Progressing your lifts session to session

Who this is for

You lift regularly, two to four times a week, and you want your numbers to keep going up without guessing each session. You may be newer to lifting and still adding weight most weeks, or you may have been at it long enough that progress has slowed and you want a clearer rule for when to push.

This guide sets out two simple ways to progress and how to tell when to hold or back off. It is not a programme, and it is not tailored to you. If you are new to lifting, coming back from injury, or have a health condition, check with a professional before adding training. Treat every number here as a starting point you adjust.

The one rule underneath all of it

Progress means doing slightly more than last time: a little more weight, one more rep, or the same work done better. To do that you need two things in front of you when you walk up to the bar: what you did last time, and the number you are trying to beat today. Everything below is a way of deciding that number.

Linear progression: for when you are still new

If you have been lifting for less than a year or so, you can usually add weight every session or every week on your main lifts. Pick a fixed set and rep scheme, such as 3 sets of 5, and add a small amount each time you complete every rep with good form.

• Lower-body lifts (squat, deadlift) can usually take 2.5 to 5 kg a step at first.
• Upper-body lifts (bench press, overhead press) usually take 2.5 kg, and later less.

Small steps last longer than big ones. A 2.5 kg jump is easy to load on most barbells, and it is also the step the app’s warm-up sets round to, so your warm-ups and working sets stay on the same plates.

When you miss reps, do not add weight. Repeat the same weight next session. If you miss again on the same weight, it is time to change something (see “When to step back” below).

Double progression: for when progress slows

Once adding weight every session stops working, use a rep range instead of a fixed rep count. Pick a range, such as 6 to 8 reps for 3 sets, and a weight you can lift for 6 on every set.

1. Each session, try to add a rep to one or more sets at the same weight.
2. When you hit the top of the range on every set (3 × 8), add a small amount of weight.
3. With the new weight you will likely drop back to 6 or 7 reps. Build up to 8 again.

This is the two-step loop that gives double progression its name: first reps, then weight. It suits accessory lifts very well, and it works for main lifts once linear progression has run its course. A wider range (8 to 12) suits smaller lifts and isolation work; a narrower one (4 to 6) suits heavy compound lifts.

When to hold a weight

Hold the weight, not add to it, when:

• you got every rep, but the last set was a grind and your form slipped;
• you slept badly, are ill or have had a hard week outside the gym;
• you have just added weight and are still settling into it.

Holding is not failing. Repeating a weight until it moves well is how the next jump becomes possible.

When to step back

If you stall on the same weight for two or three sessions in a row, take 5 to 10 per cent off that lift and build back up over a few weeks. You will usually pass the old number within a month, with better reps along the way. Look at the rest of your training too: sleep, food, total volume and rest between sets all show up on the bar.

Don’t forget deloads. When I stall or slip back, it’s usually fatigue from life and training piling up. Reduce your load, or better yet head to a tropical island — but a little break every 6 to 8 weeks keeps you fresh and able to push.

Build it in One Rep Closer

The app does not choose your next weight. It fills in what you actually did last time, and you decide what you earned. That keeps the decision with you, where the rules above can work.

Set up the template

Open the Templates tab and tap +. Tap Add block and choose Strength for each lift, one exercise per block. Set your sets, reps and working weight, and the rest you want between sets. A Strength block lifted for reps with a working weight can add warm-up sets from four ramps (Standard, Starting Strength, 5/3/1 and Minimal); they are worked out from the working weight and rounded to 2.5 kg. Save the template.

Before each session: the plan screen

Go to the Train tab and tap Pick a template. Before the workout starts, the plan screen shows today’s sets, weights, reps and rest, filled in from what you actually did last time. This is where you apply your rule:

• Linear progression: if you got every rep last time, raise the weight by your step.
• Double progression: if you reached the top of the range on every set, raise the weight; if not, leave it and aim for more reps.
• Holding or stepping back: leave the weight, or lower it.

These changes apply to this workout only; the template stays as it is. Then tap Start workout.

During the session: the number to beat

During a set, a line under the ring shows your best from the last run of that template (LAST RUN BEST), or, if there is none, your best ever for that exercise (BEST). That is the number to beat, in front of you between sets.

After the session: did it work?

When you repeat a template, the summary compares the total weight you lifted with the last time you ran it. Personal records cover estimated one rep max and the heaviest weight at each rep count, as well as workout and muscle-group tonnage. Warm-up sets do not count, so a heavy warm-up never passes for a record.

Over weeks: the trend

The Progress tab charts your tonnage over time, shows volume by body part and lists recent personal records. The free plan shows the last 4 weeks; Premium adds 12 weeks, 6 months, 1 year and all time. There is no chart of a single exercise, such as estimated one rep max, over time, so for one lift the records list is the place to look.

The free plan has no limit on how many workouts you log, and it keeps 2 templates. See pricing for what Premium adds.

Where to go next

The strength page covers what the app does for lifters, from warm-up sets to rest that starts itself. If you also run, the hybrid split guide shows how to fit lifting and running into the same week.