Workout Programming Online Course

Class 4: Prilepin’s Chart and MovementLink’s Rep Table

Before we jump into using rep schemes with reps and sets based on percentages of estimated 1 RM numbers, we want to very quickly touch on a method we find works great for beginners. Let’s say we have a set a rep scheme for our intermediate to more advanced athletes we are going to use in a cycle based off of sets of 5 reps. For the beginners, instead of percentages, here’s how we like to progress them across weeks of a cycle:

  • Week 1: Work up to a 5 RTM (the heaviest set of 5 that their technique can handle).

    • If they get there and still have time left-over while their other classmates are finishing their lifts, that can do back off sets of 5 with 20% less weight.

  • Week 2: 3 sets of 5 (5 RTM from Week 1)

  • Week 3: 3 sets of 5 (105% of 5 RTM from Week 1)

For beginners, technique is always the limiting factor. With this method, we use week 1 to find their technique threshold and then work within that in subsequent weeks. If the rep scheme for the more advanced athletes was something like 4 sets of 4, then we would work to a 4 RTM in week 1 and then weeks 2 & 3 would be 4 sets at or above 4 RTM, so we would be matching the same number of sets and keeping the class lifting the same total number of sets.

Let’s dive into rep schemes based on percentages of estimated 1 rep maxes.

Prilepin’s Chart was created by studying the journals of thousands of world-class weightlifters and has become the gold standard in weightlifting and power lifting as a tool to manage fatigue levels and choose reps and sets.

First some more definitions we use:

Minimal Effective Volume (MEV) - The minimum amount of work required to elicit adaptations.

Optimal Volume (OV) - The amount of work that is the best balance between eliciting high adaptation and causing reasonable and expected fatigue levels that have reasonable and expected impacts on subsequent workouts.

Maximal Recoverable Volume (MRV) - The maximum amount of work that an athlete can handle and still make positive adaptations. A workout at or beyond MRV has a high impact on subsequent workouts as the workload takes a while to recover from.

Let’s look at how to use this chart. Trigger warning, this does require some math, but before you give up and don’t try, everyone reading this is capable of understanding this, so take as much time as you need and read it as many times as you need. Understanding how to utilize Prilepin’s Chart is not only extremely useful, but a must for programming….take a breath, you’ve got this.

Let’s start with a simple example using Prilepin’s Chart where we review the effectiveness and fatigue produced by a set and rep scheme we just are going to throw out there: 3 Sets of 5 Back Squats (60% of a 1 RM). The first step in using these charts is to total the reps at each intensity level (percentage of 1 RM). 3 sets of 5 reps would equal a total of 15 reps (3 x 5 = 15) performed at 60% intensity.

Looking at the 55%-65% row in Prilepin’s Chart above:

  • Minimal Effective Volume (MEV) = 18 reps

    • You can find this as the lower number in the Total Range Column.

  • Optimal Volume (OV) = 24 reps

    • You can find this in the Optimal column.

  • Maximal Recoverable Volume (MRV) = 30 reps

    • You can find this as the higher number in the Total Range Column.

The rep scheme above, 3 x 5 (60%) with 15 total reps at 60%, falls below the minimal effective volume (MEV) of 18 total reps. Later we’ll discuss when we choose to go below MEV, at or just above MEV, close to OV, just below or at MRV, and even going beyond MRV, but for the purposes of this class, our goal is to teach how to create a framework for programming that is repeatable and improvable over time based on how individuals and the community responds to workouts. Prilepin’s table is a gold standard for powerlifters and Olympic-style weightlifters, but it is the method of designing workouts based on Prilepin’s table that resonates with us. Without a clearly defined way of choosing reps and weights, we wouldn’t have the ability to review our program, review the results from our program, or to make meaningful adjustments to improve our program over time. By using a table which provides MEV, OV, and MRV reps at different intensities to create workouts, we can be consistent when making easy, medium, and hard days. We can be consistent when building cycles and progressing across weeks. Prilepin’s table however is very limited and sport-specific to powerlifters and Olympic-style weightlifters and because MovementLink is a functional fitness program, we often use reps and weights that are less than 55% of a 1 RM and also do a lot of bodyweight exercises. Because of this, we have created our own table of reps and weights that we have found to be incredible effective for designing functional fitness programs. Note: Although the below table seems to fit our community very well, we are not claiming this table is the gold standard of functional fitness training. We do however believe the gold standard method of programming involves having a method of calculating MEV, OV, and MRV, so that the programmer can dial in workloads and programs that get results. The table below is what we have found (at this moment) to be incredibly effective reps and weights for our specific community, also taking into account all the rest of our programming design and methods. The table in this article may not be our most up-to-date version we use as we are always looking to improve our methods and the whole point is to never stop learning and improving.

Let’s take a look at the adjustments we have made to Prilepin’s table for our community’s purposes:

  • We added percentage of 1 rep max rows all the way down to 10% of 1 rep max.

  • We added a bodyweight row (abbreviated as “BW”) that shows volumes based off of total reps in a max set. For example, if someone’s max set of strict pull-ups is 20, then

    • MEV would occur around 30 total pull-up reps (150% x 20).

    • OV would occur around 55 total pull-up reps (275% of 20).

    • MRV would occur around 80 total pull-up reps (400% of 20).

  • We broke down the percentage ranges from Prilepin’s Table and updated the min, optimal, and max reps to reflect more specific percentages. For example, instead of a row that is 55%-65%, we broke that down into 3 separate rows, 55%, 60%, and 65% and gave each of those rows their own relative min and max reps.

  • We removed the reps per set ranges and added a rep max and rep technical max column. When designing reps schemes, we find it is extremely important to make sure what you are asking people to lift is actually possible.

    • Rep Technical Max numbers in this chart refer to what week 1 lifting would likely be for most clients. Progressing in a cycle, technique will improve, increasing a client’s RTM towards the RM percentage.

      • Week 1: Below, but somewhat near RTM percentage

      • Week 2: Below or at RTM percentage.

      • Week 3: At or just above RTM percentage.

    • Rep Max is the maximal reps you can expect at a given percentage.

      • All of the sets we prescribe should be below or at a rep max percentage for the specified number of reps.

      • If using a set at the rep max percentage it should be few and only in the 3rd weeks of the mesocycles.

Now, let’s look at putting the MovementLink.FIT Rep Table into practice.

Example 1: Designing a Simple Set and Rep Scheme for the primary lower body day of 3-week Strength Mesocycle.

  • Because we are designing for a Strength Mesocycle, here are our known parameters:

    • Average Intensity of ~75%.

    • Reps per set of 3-6.

    • Lower Body Primary Exercise

  • Choose your reps per set for the mesocycle.

    • In our example, we are going to choose 6 reps per set.

  • Choose a primary exercise

    • In our example, we are going to choose a Back Squat.

  • Guess and Check: Choose a starting intensity for Week 1.

    • Remember we’d like our average intensity to rise each week and the average intensity of the whole mesocycle to end up around 75%.

    • In our example, we are going to choose 70% because it’s easy to imagine averaging ~75% across a cycle by using 70% in week 1, 75% in week 2, and 80% in week 3.

      • Math Reminder - to find an average, you add everything up and then divide that all by the number of items you added up: (0.70 + 0.75 + 0.80) / 3 = 0.75 = 75%

  • For week 1, we are interested in a level that is at or above MEV and below OV. At 70%, here are the MovementLink Rep Table ranges:

    • MEV = 16 total reps at 70%.

    • OV = 20 total reps at 70%.

  • Is there a rep scheme using our select 6 reps that fits into this?

    • 3 sets of 6 (70%) = 18 total reps at 70%

  • Therefore, a potential rep scheme for week 1 could be 3 sets of 6 Back Squats (70%).

    • Checks:

      • Does 18 total reps at 70% fit within the MovementLink Rep Table for at or above MEV and below OV? Yes

      • For week 1 we want to be sure the percentage is below, but somewhat near the rep technical max numbers. 6 RTM is about 75%, so yes, the sets at 70% below.

Let’s look at a potential week 2:

  • Because we are designing for a Strength Mesocycle and already have what we think we will do in week 1, here are our known parameters:

    • Week 1: 3 sets of 6 Back Squats (70%)

    • Shooting for 75% average intensity across the 3 weeks with the strategy of:

      • Week 1: 70%,

      • Week 2: 75%,

      • Week 3: 80%

    • We want Week 2 to be around an OV level.

  • For 75% we want to be sure we are in the right range, so we need to know what are MEV, OV, and MRV for 75% in the MovementLink Rep Table.

    • MEV = 14 total reps.

    • OV = 18 total reps.

    • MRV = 22 total reps.

  • Using sets of 6 reps, can we design a rep scheme that is close to OV?

    • Perfectly actually. 3 sets of 6 (75%) = 18 total reps at 75%.

  • Therefore, a potential rep scheme for week 2 could be 3 sets of 6 Back Squats (75%).

    • Checks:

      • Does this fit within the MovementLink Rep Table for being above MEV, close to OV, and below MRV: Yes

      • Are we ok with where this falls relative to rep maxes?

        • A 6 RTM, if done on week 1, is about 75%, so we are asking for 3 sets at a 6 RTM level in week 2. This will be challenging, but because this is week 2, we are OK with working at a technique threshold assuming technique, strength, and neural gains from week 1. If this was week 1, we’d want to bump down below 6 RTM territory.

        • 6 RM is ~85%, so we are asking for 3 sets that are below 6 RM by 10% and are good with that.

Let’s look at a potential week 3:

  • Because we are designing for a Strength Mesocycle and already have what we think we will do in weeks 1 and 2, here are our known parameters:

    • Week 1: 3 sets of 6 Back Squats (70%)

    • Week 2: 3 sets of 6 Back Squats (75%)

    • Shooting for 75% average intensity across the 3 weeks with the strategy of:

      • Week 1: 70%,

      • Week 2: 75%,

      • Week 3: 80%

    • We want Week 3 to be around MRV.

  • For 80% we want to be sure we are in the right range, so we need to know what are OV and MRV for 80% in the MovementLink Rep Table.

    • OV = 16 total reps.

    • MRV = 20 total reps.

  • Using sets of 6 reps, can we design a rep scheme that is close to MRV?

    • 3 sets of 6 (80%) is 18 total reps again and would be a step-up beyond OV and be below MRV, so this could be a potential rep scheme. Adding a 4th set of 6 would put our total reps at 24 which would be well beyond MRV, so would not be a good option. Note: the next class will discuss how to use weighted averages to dial in rep schemes that use multiple different percentages, so for this simple example, being above OV and below MRV is acceptable.

  • Checks:

    • Does this fit within the MovementLink Rep Table for being above OV and near or at MRV: Yes

    • Are we ok with where this falls relative to rep maxes?

      • 6 RTM would be about 75% if we did this during week 1 and we are asking for 3 sets at 5% above that. We are OK with this only because it is week 3.

      • 6 RM is 85%, so we are asking for 3 sets below 6 RM.


Here’s what we ended on:

  • Week 1: 3 sets of 6 Back Squats (70%) - Above MEV and Below OV

  • Week 2: 3 sets of 6 Back Squats (75%) - At OV

  • Week 3: 3 sets of 6 Back Squats (80%) - Above OV and Below MRV

Even though the final sets and reps look clean and even, that is because we specifically selected sets of 6 for the example. Other rep amounts can get trickier which is what we’ll dive into in the next class. The important part from this article is the process by which we got decided on these sets. By using a rep table like Prilepin’s Chart or MovementLink’s Rep Table as a framework to create rep schemes, we have a repeatable and adjustable method by which to create a workout program. We can be confident that we are prescribing enough work and also be confident that we are not asking too much of our clients or going to leave them in a whole that negatively impacts the rest of their workouts that week.

Next class we’ll use this same process, but look at more advanced strategies to creating more dynamic rep schemes.