Give it a rest: a systematic review with Bayesian meta-analysis on the effect of inter-set rest interval duration on muscle hypertrophy
Open accessAbstract
We systematically searched the literature for studies with a randomized design that compared different inter-set rest interval durations for estimates of pre-/post-study changes in lean/muscle mass in healthy adults while controlling all other training variables. Bayesian meta-analyses on non-controlled effect sizes using hierarchical models of all 19 measurements (thigh: 10; arm: 6; whole body: 3) from 9 studies meeting inclusion criteria analyses showed substantial overlap of standardized mean differences across the different inter-set rest periods [binary: short: 0.48 (95%CrI: 0.19–0.81), longer: 0.56 (95%CrI: 0.24–0.86); Four categories: short: 0.47 (95%CrI: 0.19–0.80), intermediate: 0.65 (95%CrI: 0.18–1.1), long: 0.55 (95%CrI: 0.15–0.90), very long: 0.50 (95%CrI: 0.14–0.89)], with substantial heterogeneity in results. Univariate and multivariate pairwise meta-analyses of controlled binary (short vs. longer) effect sizes showed similar results for the arm and thigh with central estimates tending to favor longer rest periods [arm: 0.13 (95%CrI: −0.27 to 0.51); thigh: 0.17 (95%CrI: −0.13 to 0.43)]. In contrast, central estimates closer to zero but marginally favoring shorter rest periods were estimated for the whole body [whole body: −0.08 (95%CrI: −0.45 to 0.29)]. Subanalysis of set end-point data indicated that training to failure or stopping short of failure did not meaningfully influence the interaction between rest interval duration and muscle hypertrophy. In conclusion, results suggest a small hypertrophic benefit to employing inter-set rest interval durations >60 s, perhaps mediated by reductions in volume load. However, our analysis did not detect appreciable differences in hypertrophy when resting >90 s between sets, consistent with evidence that detrimental effects on volume load tend to plateau beyond this time-frame. Systematic Review Registration: OSF, https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/YWEVC.
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Load, volume, frequency, and rest intervals influence the amount of skeletal muscle hypertrophy induced by resistance training.
“Research into resistance training variables shows that load, volume, frequency, and rest intervals, influence the amount of skeletal muscle hypertrophy induced [33–35].”
From Effects of Skeletal Muscle Hypertrophy on Fat Mass and Glucose Homeostasis in Humans and Animals: A Narrative Review with Systematic Literature Search (2025) · cites this paper as [34]
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- Authors
- Singer, A., Wolf, M., Generoso, L., Arias, E., Delcastillo, K., Echevarria, E., Martinez, A., Androulakis Korakakis, P., Refalo, M. C., Swinton, P. A., & Schoenfeld, B. J.
- Affiliations
- Lehman College (US)
- Deakin University (AU)
- Robert Gordon University (GB)
- Corresponding author
- Schoenfeld, Brad J.
- Venue
- Frontiers in Sports and Active Living
- Publisher
- Frontiers Media SA
- Published
- 2024-08-14
- Volume
- 6
- Pages
- 1429789-1429789
- ISSN
- 2624-9367 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC11349676
- OpenAlex
- W4401589718
- Cited by
- 14
- References
- 46
- Citations by year
- 2026: 7 · 2025: 7
- FWCI
- 1.48
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Frontiers in Sports and Active Living (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Open Access Institutional Repository at Robert Gordon University (Robert Gordon University) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Orthopedics and Sports Medicine › Sports Performance and Training
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Cell Biology › Muscle metabolism and nutrition
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Complementary and alternative medicine › Cardiovascular and exercise physiology
- Keywords
- muscle hypertrophy, resistance training, lean body mass, training to failure, volume load
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