Drop sets don’t make you do more reps or sets, but they let you lift heavier weights for more total work—which is probably why your muscle grows more in some spots.

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Drop-Set Training Elicits Differential Increases in Non-Uniform Hypertrophy of the Quadriceps in Leg Extension Exercise

Randomized Controlled Trial

Human

2021 Aug 29

The study looked at drop sets vs regular workouts but didn’t measure how much weight or how many reps people did, so we can’t tell if drop sets work better because they’re harder or because they do more reps. It also didn’t make muscles bigger overall, just in one spot.

Source Study

Drop-Set Training Elicits Differential Increases in Non-Uniform Hypertrophy of the Quadriceps in Leg Extension Exercise

Score: 54

DOI: 10.3390/sports9090119

Similar Assertions

Drop sets make you lift more total weight, but that doesn’t mean you get stronger or bigger all over — just in one specific part of one muscle.

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Even though drop sets make you do more total work, they don’t make you stronger than regular sets when you’re just starting out with leg extensions.

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Even though drop sets make your thigh muscle grow more in some spots, they don’t make you stronger in a one-rep max or in a machine test than regular sets—both methods improve strength about the same.

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If you lift light weights but push them until you can't do another rep, you can grow your muscles just as much as someone lifting heavy weights—so long as you're putting in the same total effort.

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Drop sets don’t make the side muscle of your thigh bigger than regular sets — no matter where you measure it.

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