Is rest time between sets important? Short rest time, long rest? How many minutes of rest should I take? How many days off? Lots of questions around this.
The classic image of a workout person usually involves sweating profusely and pushing yourself to the max. Seemingly going all the way and never letting your body rest leads to better results.
When training intervals, taking adequate rest between sets is essential. This prevents injury and improves session efficiency. Also, at the end of your workout, you want every set to count.
In this article, we will see why rest time is important. How your muscular energy systems react to the length of your sets. And how your training goals determine how much rest you need to take. Plus, you can check out Polar’s latest feature: The Work-Rest Guide.
WHY PLAN A REST PERIOD BETWEEN SETS?
While your focus is on what you’re doing during each set, it’s also important to make rest time a goal. You will have several training variables to balance. These variables include the number of sets, their intensity, and the rest time between them. When performing these types of workouts, you need to strike a balance between these variables.
The benefit of adequate rest time between sets is that it allows your muscles to eliminate waste products faster , which prevents them from building up and slowing you down. It also allows your muscles to build up their energy reserve for the next set, which means you can train longer before you feel tired. This thoughtful approach also allows you to reduce the risk of injury.
REST TIME AND MUSCULAR ENERGY SYSTEMS
When you train, your body uses three different systems, which take turns to supply energy to your muscle cells by synthesizing adenosine triphosphate (ATP). So, depending on what you are doing and for how long, you will be using a different energy system to achieve this. If you are very in tune with your body, you may even notice when your body shifts from one system to another.
MUSCULAR ENERGY SYSTEMS: INTENSITY, DURATION AND SOURCES OF ENERGY
Knowing how and when these systems are activated also helps you understand why rest time between sets is important. So your three muscular energy systems work as follows:
- The phosphagen system: high intensity for a sudden explosion. It is responsible for all short, explosive movements lasting about 6-10 seconds, such as one or two repetitions or a vertical leap. For that brief burst of energy, this system relies on the ATP stored in the muscles. This system is also known as anaerobic alactic (ATP-CP).
- The anaerobic (glycolytic) system: high to medium intensity for a short duration. Activated after 10 seconds when the phosphagen system depletes. It then relies on the energy it converts from carbohydrates. It lasts about a minute or two, so it’s the energy system responsible for sprints or 30-40 second intervals. This system is also known as the lactic anaerobe.
- The aerobic (oxidative) system: low intensity for a long time. It is important for endurance events, but it is responsible for all exercises that last longer than two minutes. This system primarily produces energy from converted fats and carbohydrates in the presence of oxygen.
These different energy systems also lead to variation in force production, that is, the ability to load and unload tension at speed, such as lifting weights, jumping and throwing. With interval training and resistance training, you will use the first two systems because they provide the bursts needed to produce high force for short periods of time.
After a few repetitions, it is important to rest enough. Otherwise, if you continue, you will naturally switch to using your third energy system, which can only provide lower force output for the exercise. Therefore, if you force yourself to continue without resting, you will get less benefit from your workout.
HOW LONG SHOULD YOU REST BETWEEN SETS?
When it comes to calculating the length of your rest time between sets, it’s important to first consider how demanding each interval is. Do you do sit-ups or lift difficult weights? Squats or sprints? Your rest time will depend on the intensity of your effort.
Shorter rest periods are suitable for intervals that are not too demanding. They increase the intensity of your training because your recovery is incomplete and your heart rate therefore remains high. Longer rest periods are suitable for demanding intervals in terms of effort or duration. Full recovery is essential so you can perform at your best every lap.
It’s also essential to determine your training goals, as different rest periods will emphasize particular results:
- Training for muscular endurance: Involves a high volume of reps with lighter weights, focusing on a key area (eg arms if you’re a swimmer). For this goal, a shorter rest period of 20 to 60 seconds between sets is appropriate.
- Training for muscle growth: Bodybuilding or muscle hypertrophy involves high volume of repetitions with less rest time with lighter weights to metabolically challenge the muscle and increase its size. For this goal, a moderate rest period of 30 to 90 seconds between sets is appropriate.
- Training for power: Involves a low volume of repetitions with light to moderately heavy weights, with an emphasis on speed of execution. For this goal, a longer rest period of 2-5 minutes between sets is appropriate.
- Strength training: Involves a low volume of repetitions with heavier weights to increase your ability to lift heavier loads. For this goal, a longer rest period, 2-5 minutes, between sets is appropriate.
It’s important to note that when you’re new to strength training, it’s recommended that you take a bit more time to rest while ensuring that your heart rate and body temperature don’t return to normal levels. If you overexert yourself, you may feel nauseous at first, while getting more rest will help you stay confident that you have the ability to keep going, which is important when you’re just starting out. So listen to your body.
PRESENTATION: WORK-REST GUIDE
At Polar, we understand the importance of finding the rhythm in your training sessions and resting. That’s why we’ve introduced a new feature in our latest sports watches.
The Work-Rest Guide analyzes your heart rate while you strength train to provide personalized advice on how to optimize your rest. It does this by notifying you when you’re ready to start your next streak, so you don’t start until you’ve recovered enough.
We designed this feature specifically for moderate intensity strength training with heavy resistance. During these workouts, the Work-Rest Guide helps you achieve the best training impact possible.
CONCLUSION
One of the key parts of interval training is understanding how your body responds to your workouts. By identifying the muscle energy system used, you can predict the time to fatigue.
Identifying your training goals helps determine the optimal rest time between sets. See in real time how much rest time you need during your workout with our Work-Rest Guide feature.
Rest is crucial for interval training sessions for efficiency and injury prevention. So give yourself a break. You deserve it.
