If my goal is to build muscle can I have shorter rest periods, such as 1 minute between sets?

Person X

Helder, I prefer to get in and out of the gym quickly, if my goal is to build muscle can I have shorter rest periods, such as 1 minute between sets?

Helder

Volume is the number of stimulating reps achieved for a muscle group in a workout. This is likely to be around 5 reps per set to failure with an exercise that involves that muscle as the limiting factor. If short rest periods are used then this number will be smaller, which is not conducive towards building muscle. Also, later sets in a workout may not contain quite as many stimulating reps as earlier sets, due to central nervous fatigue.

In my opinion I would rather do less exercises for the time you have available and still rest for 3 to 5 minutes between sets.

Round up of volume and it’s importance

In this last week we have been covering conversations on training to failure and training volume, but what does it all mean in practice?

Workout volume: Volume is the number of stimulating reps achieved for a muscle group in a workout. This is likely to be around 5 reps per set to failure with an exercise that involves that muscle as the limiting factor. If short rest periods are used then this number will be smaller, which is not conducive towards building muscle. Also, later sets in a workout may not contain quite as many stimulating reps as earlier sets, due to central fatigue.

Weekly Volume: Volume is the number of stimulating reps achieved in each workout, added over the week. If workouts performed earlier in the week lead to substantial muscle damage, then central nervous fatigue will cause a reduction in the number of stimulating reps achieved in each set to failure in later workouts.

This is why just measuring weekly volume as the sum of the sets to failure performed each week is not valid, as central nervous fatigue is a huge factor to consider.

Also those who identify the weekly volume that produces the most muscle building by altering the number of sets in a workout while maintaining the number of workouts per week the same, this is also not a valid calculation, because of the interaction between workout frequency and workout volume.