About this workout
Rest pause training lets you squeeze more growth-stimulating reps out of a single set by pushing to failure, resting just 15 to 20 seconds, then grinding out a few more, and repeating. It is a brutally efficient way to accumulate hard reps in less time. This 6 week block applies rest pause to the first, biggest exercise on each day of a 5 day push/pull/legs split, with the rest of the work done as normal hard sets. It is short and intense on purpose; run it, then back off.
Who This Program Is For
- You are an advanced lifter who wants an intense, time-efficient hypertrophy block.
- You can train five days a week and recover from training to failure.
- You have access to a full gym.
- You can safely take sets to failure, ideally with a spotter or on machines for the rest pause work.
Who this is NOT for: beginners and intermediates, who do not need to train past failure to grow and will just dig a recovery hole. Master normal hard training first.
What You'll Need
- A full gym, with machines or a spotter for safe rest pause sets.
- A clock to keep the 15 to 20 second rests honest.
- A log to track your rest pause loads and total reps.
The Program
Five days on a push, pull, legs, push, pull rotation. The first exercise each day is your rest pause movement: take it to failure, rest 15 to 20 seconds, go again to failure, rest again, and hit a third mini-set. That whole sequence is one rest pause set; do two of them. Everything after is normal hard sets. Use a weight you can get about 8 to 10 reps with on the first push.
| Day 1 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Push A | |||
| Exercise | Sets | Reps | Rest |
| Barbell Bench Press | 2 | 8-10 (rest pause) | 3 min |
| Seated Barbell Shoulder Press | 3 | 8-10 | 90 sec |
| Incline Dumbbell Bench Press | 3 | 10-12 | 75 sec |
| Cable Lateral Raise | 3 | 15 | 45 sec |
| Tricep Pushdown | 3 | 12-15 | 45 sec |
| Day 2 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Pull A | |||
| Exercise | Sets | Reps | Rest |
| Lat Pulldown | 2 | 8-10 (rest pause) | 3 min |
| Bent Over Row | 3 | 8-10 | 90 sec |
| Pull Up | 3 | 8-10 | 90 sec |
| Face Pulls | 3 | 15-20 | 45 sec |
| Barbell Curl | 3 | 10-12 | 60 sec |
| Day 3 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Legs | |||
| Exercise | Sets | Reps | Rest |
| Leg Press | 2 | 10-12 (rest pause) | 3 min |
| Barbell Squat | 3 | 8 | 2 min |
| Romanian Deadlift | 3 | 8-10 | 90 sec |
| Lying Leg Curl | 3 | 12-15 | 60 sec |
| Standing Calf Raise | 4 | 12-15 | 45 sec |
| Day 4 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Push B | |||
| Exercise | Sets | Reps | Rest |
| Incline Barbell Bench Press | 2 | 8-10 (rest pause) | 3 min |
| Dumbbell Shoulder Press | 3 | 10 | 75 sec |
| Cable Crossover | 3 | 12-15 | 60 sec |
| Dumbbell Lateral Raise | 3 | 15 | 45 sec |
| Cable Rope Overhead Tricep Extensions | 3 | 12-15 | 45 sec |
| Day 5 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Pull B | |||
| Exercise | Sets | Reps | Rest |
| Seated Cable Rows | 2 | 10-12 (rest pause) | 3 min |
| Deadlift | 3 | 5 | 3 min |
| Straight Arm Pulldown | 3 | 12-15 | 60 sec |
| Reverse Flyes | 3 | 15-20 | 45 sec |
| Hammer Curls | 3 | 12 | 45 sec |
How to Progress
Six weeks of intense, past-failure work, then a step back.
Weeks 1 to 2. Learn to pace the rest pause sets. Pick loads where the first push hits failure around 8 to 10 reps, and get used to the short rests.
Weeks 3 to 4. Add weight to the rest pause exercises when your total reps across the mini-sets climb. Keep the rest of the session tight and hard.
Weeks 5 to 6. Push the rest pause loads to their peak and keep total reps high. This is the hardest stretch; embrace it.
After week 6. Stop the rest pause block and take a lighter week before returning to normal training. Training to failure this often is not sustainable long term.
Warm-Up and Recovery Notes
Warm up thoroughly before the rest pause exercise; you are going to failure, so the joints and muscles must be ready. Do several ramp-up sets first.
Training to failure five days a week is very taxing. Sleep, eat, and keep the rest pause work to just the one exercise per day as written; adding more failure work will bury your recovery. If you feel run down, that is the six week limit talking.
Nutrition and Supplementation
Hard, high-effort training needs fuel and protein. Eat at maintenance or a slight surplus with at least one gram of protein per pound of bodyweight.
Support: protein powder for protein, creatine monohydrate at 5 grams a day to support the high-effort work, and a daily multivitamin.
FAQ
What exactly is a rest pause set? Take a set to failure, rest 15 to 20 seconds, go to failure again, rest again, and do a final mini-set. Those three bursts on one weight count as a single rest pause set.
Is training to failure safe? On machines or with a spotter, yes. Be smart about which exercises you take to failure; the plan puts rest pause on the safer, first movement of each day for that reason.
Can I use rest pause on everything? No. Applying it to one exercise a day is plenty. Spreading it across a whole session destroys your recovery and quality.