If you’ve been lifting weights for a while and haven’t incorporated supersets yet, what are you waiting for? Experienced strength athletes and bodybuilders love doing supersets, and for good reason. Supersetting your workouts pushes intensity and challenges your muscles. Bonus: doing supersets can save you time in the gym if you’re on a time crunch.

Keep reading to learn all things supersets. We will even include a killer upper-body workout and an intense lower-body one to build strength, endurance, and size. Whether you’re training in your home gym or at a fully equipped facility, these workouts can be adapted to suit your setup.

What Are Supersets?

A superset involves performing two exercises back-to-back with minimal to no rest in between. You can combine exercises in various ways, depending on your goals:

• Antagonistic Supersets: Pair opposing muscle groups (e.g., chest and back).

• Compound Supersets: Target the same muscle group (e.g., biceps and brachialis).

• Unrelated Supersets: Combine different areas of the body (e.g., legs and shoulders).

Incorporating supersets into your routine not only saves time, but it increases intensity and boosts muscle activation.

Why Incorporate Supersets?

Supersets offer a host of benefits that make them invaluable for experienced lifters:

• Efficiency: Reduce downtime and pack more work into shorter sessions.

• Intensity: Increase time under tension, encouraging hypertrophy.

• Muscular Endurance: Improve stamina with continuous movement.

• Variety: Challenge your muscles with new combinations and keep workouts exciting.

Whether you’re training with BodyKore’s Universal Trainer at home or using free weights or equipment at your gym, supersets can be customized to meet your needs.

Upper Body Superset Workout

Perform 3 sets of each superset with 60-90 seconds of rest between sets. This is designed to target every major and minor muscle group in your upper body for a balanced, total-body look and feel.

1. Antagonistic Superset: Chest & Back

- Incline Bench Press (Barbell or Dumbbells): 8-12 reps

- Pull-Up (Wide or Neutral Grip): 8-12 reps

Why it works: Balances push (chest) and pull (back), ensuring complete upper-body development and improving strength symmetry.

2. Isolation Superset: Biceps & Triceps

- Cable Bicep Curl (or Dumbbell Curl): 10-15 reps

- Overhead Tricep Extension (Cable, Dumbbell, or Barbell): 10-15 reps

Why it works: Adds direct volume to arm muscles for improved size, definition, and endurance.

3. Push & Pull Superset: Shoulders & Back

– Seated Overhead Press (Barbell or Dumbbells): 8-12 reps

– Single-Arm Dumbbell Row: 10-12 reps per arm

Why it works: Focuses on delts and lats, hitting both the upper and middle back for a broader, stronger appearance.

4. Core & Stability Superset

– Ab Rollout (Barbell or Ab Wheel): 12-15 reps

– Plank with Dumbbell Row (Renegade Row): 8-10 reps per arm

Why it works: Strengthens your core and back while challenging stability, critical for improving overall lifting performance.

5. Finisher Superset: Chest & Arms Burnout

– Push-Ups (Weighted if possible): AMRAP (As Many Reps As Possible)

– EZ-Bar Curl (21s Method): 7 partial reps from the bottom, 7 partial reps from the top, 7 full reps

Why it works: Pushes your chest and arms to the limit, forcing maximum blood flow for a killer pump.

6. Posterior Chain Superset

– Face Pulls (Cable or Bands): 12-15 reps

– Dumbbell Shrugs: 12-15 reps

Why it works: Targets the rear delts, traps, and upper back to improve posture and create a stronger, more defined upper body.

Lower Body Superset Workout

Perform 3 sets of each superset with 90 seconds of rest between sets. This lower-body workout will torch your legs and glutes while improving strength, power, and endurance.

1. Compound Superset: Squat & Hinge

– Barbell Back Squat: 8-10 reps

– Romanian Deadlift (Barbell or Dumbbells): 10-12 reps

Why it works: Combines two heavy-hitter moves to build quad, hamstring, and glute strength simultaneously.

2. Unilateral & Explosive Superset

– Walking Lunges (Dumbbells Optional): 10-12 steps per leg

– Box Jumps: 12-15 reps

Why it works: Enhances power, balance, and coordination while strengthening stabilizer muscles.

3. Isolation Superset: Quads & Hamstrings

– Leg Extension (Machine or Cable Attachment): 12-15 reps

– Lying Hamstring Curl (Machine or Cable): 12-15 reps

Why it works: Directly targets the quads and hamstrings for increased hypertrophy and definition.

4. Glute-Focused Superset

– Hip Thrusts (Barbell or Dumbbells): 12-15 reps

– Cable Kickbacks (One Leg at a Time): 12-15 reps per leg

Why it works: Activates and strengthens the glutes, critical for overall lower-body power and aesthetics.

5. Power & Plyo Superset

– Kettlebell Swings: 20-25 reps

– Jump Squats (Bodyweight or Light Dumbbells): 12-15 reps

Why it works: Boosts explosive power and endurance while torching calories.

6. Hamstring & Calf Finisher Superset

– Good Mornings (Barbell or Dumbbells): 10-12 reps

– Seated Calf Raises: 20-25 reps

Why it works: Strengthens the posterior chain while finishing off your calves for balance and lower-body aesthetics.

Final Words

These workouts will test your limits and maximize gains, whether you’re chasing strength, hypertrophy, or endurance. Superset training pushes your muscles to their full potential while improving your time efficiency in the gym.

And if you’re looking for equipment to optimize your setup, BodyKore has you covered. From the Universal Trainer to adjustable benches and squat racks, BodyKore’s premium gear ensures smooth transitions and durability during intense workouts. Check out BodyKore.com to level up your home or commercial gym and dominate your supersets!

Now go crush those workouts!