In the recent issue of Journal of Sports Secience, a study was done on rest intervals for weight lifting. Here is a snip of the abstract:
The purpose of the present study was to compare the influence of two and five-minute rest intervals on the number of repetitions per set, per exercise and total repetitions in resistance training sessions.
Fourteen trained men (23.0 ± 2.2 yrs; 74.9 ± 4.1 kg; 1.75 ± 0.03m) completed three sets per exercise, with 10RM load in four training sessions. Two sessions involved lower body exercises (leg press, leg extension and leg curl), with two-minute (SEQA) and with five-minute interval (SEQB). The other two sessions involved upper body exercises (bench press, pec-deck and triceps pulley), with two (SEQC) and five-minute intervals (SEQD).
Results
Table 1. Total number of repetitions in each set and the total number of repetitions in each exercise for
lower body with the rest intervals of two and five minutes. Data are means (± standard deviation).
1st set 2nd set 3rd set Repetitions
Leg press
2 min 9.7 (.5) 7.7 (.7) * 6.7 (2.1) *† 24.1 (2.5)
5 min 10.0 (.0) 9.6 (.8) ‡ 8.0 (1.9) * 27.6 (2.0) ‡
Leg extension
2 min 8.3 (1.5) 7.3 (1.6) * 6.6 (.5) * 22.1 (3.3)
5 min 9.0 (1.4) 8.7 (1.6) 8.3 (1.7) 26.0 (4.2) ‡
Leg curl
2 min 8.0 (1.3) 7.0 (1.7) * 5.4 (1.0) *† 20.4 (3.5)
5 min 9.7 (.5) 9.1 (.7) ‡ 8.4 (1.1) *†‡ 27.3 (2.0) ‡
Values are expressed in repetitions maximum (RM); * p < 0.05 compared with the 1st
set; † p < 0.05 compared with the 2nd set; ‡ compared with 2 min.
Table 2. Total number of repetitions in each set and the total number of repetitions in each exercise for
upper body with the rest intervals of two and five minutes. Data are means (± standard deviation).
1st set 2nd set 3rd set Repetitions
Bench press
2 min 10.0 (0.0) 9.0 (1.3) * 7.1 (1.3) *† 26.1 (2.2)
5 min 10.0 (0.0) 9.7 (.9) 9.1 (1.1) ‡ 28.9 (1.8) ‡
Pec-deck
2 min 8.3 (.7) 7.7 (1.1) 6.1 (.7) *† 22.1 (1.8)
5 min 8.8 (1.5) 9.7 (.9) ‡ 9.3 (1.2) ‡ 27.9 (2.7) ‡
Triceps pulley
2 min 9.3 (.5) 7.7 (1.1) * 5.9 (1.1) *† 22.9 (1.7)
5 min 9.8 (.7) 9.5 (1.3) ‡ 8.4 (1.4) *†‡ 27.7 (2.6) ‡
Values are expressed in repetitions maximum (RM); * p < 0.05 compared with the 1st
set; † p < 0.05 compared with the 2nd set; ‡ compared with 2 min.
The results indicate that the training session performance is reduced by shorter intervals, being the initial exercises
less affected during the progression of the sets.
How can this apply to triathlon? My dad is a perfect example. He wanted to run 22:00 for 5K. In order for him to do this he needed to show his body the speed needed to go this fast. Instead of running intervals on short recovery, he could run slightly longer intervals but with longer rests. Giving his body more time to recover between sets will allow him to run faster during each interval. His body will then be able to adapt to the higher speeds.
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