Resting more than a minute and a half between sets doesn’t seem to help your muscles grow any more than resting for about a minute — after that, extra rest doesn’t add benefit.

55

Pro

0

Against

Evidence from Studies

Supporting (1)

55

Community contributions welcome

55

Give it a rest: a systematic review with Bayesian meta-analysis on the effect of inter-set rest interval duration on muscle hypertrophy

Systematic Review With Meta-Analysis

Human

2024

Contradicting (0)

0

Community contributions welcome

No contradicting evidence found

Gold Standard Evidence Needed

According to GRADE and EBM methodology, here is what ideal scientific evidence would look like to definitively prove or disprove this specific claim, ordered from strongest to weakest evidence.

Source Study

Give it a rest: a systematic review with Bayesian meta-analysis on the effect of inter-set rest interval duration on muscle hypertrophy

Score: 55

DOI: 10.3389/fspor.2024.1429789

Similar Assertions

Resting more than a minute and a half between sets doesn’t seem to help you build more muscle than resting for about a minute — it’s not worth the extra time.

55

0

84%

If you're new to lifting weights, resting a bit longer between sets might help your legs grow a little more, but it won't make much difference for your arms or overall muscle mass.

55

0

83%

Taking a bit more time to rest between weightlifting sets might help your arms and thighs grow a tiny bit more, but the difference is so small it might not even matter in real life.

55

0

81%

We don't have enough solid proof yet to say if taking short or long rest breaks between sets at the gym makes a real difference in muscle growth.

20

0

81%

The official advice to rest 30–90 seconds between sets might be outdated — newer data suggest resting a bit longer (over a minute) could help your arms and legs grow a little better.

55

0

80%