Whether you rest a short or long time between light weightlifting sets, your body releases about the same amount of growth-related hormones right after the workout.

For people who already lift weights, it doesn’t matter much if you rest 30 seconds or 2.5 minutes between sets of light weights — you get the same muscle growth and strength gains either way.

Even though your body releases similar growth hormones after light workouts whether you rest a little or a lot, you still get stronger and bigger muscles either way.

Whether you rest 30 seconds or 2.5 minutes between sets of light weightlifting, you end up with about the same muscle growth and strength gains after 8 weeks.

Whether you push your muscles to complete exhaustion or stop a few reps short doesn’t change how much longer rest periods help your muscles grow — the benefit stays about the same either way.

Doing light weight exercises until you can't do any more for 8 weeks won't make your arms stronger or more powerful if you're new to lifting — you probably need to lift heavier or move faster to see real gains.