The Study
Effects of Drop Sets on Skeletal Muscle Hypertrophy: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis
This study looked at lots of smaller workouts and found that drop sets and regular sets both make your muscles grow about the same — but drop sets take less time. It doesn’t prove one is better, just that they’re similar and drop sets are faster.
Analysis score
Maximum 100 for a systematic review with meta-analysis.
Where the score came from
Doing drop sets—lifting heavy, then lighter without resting—grows your muscles just as much as regular lifting, but you finish way faster.
Where does this study sit?
Reviews of RCTs (Meta-analyses)
Max 100Randomized Trials
Max 90Reviews of Cohort Studies
Max 85Cohort Studies
Max 72Reviews of Case-Control Studies
Max 63Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional & Case Series
Max 50Expert Opinion
Max 544 / 100
Quality score
The highest quality evidence. Systematic reviews and meta-analyses that pool randomized controlled trials, giving the most reliable summary of experimental evidence.
Key takeaways
Summary
Based on the study abstract and findings.
- 1Yes—you can get the same muscle growth in less than half the time, making drop sets ideal for people short on time.
- 2Drop sets: 0.555 muscle growth score.
- 3Traditional: 0.437.
- 4No difference between them (0.155).
- 5Drop sets took 2.1 minutes; traditional took 6.8 minutes.
Score breakdown, methodology, conflicts of interest, evidence analysis & raw study data
Publication
Journal
Sports Medicine - Open
Year
2023
Authors
Lena Kristiansen Sødal, E. Kristiansen, Stian Larsen, R. van den Tillaar
Related Content
Claims (10)
If you lift weights until your muscles can't do another rep, pushing fast on the way up and slowing down on the way back, it helps your muscles grow bigger.
Drop set training produces equivalent muscle hypertrophy in significantly less training time compared to traditional resistance training, resulting in greater hypertrophy per unit of time.
Doing more reps until you're almost too tired to finish makes your muscles grow just as much with less overall work.
The increased number of hard repetitions (within 2–3 reps of failure) in drop set protocols compensates for the absence of inter-set rest, resulting in equivalent hypertrophic outcomes compared to traditional training with longer rest intervals.
Drop set training, involving multiple load reductions without rest until momentary failure, produces skeletal muscle hypertrophy equivalent to traditional resistance training with multiple sets.
Drop set protocols involving a single series with multiple sequential load reductions are more time-efficient for inducing muscle hypertrophy than protocols with multiple discrete drop sets or traditional sets.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making health decisions.