~15 min
Reps increase (ascending) or decrease (descending) each round in a fixed step pattern, often for time or as many rungs as possible.
How it works
Choose a step increment (e.g. +1, +2, or a 1-2-3-4-5 pattern). Ascending ladders increase reps each round until failure or time cap; descending ladders start high and reduce reps each round. Can be single-exercise or a multi-movement 'ladder' where all movements climb together (e.g. 1-2-3...10 of two exercises).
Pros
- Naturally self-pacing — early rounds are easy warmups, later rounds are the real work
- Simple to program and scale by changing the step size
- Good psychological framing — always just 'one more rung'
- Works for strength (heavy singles ascending) or conditioning (bodyweight ascending)
Cons
- Total volume is variable and harder to predict in advance
- Descending ladders can front-load too much fatigue if the top rung is too high
- Requires good rep-counting discipline
Best for
ConditioningKettlebell/bodyweight density workStrength ladders (ascending heavy singles/doubles)
Examples
- 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10 ladder of pull-ups and push-ups for time
- Descending ladder: 10-9-8...1 reps of burpees
- Ascending KB snatch ladder, +1 rep each set until form breaks
Notes
Pavel Tsatsouline popularized rep ladders extensively in kettlebell programming (e.g. 'Ladders' protocol in Enter the Kettlebell / Simple & Sinister-adjacent programs) as a way to accumulate volume without failure.