1 Rep Max Equations

Saabdub

Apologies if these have already been posted, but I thought these six 1 rep max equations might be useful when trying to work out what weight range to work in. They have about a 6% variation with O'Connor producing the lowest 1 rep max and Epley and Brzycki the highest:D They were originaly published in Muscle and Fitness UK May 2003, p. 28.

Epley formula (1 + 0.0333 * reps)* weight (predicted 1rm 300lbs)

NFL-225 test 226.7 + (7.1 x number of reps perfomed using 225lbs) (predicted 1rm 298lbs)

Brzycki formula 100 x weight / (102.78 - 2.78 x reps) (predicted 1rm 300lbs)

O'Conner formula (1 + 0.25xreps)* weight (predicted 1rm 281lbs)

Mississippe State formula for bench press (4-6 reps) (1.12 x weight) + (5.09 x reps) - 24.62 (predicted 1rm 286lbs)

Mississippe State formula for bench press (7-10 reps) (1.16 x weight) +(1.68 x reps) - 1.89 (predicted 1rm 276lbs)

Saabdub

tribulus

I found a much easier way is to just add 10% to a 3 rep max or 20% to a 5 rep max. It's a decent *guideline*.

Vegeta

tribulus wrote: »

I found a much easier way is to just add 10% to a 3 rep max or 20% to a 5 rep max. It's a decent *guideline*.

Sounds about right for me anyway

Hanley

tribulus wrote: »

I found a much easier way is to just add 10% to a 3 rep max or 20% to a 5 rep max. It's a decent *guideline*.

10% onto my 4rm seems about right for me on my bench anyway!!

10% onto my 3rm for everything else tho!!

I'm about 85% of my 5rm for a single.

TerrorFirmer

tribulus wrote: »

I found a much easier way is to just add 10% to a 3 rep max or 20% to a 5 rep max. It's a decent *guideline*.

Works pretty much bang on for me anyway. Who bothers with formulas though, just lift the thing and see how much you can manage. Heavy weight you've never tried before, guy spotting giving you encouragement....thats all ya need to find your 1rm!

Hanley

TerrorFirmer wrote: »

Works pretty much bang on for me anyway. Who bothers with formulas though, just lift the thing and see how much you can manage. Heavy weight you've never tried before, guy spotting giving you encouragement....thats all ya need to find your 1rm!

Yeah but once you have a few years training under your belt testing maxes all the time can have a massively bad effect on your body. I know that generally unless a deadlift takes over 5 seconds to complete then it's not really a true max for me. Similar enough story with the bench. It can take quite a while to recover from these ground out lifts so it's not always good to test them every couple of months. Hence the fromulas!!

Supercell

Hanley wrote: »

It can take quite a while to recover from these ground out lifts so it's not always good to test them every couple of months. Hence the fromulas!!

Don't doubt what your saying is true, just don't understand why it is so?

Would have thought that maximum muscle challenge = maximum muscle response, thus people doing assisted stuff?

Hanley

Longfield wrote: »

Don't doubt what your saying is true, just don't understand why it is so?

Would have thought that maximum muscle challenge = maximum muscle response = maximum CNS response = fcuked CNS/muscles = long time to recover, thus people doing assisted stuff?

I edited you post slightly

Advanced strength training is as much a function of CNS adaptation as anything else. So say you're only using 20% of your available muscle to lift a weight, but I'm using 35% of mine. It'll take me longer to recover since my CNS is more efficient.

As an aside, you've two ways to become stronger. More muscle, or great CNS efficiency. You might only use 20% of what you can, but if you add more muscle you've a greater amount to use 20% of. Or you could just use 25% of what you have right now. Both require training, sometimes similar. Sometimes different.

The numbers above are just examples picked out of thin air, but hopefully you get what I mean.

Supercell

Hanley wrote: »

I edited you post slightly

Advanced strength training is as much a function of CNS adaptation as anything else. So say you're only using 20% of your available muscle to lift a weight, but I'm using 35% of mine. It'll take me longer to recover since my CNS is more efficient.

Huh?, now I'm really confused

Hanley

Longfield wrote: »

Huh?, now I'm really confused

Hahaha ok....

When you lift a weight, you're not using all the available muscle fibres to do it. You only use a certain amount (hence the need for high reps to tire more fibres..). A more advanced guy will use a great number of fibres doing the same thing. That's why a beginner can take max attempts quite often but an experienced guy can't. It's not as tiring or putting as great a strain on the beginner.

Say we both have 100lb of muscle giving 100% of our potential to contract/use that muscle mass. This muscle is controlled by our central nervous system (CNS). A better, more trained CNS allows us to tap into a great amount of our potential strength.

Say I can use 35% of that, you can only use 20%.

I'm stronger than tiger woods, I should be able to drive a ball farther right? But I'm not because his skill and bodily awareness is so far ahead of mine, he can make his body behave better than I can mine. Much like I can make my muscle behave better than you can yours (think of your CNS as your muscle awarness). Ultimately leading to a greater output.

Obviously be doing this it takes more out of me so to speak. It's more demanding on my body than it is yours, hence the need for a greater recovery time.

How's that?

Colm_OReilly

That's some nice explaining Hanley! (imagine chief wigum saying it and it sounds better)

Supercell

Hanley wrote: »

Hahaha ok....

When you lift a weight, you're not using all the available muscle fibres to do it. You only use a certain amount (hence the need for high reps to tire more fibres..). A more advanced guy will use a great number of fibres doing the same thing. That's why a beginner can take max attempts quite often but an experienced guy can't. It's not as tiring or putting as great a strain on the beginner.

Say we both have 100lb of muscle giving 100% of our potential to contract/use that muscle mass. This muscle is controlled by our central nervous system (CNS). A better, more trained CNS allows us to tap into a great amount of our potential strength.

Say I can use 35% of that, you can only use 20%.

I'm stronger than tiger woods, I should be able to drive a ball farther right? But I'm not because his skill and bodily awareness is so far ahead of mine, he can make his body behave better than I can mine. Much like I can make my muscle behave better than you can yours (think of your CNS as your muscle awarness). Ultimately leading to a greater output.

Obviously be doing this it takes more out of me so to speak. It's more demanding on my body than it is yours, hence the need for a greater recovery time.

How's that?

Thats really interesting, never thought of it like that before.

So, unfit should push to 1RM often and fit push to maybe 3RM ?

Just how fit does someone need to be before they should stop pushing the boundaries?(for them)

Interesting topic.

tribulus

I'm not sure I would take it that literally. A less experienced lifter could get away with testing 1RM's more often, it still doesn't mean it's optimal .

Though from my experience the more advanced lifters (in terms of strength training) would generally train in the 3-5 range for the big lifts so roughly 85-90%.

Depending on your definition of pushing the boundaries I don't see why you would ever stop trying to do it unless you didn't want to make any more progress

Hanley

Longfield wrote: »

Thats really interesting, never thought of it like that before.

So, unfit should push to 1RM often and fit push to maybe 3RM ?

Just how fit does someone need to be before they should stop pushing the boundaries?(for them)

Interesting topic.

Ehhh I wouldn't say that now. You'll generally know when you're pushing too much. It's something that will come with experience. I don't think it's a good idea to constantly push to absolute 3rm's either btw. I'm a big fan of constant progression. Spend maybe 5 or 6 weeks working bench presses hard, then swith to inclines or close grips or something before coming back to normal benching stronger than before hopefully.

davyjose

Hanley wrote: »

Hahaha ok....

When you lift a weight, you're not using all the available muscle fibres to do it. You only use a certain amount (hence the need for high reps to tire more fibres..). A more advanced guy will use a great number of fibres doing the same thing. That's why a beginner can take max attempts quite often but an experienced guy can't. It's not as tiring or putting as great a strain on the beginner.

Say we both have 100lb of muscle giving 100% of our potential to contract/use that muscle mass. This muscle is controlled by our central nervous system (CNS). A better, more trained CNS allows us to tap into a great amount of our potential strength.

Say I can use 35% of that, you can only use 20%.

I'm stronger than tiger woods, I should be able to drive a ball farther right? But I'm not because his skill and bodily awareness is so far ahead of mine, he can make his body behave better than I can mine. Much like I can make my muscle behave better than you can yours (think of your CNS as your muscle awarness). Ultimately leading to a greater output.

Obviously be doing this it takes more out of me so to speak. It's more demanding on my body than it is yours, hence the need for a greater recovery time.

How's that?

Great post there Hanley.