You can try out the superset workout program if you want to challenge your strength, power, and endurance. In this article, I’ve shared various superset workout examples so you can incorporate them into your workout program to build muscles and strength. You’ll also get a weekly superset workout plan at the bottom that you can save for future use.
Although, I’ve created several other programs that you can download depending on your goal. However, if you have a busy schedule but want to be fit and strong, a superset workout plan will be suitable for you.
What is Superset Workout?
The superset is a workout program where you must do the two different exercises alternatively for two muscle parts with no rest between them.
Consider an example of legs and biceps superset.
- Do ten reps barbell back squats for leg followed by 10 reps dumbbell curl for biceps;
- Again do a leg workout such as, dumbbell lunges and then bicep workout like cable curl.
- Repeat this pattern till the desired number of rounds.
The superset can enhance workout efficiency and reduce training time.1 The effects of traditional, superset, and tri-set resistance training structures on perceived intensity and physiological responses – European Journal of Applied Physiology,2 The metabolic costs of reciprocal supersets vs. traditional resistance exercise in young recreationally active adults – Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research
To perform the superset efficiently, you’ll need to combine push and pull exercises or push, pull, and leg workouts – depending on how many muscles you trained in one day.
Chest, triceps, and shoulders are pushing muscles; back, biceps, wrists, and rear delt are pulling muscles, and the quads, hams, calves, and glutes are lower body muscles.
So, when you do the superset, you can combine chest with back, triceps with biceps, legs with shoulders, or upper and lower body.
Let’s see some of the best examples of superset workouts.
#1 Superset Chest and Back Workouts
The combination of back and chest exercises is one of the primary examples of a superset workout. It will build up strength and mass and develop a muscular upper body.
Chest muscles build during the push workouts while pull exercises work on the back. And it allows you to do each set efficiently without putting stress on the same type of muscles.
To perform the superset workout for the back and chest, do the exercises alternatively for each muscle.
For example, do the bench press for the chest and bent-over for the back. Or do the pullups for the back and pushups for the chest.
Okay, let’s see what exercises you can combine and do on your back and chest day.
Back and Chest Superset Workout Example #1
Back | Chest |
---|---|
Pullups | Pushups |
Lat Pulldown | Flat Barbell Bench Press |
Seated Rowing | Incline Dumbbell Bench Press |
Barbell Bent-over Row | Pec Dec or Cable Fly |
Single-arm DB Rowing | Dumbbell Pullover |
Chest and Back Superset Workout Example #2
Chest | Back |
---|---|
Flat Barbell Bench Press | Lat Pulldown |
Incline DB Press | V Grip Lat Pulldown |
Pec Dec or Cable Fly | T Rowing |
Bar Dips | Seated Rowing |
Dumbbell Squeeze Press | Face Pull |
#2 Superset Triceps and Biceps Workout
If you love to train triceps and biceps together to beef up arms muscles, you’ll like the below superset workout examples.
Triceps and Biceps Superset Example #1
Triceps | Biceps |
---|---|
Narrow Grip Bench Press | Standing Barbell Curl |
Barbell Skull Crusher | EZ Bar Bicep Curl |
Cable Pushdown | Seated Dumbbell Curl |
Rope Pushdown | Preacher Curl |
Weighted Bench Dips | Concentration Curl |
Superset for Biceps and Triceps (Example #2)
Biceps | Triceps |
---|---|
Standing Barbell Curl | Diamond Pushup |
Incline Dumbbell Curl | DB Overhead Extension |
Prone Incline Barbell Curl | Rope Pushdown |
Cable Curl | Cable Overhead Extension |
Hammer Curl | Triceps Kickback |
Here you can see what and how to do bicep and tricep workouts on the same day.
Related:
#3 Superset Example for Legs and Core
If you want to strengthen and tone your lower body and mid-section of your upper body simultaneously, you may want to do the superset for legs and core.
Here are a couple of examples of that.
Leg and Core Superset Workout #1
Leg | Core |
---|---|
Barbell Back Squat | Bird Dog Plank |
Machine Leg Press | Leg Raises |
Hamstring Curl | DB Side Bend |
Hip Thrust | Hanging Knee Raises |
Calf Raises | Ab Wheel Rollout |
Superset Leg and Core Exercises #2
Core | Legs |
---|---|
Mountain Climbing | Barbell Back Squat |
Reverse Crunches | Machine Hack Squat |
Flutter Kicks | Dumbbell Lunges |
Cable Crunches | Barbell Romanian DL |
Plank | Weighted Glute Bridge |
#4 Superset Back and Shoulder Example
Back and shoulder muscles are often trained together on the same day. And that is not only safe but also effective for developing strength and mass.
Many bodybuilders, cross-fitters, and powerlifters train their shoulders and back together.
So you can also do that if you follow the superset workout plan.
Here, I’ve shared a couple of examples that you may want to incorporate into your program.
Superset Back and Shoulder Workout #1
Back | Shoulder |
---|---|
Pullups | Dumbbell Overhead Press |
Deadlift | Dumbbell Front Raises |
Lat Pulldown | Dumbbell Lateral Raises |
Seated Cable Rowing | Upright Row |
Barbell Bent-over Row | Shoulder Shrug |
Shoulder and Back Superset Workout #2
Shoulder | Back |
---|---|
Military Press | Lat Pulldown |
DB Lateral Raises | Cable Seated Rowing |
DB Rear Delt Fly | Single-arm DB Rowing |
Barbell Front Raises | Barbell T Rowing |
Shoulder Shrug | Face Pull |
#5 Superset Workout Example for Chest and Core
If you want to strengthen your pecs and core together, you may want to do the best superset for chest, abs, and love handle.
Here is an example of a combined chest and core workout you can add to your program.
Chest | Core |
---|---|
Pushups | Mountain Climbing |
Flat Barbell Bench Press | Reverse Crunches |
Incline DB Bench Press | Bird Dog Plank |
Pec Dec or Cable Fly | Flutter Kicks |
Bar Dips | Leg Raises |
Dumbbell Squeeze Press | DB Side Bend |
#6 Superset Back and Core Workout
Working core and back together will help you build strength and endurance and improve upper body posture.
If you want to do the superset for the back and core, you can do the following exercises alternatively.
Back | Core |
---|---|
Pullups | DB Side Bend |
Deadlift | Reverse Crunches |
Lat Pulldown | Hanging Knee Raises |
Seated Rowing | Leg Raises |
Single-arm DB Rowing | Ab Wheel Rollout |
Face pull | Plank |
#7 Superset workout for Legs and Triceps
If you want to develop your arms and legs together without putting much stress on your muscles, you can do the superset workout for the leg and triceps.
For example, you can do the following superset exercises.
Leg | Triceps |
---|---|
Barbell Back Squat | Barbell Skull Crusher |
Machine Leg Press | Rope Pushdown |
Hamstring Curl | Single-arm Overhead Tricep Extension |
Hip Thrust | Triceps Kickback |
Calf Raises | Bench Dips |
#8 Superset Exercises For Biceps and Legs
Working out leg and bicep together is one of the best examples of a superset workout.
It allows you to train the upper and lower body alternatively and help you beef up muscles mass.
Here is one of the examples of the bicep and leg superset workout.
Biceps | Legs |
---|---|
Standing Barbell Curl | Barbell Back Squat |
EZ Bar Bicep Curl | Machine Hack Squat |
Seated Dumbbell Curl | Dumbbell Lunges |
Preacher Curl | Barbell Romanian DL |
Concentration Curl | Weighted Glute Bridge |
#9 Legs and Shoulders Superset Workout
Like arms, you can also do alternating exercises for legs and shoulders on the same day.
However, it will be slightly challenging as shoulder muscles are larger than biceps and triceps.
But, if you’re working out to build strength and hypertrophy, you can do the below superset.
Legs | Shoulder |
---|---|
Barbell Back Squat | Dumbbell Overhead Press |
Machine Leg Press | Dumbbell Front Raises |
Dumbbell Lunges | Dumbbell Lateral Raises |
Hamstring Curl | Dumbbell Rear Delt Fly |
Barbell Hip Thrust | Shoulder Shrug |
#10 Superset Full Body Workout
If you want to challenge your strength and power, you may try the superset workout for the entire body.
You’ll do alternating exercises for each muscle in the full-body superset, from the chest to calves.
I’ve created a sample for you. You can also include it in your full-body workout program.
Workout | Muscles Build |
---|---|
Flat Barbell Bench Press | Chest |
Rope Pushdown | Triceps |
Barbell Back Squat | Quads |
Calf Raises | Calves |
Lat pulldown | Back |
Standing Biceps Curl | Biceps |
Barbell Overhead Press | Front Delt |
Dumbbell Lateral Raises | Side Delt |
Hamstring Curl | Hamstring Curl |
Hip Thrust | Glutes |
Seated Cable Rowing | Back |
Cable Curl | Biceps |
Incline Dumbbell Bench Press | Chest |
Tricep Kickback | Triceps |
Weekly Superset Workout Routine
- Monday – Chest and Back
- Tuesday – Legs and Shoulders
- Wednesday – Biceps and Triceps
- Thursday – Back and Chest
- Friday – Legs and Core
- Saturday – Full Body
- Sunday – Rest
Note: You’ll do one to two rounds if you’re a beginner and three to four rounds if you’re an intermediate and pro.
Rest between exercises: Little to no rest
Monday – Chest and Back
Workout | Reps |
---|---|
Pullups | AMRAP |
Pushups | AMRAP |
Lat Pulldown | 15 |
Flat Barbell Bench Press | 15 |
Seated Rowing | 12 |
Incline Dumbbell Bench Press | 12 |
Barbell Bent-over Row | 10 |
Pec Dec or Cable Fly | 10 |
Single-arm DB Rowing | 8 |
Dumbbell Pullover | 8 |
Tuesday – Legs and Shoulders
Workout | Reps |
---|---|
Barbell Back Squat | 15 |
Dumbbell Overhead Press | 15 |
Machine Leg Press | 12 |
Dumbbell Front Raises | 12 |
Dumbbell Lunges | 10 |
Dumbbell Lateral Raises | 10 |
Hamstring Curl | 10 |
Dumbbell Rear Delt Fly | 10 |
Barbell Hip Thrust | 10 |
Shoulder Shrug | 10 |
Wednesday – Biceps, and Triceps
Workout | Reps |
---|---|
Narrow Grip Bench Press | 15 |
Standing Barbell Curl | 15 |
Barbell Skull Crusher | 12 |
EZ Bar Bicep Curl | 12 |
Cable Pushdown | 10 |
Seated Dumbbell Curl | 10 |
Rope Pushdown | 10 |
Preacher Curl | 10 |
Weighted Bench Dips | 8 |
Concentration Curl | 8 |
Thursday – Back and Chest
Workouts | Reps |
---|---|
Flat Barbell Bench Press | 15 |
Lat Pulldown | 15 |
Incline DB Press | 12 |
V Grip Lat Pulldown | 12 |
Pec Dec or Cable Fly | 10 |
T Rowing | 10 |
Bar Dips | 10 |
Seated Rowing | 10 |
Dumbbell Squeeze Press | 8 |
Face Pull | 8 |
Friday – Legs and Core
Workouts | Reps |
---|---|
Barbell Back Squat | 15 |
Bird Dog Plank | 30-sec/side |
Machine Leg Press | 12 |
Leg Raises | 12 |
Hamstring Curl | 10 |
DB Side Bend | 10 |
Hip Thrust | 8 |
Hanging Knee Raises | 8 |
Calf Raises | 10 |
Reverse Crunches | 10 |
Saturday – Full Body
Workouts | Reps |
---|---|
Flat Barbell Bench Press | 15 |
Rope Pushdown | 10 |
Barbell Back Squat | 15 |
Calf Raises | 10 |
Lat pulldown | 15 |
Standing Biceps Curl | 10 |
Barbell Overhead Press | 15 |
Dumbbell Lateral Raises | 10 |
Hamstring Curl | 15 |
Hip Thrust | 10 |
Seated Cable Rowing | 15 |
Cable Curl | 10 |
Incline Dumbbell Bench Press | 15 |
Tricep Kickback | 10 |
You may like some of the related articles:
References
- 1The effects of traditional, superset, and tri-set resistance training structures on perceived intensity and physiological responses – European Journal of Applied Physiology
- 2The metabolic costs of reciprocal supersets vs. traditional resistance exercise in young recreationally active adults – Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research