Either pathway is fine.
I took a year off, almost out of necessity. In an effort to please my dad, I made the horrible mistake of working towards law school for three years. I took the LSAT at the end of my junior year, scored ~170, and basically had a ticket anywhere with my >3.9 GPA.
The summer before senior year, the admiration I have of physicians and the idea of becoming one were too overwhelming (I had wanted to be pre-med from day one, but my father is domineering and it took me a while to grow a pair). Long story short, I crammed all that summer for the MCAT (I was at least wise enough to pick a science major so I had pre-reqs), absolutely poured my heart and soul into becoming as strong of an applicant as I could in my last year, and applied last summer after graduation. There are plenty of people like me that I met during interviews, as well as many who were still finishing up undergrad. At second look, both groups were well represented.
I've been working for my father's business the past several months, but I've still continued shadowing and volunteering because I enjoy those activities. If you do take a break, make sure you stay involved in medical-related activities, in the event you don't get accepted (hope for the best, plan for the worst).
In retrospect, I do wish I had done things differently. I'd already be done with first year, and I'd have another year of salary later in life. But at the end of the day, I'm doing what I love. At no time did the journey I took in regards to a gap year hinder my path to where I am now.
TL;DR: We all have unique pathways to medical school. Go the route that fits you best, and apply when you're ready to be a competitive applicant. You'll find plenty of people from both categories.
