How much rest between sets?

The article is provided by the site buildbody.org.ua.
2014-03-15

Currently, there are some disagreements regarding how long one should rest between sets. And this is understandable, as each person is individual. For example, an endomorph cannot perform such intensive training as an ectomorph due to different physical indicators. The same goes for rest.

At first glance, there should be an answer to this question. After all, bodybuilding has existed for several decades. And given the numerous studies that have been conducted, there should be an answer, and there is one. Before we move directly to the answer, we will briefly look at the theory, which will help you understand how long you need to rest specifically.

First, let's consider what energy processes occur in our body during the performance of a particular exercise, that is, the loading of muscle fibers.

In the first seconds of performing an exercise, to provide the functionality of our muscles, the body starts to expend molecules of adenosine triphosphate (ATP). These molecules are used as a source of energy that enables muscle work. ATP donates one phosphate group and transforms into ADP (adenosine diphosphate). Besides exercise, ATP is used in various physical activities, be it running or simple walking.

After the ATP molecules, creatine phosphate is involved. It detaches phosphates and turns them into creatine. By attaching a phosphate group to the ADP molecule, ATP is regenerated. This is why creatine is so important in bodybuilding. Next, glucose comes into play, but a sufficiently powerful contraction of muscle tissue can only be achieved through the production of the first two components, making further physical activity meaningless.

This is important to know because the replenishment of ATP and creatine phosphate occurs within 2 minutes. This is the interval you should dedicate to rest after completing a set in order to undertake the effective execution of the next set. This is a very important point.

Some think that they should rest for less than a minute and then start the next set. They argue that such rest promotes greater release of growth hormone and testosterone. But this is not the case. Resting for less than a minute puts a person at risk of increasing cortisol levels in their body, which, on the contrary, inhibits muscle hypertrophy. Therefore, rest for at least a minute to work on gaining mass and effectively perform exercises. Of course, there are exceptions in training, which we will discuss shortly.

Besides energy processes, the duration of rest between sets is also influenced by the types of muscle fibers. Fast and slow muscles are distinguished. Depending on the type of exercise, the goals of performance, the number of sets, and the weight of the equipment, different muscle fibers are involved.

It's all quite simple! If you're conducting strength training and, for example, performing a bench press for 6 repetitions, then in this case, fast muscle fibers are engaged, and you need to spend at least 2-3 minutes resting. If, however, the load is aimed at increasing endurance: for example, you're doing an exercise with a small weight for a large number of repetitions. In such a situation, slow or red muscle fibers are engaged. For this type of muscle, a short period of rest is sufficient. One minute is enough, as they recover quickly.

For better orientation on what duration to allocate for rest, here’s a brief guide:

1. When performing 1-4 repetitions, rest should be 3-5 minutes.

2. When doing 5-7 repetitions, allocate 2-3 minutes for rest.

3. If the number of repetitions is 8-12, then the rest should be 1-2 minutes.

4. For more than 12 repetitions: rest for 1 minute.

Based on all of the above, we can conclude that the optimal rest time is 2-3 minutes, neither more nor less.