
Regarding general neuromuscular health, resistance exercise (RE) is considered the most efficient method for enhancing muscular strength, power, and muscular endurance ( American College of Sports Medicine, 2009), triggering multiple benefits with numerous positive outcomes evident in the literature ( Garber et al., 2011). Similarly, increases in anti-inflammatory cytokines at all time-points were observed.Ĭonclusion: Our results indicate that a 1-min rest condition in volume-equated RE promoted greater overall muscle tissue damage with a longer duration of the inflammatory processes compared to a 3-min rest. The 1-min rest period also triggered increases compared to baseline in pro-inflammatory cytokines, which were more evident after 6 and 12 h post-exercise. A significant increase in the 1-min rest condition was also observed in the total number of leukocytes, neutrophils, and monocytes. Results: We found greater increases triggered by the 1-min rest period in Creatine Kinase (CK), occurring from 12 to 24 h post-exercise compared to the 3-min rest condition. The rate of perceived exertion (RPE) was recorded after each set on both planned visits. Circulating concentrations of different biomarkers was measured before (Pre), and after 3 h (excepted for cytokines), 6, 12, and 24 h from exercise. Methods: Ten trained men (26.40 ± 4.73 years, 80.71 ± 8.95 kg, and 176.03 ± 6.11 cm) voluntarily participated in training sessions consisting of five sets of 10 reps performed at 10-RM on (1) the barbell bench press followed by (2) leg press, with either 1- or 3-min rest between sets and exercises. Objectives: The aim of the manuscript was to analyze the effects of two rest periods between volume-equated resistance exercise (RE) on inflammatory responses (cytokines and leukocyte) and muscle damage. 6Sport and Exercise Sciences Research Unit, Department of Psychology, Educational Science and Human Movement, University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy.



However, it is an important part of your workout routine if you want to get the most out of your workouts and make progress in the gym. This may feel weird at first, as you are so used to rushing through every set without giving yourself any rest time in between. Give your body time to recover and cool down between sets before moving on to the next exercise. Well, there are plenty of alternative methods to determine optimal rest periods between Sets, but here are a few that you may find helpful: Experiment With Different Lengths of Time Related Article: How Many Days a Week Should You Work Out? - According to ExpertsĪlternate Methods to Determine Optimal Rest Periods

Listen to your body and do what is right for it. The body needs ample time to recover before doing another set. The load will be much higher for strength training therefore the reps will be low (1-5 reps). Once again, the goal is to lift the most amount of weight, with the most amount of output for a short number of reps. If your goal is strength, then taking anywhere from 2-5 minutes between sets is ideal. Here is a general rule that is commonplace in the fitness industry. With the correct number of repetitions performed, the rest periods should be adjusted for each individual to ensure they are not putting excessive stress on their body too soon, which can result in injury. An overly stressful workout can lead to overtraining syndrome, where the body can no longer recover appropriately from exercise sessions. However, it is essential to keep in mind that training should be challenging but not overly stressful. There is no such thing as the best rest period for strength training.
