How to Get Strong - Reps in Reserve

If you want to get stronger you’ve got to pay attention to reps in reserve or RIR.

RIR is a way to identify how many more reps could you do AFTER completing your prescribed reps.

When chasing strength, your reps in reserve should be low.

Here’s a scenario:

You’re goblet squatting 4 sets of 10 reps.

You pick the 26 pound kettlebell because that’s what you always use. You do your 10 reps concentrating on excellent form, breathing and everything else. Suddenly, I run up to you and offer you $300 for 10 more reps. You grind them out and eventually complete the 10 additional reps for a total of 20.

The last 3 reps took everything you had. You have no reps in reserve. However, if you finished that set at the preserved 10 reps, you left a lot on the table. You had 10 reps in reserve!

The sweet spot of getting strong, and not trashing your body, is leaving 2-3 quality reps in the tank. In this scenario, the kettlebell weight was too light for the rep scheme of 10. You should never be able to double the reps with the selected weight. That’s a clear indication you won’t create the stress stimulus required to make strength adaptations.

If you do push ups with your hands elevated on a box or a bar, this is another way to check and see if you’re being properly challenged. If you normally use a certain height for a set of 10, but could easily crank out 15 or more reps, it’s time to lower the bar.

The general goal with strength training is to create stress that our bodies will adapt to. Make sure you’re hitting the right stimulus by checking in and seeing how many reps you have in reserve.

Justin Miner

@justinminergain