Don't Make the Mistake of Letting Your Rest Periods Steal Your Results
By Kyle Leon
Your rest periods can be just as important as your time under tension or the number of sets and reps you do. Don't let improper rest periods undo all the work you're doing to build muscle.
If you look at most of the instructions for workouts, you'll see that they're a lot more specific about sets and reps than they are about rest periods. Rest periods tend to be extremely generic.
No One Can Tell You How Long to Rest
The reason that recommended rest periods are kept so generic is that determining the proper rest period for your individual goals and body type can be tricky. For the purpose of today's article, we're assuming building lean muscle mass without the blubber is the goal.
Two guys doing the exact same movements, the same number of reps, the same number of sets and even with the same weight will require different rest periods. One may be fine with resting for 45 seconds, while the other one needs a full minute and a half.
As you advance, you'll be able to learn how to use your internal clock to determine how much rest your body needs between sets for maximum lean muscle-building results and keeping the following in mind will accelerate this process.
Signs of Too Little Rest between Sets
Here are some ways to help tell if you're getting enough rest in between sets:
1) First of all, you shouldn't be breathing heavily or huffing and puffing when you start your next set. That's a sure sign that you haven't rested long enough and that your results will suffer.
2) Another way to tell is if your subsequent sets aren't what they should be.
For example; let's say in your chest workout you're to do bench press for four working sets of 10-12 reps. If the number of reps you can do drops more than 1 rep in sets 2-4 this is a sign you probably didn't rest long enough.
In this case, increase your rest by 15 seconds and see what happens. If you're able to power through the rest of your sets just fine, you know you did the right thing.
Different Muscle Groups Need Different Rest Periods
The last tip I'd like to leave you with is that different muscle groups will require different rest periods for maximum results. You may not know how your rest requirements differ between your arms and your legs or your back and your arms. However, when training with proper intensity, you'll find you'll need different rest times for one group versus another so listen to your body to figure this out.
Just remember that your rest periods have to work for your body and your goal and one size never fits all in this game.....Including rest periods.
To your results,
Kyle
P.S
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