Gym regulars know that rest times between sets are a thing of beauty, that short moment of calm and reflection. You start with deep, horrible fatigue, sitting there as your heart hammers. Gradually your breathing slows and you become mindful of your discomfort.
Maybe you’re sweating , maybe your muscles are aching. About halfway through, the endorphins kick in and that ache begins to feel good – you’ve put the work in, managed the unthinkable. Then, finally, you’re feeling on top of the world and are good to go again.
Skip your rest and not only do you forgo all of that, but you’re actually short-changing gains and putting your body at risk of injury. On top of that, with some professional guidance you can manipulate rest times to your advantage. But how? Why do we need to rest between sets? Let’s start with the obvious.
If you don’t rest between sets, there isn’t really anything delineating one set from another, so instead of four sets of ten curls, you’re doing forty more or less in one go. No one’s arms can handle that. And as the science shows, more sets are better than one.
“Rest periods are crucial,” says celebrity PT Patrick Murphy . “We aren’t building muscle in the gym, we are breaking down the fibres on a microscopic level, depleting our adenosine triphosate and phosphocreatine in the process. The rest periods help the muscles recover and replenish these energy stores, making it possible for continued optimal performance for the remainder.