1RM Training Guides
Practical guides to strength training, 1RM estimation, and progressive overload.
Your one rep max is the heaviest weight you can lift once with good form, and it is the reference point almost every strength programme is written against. Prescriptions like “3 sets of 5 at 80%” are meaningless without it, which is why estimating it accurately matters more than it first appears.
Testing a true max is slow, taxing and carries real risk, particularly without a spotter. Estimation formulas exist so you can infer the number from a set you have already done. Feed in a weight and the reps you completed, and the equation projects the single you could have managed.
The two formulas in common use, Epley and Brzycki, agree closely in the low rep ranges and diverge as reps climb. Neither is universally more accurate. Both become progressively less reliable above about ten reps, because at that point you are measuring muscular endurance as much as maximal strength, and the relationship between the two varies a lot from lifter to lifter.
All guides
Training Percentages and Your 1RM: A Complete Guide
How to use your 1RM to structure training intensity — from 60% for hypertrophy to 90%+ for max strength — with a full percentage table.
Epley vs Brzycki Formula: Which 1RM Calculator Is More Accurate?
The two formulas agree at exactly 10 reps and diverge most at 3 to 4 reps. Full comparison table, all seven published formulas, and what the gap costs you on the bar.
How to Increase Your 1RM: The Arithmetic of Getting Stronger
When a rep PR beats a plate PR, why finishing a strength block proves nothing about your max, how often PRs should really arrive, and what to load on test day. All worked out.
The Brzycki Formula Explained: How Accurate Is Your Predicted 1RM?
How the Brzycki formula works, worked examples at every rep range, and how close a predicted max really gets to a tested one.
Getting a usable number
For the most reliable estimate, use a set taken close to failure in the three to six rep range, with the same technique and equipment you would use for a true max. A set of twelve taken well short of failure will produce a flattering number that falls apart the moment you load the bar.
Treat the result as a working figure to programme from rather than a personal best to claim, and recalculate it every few weeks as your training progresses. Estimates also drift between lifts: the formulas tend to fit the squat and deadlift better than they fit the bench press or overhead press, where smaller muscle groups fatigue faster.
Jump straight to a tool: 1RM calculator, bench press, squat, deadlift, overhead press.