SuperSets For Super Shaping And Fat Loss

Lani Muelrath, M.A., the Fitness DreamMaker

Let's face it. I love feeling fit and strong. And SuperSets are a powerful part of my workout routine for body shaping and - I'm finding - fat loss!

There's nothing like lithe strength (yes these two can go together!) to make you energetic and shapely at the same time. And the feeling of empowerment that comes with physical strength is not to be discounted.

And I love showing women the tools to get you there.

In a recent issue of my FitDream Ezine, I gave some specific pointers about how to play safe with weights by integrating rehabilitative techniques. Now, I'm happy to share more about my own personal weight training workouts and, how easy they are to put together, and the positive results I've experienced…which can be yours, too!  

First, a little history. Several years ago, I worked out with weights pretty regularly. When I learned about T-Tapp, and the results of resistance training that I could achieve by using only the resistance of my own body with the initiation first of isometric contraction, I decided to give it a full-on shot to see what I could achieve with that. To say the least, I was surprised and delighted with the results AND that I now had something with which to travel so easily!

But frankly, I missed the feel of the weights. And now I enjoy BOTH! Actually, all 3: T-Tapp, Weight Training, and integration of T-Tapp techniques with weight training. NOTE: It is important to clarify that T-Tapp should NOT be done with weights - it is not designed to use more resistance than that which you can create with your own muscular contraction. However, you CAN apply T-Tapp alignment principles to weight training, which I presented recently in FitDream Ezine 2. I hope that this differentiation is clear.

Also, I wanted to build up some sports specific strength. While scuba diving last summer, I noticed those scuba tanks were a little more difficult to schlep around than I remembered. By the end of our two week trip, I had built up some good strength from heaving tanks into the truck - and it felt good! AND I wanted to be sure to keep that strength for our next upcoming trip.

So, when I returned from our trip in August, I pulled out my dumbells and resumed my favorite, most time-efficient and results-delivering type of weight workout: Supersets.

How Does Supersets Work?

Supersetting is easy to organize. Here's how I do it.

1) I select 6 exercises: 3 that focus on upper body, 3 that focus on lower body
2) I make sure that all exercises selected are compound in nature: that means they are not isolated muscle exercises.

So far so good! Now, here is the next part:

I combine 1 upper body compound exercise and one lower body compound exercise for each Superset. This will deliver up a total of 3 Supersets made up from the 6 different exercises. Are you with me? Let me clarify with an example:

Upper Body Compound: Push Ups
Lower Body Compound: Split Squat with Dumbbells

The Superset unfolds like this: I would do one set of pushups, immediately followed by one set of Split Squat with Dumbbells. Rest 20-30 seconds, and repeat. Twice. One Superset, done!

Then, I proceed to a second combination. Then a third.

Including my warmup, this is a 20 minute, total strength, body shaping, and renewal workout!

I then follow this with my Interval training, and the whole darn thing is done in less that 40 minutes. How do you like them apples?

Supersetting is something to be approached with excellent warm up, moderate weights as you get going, and full attention to proper exercise form. I was pleased and surprised at how rapidly I was able to increase the weights I was using, which told me I was building good muscle.

AND the fact that my strength went up while my weight stayed the same and my waist measurement went down, tells me that I was making optimal shifts in body composition.

And I'm counting on those scuba tanks being easier to schlep around come our next dive trip later this Fall!

P.S. If you are looking for something out there similar to Supersets as I practice and coach, I recommend Turbulence Training. This is the best newest thing out there to organize Supersets into an easy-to-understand format.

© Lani Muelrath, 2008 WANT TO USE ANY OF THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR NEWSLETTER OR WEB SITE? You can, as long as you include this complete blurb with it (and let me know about it!): "Fitness professional and entrepreneur Lani Muelrath, "The Fitness DreamMaker,"publishes the "FitDream eZine" with 2,000+ subscribers. If you're ready to revolutionize your health, fitness and well-being, go to www.lanimuelrath.com."