assistance-work-mistakes

10/20/Life: Rest Periods and Strength Training

By: Brian Carroll

“What should rest periods be with 10/20/Life?”

This question comes up a lot in strength training, and I’ve noticed it since I released my book 10/20/Life. I have a few different opinions on this that I’ll share because there isn’t a single answer. It all depends on where you are in your training, your exact goals at the time, and how in shape you are at that specific time. In other words, there is NO exact blanket statement that you have to live by. Just as each person is unique and requires a different stimulus to reach their goals, so too is it with rest periods.

Take your time, but not too much time.

As a general rule of thumb, I suggest you allow adequate recovery on your main lifts and move faster during your assistance work. On the other hand, I don’t ever want you to miss big lifts due to being too out of breath from the set before and not recovered. I understand that this is still a somewhat vague answer, but listen to what I have to say.

Your main lift is where you must make every single rep as perfect as possible. These are the most dangerous (in regards to injury) and powerful (in regards to stimulus) compound movements – this is the meat and potato of your program, if you will. You CANNOT start to create bad habits due to fatigue which will come back to haunt you when it’s time to push some weight. This can apply to the offseason or precontest. With your assistance (think the smaller things, i.e., DB work, rows, sled drags, core work), I have no problem and actually like the idea of moving fast through these to build endurance, get your heart rate up, and challenge yourself differently at times. With your skill movements, Squat, Bench, Dead, OHP, etc., I never suggest moving too fast unless the loads are SUPER light and your form or technique is something that resembles a finely tuned machine. Otherwise, you are not any different than the cross-fitters you make fun of who do compound lifts for time.

The EXACT number of seconds you should rest is…

Don’t listen to this bullsh*t about how you need to have X-amount of endurance and be able to move at XX-pace. Generic recommendations suck. Everything depends and varies according to circumstance. Everyone is different. If you are a strong athlete, and that is your focus, being as strong as possible is number one. I know people that can’t walk a half mile but could take 20 attempts on meet day and hit just about all of them. However, this is not an excuse to be an out-of-shape piece of crap that can’t even get through a moderately-paced session.

Here are a few things that might be a reference point for your own strength-training program as far as rest is concerned and what I’ve advocated for clients and friends over the years.

Main type lift (applies to compound assistance work too): 2-10min.

Example: Squat/Bench/Dead/Barbell-row/Block/Rack-pull/Board press/Heavy GM etc. Again, the closer you draw toward a meet, the volume comes down, the intensity goes UP, and longer rest periods are needed. You’ll look at the opposite for off-season work: higher volume, lower intensity, and fewer rest periods.

Assistance lifts 1-4min.

Example: Chin/shrug/Sled drag/McGill big 3/Hammer curl/Band fly/press-down/DB work etc.

Your Fourth Day:

The fluff and buff, which I advocate in 10/20/Life, is a lighter BB-type day that I suggest you move quickly and get a nice pump. Experiment with this as your 4th training day. This can build endurance, attack weak points, or even a recovery workout that helps you move some blood around. Again, the pace is fast, and the entire workout shouldn’t take longer than 20min or so. I also highly suggest that you do some form of cardio for general health, i.e., walking 4-5x per week, pulling the sled after every session, and attacking your core with the McGill big three every day.

Rest Periods and Offseason Preparation

The offseason would be the time to experiment with everything and test yourself in different places to see what works best for you. In the offseason, aka your building phase, I suggest you develop a balanced combination of a strong base, endurance, and overall health. Achieving this balance will set you up for long-term success, and this approach has stood the test of time. Preparation supersedes raw ability, so take your offseason seriously. This is when you attack weak points, get better overall, and create longevity.

I like the idea of moving faster in the offseason and improving your overall physical fitness, getting through your workouts faster, and having time for other things. Don’t treat the offseason like competition. Train hard, but spend the time with family, friends, work, and all the other things that might get neglected during contest time. This is pretty much a win/win. Less time in the gym, more time to do other stuff that you tend to push aside when in competition mode. Offseason mentality is to get in, be quick, and get it done. This is where you will get better at the shit you suck at, not when you’re 3-5 weeks out from your comp and discover that you ‘missed’ something. Too late. I cannot say how vital an offseason is for any athlete, strength, or other. It’s the time when you get better—both mentally and physically.

Precontest, time to get serious

There comes the point (everyone is different) where more rest on the big lifts, i.e., squat/bench/dead, is NOT going to help you and could hurt you. There are exceptions to this, of course. Garry Frank, the first man to total 2500, 2600, 2700, and 2800 respectively, was known to have MARATHON training sessions that started in the evening and lasted until the wee hours of the morning. His rest periods were extremely long, and he wouldn’t approach the bar until he felt he had recovered 100%.
This worked well for Big Garry and his crew, no question. But many will not respond well to such long rest periods, which could be counterproductive. On the other hand – moving too fast can and will hurt your strength if you are going very heavy and have not recovered from the set prior. So find some middle ground that doesn’t keep you in the gym all day but at the same time doesn’t make your training sessions suffer. Typically, the heavier the weight and the higher the RPE, the more time you will need. For example, an RPE of 8 or 9 will take more time to recover than 6 or 7.

Like the offseason, don’t rush through your sessions to say you will get in better shape. Sure, pick up the pace, get your fingers out of your training partner’s crotch (if you wear equipment such as briefs, you get to know them well), and get under the bar and move some weight. However, save the faster, more intensely paced work for the end of the day with the more froufrou movements spoken about above, which will not potentially end your career because you moved too fast through them. I would rather see you do EXTRA sets in precontest with heavyweight than rush through a heavy session in the name of condition or endurance.

If the endgame is to compete in powerlifting, strongman, or the like, see how much time you get at an average meet between lifts and go from there. A lot of the time, it depends on the pace of the meet, how many lifters are signed up, and how many flights total (a flight is the group of people in or around your class). If you’re on a long flight (15 or more), you’ll have 20 minutes between lifts. If in a shorter flight (10 lifters or less), be ready to lift every 10min or so. A lot of the time, for the shorter flights, the meet director will slow the pace down and take a break to slow things down.

The Deal with Competition

If you like moving fast in training, then move fast. If you like moving slower, BSing in the gym, and taking your time, then do that too. BUT – if your endgame is to compete – know that you are at the MERCY OF THE MEET FLOW. Be ready for both, so adjust your training accordingly. I think it’s a great idea to have some days where you have faster-paced sessions (not CrossFit fast) and some sessions where the pace is slower, much like a competition. It all comes down to personal preference and, most importantly, your NEEDS. ALSO: keep this in mind, too: A super heavyweight is not going to keep pace with a 132er in most cases, so let’s not make it complicated, especially when heat/environment, work-loads, and volume come into play. Speaking of heat and environment – Team Samson, who I’ve trained with since 2003, just got air conditioning and insulation last year. Remember, we train in a metal shed and live in North Florida. We have been exposed to the elements for over a decade, so meet day was usually a breeze, having air conditioning and the like. This was part of our “conditioning,” if you will.

In Closing:

There are so many ways to go about this – what I advocate here is what I’ve used in my career and seen work for countless other friends and clients. Find out what works for you and make it your own. Please share what works for you, and let’s learn from each other. After all, this is all a process, and we all have goals we want to accomplish. I’m just trying to throw a couple of tools out for you to add to your collection that may help you along with way.

 

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Brian Carroll

Owner and Founder at PowerRackStrength.com
Brian is a retired world-class powerlifter with over two decades of world-class powerlifting. From 1999 to 2020, Brian Carroll was a competitive powerlifter, one of the most accomplished lifters in the sport's history. Brian started off competing in bench press competitions 'raw,' then, shortly into the journey, he gravitated toward equipped lifting as there were no "raw" categories then. You only had to choose from single-ply (USPF) and Multi-ply (APF/WPC). Brian went on to total 2730 at 275 and 2651 at 242 with more than ten times his body weight in three different classes (220, 242, 275), and both bench pressed and deadlifted over 800 pounds in two other weight classes. He's totaled 2600 over 20 times in 2 different weight classes in his career. With 60 squats of 1000lbs or more officially, this is the most in powerlifting history, regardless of weight class or federation, by anyone not named David Hoff. Brian realized many ups and downs during his 20+ years competing. After ten years of high-level powerlifting competition and an all-time World Record squat at 220 with 1030, in 2009, Brian was competing for a Police academy scholarship. On a hot and humid July morning, Brian, hurdling over a barricade at 275lbs, landed on, fell, and hurt his back. After years of back pain and failed therapy, Brian met with world-renowned back specialist Prof McGill in 2013, which changed his trajectory more than he could have imagined. In 2017, Brian Carroll and Prof McGill authored the best-selling book about Brian's triumphant comeback to powerlifting in Gift of Injury. Most recently (10.3.20) -Brian set the highest squat of all time (regardless of weight class) with 1306 lbs – being the first man to break the 1300lb squat barrier at a bodyweight of 303 lbs.
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