Understanding Your One Rep Max: A Practical Guide to Training Percentages

Look, I get it. You’re not trying to compete in powerlifting. You’re just a regular guy who wants to get stronger, build some muscle, and maybe feel like you did in your twenties.

But knowing your one rep max and how to use those training percentages can be the difference between spinning your wheels and actually making progress.

Why Your 1RM Actually Matters

Your one rep max isn’t about ego lifting or proving anything to anyone. It’s a tool. Think of it like knowing your max heart rate for cardio work—it gives you a reference point to program intelligently.

When you know your estimated max, you can work backwards and train at the right intensities for your specific goals. That’s where those percentages come in.

The Real Talk on Testing Your Max

Here’s what most online calculators won’t tell you: you probably shouldn’t actually test your true 1RM unless you’re competing.

Why? Because if you’re detrained, over 35, or getting back into lifting after time off, grinding out a true max is a great way to tweak something. Your tendons and ligaments need time to catch up to your muscles, and a max effort lift is high risk for minimal reward.

Instead, pick a weight you can lift for 3-5 solid reps with good form and let the formula estimate your max. It’s safer, smarter, and just as accurate for programming purposes.

How to Actually Use These Percentages

The NCSF teaches us that different intensities create different adaptations. Your body doesn’t just “get stronger”—it responds specifically to the demands you place on it. Here’s how to think about it:

95% – Heavy Singles

This is peaking territory. You’re testing or expressing strength you’ve already built. If you’re not prepping for a meet or a test, you probably don’t need to be here often. Maybe once every 4-6 weeks to check progress. That’s it.

85-90% – Pure Strength Work

This is where you build raw strength. Sets of 1-3 reps. Your nervous system is learning to recruit maximum muscle fibers efficiently. This work is taxing, so you can’t do tons of it. Think one or two big compound movements per session, maybe 3-6 total work sets.

75-80% – The Sweet Spot for Strength Building

This is probably where you should spend most of your time if strength is the goal. Sets of 3-6 reps let you accumulate quality volume without grinding yourself into dust. You can handle more total sets here, which means more practice with the movement pattern and more stimulus for adaptation.

65-75% – Hypertrophy Range

Want to build muscle? This is your bread and butter. Sets of 6-12 reps create metabolic stress and mechanical tension—the two big drivers of muscle growth. You can push closer to failure here without the same injury risk as heavier loads. This is where supersets and drop sets actually make sense.

60-65% – Speed Work and Deloads

Light weight, moved fast. This isn’t about the load—it’s about training your nervous system to recruit muscle fibers quickly. Or it’s your deload weight when you need to back off but still want to move. Don’t skip this. Speed work and deload weeks keep you healthy and progressing long-term.

Programming Reality Check

Here’s what this looks like in practice for most guys with dad bods trying to get back in shape:

You’re not going to use all these percentages in the same week. That’s insane. Your programming should emphasize one or two intensity ranges based on your current phase and goals.

If you’re rebuilding strength, focus on that 75-85% range. You’re getting stronger without beating yourself up. Leave two in the tank on every set.

If you’re trying to build muscle, live in that 65-75% range. Higher reps, controlled tempo, chasing the pump. This is where body recomposition happens.

If you’re deloading or working on speed, drop to 60-65%. Move it fast, practice technique, let your body recover.

If you are just getting back into training after a layoff, check The Comeback – a training program built to ease you back into lifting, to help you get stronger, and start building some muscle.

The Part Nobody Talks About

These percentages assume you’re fresh, well-recovered, and hitting prescribed reps with good form. But if you slept like crap, work was stressful, and you’re still sore from three days ago? Those numbers might feel very different.

This is why I hammer auto-regulation with my clients. The percentage gives you a starting point, but you adjust based on how you actually feel that day. If your working weight is moving like a max effort, you back off. No ego. No grinding. Just smart training.

Bottom Line

Your estimated 1RM gives you a roadmap. Those percentages tell you where to load the bar for different goals. But here’s the real secret: consistency beats intensity every single time.

You don’t need to test your max. You don’t need to constantly work at 90%. You need to show up 3-4 days a week, use the right percentages for your current goal, leave two in the tank, and trust the process.

That’s how guys with families, jobs, and responsibilities actually get strong and stay strong.

Now you know your numbers. Use them wisely.