something that's been getting a bit of play lately but isn't that new an idea is PAP training, or post activation potentiation. the short answer to what pap is?
1-2 warm-up set(s)
3-4 working sets consisting of:
set A: about 80% of your 1RM for 6-7 reps
set B: about 90-95% of your 1RM for 2-3 reps
set C: same weight as set A except you should be able to do 1-2 more reps than set A
there are numerous ways to set up the rep schemes but the idea is to work between 75-100% intensity
the idea is that after doing a close to 1RM set and then jumping back to the previous set before you've fully exhausted yourself for a particular exercise the previous weight will feel easier and you should be able to do more reps at the same weight OR more weight for the same reps. physiologically you're primed for a heavier weight so going back to the lighter weight will feel easier than the first time you tried it.
there are a number of articles out there, but this one does a great job of detailing it and has numerous links to other pages on the same subject. check it out:
http://bretcontreras.com/post-activation-potentiation-theory-and-application/
We don't know what our limits are, so to start something with the idea of being limited actually ends up limiting us.
Ellen Langer
