I hate math. The first “C” I ever got in school was in calculus my sophomore year of high school. I’ve always enjoyed writing, but math was just never my thing.
I still hate math, but I’ve learned to add in 45-pound increments pretty well. And despite my constant need for a calculator to do even the simplest of equations, I’ve learned that percentage-based training is one of the most effective ways to build a program and get strong fast.
What’s percentage-based training? Simply, it means you use an established 1-rep max for whatever exercise you plan to train (squat, bench press, power clean, etc.) and build your program off of percentages of that number.
For example, if my 1 rep max on the deadlift if 500 pounds, I might build a percentage-based program that follows a progression like this:
Week 1 – 4 sets of 6 reps at 70% (350 lbs)
Week 2 – 5 sets of 4 reps at 75% (375 lbs)
Week 3 – 5 sets of 3 reps at 80% (400 lbs)
Week 4 – 4 sets of 2 reps at 85% (425 lbs)
At our most recent Optimizing the Big 3 seminar (at Warhorse Barbell Club in Philadelphia – a badass gym with amazing coaches, so check it out), Greg Robins and I preached the enormous benefits of percentage-based training. Are there other methods that work? Absolutely. But for most serious lifters, percentages lay the roadmap for you to reach your goals.
Here are 3 reasons that percentage-based training is the ideal method to get as strong as possible:
1. ACCOUNTABILITY
The greatest benefit of percentage-based training is the sense of accountability it creates.
There are many effective programs that instruct the lifter to work up to a maximum weight at a given rep range (i.e. a conjugate method max effort day where you work up to a 5, 3 or 1-rep max). There are others that use auto-regulation and let the lifter pick and choose weights based on how they’re feeling that day.
These are great in theory, but in my experience as a lifter and coach, sometimes you can’t trust your feelings. Sometimes you need a concrete assignment that says you must lift this weight this many times for this many sets. Even if you’re feeling tired, lazy and unmotivated, you’re less likely to sell yourself short and quit if the program says exactly what to do.
The accountability factor extends itself to supportive equipment as well. I can’t overstate the importance of building your strength without the use of belts, wraps, speciality bars, etc. I can’t count the number of times I’ve been tempted to wear my belt for a weight that felt heavy, only to realize that it was a lower percentage that I shouldn’t need my belt for. Needless to say, the cold hard numbers can help you suck it up and train harder.
Think of it this way: would you rather have a professor who gave assignments with clear guidelines, or one who said, “Meh, just do whatever you think is good enough.” I know I’d rather have clear expectations and guidelines to take any second-guessing out of the training process.
2. MEASURABLE AND MANAGEABLE
As much as I hate math, the power of one’s ability to manage a percentage-based program is pretty awesome. As they say, “What gets measured gets managed,” so if you’re keeping close track of your training volume and intensity with percentages, it’s easy to look back at a program to figure out what worked and what didn’t.
At each seminar we do, Greg breaks down the volume of a handful of popular powerlifting programs based on percentages. What’s incredibly interesting to see is the common thread that the majority of the volume of these particular programs falls in the 60-70 percent range. That submaximal range seems to work wonders for maximal strength.
Now, if left to your own devices, how likely do you think you’d be to spend most of your time lifting that light? I know I certainly would be tempted to train much heavier, and always did when I used non-percentage-based programs.
But if you track tonnage (weight x sets x reps) at certain percentages over the course of a training program, it’s easy to track where the bulk of your work was focused. Let’s say you had a great training cycle that led to big PRs, and you steadily increased the tonnage (more sets and reps) you moved at 80 percent of your 1-rep max over the course of 8 weeks. You can easily see that you should continue to focus on training at a certain percentage.
What’s more, decades of trial and error by Russian weightlifters left us with Prilepin’s chart, a staggeringly-accurate chart that breaks down the ideal amount of volume at specific percentages for a given training session:
This chart not only tells you how many sets and reps to do at a given percentage, but gives you ranges to help auto-regulate. For example, if you’re set to use 80-90 percent of your 1-rep max and you feel great, shoot for 20 total reps, but if you feel lousy, get in at least 10 and call it a day.
Percentages enhance your ability to measure your training where most go-by-feel or call-your-own-weights programs fall short.
3. ROOM TO GROW
Perhaps most importantly, percentage-based training done properly gives you plenty of room to grow and get better in the long term. It’s important to see the big picture in strength training and realize that you’re not just training for this workout right this second, but for years and years down the road.
That’s why many programs, most notably Jim Wendler’s 5/3/1, uses 10 percent less than your actual 1-rep max as your training max. This mandates submaximal training and slowcooks your progress to ensure sustainable growth.
It’s easy to map out a long-term training plan (12 weeks, 24 weeks, even 52 weeks) using percentages and incremental changes in training volume and intensity. It’s not so easy to do that if you’re adjusting weights on the fly day-to-day. Sure, you may undershoot your abilities from time to time as you get stronger, but that’s certainly better than fizzling out too quickly because you were left to your own over-achieving devices and trained too heavy too often.
Getting stronger is like slow-cooking the perfect rack of barbecued ribs. You can go by feel and risk overcooking the meat, or you can use a thermometer, measure your wood chips and know EXACTLY how much dry rub you need to get the best taste possible. Again, what gets measured gets managed.
CRUNCHING NUMBERS, CRUSHING WEIGHTS
If you’ve never used percentage-based programming before, give it a try. It’s best if you know your true 1-rep max. If you don’t, use this calculator to estimate. The accountability, measurability and growth potential of percentages may be just what you need to take your strength to the next level.
