What is a PR in the gym? Weight, reps and estimated maxes
A PR is beating your own best on a lift. More weight is one way. More reps at a weight you have lifted before is another, and it is the one most people miss.
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Two kinds of record
PR stands for personal record; some gyms say PB, for personal best. The obvious kind is weight: a heavier set than you have ever done on that lift. The one people miss is reps: twelve reps on the bench press at a weight where your best was eight. You have lifted that weight before, so nobody notices, but you have never lifted it like that.
Both are progress, and with double progression the rep record is the common one: most sessions add reps, few add weight. Counting only heavier sets means counting only part of your progress.
Comparing the two: the estimated 1RM
Is 12 reps at 60 kg better than 8 reps at 67.5 kg? Formulas estimate the weight you could lift once from a set of several reps, the estimated one-rep max or e1RM; the best known are by Epley and by Brzycki. They make records at different rep counts comparable, roughly.
Roughly is the word. For 12 reps at 60 kg, Epley gives 84 kg and Brzycki 86.4 kg; for 8 reps at 67.5 kg, Epley gives 85.5 kg and Brzycki 83.8 kg. The two formulas do not even agree which set was better. Studies find the estimates hold up best at about ten reps or fewer1,2, and that how many reps you get at a given share of your max differs between people and between exercises3. A 1RM calculator is a rough guide, not a scoreboard.
What is not a PR
A record compares like with like. More weight through a shorter range of motion is a different lift. This month's top weight is not a record if you have lifted more before. And an estimated max from a set of 20 is a guess, not a record.
So keep both records for each exercise: the heaviest weight, and the most reps at each weight. Then a session without a new top weight can still be the best one you have had.
Common questions
What does PR mean in the gym?
Personal record: your best ever result on a lift. Usually that means the heaviest weight, but more reps at a weight you have lifted before is a PR too.
Is a rep PR as good as a weight PR?
It is progress just the same, but not an exact equivalent. Formulas that turn reps into an estimated max are rough, especially above about ten reps.
How do I calculate my 1RM?
Formulas such as Epley's or Brzycki's estimate it from a set of several reps. Use a set of ten reps or fewer, and treat the result as an estimate: different formulas give different answers for the same set.
Sources
- Mayhew JL, Prinster JL, Ware JS, Zimmer DL, et al. (1995). Muscular endurance repetitions to predict bench press strength in men of different training levels. Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness 35(2), 108–113. PubMed 7500624
- Reynolds JM, Gordon TJ, Robergs RA (2006). Prediction of one repetition maximum strength from multiple repetition maximum testing and anthropometry. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research 20(3), 584–592. PubMed 16937972
- Nuzzo JL, Pinto MD, Nosaka K, Steele J (2024). Maximal Number of Repetitions at Percentages of the One Repetition Maximum: A Meta-Regression and Moderator Analysis of Sex, Age, Training Status, and Exercise. Sports Medicine 54(2), 303–321. doi.org/10.1007/s40279-023-01937-7
The guide
Let StackUp do the counting
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How StackUp applies this
StackUp marks a new record when your working weight on an exercise is higher than ever before; for an exercise you log in reps, such as pull-ups, it is the most reps in one set. It does not mark more reps at a weight you have lifted before, so your history is where you will find those.