Triangle Pyramid weight training

Hi ive just started a routine that includes Triangle Pyramids and by god I find them tough. just wondered if anyone else uses these in their workouts and if there were more benefits of this type of training as opposed to the regular 3 sets of x weight

Find more posts tagged with

Replies

I've heard of Pyramid training, but what's Triangle pyramids?

you do both ascending and descending pyramids.

so for my squat press i do on the olympic pivot bar

20 x empty
15 x 5kg
10 x 10kg
5 x 15kg
10 x 10 kg
15 x 5kg
20 x empty

and do that for 3 rounds

jakicooke wrote: »

you do both ascending and descending pyramids.

so for my squat press i do on the olympic pivot bar

20 x empty
15 x 5kg
10 x 10kg
5 x 15kg
10 x 10 kg
15 x 5kg
20 x empty

and do that for 3 rounds

You are doing 300 squats? Or is there somethign wrong with my math?

Your math is right, that is some serious volume. Don't know why you would need that much, but to each their own. GVT only has 100 reps across an exercise, this has 3 times that. Why do you need that many reps? You must be in the gym for 3 to 4 hour sessions. Unless you only do one exercise per session.

DvlDwnInGA wrote: »

Your math is right, that is some serious volume. Don't know why you would need that much, but to each their own. GVT only has 100 reps across an exercise, this has 3 times that. Why do you need that many reps? You must be in the gym for 3 to 4 hour sessions. Unless you only do one exercise per session.

Is there a point in bothering with playing around with weights for something like this? I would assume that to do hundreds of reps, for any exercise, weight plays a minor part at this point and it very low to actually make a difference. So, if I intended to do 300 squats, would it really make a difference if I did some with 5 kilos and some with 10 kilos, or if I did everything with one weight? Or if just skipped the weights alltogether and did bodyweight squats till I dropped?

just curious

It really depends on your goals, but you are after progressive overload to train to build/hold on to muscle. If you are dieting the goal is to keep as much muscle while you lose fat. You do this by progressively lifting heavier weights or more reps. The routine I am on has me working in the 8-12 for compounds, and I work 10-14 for the accessory lifts.

I would pick a plan and follow it, one that has built in progression on weights and reps, one that addresses balance, frequency, volume, exercises that overlap each other, what to do when you fail on your progression, and has a built in deload. Just going in the gym and doing what you think is right will keep you spinning your wheels and will often cause imbalances in your physique that will end up getting you hurt later.

There are a ton of books and programs out there built by people who address all of these things, study up and pick on that you like and give it a try.

Ohh Right

I see.. I did this, usually for 2 sets not 3. Wasn't sure it was called that, my bad!
I found it really beneficial personally! I've stopped doing them, but plan on doing them again maybe once every 2 weeks.

I also usually do it only once per muscle-group, or maximum of twice (two separate exercises).

To those saying the volume isn't needed, I do tend to disagree - to an extent.

A typical example for me would be:

DB shoulder press:
16 - light
14 - light
12 - moderate
10 - moderate
8 - moderate
6 - heavy
and then reversed, for a maximum of two sets only, for one exercise. I don't do it for more than one exercise, and I usually do it for an exercise which focuses on most if not all parts of the muscle group.

I only do weight which is able to completely control. No throwing of weights, no bad form, being able to stop and hold the weight at any-point of the movement..

I do find this as a way to really increase volume if a muscle group is plateaued or if I want to some-what stimulate more growth.. and although it works for myself, I can't guarantee it works for others because not everyone's body reacts the same..

Im in for about an hour doing this session i do a similar set for deadlifts but go heavier then do supersets for the rest of my body. i try and keep the rest period right down as my primary focus is to shift the fat and try and keep hold of any muscle i can

aggelikik wrote: »

Is there a point in bothering with playing around with weights for something like this? I would assume that to do hundreds of reps, for any exercise, weight plays a minor part at this point and it very low to actually make a difference. So, if I intended to do 300 squats, would it really make a difference if I did some with 5 kilos and some with 10 kilos, or if I did everything with one weight? Or if just skipped the weights alltogether and did bodyweight squats till I dropped?

just curious

Adding weights to an exercise may help, simply because it'll be adding more resistance to the exercise. You are right, that you wouldn't necessarily need weights added, but it can still be done if one simply finds no weight 'too easy'

Edit to add: It is also dependent on a person's goals.. If my sole purpose is to increase strength, or to focus more so on hypertrophy (muscle size/volume gain)

jakicooke wrote: »

Im in for about an hour doing this session i do a similar set for deadlifts but go heavier then do supersets for the rest of my body. i try and keep the rest period right down as my primary focus is to shift the fat and try and keep hold of any muscle i can

As a general rule, I like to keep higher rep-sets low on rest period.. on lower reps, a longer period.. But I don't use timers or anything, I go for 'when I feel ready' or when I can feel the muscle isn't exhausted any longer

That's way too much volume reps. If you're gonna do pyramids, up the weight and back down the reps significantly.

rybo wrote: »

That's way too much volume reps. If you're gonna do pyramids, up the weight and back down the reps significantly.

why do you think its too much?

jakicooke wrote: »

rybo wrote: »

That's way too much volume reps. If you're gonna do pyramids, up the weight and back down the reps significantly.

why do you think its too much?

+1... What makes it way too much?

I always assumed that in a pyramid routine, the change in weights is something that is supposed to really make a difference, so not a completely negligible weight difference. If for example, your can squat 100 kilos (random round number), you would not have variations like 20, 22 and 24 in the pyramid, as you could barely feel the change anyway. But, in order to squat 300 times, the weight has to be really low. So, why bother with the changes? Will these small variations, in all these reps, make a difference?

I do pyramids, but not so many reps. 3 sets of ascending weight.
like on squats.. 15 x 80, 12 x 95, 10 x 110.

I do pyramids but more in the 10, 8, 5, 3, 1, 3, 5, 8 (I don’t do the final set of ten). And I only do one round. In mine, the 1 is my previous 1 rep max (or +5 lbs if I hit the RM on the last workout). I can’t imagine doing 300 of anything.

aggelikik wrote: »

I always assumed that in a pyramid routine, the change in weights is something that is supposed to really make a difference, so not a completely negligible weight difference. If for example, your can squat 100 kilos (random round number), you would not have variations like 20, 22 and 24 in the pyramid, as you could barely feel the change anyway. But, in order to squat 300 times, the weight has to be really low. So, why bother with the changes? Will these small variations, in all these reps, make a difference?

ha ha i can certainly "feel" the difference with these "small" variations :-)

jakicooke wrote: »

aggelikik wrote: »

I always assumed that in a pyramid routine, the change in weights is something that is supposed to really make a difference, so not a completely negligible weight difference. If for example, your can squat 100 kilos (random round number), you would not have variations like 20, 22 and 24 in the pyramid, as you could barely feel the change anyway. But, in order to squat 300 times, the weight has to be really low. So, why bother with the changes? Will these small variations, in all these reps, make a difference?

ha ha i can certainly "feel" the difference with these "small" variations :-)

But, if you can squat 15 kg as in you example, what is the point of the (20+20)*3 = 120 empty bar squats? I can see the empty bar squats (or even body weight squats) working at high reps. I can see the purpose of a typical pyramid scheme like the one AllanMisner posted. But what is with the combo of super high volume plus weight variations? What is it aiming at? Sorry if I sound annoying, but I really am trying to understand what this will help. If it is for endurance, why the weight changes? And if it is for strenght, aren't all the "easy" reps holding you back?

aggelikik wrote: »

I always assumed that in a pyramid routine, the change in weights is something that is supposed to really make a difference, so not a completely negligible weight difference. If for example, your can squat 100 kilos (random round number), you would not have variations like 20, 22 and 24 in the pyramid, as you could barely feel the change anyway. But, in order to squat 300 times, the weight has to be really low. So, why bother with the changes? Will these small variations, in all these reps, make a difference?

Well, I see what you're asking..
For me, I can notice a difference in weight depending on the exercise. I notice a weight difference of 2.5kg difference, on certain muscle groups too..
Different rep ranges, have different effect on your body as I explained earlier... It comes down to volume in the end. Do I want to squat 300 times, to try reach a maximum volume of 500kg? or would I rather squat 100kg for 5 reps? or would I rather do 25kg for 20 reps? It all comes down to what people prefer and what their goals are.

I personally would choose 25kg for 20, over 100kg for 5, simply because I know I can manage the weight and manage the time under tension.. Not to mention the fact I'm not trying to build my strength up, as it is not my goal when lifting.

I hope this answers your question?

To read more - look up Hypertrophy training vs Strength training (google em) and you can get a bit more detailed info

aggelikik wrote: »

jakicooke wrote: »

aggelikik wrote: »

I always assumed that in a pyramid routine, the change in weights is something that is supposed to really make a difference, so not a completely negligible weight difference. If for example, your can squat 100 kilos (random round number), you would not have variations like 20, 22 and 24 in the pyramid, as you could barely feel the change anyway. But, in order to squat 300 times, the weight has to be really low. So, why bother with the changes? Will these small variations, in all these reps, make a difference?

ha ha i can certainly "feel" the difference with these "small" variations :-)

But, if you can squat 15 kg as in you example, what is the point of the (20+20)*3 = 120 empty bar squats? I can see the empty bar squats (or even body weight squats) working at high reps. I can see the purpose of a typical pyramid scheme like the one AllanMisner posted. But what is with the combo of super high volume plus weight variations? What is it aiming at? Sorry if I sound annoying, but I really am trying to understand what this will help. If it is for endurance, why the weight changes? And if it is for strenght, aren't all the "easy" reps holding you back?

not annoying at all - im really interested myself as ive only recently had this program from my trainer and ive not trained in this way previously on my own hence the post originally to see what others do :-)

Quick Links