Rest pause workout programs

You may not want to use this technique for compound exercises as they are mainly used for strength. Here are some exercises that work awesome for rest-pause sets. Olympia contest. The ones that require a spotter would be something like close-grip bench press or skull crushers.

These are going to be standard bodybuilding workouts. Your rest-pause will be done on the final one or two exercises of your workout. This is a 4-day training split:. Legs are your largest muscle and require more attention than the other body parts.

Stiff-legged deadlifts or back extensions would be excellent choices. Each rest-pause set is really 3 separate sets performed to failure. If you are training with enough intensity to make Greg Doucette proud then this is a TON of training volume! If you really want to get the most out of this workout then I recommend you record all of your workouts in a training logbook.

Every time you repeat this workout you would look at your logbook and try to beat your old records on each exercise. Then on your next workout you would try to beat this number. For example if you squatted pounds for 7 reps at your last workout then you would use the same weight and shoot for reps on your next workout.

The training logbook is the single most important training tool you can use. It will tell you right away if your training program is working or not.

It also motivates you during your workout. He mostly worked with Olympic athletes although he also worked with plenty of bodybuilders, powerlifters and strongman competitors. Here is how you perform the 5 to 8 method:. The first big difference is Charles wants you to train in lower rep ranges. The initial set of 5 reps and the 3 extra singles are perfect for building maximal strength and functional hypertrophy.

The 3 extra singles performed at the end of the set feel like maximal singles even though you are lifting your 5-rep max. The other big difference with the 5 to 8 method is you are NOT training to failure on any of your sets.

The initial set of 5 reps and the 3 extra singles are all performed just shy of failure. These reps should be hard but you do not want to miss a rep. This is a bigger deal than you think. Dante Trudel says you should only perform 1 rest-pause set per exercise because training to failure is so taxing on your central nervous system. With the 5 to 8 method you can perform several working sets per exercise because you are stopping short of failure.

These extra sets are awesome for stimulating more strength gains and functional hypertrophy gains. Here is a sample 5 to 8 method squat routine that you may want to try. Check it out:. See the video below for more details. Here are the training videos: exercise A1 , exercise A2 , exercise B1 , exercise B2.

The exact number of sets depends on how you are feeling that day. This means that Charles would track how much strength his athletes lost from one set to the next.

Gym Bro uses pounds for his first set of front squats. He gets all of his reps although the set is very challenging. If you want to reach your size and strength goals as fast as possible then rest-pause sets are for you!

In this comprehensive guide I will teach you how to use rest-pause sets to build size and strength as quickly as possible. Rest-pause sets are a high-intensity training method where you perform three sets to failure on an exercise with seconds rest in between each set. Rest-pause sets are so effective because they overload your muscles and your central nervous system so you can build size and strength at the same time.

Here is what a rest-pause set looks like in the real world:. Here is Dusty Hanshaw demonstrating the rest-pause method on the incline bench press:. Dusty Hanshaw trains to failure three times in a row on the 30 degree incline bench press. He gets 8 reps no his first mini-set, 4 reps on his second mini-set and 2 reps on his third mini-set.

Dusty says that he got 14 reps rest-paused because he got 14 reps total between his three attempts. Talk about a high-intensity set! Rest-pause sets are so effective because they overload your muscles AND your central nervous system. In other words rest-pause sets tell your body that you need to get bigger AND stronger at the same time. Rest-pause sets also maximize the three biological triggers for muscular hypertrophy:. Rest-pause sets are so effective that many researchers have started to perform scientific studies on them.

In fact the Canadian strength coach Christian Thibadeau calls rest-pause sets his favorite muscle building method.

Check it out:. The only downside to rest-pause sets is they are very difficult to recover from. They create a ton of muscle damage and really fatigue your central nervous system. The bodybuilding coach Dante Trudel says that you should only perform 1 rest-pause set per exercise. You can perform as many warm-up sets as you need to get ready for your main working set.

However, when you get to your heaviest weights for that exercise you should only perform 1 rest-pause set. Your first choice is to use low-volume workouts. For each muscle group you perform 1 rest-pause set and an extreme stretch. Another option is to use high-volume rest-pause workouts. You could perform exercises and perform 1 rest-pause set per exercise. For example you could perform these high-volume rest-pause workouts with a bodybuilding bro-split where you train each muscle group once per week.

Many bodybuilders including Dusty Hanshaw and John Meadows have used this approach to blast through training plateaus. Here is Dusty Hanshaw demonstrating a high-volume rest-pause workout:.

As you can see there are a ton of different ways to design a workout using rest-pause sets. It is one of the most effective training methods ever invented. I hope you found this overview helpful. Rest-pause sets were popularized by the DC Training program. With DC Training you perform 1 rest-pause set and 1 extreme stretch per muscle group. If you are new to rest-pause sets then the DC Training program is a great option. Rest 20 seconds. Do another set of as many reps as you can with that same weight, same exercise.

It may be 3 to 5 reps here. Do a final set of as many reps as you can with that weight. It may only be 1 or 2 reps here. Take 90 seconds rest in between rest-pause sets. Some notes on Rest-Pause Training:. That's when your body needs a break - back off for two weeks after 6 weeks on it.

This will help your body recover and rebuild - you will probably see continued results even while backing off! Still work the muscles hard, though!

Because you're using so much weight and proper exercise form is so important, you want to stay a rep or two shy of a maximum effort. Believe me, even a rep or two short of failure will work you HARD by the end of the set.

For example, if you did x 10 on the deadlifts one week, add 5 to 10 lbs onto that the next week. We're trying to force the progressive resistance in order to increase the workload on the muscles. Because both of those exercises are so demanding, it's too easy to push yourself too hard recovery-wise.

You set your feet on the ground in the lunge position, then pick up the dumbells, then keeping your feet planted, move your body up and down. This takes pressure off the knees as can happen with the step-forward lunges. You only need about 10 to 15 minutes of interval training at the most to get the job done. It's not absolutely necessary, though, if you don't have time. You want wish to do abs with more sets along with the cardio training. This isn't a volume-based program but more of an intensity-based program so don't do more sets than I have listed here.

Just do the specified number of sets with intensity and you'll get results! It may not seem like a lot of sets but it WILL strongly hit the body.