Resting Between Sets: Why We Have It All Wrong

The Myth of the 30-90 Second Rest Period

We’ve all heard it before: rest 30-90 seconds between sets to maximize muscle growth and strength gains. But in this new world of evidence-based fitness you have to wonder why. What is it based on?

It turns out that this approach is more bodybuilding folklore rather than a tried-and-true standard.

The 30-90 second rest rule likely originated from popular workout routines and fitness magazines, rather than being rooted in scientific evidence. While it may work for some, it doesn’t consider individual differences and training objectives.

This myth is similar to the 8-12 rep range for hypertrophy, which in reality is more like 5-30.

If your goal is to build as much muscle as possible, then you need to maximize rest between each set. This could be 2-3 minutes or more between sets. You could rest even longer if necessary, while still keeping your entire workout to a reasonable time frame. 

If you are following an arbitrary 30-90 second rest period, it may not be enough to accomplish this.

Below we will discuss what happens when your body is resting, the signals that indicate you are ready for the next set, and how to change your current habits.

The Science of Rest and Recovery

Rest periods play a crucial role in muscle recovery and performance. During high-intensity exercise, your muscles use adenosine triphosphate (ATP) for energy. As ATP levels deplete, your muscles need time to replenish them. The length of your rest interval can significantly impact your potential for long term muscle growth.

Research has shown that longer rest periods can lead to greater strength gains and muscle growth, as they allow your muscles to recover more fully before the next set. Shorter rest intervals, on the other hand, can increase metabolic stress, which is not necessarily linked to muscle growth and may actually hamper your overall workout volume.

At one point there was a belief that metabolic stress was a factor in muscle growth, but research indicates this is not true. At the very least, it is not a major contributing factor. Full range of motion, good form with eccentric loading, and workout volume are the factors that contribute to growth. 

This suggests that prioritizing sufficient rest periods could be more beneficial for both performance and muscle development.

If you are able to lift more weight, for more reps, with better form, then you are truly creating an adaptation for future muscle growth. But if you’re limiting your time to rest, then you are essentially putting a cap on the amount of total volume you can do in one workout.

Factors to Consider When Determining Rest Periods

Finding the right rest period for you depends on several factors, including exercise intensity and volume, your fitness level, and even nutrition status.

High intensity techniques like supersets and drop sets are very taxing to the body, and require more time between sets. The purpose of these techniques is to bring the muscle close to failure, particularly a lagging muscle you are trying to develop. Naturally, this will result in longer rest periods between sets because of the fatigue accumulated.

Even heavy sets with low reps require longer rest periods. Think about a set of heavy squats you performed for 6 reps. You were likely huffing and puffing despite it not being a high rep set. However, the intensity was so high that it requires more time to recuperate.

It’s important to note that there are instances where the 30-90 second interval does make sense. In our stimulus-to-fatigue ratio breakdown, we discussed exercises that put the muscle under tension but don’t result in overwhelming fatigue. These exercises would likely fit in that interval.

How to Find the Right Rest Period for You

To find the perfect rest period for you, it’s essential to listen to your body and pay attention to physiological cues. General fatigue (breathing heavily) and local fatigue (burning sensation in the muscle) can both provide valuable insights into your recovery needs.

Experiment with different rest intervals. Start by varying your rest periods and observing how your body responds. You may find that a longer rest interval allows you to lift heavier or perform more repetitions, leading to greater gains.

You may not even want to look at the clock. Focus your attention internally and observe how you are feeling. Try to make an unbiased determination on if you’re ready or not without checking the time between sets.

Listen to your body. Pay close attention to how you feel during your workout. If you’re still breathing heavily wait a bit longer before starting your next set. If your quads are burning from a high repetition set of leg extensions, take your time.

Be flexible, your ideal rest period may vary from day to day or from one exercise to another. Some days you may be low on energy and really have to grind through the workout. You may be weeks into a dieting phase and not have the carbohydrates to lift the way you would during maintenance or a bulk.

That would be a situation to take a little more time between sets. Adjust your rest periods as needed to ensure that you’re giving your muscles the recovery time they need to perform at their best.

Embracing a New Approach to Rest and Recovery

If you’re the type of person to steamroll through their workout, you may want to take account of why this is the case.

Again, this is under the assumption that you are training to build muscle or strength, not for conditioning or cardiovascular purposes.

But if you’re able to only rest for a minute between sets, what does that tell you about the sets themselves? Perhaps they are too easy. You may need to increase the weight lifted or reps performed to get more out of each workout.  

It’s time to challenge the conventional wisdom of the 30-90 second rest rule and adopt a more personalized approach. By paying attention to your body’s cues and adjusting your rest periods accordingly, you can optimize your workouts for better performance, strength, and muscle growth.