Which workout builds arm muscle faster — old school or high-tech drop sets?
Investigating the Effect of the Tonal Drop Set Mode On Elbow Flexor Hypertrophy
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
The Tonal drop-set protocol was more time-efficient than traditional training, even though it didn’t produce more total muscle growth.
Most assume more time = more gains. This flips that: you can get the same result faster, which contradicts the 'more volume always wins' dogma.
Practical Takeaways
If you’re short on time, switch to drop sets—whether on a machine or with dumbbells. You’ll get the same muscle growth in less time.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
The Tonal drop-set protocol was more time-efficient than traditional training, even though it didn’t produce more total muscle growth.
Most assume more time = more gains. This flips that: you can get the same result faster, which contradicts the 'more volume always wins' dogma.
Practical Takeaways
If you’re short on time, switch to drop sets—whether on a machine or with dumbbells. You’ll get the same muscle growth in less time.
Publication
Authors
Seth Hinson, Zac Robinson, Jacob Remmert, Joshua Pelland, Scott Mikula, Alexandre Hamaide, Michael Zourdos
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Claims (10)
Even with fancy machine tech that automatically lowers weights, drop sets don’t make your arms grow more than regular lifting — the machine doesn’t give you an edge.
If you’re short on time, using drop sets on a smart machine can build your arm muscles just as well as traditional lifting — you just need to spend less time doing it.
After 10 weeks of hard lifting, your arms only get a tiny bit bigger — less than the thickness of a penny — no matter which method you use.
The researchers decided ahead of time what size of muscle gain would actually matter — and found the difference between methods was too small to count.
Drop sets on the Tonal machine let you finish your workout faster because you don’t rest as long between sets — so you get more muscle growth for every minute you spend lifting.