Leg Press Burns More Calories Than Chest Fly
The effect of Between-Set Rest Intervals on the Oxygen Uptake During and After Resistance Exercise Sessions Performed with Large- and Small-Muscle Mass
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
Rest intervals had zero effect on total energy expenditure—even when shortened to 1 minute.
Fitness culture insists shorter rests = more calorie burn. This study proves that’s false: muscle mass, not rest time, drives total burn.
Practical Takeaways
Prioritize compound leg exercises (squats, leg press, deadlifts) early in your workout if your goal is calorie burn or metabolic boost.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
Rest intervals had zero effect on total energy expenditure—even when shortened to 1 minute.
Fitness culture insists shorter rests = more calorie burn. This study proves that’s false: muscle mass, not rest time, drives total burn.
Practical Takeaways
Prioritize compound leg exercises (squats, leg press, deadlifts) early in your workout if your goal is calorie burn or metabolic boost.
Publication
Journal
Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research
Year
2011
Authors
P. Farinatti, Antonio G. CASTINHEIRAS NETO
Related Content
Claims (10)
The hypertrophic benefit of longer inter-set rest intervals (>60s) is attenuated or absent in exercises involving smaller muscle groups compared to multi-joint, large-muscle-group movements.
To know how many calories you burn during a weightlifting session, you have to measure your breathing for at least 90 minutes after you finish—most of the burn happens after you’re done lifting.
Doing leg presses burns way more calories than doing chest flys—even if you do the same number of reps—because your legs use more muscles and keep burning energy longer after you finish.
Whether you rest 1 minute or 3 minutes between sets, you burn about the same total calories—rest time doesn’t change your overall energy burn in these workouts.
When doing leg presses, taking only 1 minute of rest between sets makes you breathe harder overall than taking 3 minutes, but this doesn’t happen when doing chest flys—your body handles short breaks better when using smaller muscles.