Calculators · free, no account
Reps in reserve (RIR) chart
On the lifting scale, RPE is 10 minus reps in reserve: RIR 0 is failure (RPE 10), RIR 2 is two reps left (RPE 8), and 5 reps at RIR 2 is 83% of your one-rep max. Find your reps down the side and your RIR across the top for the percentage, or enter your max to get the same chart in kg or lb.
Example result
82.5kg
97.5kg
Loads from a 100 kg max, rounded to 2.5 kg.
| Reps | RIR 0 | RIR 1 | RIR 2 | RIR 3 | RIR 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 100 kg | 97.5 kg | 95 kg | 90 kg | 87.5 kg |
| 2 | 97.5 kg | 95 kg | 90 kg | 87.5 kg | 85 kg |
| 3 | 95 kg | 90 kg | 87.5 kg | 85 kg | 82.5 kg |
| 4 | 90 kg | 87.5 kg | 85 kg | 82.5 kg | 80 kg |
| 5 | 87.5 kg | 85 kg | 82.5 kg | 80 kg | 80 kg |
| 6 | 85 kg | 82.5 kg | 80 kg | 80 kg | 77.5 kg |
| 8 | 80 kg | 80 kg | 77.5 kg | 75 kg | 72.5 kg |
| 10 | 77.5 kg | 75 kg | 72.5 kg | 72.5 kg | 70 kg |
| 12 | 72.5 kg | 72.5 kg | 70 kg | 67.5 kg | 67.5 kg |
Reps in reserve chart: percentage of 1RM
Percentage of one-rep max by reps done and reps left in reserve, with the matching RPE. 5 reps at RIR 2 is 83%: multiply by your max for the load.
| Reps | RIR 0 (RPE 10) | RIR 1 (RPE 9) | RIR 2 (RPE 8) | RIR 3 (RPE 7) | RIR 4 (RPE 6) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 100% | 97% | 94% | 91% | 88% |
| 2 | 97% | 94% | 91% | 88% | 86% |
| 3 | 94% | 91% | 88% | 86% | 83% |
| 4 | 91% | 88% | 86% | 83% | 81% |
| 5 | 88% | 86% | 83% | 81% | 79% |
| 6 | 86% | 83% | 81% | 79% | 77% |
| 7 | 83% | 81% | 79% | 77% | 75% |
| 8 | 81% | 79% | 77% | 75% | 73% |
| 9 | 79% | 77% | 75% | 73% | 71% |
| 10 | 77% | 75% | 73% | 71% | 70% |
| 12 | 73% | 71% | 70% | 68% | 67% |
RIR chart examples
The percentages are the same for everyone. What changes is the max underneath them and the RIR the program asks for.
-
Example 1
A hypertrophy block on the bench
A lifter with a 100 kg bench running sets of 8 at 2 reps in reserve.
- Your 1RM (optional)
- 100 kg
- 5 reps at RIR 282.5 kg
- Top single at RIR 197.5 kg
The 8-rep row at RIR 2 reads 77.5 kg. If the second set of 8 there leaves 3 in reserve, the max has moved: add a plate step next session rather than adding reps to the same weight.
-
Example 2
Spending the buffer across a squat block
An intermediate lifter with a 315 lb squat who opens a block with fives at 3 in reserve and plans to finish it at 1.
- Your 1RM (optional)
- 315 lb
- 5 reps at RIR 2265 lb
- Top single at RIR 1305 lb
Fives run from 255 lb at RIR 3 to 270 lb at RIR 1. The other route is to hold 255 lb all block and let accumulated fatigue bring it from 3 in reserve toward 1.
-
Example 3
A small max and big plate steps
A woman with a 60 kg bench starting fives at 2 to 3 reps in reserve.
- Your 1RM (optional)
- 60 kg
- 5 reps at RIR 250 kg
- Top single at RIR 157.5 kg
RIR 2 and RIR 3 are 50 kg and 47.5 kg, one plate step apart. With a max this size, pick the lighter load, rate the first set, and let that set decide the rest.
-
Example 4
Higher reps for an older lifter
A 58-year-old with a 225 lb bench who wants sets of 10 with 3 left in the tank.
- Your 1RM (optional)
- 225 lb
- 5 reps at RIR 2190 lb
- Top single at RIR 1220 lb
The 10-rep row at RIR 3 is 160 lb. High-rep sets are the hardest to rate, so if 160 lb for 10 feels like only 1 left, check that set on the RIR calculator before changing the load.
RIR to RPE chart
On the lifting scale, RPE is 10 minus reps in reserve. RIR 0 is RPE 10, RIR 2 is RPE 8, and RIR 4 is RPE 6. The scale comes from Zourdos and colleagues (2016), who anchored each RPE to the reps left, with half steps for sets between two whole reps.
| RIR | RPE | What the set left |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | 10 | Nothing. Failure, or the last rep was the limit. |
| 0 | 9.5 | No more reps, but a little more weight was possible. |
| 1 | 9 | One clean rep left. |
| 1 to 2 | 8.5 | Definitely one more, maybe two. |
| 2 | 8 | Two clean reps left. |
| 2 to 3 | 7.5 | Two more for sure, maybe three. |
| 3 | 7 | Three clean reps left. |
| 4 | 6 | Four clean reps left. Moderate effort, far from failure. |
What does 2 reps in reserve mean?
You stopped the set with two clean reps still possible. A set of 5 at RIR 2 is a 7-rep effort, which is why it shares a cell with 7 reps to failure: 83% of your max either way. From a 100 kg max that's about 82.5 kg.
Every diagonal of the chart works the same way. Reps plus reps in reserve gives the reps to failure, and the same reps to failure always gives the same percentage.
Which RIR to train at
Most working sets for muscle growth land at 1 to 3 in reserve, with isolation lifts closer to failure and heavy squats, deadlifts and presses a little further from it. Many programs start a block at 3 and finish it at 1. How to use RIR sets targets by goal and across a block.
| Work | RIR | RPE |
|---|---|---|
| Muscle growth, isolation lifts | 0 to 2 | 8 to 10 |
| Muscle growth, compound lifts | 1 to 3 | 7 to 9 |
| Heavy strength sets | 2 to 3 | 7 to 8 |
| Learning a lift, first weeks | 3 to 4 | 6 to 7 |
| Warm-up sets | 5 or more | 5 or less |
This chart next to the RPE chart
Same formula, same cells: RIR 2 on this chart is RPE 8 on the RPE chart, down to the percent. The RPE version adds half steps such as RPE 8.5; this one counts whole reps, the way most lifters log reps in reserve.
Where the percentages come from
Every cell comes from the formula the RIRLift app uses to estimate maxes: the reps you did plus the reps in reserve give the reps to failure, run through Epley's formula in a form where a true single is exactly 100%.
Percentages are rounded to whole numbers, and loads to 2.5 kg or 5 lb. Past about 10 reps to failure every 1RM formula gets less reliable, so treat the bottom rows as a starting point.
% of 1RM = 1 ÷ (1 + (reps + RIR − 1) ÷ 30)
5 reps at RIR 2: 1 ÷ (1 + (5 + 2 − 1) ÷ 30) = 83.3%, shown as 83%
100 kg × 0.833 = 83.3, shown as 82.5 kgMake it fit you
-
Use a recent max
A max from the last few weeks beats a tested one from last year. Get one from any hard set with the one-rep max calculator.
-
Let the first set correct the chart
If a set planned at RIR 2 left 3, add a plate step to the next one; if it left 1, take one off. The chart picks the starting load, your rating picks the rest.
-
Check your calls now and then
RIR calls drift, most of all far from failure and on long sets. The RIR calculator checks a set's rating against your max.
-
Round to the plates you own
Loads round to 2.5 kg or 5 lb. With fractional plates, round down and expect the set to land a touch easier than the target RIR.
-
Keep one max per lift
A bench max says nothing about your incline press. Run the chart from the max of the exact lift you're loading.
Questions
What percentage of 1RM is RIR 2?
It depends on the reps: 94% for a single, 83% for 5 reps, 77% for 8 and 73% for 10, all at 2 reps in reserve.
How do I convert RIR to RPE?
Subtract it from 10. RIR 0 is RPE 10, RIR 1 is RPE 9, RIR 2 is RPE 8 and RIR 3 is RPE 7. RPE vs RIR covers which scale is easier to log.
Does 0 RIR mean failure?
Yes: no clean rep left. Whether to train there is a separate question, which RIR vs going to failure answers.
What RIR is best for hypertrophy?
Usually 1 to 3 in reserve on working sets, with isolation lifts pushed closer to 0. The reps in reserve guide explains why sets near failure matter.
Why does my RIR not match the chart?
The chart is an average and your max may be out of date. If your sets keep leaving more or fewer reps than the chart predicts, re-estimate your max before changing your RIR calls.
Related calculators and templates
-
RIR calculator (reps in reserve)
Check how many reps a set really left, from your max.
-
RPE chart
The same percentages by RPE, with half steps.
-
One-rep max calculator
Get the max this chart needs from any recent set.
-
Reps in reserve guide
What RIR is and how to judge it honestly.
-
How to use RIR
Targets by goal and how to progress them across a block.
-
RPE vs RIR
Which effort rating is easier to log, set after set.
Sources
- Zourdos et al. (2016), a resistance training-specific RPE scale measuring repetitions in reserve
- Helms et al. (2016), application of the repetitions in reserve-based RPE scale for resistance training
- Zourdos et al. (2021), proximity to failure and reps per set influence the accuracy of RIR-based RPE
Log the reps you had left
Record load, reps and RIR on every set and RIRLift keeps each lift's estimated max current from your best working set, then uses your RIR to pick the next set's weight.
Coming to Android · Join the waitlist
Built for real lifters and is so useful for tracking workouts in my Apple Watch