the mix, cardioacceleration won’t work well with these workouts because you’re doing each exercise as one big drop set. Instead, consider doing one four-minute Tabata session between each exercise or at least two between muscle groups and at the very end of the workout. Or, save your HIIT cardio for the end of the workout or at another time of day altogether.
Drop Set Countdown Workouts
As I mentioned earlier, through the course of four weeks, your goal is to increase your starting weight while reducing the amount of weight you drop within drop sets. That said, the workouts will look the same on paper for all four weeks – same exercises, same rep counts, same rest periods – but the resistance shouldn’t remain the same on all exercises and sets. Building greater endurance and strength that allows you to use more weight should make each week of workouts very different.
Rest 2-3 minutes between all exercises.
Week 1
Workout 1: Chest, Abs
| Exercise | Muscle Groups Trained |
|---|---|
| Bench Press | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Incline Dumbbell Press | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Cable Crossover | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Smith Machine Hip Thrust | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Rope Crunch | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
Workout 2: Legs, Calves
| Exercise | Sets/Reps |
|---|---|
| Squat | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Leg Press | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Leg Extension | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Romanian Deadlift | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Lying or Seated Leg Curl | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Standing Calf Raise | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Seated Calf Raise | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
Workout 3: Back, Abs
| Exercise | Sets/Reps |
|---|---|
| Barbell Bent-Over Row | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Lat Pulldown | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Straight-Arm Pulldown | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Smith Machine Crunch | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Standing Oblique Pushdown | 1*/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
*For each drop set, do the prescribed number of reps for one side and then repeat on the other side. For example, 10 reps to the right, 10 reps to the left, drop the weight, nine reps to the right, nine reps to the left, and so on.
Workout 4: Shoulders, Traps, Calves
| Exercise | Sets/Reps |
|---|---|
| Dumbbell Shoulder Press | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Dumbbell Lateral Raise | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Cable Rear Delt Flye | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Barbell Shrug | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Smith Machine | --- |
| Behind-the-Back Shrug | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Seated Calf Raise | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Leg Press Calf Raise | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
Workout 5: Triceps, Biceps, Forearms
| Exercise | Sets/Reps |
|---|---|
| Close-Grip Bench Press | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Triceps Pressdown | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Overhead Cable | --- |
| Triceps Extension | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Barbell Curl | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Incline Dumbbell Curl | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Prone Incline Dumbbell Curl | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Barbell Reverse Wrist Curl | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Barbell Wrist Curl | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
Week 2
Workout 1: Chest, Abs
| Exercise | Sets/Reps |
|---|---|
| Bench Press | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Incline Dumbbell Press | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Cable Crossover | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Smith Machine Hip Thrust | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Rope Crunch | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
Workout 2: Legs, Calves
| Exercise | Sets/Reps |
|---|---|
| Squat | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Leg Press | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Leg Extension | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Romanian Deadlift | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Lying or Seated Leg Curl | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Standing Calf Raise | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Seated Calf Raise | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
Workout 3: Back, Abs
| Exercise | Sets/Reps |
|---|---|
| Barbell Bent-Over Row | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Lat Pulldown | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Straight-Arm Pulldown | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Smith Machine Crunch | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Standing Oblique Pushdown | 1*/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
*For each drop set, do the prescribed number of reps for one side and then repeat on the other side. For example, 10 reps to the right, 10 reps to the left, drop the weight, nine reps to the right, nine reps to the left, and so on.
Workout 4: Shoulders, Traps, Calves
| Exercise | Sets/Reps |
|---|---|
| Dumbbell Shoulder Press | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Dumbbell Lateral Raise | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Cable Rear Delt Flye | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Barbell Shrug | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Smith Machine | --- |
| Behind-the-Back Shrug | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Seated Calf Raise | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Leg Press Calf Raise | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
Workout 5: Triceps, Biceps, Forearms
| Exercise | Sets/Reps |
|---|---|
| Close-Grip Bench Press | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Triceps Pressdown | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Overhead Cable | --- |
| Triceps Extension | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Barbell Curl | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Incline Dumbbell Curl | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Prone Incline Dumbbell Curl | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Barbell Reverse Wrist Curl | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Barbell Wrist Curl | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
Week 3
Workout 1: Chest, Abs
| Exercise | Sets/Reps |
|---|---|
| Bench Press | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Incline Dumbbell Press | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Cable Crossover | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Smith Machine Hip Thrust | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Rope Crunch | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
Workout 2: Legs, Calves
| Exercise | Sets/Reps |
|---|---|
| Squat | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Leg Press | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Leg Extension | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Romanian Deadlift | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Lying or Seated Leg Curl | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Standing Calf Raise | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Seated Calf Raise | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
Workout 3: Back, Abs
| Exercise | Sets/Reps |
|---|---|
| Barbell Bent-Over Row | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Lat Pulldown | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Straight-Arm Pulldown | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Smith Machine Crunch | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Standing Oblique Pushdown | 1*/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
*For each drop set, do the prescribed number of reps for one side and then repeat on the other side. For example, 10 reps to the right, 10 reps to the left, drop the weight, nine reps to the right, nine reps to the left, and so on.
Workout 4: Shoulders, Traps, Calves
| Exercise | Sets/Reps |
|---|---|
| Dumbbell Shoulder Press | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Dumbbell Lateral Raise | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Cable Rear Delt Flye | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Barbell Shrug | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Smith Machine | --- |
| Behind-the-Back Shrug | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Seated Calf Raise | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Leg Press Calf Raise | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
Workout 5: Triceps, Biceps, Forearms
| Exercise | Sets/Reps |
|---|---|
| Close-Grip Bench Press | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Triceps Pressdown | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Overhead Cable | --- |
| Triceps Extension | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Barbell Curl | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Incline Dumbbell Curl | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Prone Incline Dumbbell Curl | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Barbell Reverse Wrist Curl | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Barbell Wrist Curl | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
Week 4
Workout 1: Chest, Abs
| Exercise | Sets/Reps |
|---|---|
| Bench Press | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Incline Dumbbell Press | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Cable Crossover | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Smith Machine Hip Thrust | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Rope Crunch | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
Workout 2: Legs, Calves
| Exercise | Sets/Reps |
|---|---|
| Squat | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Leg Press | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Leg Extension | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Romanian Deadlift | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Lying or Seated Leg Curl | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Standing Calf Raise | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Seated Calf Raise | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
Workout 3: Back, Abs
| Exercise | Sets/Reps |
|---|---|
| Barbell Bent-Over Row | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Lat Pulldown | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Straight-Arm Pulldown | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Smith Machine Crunch | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Standing Oblique Pushdown | 1*/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
*For each drop set, do the prescribed number of reps for one side and then repeat on the other side. For example, 10 reps to the right, 10 reps to the left, drop the weight, nine reps to the right, nine reps to the left, and so on.
Workout 4: Shoulders, Traps, Calves
| Exercise | Sets/Reps |
|---|---|
| Dumbbell Shoulder Press | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Dumbbell Lateral Raise | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Cable Rear Delt Flye | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Barbell Shrug | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Smith Machine | --- |
| Behind-the-Back Shrug | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Seated Calf Raise | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Leg Press Calf Raise | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
Workout 5: Triceps, Biceps, Forearms
| Exercise | Sets/Reps |
|---|---|
| Close-Grip Bench Press | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Triceps Pressdown | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Overhead Cable | --- |
| Triceps Extension | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Barbell Curl | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Incline Dumbbell Curl | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Prone Incline Dumbbell Curl | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Barbell Reverse Wrist Curl | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Barbell Wrist Curl | 1/10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
Have Jim Stoppani be your Personal Trainer!
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