Core Daily
Movement
Make Your Training More Efficient
There's no one answer to the question How long should I rest between sets?
Chances are, if you're chatting it up with everyone in the gym between sets, you're not working hard enough. But there are times when resting for a couple minutes between sets can actually help you reach your strength goals. On the other hand, if you're not seeing the results in body composition that you're looking for, you may need to decrease the amount of time you rest between sets.
Use this cheat sheet to figure out when to rest, and for how long, to maximize your time and your training.
1. Adjust Your Rest Periods For Your Exercises
"The amount of rest between sets varies with the exercise being performed. Training larger muscle groups requires more rest between sets than training smaller muscle groups," says Steve Tamborra, MS, C.S.C.S., strength and conditioning coach at Georgia Tech.
- When performing explosive whole body movements like hang cleans and squats, rest up to 3 or 4 minutes.
- When training large muscle groups with compound exercises like bench presses and pull-ups, rest 1 to 2 minutes.
- When training smaller muscles like your shoulders and arms, reduce rest to under 60 seconds.
2. Adjust Your Rest Between Sets For Your Goals
"The length of rest between sets and exercises depends on your training goal and training phase," says Gene Coleman, Ed.D., strength and conditioning coach of the Houston Astros, in his book 52-Week Baseball Training.
- Use long rest periods (3-5 minutes) when training for maximum strength, speed, and power. Long rest periods allow the body to recover completely so you can give maximum effort in each set and exercise.
- Use short rest periods (30-60 seconds) when training for aerobic endurance and conditioning. Shorter rest periods develop muscular endurance by training the body to tolerate and remove blood lactate, which can cause muscles to fatigue.
3. Tailor Your Rest Periods to Your Sport
In the book Strength Training for Young Athletes, renowned scientists William Kraemer, Ph.D., and Steven Fleck, Ph.D. suggest varying periods of rest between sets depending on your training phase and sport. For example:
- Baseball: In the off-season, rest 2 minutes between sets for large muscle group exercises; 90 seconds for small muscle group exercises. During the season, rest 90 seconds to 2 minutes between sets.
- Basketball: During the off-sesecond, break for 2 to 3 minutes between sets, but only rest for 60 seconds between sets during the season.
- Football: In the off-season, try resting 2 to 3 minutes between sets, then cut back to 1- to 2-minute rest periods during the season.
- Hockey: Hockey players can rest 90 seconds to 2 minutes between sets in the off-season, but improve your conditioning by reducing your rest periods between 30 seconds and 90 seconds during the season.
About The Author
Jim Brown – As a contributing writer for CorePerformance.com, Dr. Jim Brown draws on his knowledge and experience in health, medicine and sports.
