the down time is to let your body get adjusted to no juice again and to make sure there aren't any sides that pop up...you need to get your blood work done before, during, and after a cycle to make sure you're still ok, but you've got to be off for awhile before you can get accurate bloodwork...that's just one reason.
There are things you can bridge with, but that depends on what was in your cycle in the first place and it is something that you will have to do a lot of research on to figure out.