The rule at a glance
ACSM band for adding load
2 to 10%
After 1 to 2 reps over the target on 2 sessions in a row. ACSM 2009.
Worked example, last session
40kg
10, 9, 8 reps in a 8 to 12 range.
Next session
40kg
Reps by set: 10, 9, 9. One rep goes on the lowest set.
Once every set hits 12
42.5kg
Reps reset to 8. A 6.3% step.
Key Takeaways
- Enter your working weight, the reps from each set, your rep range and your smallest jump. The Next session mode returns the weight and reps to aim for. The Week-by-week plan mode lays out a table you can copy or download.
- The rule is double progression: add reps until every set reaches the top of your range, then add weight and drop back to the bottom. It is a planning convention, not a published equation, and the page says so wherever it applies.
- The one published number is the ACSM band of 2 to 10% for a load increase[1]. The calculator uses it to check your jump, not to choose it.
- The week-by-week rise and the deload spacing are your own settings. No source gives a fixed weekly percentage, so none is built in.
What Progressive Overload Is
Progressive overload means raising the demand on a muscle over time. Load, reps, sets and frequency are all ways to do it.
The 2026 ACSM position stand describes it as the need to increase the stimulus placed on the muscle through a program[2]. It lists load, volume, training frequency, exercise selection and duration as ways to raise that stimulus, even if only slightly.
The same stand adds a point that is easy to miss. Progression is not necessary to achieve beneficial outcomes, and increasing the stimulus is likely a requirement only for those seeking continued longer-term progress[2]. Its overall advice is still that healthy adults should do progressive resistance training.
How to Use the Progressive Overload Calculator
Pick a mode, enter one lift, and press the button.
- Choose your unit and enter the weight you used for your working sets. For dumbbells, enter one dumbbell.
- Set your rep range. The presets follow the ACSM zones, and any range from 1 to 30 reps works.
- Enter your smallest jump. For a barbell, count both sides together.
- In Next session, type the reps from each working set of your last workout. In Week-by-week plan, enter your sets, starting reps and length.
- Press the button. Your result includes the target, the step as a percentage of your weight, and any warnings.
Your entries are saved in this browser only, so the form is filled in on your next visit. Reset clears them.
The Rule: Double Progression, With a Worked Example
Reps first, then weight. Hold the load if you fall short.
Any set below the bottom of the range
hold the weight, aim for the bottom reps
Convention. Not from a published equation.
Every set at or above the top
weight + smallest jump, reps back to the bottom
Convention. The size of the jump is checked against the ACSM band.
Anything in between
same weight, +1 rep on the lowest set
Convention. The lowest set is the one furthest from the top.
Estimated 1RM
weight × (1 + reps ÷ 30)
Epley. Best set, up to 15 reps. It was built on sets of 10 or fewer reps.
Take 40 kg for sets of 10, 9, 8 in an 8 to 12 range, with a 2.5 kg jump. Every set is at least 8, but not every set is at 12, so the weight stays and the lowest set gets a rep. The target is 10, 9, 9.
Had the sets been 12, 12, 12, the weight would go to 42.5 kg and the reps would reset to 8, 8, 8. That is a 6.3% step, inside the ACSM band. If a set had finished at 7, as in 10, 7, 8, the rule would hold at 40 kg and aim for 8 reps on every set.
Range 8 to 12 reps, smallest jump 2.5 kg
Reps done: 10, 9, 8
Rule fired: not all sets at the top
Volume load = weight × total reps = 40 × 27 = 1080 kg
Estimated 1RM (Epley) = weight × (1 + reps ÷ 30), best set
How this differs from the ACSM wording
For training at a specific RM load, ACSM 2009 recommends a 2 to 10% increase after beating the target by 1 to 2 reps on 2 consecutive sessions[1]. This tool adds weight when every set hits the top of your range, which is a convention. Tick the two-sessions box to wait as ACSM does.
How Big Should the Jump Be?
ACSM 2009 describes a 2 to 10% increase. The same plate step is a different percentage on every lift.
ACSM puts the lower end of the band on small-muscle exercises and the higher end on large-muscle, multi-joint ones[1]. That is why a 2.5 kg jump can suit a squat and be far too big for a lateral raise.
| Working weight | 1.25 kg jump | 2.5 kg jump | 5 kg jump |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20 kg | 6.3% (inside) | 12.5% (above) | 25% (above) |
| 40 kg | 3.1% (inside) | 6.3% (inside) | 12.5% (above) |
| 60 kg | 2.1% (inside) | 4.2% (inside) | 8.3% (inside) |
| 100 kg | 1.3% (below) | 2.5% (inside) | 5% (inside) |
| 140 kg | 0.9% (below) | 1.8% (below) | 3.6% (inside) |
When your smallest jump is above the band, the calculator says so. Smaller plates, or magnetic microplates where you have them, keep the step inside it. Adding reps for another session is the other route, covered next.
The Barbell Plate Calculator shows which plates make up each load.
Adding Reps or Adding Weight
In one 8-week trial, adding reps at the same weight worked about as well as adding weight.
Plotkin and colleagues randomised 43 resistance-trained adults, each with at least 1 year of lower-body training, to progress by load or by reps. They trained 2 times a week for 8 weeks[3].
Rectus femoris growth modestly favoured reps, and Smith machine squat strength slightly favoured load. The authors called these differences of questionable practical significance, and found no other notable differences[3]. The study covered lower-body lifts only, so it says little about other muscles, untrained people or elite lifters.
With no clear winner, the order used here, reps first and then weight, is a design choice and not something the trial proved.
A 12-Week Progressive Overload Chart
The same rule, run forward, with a deload every 6 weeks.
This is the Week-by-week plan with 40 kg, 3 sets of 8, an 8 to 12 range, a 2.5 kg jump and two reps added per session across the sets. It assumes you hit every target, so it is a what-if and not a forecast.
| Week | Weight | Sets × reps | Volume | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | 40 | 3 × 8 | 960 | Starting point |
| Week 2 | 40 | 9 / 9 / 8 | 1040 | Hit these reps |
| Week 3 | 40 | 10 / 9 / 9 | 1120 | Hit these reps |
| Week 4 | 40 | 3 × 10 | 1200 | Hit these reps |
| Week 5 | 40 | 11 / 11 / 10 | 1280 | Hit these reps |
| Week 6 (deload) | 40 | 12 / 11 | 920 | Same load, 2 of 3 sets. Stop with reps to spare. |
| Week 7 | 40 | 12 / 11 / 11 | 1360 | Hit these reps |
| Week 8 | 40 | 3 × 12 | 1440 | Hit these reps |
| Week 9 | 42.5 | 9 / 8 / 8 | 1062.5 | Load goes up, reps reset |
| Week 10 | 42.5 | 3 × 9 | 1147.5 | Hit these reps |
| Week 11 | 42.5 | 10 / 10 / 9 | 1232.5 | Hit these reps |
| Week 12 (deload) | 42.5 | 11 / 10 | 892.5 | Same load, 2 of 3 sets. Stop with reps to spare. |
At two reps per session and three sets, the first weight increase lands in week 9. Weight does not rise every week, because reps come first. If you miss a target, repeat that week and carry on.
Deload Weeks
A deload is a planned drop in training stress. The guidance behind it is expert consensus, not trial data.
A Delphi study of strength and physique coaches (34, 29 and 21 coaches across three rounds) proposed this definition: a period of reduced training stress designed to mitigate physiological and psychological fatigue, promote recovery, and enhance preparedness for subsequent training[5]. The authors call deloading ubiquitous but under-researched.
A practical follow-up says deloads are commonly planned every 4 to 8 weeks, and structured ones typically last 5 to 7 days[6]. For moderate recovery needs it suggests cutting volume by 40 to 60%, by dropping reps per set or sets[6]. High needs get 60 to 90%.
The calculator lets you pick a deload every 4 to 8 weeks and a cut of 20 to 60%, which spans the low and moderate bands. It cuts sets and keeps the load, which is one of the options described. The defaults of 6 weeks and 40% are planning choices, not recommendations for you.
Deloads are optional here. The 2026 ACSM stand found periodization did not consistently change outcomes[2], so skipping them in the plan is a reasonable choice.
What the Rule Does Not Know
It sees your reps and your weight. It does not see your sleep, your technique or your joints.
- It is a planning rule. The hold, add-a-rep and add-weight branches are conventions. Only the 2 to 10% step band is a published figure[1].
- Reps in reserve are noisy. A review of 13 publications and 414 people found lifters underpredicted the reps they had left by about 0.95 on average (95% CI 0.17 to 1.73), with large differences between studies. Estimates were better closer to failure[4]. The calculator shows your reps in reserve as a note and never lets them change the target.
- Technique and pain come first. If the form broke down or something hurt, a heavier target is the wrong answer, whatever the reps say. See a clinician for pain that does not settle.
- Estimated 1RM is for comparing sessions. LeSuer and colleagues describe the equations as built on sets of 10 reps or fewer[7]. It shows a small dip when the weight rises and the reps reset, and that is expected.
- Strength and size have different drivers. The 2026 stand found strength improved with loads of 80% of 1RM or more for 2 to 3 sets, and hypertrophy with higher volumes, 10 or more sets per week[2]. Progression is only one piece of that.
What This Calculator Does Not Cover
These are left out because no source supports them.
Fixed weekly percentage rates
No source was found for preset rates per week by lift type. The plan mode takes your own rate and flags anything above 10%.
RPE multipliers on the rate
No source was found for multipliers that scale the weekly rate by RPE, so none are applied.
Lift-specific rates
No source gives a weekly rate for squats versus presses. ACSM only says small muscles take the low end of its band and large ones the high end.
Automatic periodization
Block and wave structures are not built in. The 2026 ACSM stand did not find periodization consistently changed outcomes.
Injury or readiness scoring
The tool cannot tell if a lift is safe for you, and it does not read fatigue. Use the deload settings and your own judgement.
Nutrition and sleep advice
Protein and sleep targets are not part of a load calculator, so none are given.
Frequently Asked Questions
Sources & References
- American College of Sports Medicine position stand. Progression models in resistance training for healthy adults. Ratamess NA, Alvar BA, Evetoch TK, Housh TJ, Kibler WB, Kraemer WJ, Triplett NT. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise 41(3):687-708 (2009)
- American College of Sports Medicine position stand. Resistance training prescription for muscle function, hypertrophy, and physical performance in healthy adults: an overview of reviews. Currier BS, D'Souza AC, Singh MAF, Lowisz CV, Rawson ES, Schoenfeld BJ, Smith-Ryan AE, Steen JP, Thomas GA, Triplett NT, Washington TA, Werner TJ, Phillips SM. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise 58(4):851-872 (2026)
- Progressive overload without progressing load? The effects of load or repetition progression on muscular adaptations. Plotkin D, Coleman M, Van Every D, Maldonado J, Oberlin D, Israetel M, Feather J, Alto A, Vigotsky AD, Schoenfeld BJ. PeerJ 10:e14142 (2022)
- Accuracy in predicting repetitions to task failure in resistance exercise: a scoping review and exploratory meta-analysis. Halperin I, Malleron T, Har-Nir I, Androulakis-Korakakis P, Wolf M, Fisher J, Steele J. Sports Medicine 52(2):377-390 (2022)
- Integrating deloading into strength and physique sports training programmes: an international Delphi consensus approach. Bell L, Strafford BW, Coleman M, Androulakis Korakakis P, Nolan D. Sports Medicine - Open 9:87 (2023)
- A practical approach to deloading: recommendations and considerations for strength and physique sports (free accepted manuscript; the figures quoted here were read in that version). Bell L, Darragh IAJ, Travis SK, Rogerson D, Nolan D. Strength & Conditioning Journal 48(4):413-423 (2025)
- The accuracy of prediction equations for estimating 1-RM performance in the bench press, squat, and deadlift. LeSuer DA, McCormick JH, Mayhew JL, Wasserstein RL, Arnold MD. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research 11(4):211-213 (1997)
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Disclaimer: This tool is for informational and personal journaling purposes only. Results are estimates based on published formulas and may vary based on individual factors such as genetics, training history, and measurement technique.