What's a reasonable weight increase for 1RM?
jdhcm2006
Posts: 2,254 Member
At the moment, I'm working with a trainer. We began back in mid-October. We worked on form a lot for my deadlift and squats before adding any real weight.
In November, my 1RM for deadlifts was 155lb. We stopped working on them for a while, b/c she was showing me other things like front squats, push presses, split jerks, cleans, complexes, etc.
She decided that we should revisit the deadlifts, which was fine with me b/c I prefer them to a lot of the things we've been doing, and my new 1RM was 185lb. So about a month and half of not working on deadlifts, I increased my 1RM by 30lbs. She was super pleased, and I was like okay, I'll take your word for it that that's good.
But my question is, is it an acceptable goal to want to increase my 1RM for deadlifts to 200lb by the end of February, or is that expecting too much too soon? I know that new lifters increase quickly in the beginning and then things even out. I'm just not sure what's normal or not.
In November, my 1RM for deadlifts was 155lb. We stopped working on them for a while, b/c she was showing me other things like front squats, push presses, split jerks, cleans, complexes, etc.
She decided that we should revisit the deadlifts, which was fine with me b/c I prefer them to a lot of the things we've been doing, and my new 1RM was 185lb. So about a month and half of not working on deadlifts, I increased my 1RM by 30lbs. She was super pleased, and I was like okay, I'll take your word for it that that's good.
But my question is, is it an acceptable goal to want to increase my 1RM for deadlifts to 200lb by the end of February, or is that expecting too much too soon? I know that new lifters increase quickly in the beginning and then things even out. I'm just not sure what's normal or not.
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Replies
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How long have you been lifting? It sounds quite reasonable.
I went from deadlifting 95lbs to 200lbs in under a year. And to be honest, my deadlift didn't click until I reached a plate because then the movement was no longer awkward.
So I would say from September to mid-December, my deadlift went from 135 to 200lbs. So yes, it is definitely possible.0 -
samanthaluangphixay wrote: »How long have you been lifting? It sounds quite reasonable.
I went from deadlifting 95lbs to 200lbs in under a year. And to be honest, my deadlift didn't click until I reached a plate because then the movement was no longer awkward.
So I would say from September to mid-December, my deadlift went from 135 to 200lbs. So yes, it is definitely possible.
We started in mid-October. I told her the main lifts I wanted to learn was the squat and deadlift, so we stuck with that for the first month to make sure my form was solid.0 -
I mean. If you actually follow a program, stay dedicated and are still acquiring those newbie gains I don't see why not. Your progress will remain fairly consistent for awhile. The reason that they only increased by 30lbs is likely due to the fact that you weren't consistently doing them. Of course the other lifts would have some carry over, but not as much as doing the movement itself.0
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At lower weights, it is not unreasonable to expect large gains of 10-20% in your 1RM lifts early on BUT, as the weights increase and you begin to plateau when you have reached an intermediate level, you should not expect gains of more than 2-5% over a month's time.0
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It has a few factors.
How much volume in your program. How intense is your stimulas to your muscles. Which also includes how often you are performing as well as improving your technique and form.
Since you are asking it is safe to say you are fairly new to lifting you should be seeing some hefty increases, though I as exciting as new 1RM can be, being pretty green I would definitely concentrate on form and volume more than the number for 1rm.3 -
Thank you everyone. I appreciate the feedback. I will go forward with increasing my 1RM to 200lb for the DL.1
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It has to do with genetics too. Some people respond more quickly/efficiently than others. Some are freaks that can experience huge gains quickly. At the other end of the bell curve are the non-responders who will struggle for every pound. But the vast majority of people fall somewhere between those two extremes.0
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how hard was it for you to pull 185? did it go up smoothly, or did you really struggle. That is also a deciding factor, if it went up smooth, you could probably pull 200 today. If it was a true 1rm and you struggled hard to get it up, then it might take you a while to get to 200. I think you should definitely pursue that 200. I actually think you should pursue 205 because its makes more sense to just add two 10s to your 185 bar, rather than putting on tiny 2.5 lb plates on a 195 lb bar. they would just look silly . whats another 5 lbs anyways, you can do it!1
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At lower weights, it is not unreasonable to expect large gains of 10-20% in your 1RM lifts early on BUT, as the weights increase and you begin to plateau when you have reached an intermediate level, you should not expect gains of more than 2-5% over a month's time.
Yup.
After a few years of work, I'm happy making ANY increase in my lifts. My bench only went up 10lbs over the course of a year, and I wasn't able to add even 5lbs to my deadlift in that same year. Diminishing returns.0 -
how hard was it for you to pull 185? did it go up smoothly, or did you really struggle. That is also a deciding factor, if it went up smooth, you could probably pull 200 today. If it was a true 1rm and you struggled hard to get it up, then it might take you a while to get to 200. I think you should definitely pursue that 200. I actually think you should pursue 205 because its makes more sense to just add two 10s to your 185 bar, rather than putting on tiny 2.5 lb plates on a 195 lb bar. they would just look silly . whats another 5 lbs anyways, you can do it!
The 185 went up smoothly. I did it once, and then my trainer decided that we needed a video of it, so I did it again after a few minutes of rest. Thank you for that insight, you are right, it would look a little silly with those 2.5lb plates. I'll shoot for 205.1 -
how hard was it for you to pull 185? did it go up smoothly, or did you really struggle. That is also a deciding factor, if it went up smooth, you could probably pull 200 today. If it was a true 1rm and you struggled hard to get it up, then it might take you a while to get to 200. I think you should definitely pursue that 200. I actually think you should pursue 205 because its makes more sense to just add two 10s to your 185 bar, rather than putting on tiny 2.5 lb plates on a 195 lb bar. they would just look silly . whats another 5 lbs anyways, you can do it!
The 185 went up smoothly. I did it once, and then my trainer decided that we needed a video of it, so I did it again after a few minutes of rest. Thank you for that insight, you are right, it would look a little silly with those 2.5lb plates. I'll shoot for 205.
Oya, you'll crush 205 then. If you can pull it then do it again in acouple minutes then you're good. You might even get higher by then end of February if you really push it.
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my wife went from 115 (untrained) to 215 in about two months. She just did Starting Strength, and added 10lbs to the bar every DL workout. (about 3 deadlifts per 2 weeks.)
She can still pull 215, and hasn't trained in years. A lot of deadlifting is technique.
But getting there you need consistency. A good strength program hits deads, squats, ohp, bench, and a pulling movement every week.0 -
my wife went from 115 (untrained) to 215 in about two months. She just did Starting Strength, and added 10lbs to the bar every DL workout. (about 3 deadlifts per 2 weeks.)
She can still pull 215, and hasn't trained in years. A lot of deadlifting is technique.
But getting there you need consistency. A good strength program hits deads, squats, ohp, bench, and a pulling movement every week.
Pulling movement? What type of pulling movement?0 -
how hard was it for you to pull 185? did it go up smoothly, or did you really struggle. That is also a deciding factor, if it went up smooth, you could probably pull 200 today. If it was a true 1rm and you struggled hard to get it up, then it might take you a while to get to 200. I think you should definitely pursue that 200. I actually think you should pursue 205 because its makes more sense to just add two 10s to your 185 bar, rather than putting on tiny 2.5 lb plates on a 195 lb bar. they would just look silly . whats another 5 lbs anyways, you can do it!
The 185 went up smoothly. I did it once, and then my trainer decided that we needed a video of it, so I did it again after a few minutes of rest. Thank you for that insight, you are right, it would look a little silly with those 2.5lb plates. I'll shoot for 205.
Oya, you'll crush 205 then. If you can pull it then do it again in acouple minutes then you're good. You might even get higher by then end of February if you really push it.
Great! Thank you.0 -
my wife went from 115 (untrained) to 215 in about two months. She just did Starting Strength, and added 10lbs to the bar every DL workout. (about 3 deadlifts per 2 weeks.)
She can still pull 215, and hasn't trained in years. A lot of deadlifting is technique.
But getting there you need consistency. A good strength program hits deads, squats, ohp, bench, and a pulling movement every week.
Pulling movement? What type of pulling movement?
Pulling movement meaning some sort of row, barbell, V bar, dumbell, pendlay, seal.
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my wife went from 115 (untrained) to 215 in about two months. She just did Starting Strength, and added 10lbs to the bar every DL workout. (about 3 deadlifts per 2 weeks.)
She can still pull 215, and hasn't trained in years. A lot of deadlifting is technique.
But getting there you need consistency. A good strength program hits deads, squats, ohp, bench, and a pulling movement every week.
Pulling movement? What type of pulling movement?
Pulling movement meaning some sort of row, barbell, V bar, dumbell, pendlay, seal.
Okay. Thanks! I'll look into adding a barbell row.0 -
Like a number of people said, 205 is very doable. For reference, I could pull 205 in a couple of months of training. It took 3(ish) years to get to 315 and another 3 to get to 325. Enjoy the awesome gains while they're here
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my wife went from 115 (untrained) to 215 in about two months. She just did Starting Strength, and added 10lbs to the bar every DL workout. (about 3 deadlifts per 2 weeks.)
She can still pull 215, and hasn't trained in years. A lot of deadlifting is technique.
But getting there you need consistency. A good strength program hits deads, squats, ohp, bench, and a pulling movement every week.
Pulling movement? What type of pulling movement?
Pulling movement meaning some sort of row, barbell, V bar, dumbell, pendlay, seal.
Okay. Thanks! I'll look into adding a barbell row.
Then you'd essentially be doing Stronglifts 5x5.
If you have your form down, you can download the app and do it on your own. And then you don't have to pay for a trainer.1 -
samanthaluangphixay wrote: »my wife went from 115 (untrained) to 215 in about two months. She just did Starting Strength, and added 10lbs to the bar every DL workout. (about 3 deadlifts per 2 weeks.)
She can still pull 215, and hasn't trained in years. A lot of deadlifting is technique.
But getting there you need consistency. A good strength program hits deads, squats, ohp, bench, and a pulling movement every week.
Pulling movement? What type of pulling movement?
Pulling movement meaning some sort of row, barbell, V bar, dumbell, pendlay, seal.
Okay. Thanks! I'll look into adding a barbell row.
Then you'd essentially be doing Stronglifts 5x5.
If you have your form down, you can download the app and do it on your own. And then you don't have to pay for a trainer.
If the trainer knows what they're talking about when it comes to form, it may not be a bad idea to continue working with them for a while. Especially if OP wants to go for a big PR in another month.
(Although I question why you would have someone deadlift and then not do it again for 1.5 months? Meat and potato movement obviously. Although it seems like trainers at my gym prefer to do everything but compound movements with people.)0 -
TresaAswegan wrote: »samanthaluangphixay wrote: »my wife went from 115 (untrained) to 215 in about two months. She just did Starting Strength, and added 10lbs to the bar every DL workout. (about 3 deadlifts per 2 weeks.)
She can still pull 215, and hasn't trained in years. A lot of deadlifting is technique.
But getting there you need consistency. A good strength program hits deads, squats, ohp, bench, and a pulling movement every week.
Pulling movement? What type of pulling movement?
Pulling movement meaning some sort of row, barbell, V bar, dumbell, pendlay, seal.
Okay. Thanks! I'll look into adding a barbell row.
Then you'd essentially be doing Stronglifts 5x5.
If you have your form down, you can download the app and do it on your own. And then you don't have to pay for a trainer.
If the trainer knows what they're talking about when it comes to form, it may not be a bad idea to continue working with them for a while. Especially if OP wants to go for a big PR in another month.
(Although I question why you would have someone deadlift and then not do it again for 1.5 months? Meat and potato movement obviously. Although it seems like trainers at my gym prefer to do everything but compound movements with people.)
She wanted to do a lot snatching, jerks, and things like that. I struggle to get my wrist to turn over quickly enough so she had us focus on that a lot more. I personally prefer DL & squatting & bench. But I figured there was nothing wrong with learning the proper technique should I want to do it at a later time.
No, it's time for our time to come to an end. We've been working together once a week since mid-October, with only a few sessions missed due to illnesses on either of our end. Our schedules do not mesh at all, she's also a little flighty. A fantastic trainer, but flighty. Plus, I don't have the money for it anymore. It would cut into my money for pole classes/privates, and as much as I like lifting, I love pole.1
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