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Autoregulating Load: RPE, Reps in Reserve and Bar Speed

October 1, 2026 · 4 min · Free opener

Overview

Strength on any given day moves around with sleep, food, stress and accumulated fatigue. A percentage of a max tested weeks ago cannot see any of that. Autoregulation picks the day's load, and sometimes the day's volume, from how the lifter is actually performing. That can be a subjective rating (RPE based on reps in reserve, RIR) or an objective one (bar speed, measured by a velocity device). This lecture covers what controlled studies show when these tools replace fixed percentages.

RPE-based loading vs fixed percentages

In an 8-week study of trained men, two groups squatted and benched three times a week with identical sets and reps. The only difference was how load was chosen: a percentage of the pre-study 1RM, or whatever load hit a target RPE.[1] Both groups got stronger and grew similarly. Squat gains were +17.05 kg with RPE loading vs +13.91 kg with percentages, and bench gains were +10.70 kg vs +9.64 kg. Neither gap was statistically significant, but the probability analysis favored RPE loading for most individuals. The RPE group also ended up training at higher relative loads as the weeks went on, because their chosen weights rose with their real strength instead of staying pinned to an old max.

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Source attribution

  1. [1]Helms ER, Byrnes RK, Cooke DM, et al. RPE vs. Percentage 1RM Loading in Periodized Programs Matched for Sets and Repetitions. Frontiers in Physiology. 2018;9:247. https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2018.00247 (free full text: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5877330/)
  2. [2]Larsen S, Kristiansen E, Tillaar Rvd. Effects of subjective and objective autoregulation methods for intensity and volume on enhancing maximal strength during resistance-training interventions: a systematic review. PeerJ. 2021;9:e10663. https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.10663 (free full text: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7810043/)
  3. [3]Wiedenmann T, Kunellis D, Rappelt L, et al. Trainability of repetitions-in-reserve estimation in younger and older adults: a parallel-group repeated-measures study. BMC Sports Science, Medicine and Rehabilitation. 2026;18:375. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13102-026-01997-y (free full text: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC13499321/)
  4. [4]Hickmott LM, Chilibeck PD, Shaw KA, et al. The Effect of Load and Volume Autoregulation on Muscular Strength and Hypertrophy: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Sports Medicine - Open. 2022;8:9. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40798-021-00404-9 (free full text: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8762534/)