What Is Rest-Pause Training? The Science-Backed Method for Faster Muscle Growth

Rest-pause training has rapidly gained popularity over the past few years, largely thanks to the likes of Mike Mentzer and Dorian Yates. A rest-pause set is a style of high-intensity lifting technique designed to push muscles beyond traditional failure, efficiently and effectively. By using short rests within a single set, a lifter essentially extends their effort. In return, it increases muscle fiber recruitment and stimulates new growth.

This method, rooted in both science and history, has been used over the years by bodybuilders of all levels to put on extra muscle mass. This article will break down this training method and how to use rest-pause training to elevate your workouts.

What Is a Rest-Pause Set?

A rest-pause set is an advanced training method in bodybuilding used to maximize intensity and allow a trainee to push past failure. It involves; 

• Performing an exercise to failure
• Resting briefly (10–20 seconds)
• Continuing with small “mini-sets” until total fatigue
• Continue 1-2 more times.

These micro-rests are the secret, as they allow your muscles to partially recover their phosphocreatine stores, letting you perform more high-quality reps before exhaustion.

The short breaks maintain high muscle tension and drive deeper fiber recruitment, the foundation of growth. Studies show rest-pause methods can stimulate comparable or greater hypertrophy than traditional straight sets due to their density and intensity (Prestes et. al, 2012).

Mike Mentzer and Rest-Pause Training

Bodybuilding legend Mike Mentzer helped bring rest-pause training into mainstream strength culture through his Heavy Duty philosophy. Competing in the 1970s Mr. Olympia era, Mentzer promoted brief, infrequent, and brutally intense sessions, a direct rejection of the high-volume programs of his peers.

His signature method involved performing a single all-out set to failure, resting 10–15 seconds, then completing one or two more mini-efforts. He believed this created maximum stimulus with minimal volume, focusing entirely on intensity and recovery.

Mentzer’s approach reshaped modern high-intensity training (HIT), and today, “Mike Mentzer rest-pause training” remains one of the most searched terms in bodybuilding education.

Benefits Of Rest-Pause Training (Backed By Science)

Over the years, there have actually been quite a few studies on using rest-pause to build muscle. Many of these do, in fact, show a possible benefit of some kind.

1. Increase Volume (Korak et. al, 2017). Rest-pause training allows lifters to complete more total repetitions within a single set by strategically inserting brief rest periods. This increases total training volume, one of the most important predictors of muscle growth, without extending overall workout duration.

Research by Korak et al. (2017) found that incorporating short intra-set rest intervals significantly boosted total reps and training volume compared with traditional straight sets.

2. Greater Increase In Motor-Unit Activation and EMG Reading (Marshall et. al, 2012). Because rest-pause sets push muscles beyond their normal fatigue threshold, they lead to higher motor-unit recruitment, meaning more muscle fibers are forced to activate. 

Marshall et al. (2012) demonstrated greater EMG amplitude and neuromuscular activation in high-intensity rest-pause conditions compared to standard training, suggesting more effective stimulation of fibers.

3. Possibly Improve Strength and Hypertrophy Greater Than Traditional Training (Karimifard et. al, 2023). Recent research indicates rest-pause methods may produce superior strength and hypertrophy adaptations despite requiring less total time. In a 2023 study, 

Karimifard et al. found that trained individuals performing rest-pause protocols achieved greater increases in maximal strength and muscle thickness compared to those following traditional multi-set training. This suggests rest-pause training is both time-efficient and highly effective for advanced lifters.

How To Perform Rest-Pause Training

Performing a rest-pause set follows a fairly simple guideline. Use these steps to push your muscles past failure.

1. Select a movement. Choose a safe exercise where you can push to failure without risking injury — machines or controlled free weights work best.
2. Train to failure. Perform 8–12 controlled reps with moderate-to-heavy resistance.
3. Rest briefly. Pause for 10–20 seconds.
4. Continue the set. Perform 2–4 more reps, rest again, and repeat once or twice.

Perform one rest-pause sequence per exercise, focusing on form and the full range of motion. Some bodybuilders will use a method where you only perform two sets per exercise. The first set is to failure, followed by a second set that uses rest-pause training.

Example of Rest-Pause Training

Lat Pulldown

• Perform 2 warm-up sets
• 1 working set to failure (8 reps)
• Rest 15 seconds → 3 reps
• Rest 15 seconds → 2 reps

Each movement uses one rest-pause sequence — maximizing output in minimal time.

What Are the Best Exercises for Rest-Pause Training?

Technically, you can use rest-pause training with any exercise. However, some movements are much better suited to use with this training method. Perhaps more importantly, there are certain exercises you shouldn’t use with a rest-pause set.

Because rest-pause training creates deep fatigue, it’s best suited for exercises that;

• Allow adequate control of the weight
• Provide some degree of stability
• Don’t require a high level of technicality
• Are safe and appropriate for your situation (don’t do bench press by yourself)

With this in mind, here are some great exercises that you can use for each muscle group.

Best Exercises For Rest-Pause Set (Each Muscle Group)

• Chest – Incline barbell press, machine chest press, decline dumbbell press
• Back – Underhand barbell row, Nautilus pullover, close-grip pulldown
• Shoulders – Seated overhead press, lateral raise machine, upright row
• Quadriceps – Leg press, hack squat, barbell squat
• Glutes/Hamstrings – Romanian deadlift, lying leg curl, stiff-leg deadlift
• Triceps – Close-grip bench press, parallel bar dip, overhead triceps extension
• Biceps – Barbell curl, preacher curl, concentration curl

Avoid complex barbell lifts like squats until you have not only the strength but the body awareness you need. Further, always use experienced spotters for appropriate exercises.

Why Rest-Pause Training Works

Rest-pause training maximizes mechanical tension and metabolic stress, two proven hypertrophy triggers. Because rest is brief, muscles remain under near-continuous tension, forcing deeper fiber activation.

It also improves training efficiency, producing more “effective reps” in less time. For advanced lifters, that means greater progress without longer workouts.

In controlled trials, rest-pause protocols have produced similar or superior gains in muscle and strength compared to traditional volume-matched routines (Marshall & Robbins, 2012)

Key Tips for Safe and Effective Rest-Pause Training

• Control every rep. Maintain a slow, deliberate tempo.
• Limit rest-pause sets. Don’t perform 3 sets per exercise and use rest-pauses each set.
• Prioritize recovery. Nutrition and sleep are essential for adaptation.
• Cycle intensity. Alternate with standard training weeks to prevent burnout.

Building Muscle With Rest-Pause Training

Rest-pause training is one of the most efficient and science-supported intensity techniques available. It delivers serious gains without extending your workouts, ideal for experienced lifters chasing new progress. By combining controlled effort, brief rest, and precision, it embodies Mike Mentzer’s timeless principle of maximizing intensity.

References

1. Karimifard, M., Arazi, H., & Mehrabani, J. (2023). Twelve Weeks Rest–Pause and Traditional Resistance Training: Effects on Myokines and Performance Adaptations among Recreationally Trained Men. Stresses, 3(1), 302-315. https://doi.org/10.3390/stresses3010022
2. Korak, J. A., Paquette, M. R., Brooks, J., Fuller, D. K., & Coons, J. M. (2017). Effect of rest-pause vs. traditional bench press training on muscle strength, electromyography, and lifting volume in randomized trial protocols. European journal of applied physiology, 117(9), 1891–1896. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-017-3661-6 
3. Marshall, P. W., Robbins, D. A., Wrightson, A. W., & Siegler, J. C. (2012). Acute neuromuscular and fatigue responses to the rest-pause method. Journal of science and medicine in sport, 15(2), 153–158. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsams.2011.08.003 
4. Prestes, J., Tibana, R. A., de Araujo Sousa, E., da Cunha Nascimento, D., de Oliveira Rocha, P., Camarço, N. F., Frade de Sousa, N. M., & Willardson, J. M. (2019). Strength and muscular adaptations after 6 weeks of rest-pause vs. traditional multiple-sets resistance training in trained subjects. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 33(Suppl 1), S113–S121. https://doi.org/10.1519/JSC.0000000000001923