Mar 10 2009
Rest-Pause Training for a TRUE Pump!
Just a few blogs ago, I was on my soapbox preaching about the trainee that trains to heavy. You know the guy…he throws on a ton of weight, makes a lot a noise, EVERYTHING in is body is moving the weight (he has two training partners named Momentum and Inertia). Yet, even with all of this, he is probably only moving the weight through half of the exercise’s range of motion.
Today I am back on my soapbox! This time I want to talk about the other end of the training spectrum….
It seems too many people these days are in search of the oh-so elusive, yet fleetingly short, muscle pump. Heck, even one of the top selling supplements (NO Products) was brought to the market to feed this ego driven need. I look around many gyms and it seems as if going hard and heavy is part of some distant past (although there are still a few that are keeping it alive). I see more people using a squat rack for curls than squats! To make matters worse, many gyms/health clubs have become more of a breeding ground for meaningless conversations and hook ups then for serious training.
I’m not sure what’s worse, the meaningless conversations or the pseudo lifters that attempt to look serious by growling and grunting with each set. Regardless, too many people are doing countless sets with too much in the way of high reps in search of…you guessed it….the PUMP. Mind you, I’m not saying that high reps are a waste of time. High-rep programs when utilized intelligently can produce incredible results. However, a very effective and forgotten way to get much stronger and bigger is to do sets of low reps with short rest periods. In my current training program, I am incorporating one highly productive technique to capitalize on this training philosophy…..Rest-Pause Training.
What Is Rest-Pause Training?
Rest-pause training will separate the serious lifter from the pseudo lifter in no time, as you don’t have time to mess around between each set. In addition, this form of training is super intense and requires your full attention.
Bodybuilders during Arnold’s competition days used to do rest-pause training from time to time, to get bigger and harder physiques. My introduction to rest-pause training was back around 1994 when I got seriously into the Heavy Duty training style made famous by Mike Mentzer. Mentzer had incredible results back in the 70’s with rest-pause training and found it to be an effective way to blast through training plateaus.
Unlike a standard routine where you do reps for several sets with long rest periods, rest-pause training requires you to take 10-15 second breaks between each set. You’re basically taking a short break between each set in order to use the maximum amount of weight and extend the set. Since the breaks are short and the weights are heavy, hypertrophy will follow like a charm.
I remember the first time I used this technique. After using this method for only ten days, I added 10 pounds to my best bench press. Before rest-pause training, I had been stuck at a frustrating plateau for months. In addition to the strength increase, I got several comments from friends and family that my chest, shoulders and arms looked much bigger. I was elated to say the least.
Another benefit to rest pause training is that it gives the CNS (central nervous system) a tremendous boost that’s better then any caffeine rush that I’ve ever experienced. I literally feet invincible and wanted to take the world on after each workout.
How to Do a Rest-Pause Set
At this point you’re probably wondering how I incorporate rest-pause training into my program. I never thought you’d ask!
- I only use rest-pause training on the first exercise of each bodypart and it is a heavy, compound movement.
- Start with a weight where I hit momentary muscular failure around 4-8 reps.
- Rack the weight and take 10-20 second break.
- Unrack it for part two and perform a few more reps to failure (I will only get 2-4 more).
- Rack the weight again and rest 10-20 seconds.
- Unrack it one more time and perform a few more reps to failure (I will only get 1-2 more reps).
- Rack it! I am done!
Count it up. Within one long extended set, I have done between 7 and 14 reps and went to momentary muscular failure 3 times! Talk about muscle stimulating!
I highly recommend you don’t do anymore than 1 of these sets for an exercise and no more than two exercises within a workout. And I wouldn’t use the technique for too long. It is of ultra high-intensity and after awhile will cause diminishing returns….OVERTRAINING will set in!
Conclusion
As you can see, this is a very simple training concept and it’s meant to be that way! Now I said simple…not easy. Rest-pause training isn’t easy and takes everything that you have.
I challenge you to give rest-pause training a try for four weeks and discover for yourself what the old-time strongmen have known for years: the path to a strong and hard body is paved with heavy, training. After your first time doing it, you’ll definitely understand how rest-pause training works and you’ll love how hard and pumped up your muscles feel. It’s much more satisfying then the bloated, soft feel of doing lots of reps with a relatively light weight. If your body-fat is low enough, your veins should look like they’re going to explode.
Let me know how it works out for you.
