The Training Max: The Smartest Way to Program Your Powerlifting Percentages

In the world of percentage-based programming, lifters often make a critical mistake: they base their training weights on their true, all-time-best one-rep max (1RM). This can be a recipe for frustration, missed lifts, and burnout. A smarter, more sustainable approach is to use a Training Max (TM). The TM is a conservative, repeatable max that ensures your programming is productive, even on your worst days. This guide will explain what a training max is, why you should use one, and how to implement it.

What is a Training Max and Why is it Superior?

A Training Max is a number, slightly lower than your true 1RM, that you use for all your percentage-based calculations in a given training block. It is typically set at 85-95% of your true 1RM.

For example, if your best-ever squat is 200kg, you might set your TM at 90% of that, which is 180kg. All your programmed percentages for the next block (e.g., "80% for 5 reps") would be based on 180kg, not 200kg.

The Benefits of Using a TM:

1. Accounts for Bad Days: Your true 1RM was likely hit under perfect conditions. Your strength fluctuates daily due to stress, sleep, and nutrition. A TM ensures that even on a bad day, your prescribed weights are manageable, allowing you to complete your workout and accumulate productive volume.
2. Promotes Sub-Maximal Training: It forces you to spend the majority of your training time with sub-maximal weights, which is the sweet spot for building strength without accumulating excessive CNS fatigue.
3. Encourages Better Technique: Using slightly lighter weights allows you to focus on perfect, fast, and efficient technique on every rep, rather than grinding out slow, ugly reps.
4. Builds Momentum and Confidence: Consistently hitting your programmed lifts builds confidence and momentum, which are powerful psychological drivers of progress.

This concept was famously popularized by coach Jim Wendler in his 5/3/1 program, where the use of a 90% TM is a foundational principle. As explained by many resources like T-Nation, the TM is what makes the program sustainable.

How to Set and Adjust Your Training Max

Setting Your Initial TM

• If you know your true 1RM: Calculate 90% of that number. This is a conservative and highly effective starting point.
• If you don't know your 1RM: Work up to a heavy set of 3-5 reps. Use an e1RM calculator to estimate your max, and then take 90% of that number.

Testing and Adjusting Your TM

You don't need to perform a new 1RM test at the end of every block. A more intelligent way to adjust your TM is by using an AMRAP set.

• The Process:

1. 1. At the end of your training block (e.g., week 4), perform an AMRAP set on your final, heaviest set of each lift.
   2. Plug the weight and the reps you achieved into an e1RM calculator.
   3. If your new e1RM is significantly higher than your old one, you have earned the right to increase your TM for the next block.

• How Much to Increase: Make small, conservative increases. A 2.5-5kg (5-10lb) increase to your TM for the next block is a sustainable rate of progress.

The Training Max is a simple but profound shift in programming philosophy. It's an admission that progress is not linear and that your strength is not the same every day. By basing your percentages on a conservative, repeatable number, you ensure that your training is consistently productive, promotes better technique, and manages fatigue effectively. Stop letting your all-time best lift dictate your daily training; use a smart Training Max and build a stronger foundation for the long haul.