While agree that supersets involving antagonistic groups may not be the optimal practice for sports such as MMA and motocross where cardiovascular fitness is of high priority, it is effective in sports that mainly focus on muscle building alone as was the topic of this post.

There are numerous ways to incorporate supersets involving antagonistic groups such as manipulation of rest periods or in a push/pull routine where perhaps on the push day you supplement with lighter sets of pull exercises immediately following the push.

In regards to blood pooling and oxygen supply, problems can be avoided by playing around with rest periods or by using strictly isolation exercises for said muscle groups.

There are many other examples of how to perform this type of workout effectively but again, every workout needs to be sport and goal specific. A powerlifter wouldn’t train the same as a triathlete for example, nor would an MMA fighter train the same as a bodybuilder of gymnast as each sport requires specificity.

I have competed in martial arts for years, and train pretty much daily myself, very partial to interval style for cardio and core, and weight training.

What you are saying about supersets though very text book, may not ring true in application across the board.

Supersets in antagonist muscle groups is much less effective in larger muscle groups. For example, you should not train the chest opposite the back. The recovery time is far too long, and pooling of blood in major muscles is no conducive to hitting either set of muscles effectively. You end up with a tiring, ineffective set on both groups.

This has been proven by the top athletes in the world from kickboxing and MMA to motocross.

Antagnositic supersets should be limited to lower blood and lower blood oxy demand groups such as forearms, front and back of calves, front and back of shoulders, etc., never larger groups.

Great article!

Ron