Projected Maxes: A Safer Approach to Maxing Out

Projected Maxes: A Safer Approach to Maxing Out

by Boo Schexnayder
www.sacspeed.com

Single Rep Maxes
In order to monitor progress in the weight room, it is necessary to devise a safe and accurate testing procedure. Single repetition maxes are the most frequently used form of testing and monitoring progress. In single repetition maxing, heavy loads are used, and the athlete is asked to demonstrate the ability to perform a single repetition at this assigned load. Because of the extreme loading, these tests are inherently unsafe, particularly in the early stages of training when athletes are not yet prepared for these heavy weights.

Projected Maxes
Multiple repetition max tests can be used to mathematically project a single repetition maximum. Because of the decreased weights used in testing, the testing procedure is much safer than single repetition max testing. Also, these projected single rep maxes are extremely accurate. This type of testing can even be done very early in the training year when single repetition maxing can't or shouldn't be done. This procedure can be used to test performance in any chosen exercise.

Choosing the Test Weight
The coach chooses a test weight for each athlete. The weight chosen represents an educated guess based upon the athlete's recent past performance in training. For early season tests where safety is a concern, the coach chooses a weight that the athlete is expected to be able to do approximately 8-9 times. For late season tests, when athletes are better prepared, the weight is chosen so that the expected number of repetitions ranges from 6 to 2. Late in the training year, once high levels of strength have been achieved, the coach may continue to use this testing procedure, or might shift to a traditional single repetition max test instead.

The Test
After doing a couple of warmup sets, the athlete performs the test set. The actual test set is a rep-out test. The athlete is expected to perform as many repetitions as possible. The coach should watch the test closely. The athlete performs the exercise until failure occurs, or until the coach stops the test. The coach might stop the test if technique is breaking down and the lift becomes unsafe, or if the lifter achieves 12 repetitions (the test is not as accurate beyond 12 repetitions). The number of repetitions and the weight done are noted, and the single repetition max is calculated from this information.

The Chart
The following reference chart gives the relationships between the number of repetitions performed and the percentage of single repetition maximum.

Calculations
Using the test set data, a projected single repetition maximum is determined mathematically from the weight and repetition data using the chart shown above. Let's assume, for example, that an athlete does 6 repetitions. The chart shows that 6 repetitions corresponds to 85%. If the weight the athlete lifted in the test is 170 lbs., then calculations show:

The athlete's projected single repetition maximum is 200 lbs.

Interpreting Results
It is important to understand that the projected maximum calculated might not indicate that the athlete can actually lift that amount on that day. This number is an indicator of progress and becomes a target to achieve in actuality later in the year. In good lifting programs, these projected maximums are very accurate predictors of what single repetition maximums end up being late in the training year. Typically these projected maximums increase only with young athletes who show quick improvement. Older athletes should measure progress in their ability to maintain, and eventually consummate the actual maximums.

About the Author...

Most noted for the 12 years he spent as a member of the Track and Field coaching staff at LSU. Schexnayder, who coached collegiately at Louisiana-Lafayette and Blinn Junior College prior to arriving at LSU, placed quite an imprint on the collegiate track and field scene. Regarded as one of the world's premier field event coaches, he was the mastermind behind 19 NCAA Champions during his collegiate coaching career. He was a part of 12 NCAA Championship teams and a pair of Juco National titles, as well as developing a host of conference champions and All-Americans.

Schexnayder has also been a prominent figure on the international scene, having coached triple jumper Walter Davis to multiple World Championships, and long jumper John Moffitt to a silver medal at the 2004 Olympics in Athens. He also tutors former US Long Jump Champ Brian Johnson, Miguel Pate, ranked 6th in the world in 2008, and US Indoor Champ Jeremy Hicks. He has coached 10 Olympians, and has served on coaching staffs for Team USA to the 2003 Pan Am Games in Santo Domingo, the 2006 World Junior Championships in Beijing, and was the Jumps Coach for Team USA at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.

As impressive as Schexnayder's accomplishments are on the track, he has been just as successful off the track. He is certified at Level I, II and III, and owns the prestigious Master Coach Designation from USA Track and Field. He has formerly served as national chair of USATF's Coaching Education Committee, Jumps Subcommittee chair, and chair of the Biomechanics subcommittee. Schexnayder currently serves as the Chair of Advisory Board of the USTFCCCA Track and Field Academy, and directs its programs.

An educator by profession and a mentor of hundreds of coaches, he has been very active in curriculum development for Coaching Education programs, and has lectured nationally and internationally on speed/power training programs, jumps and combined events training, biomechanics, and rehabilitation. He has authored several publications covering these topics.

He has also been very active in the consulting field, working in NFL player development and combine prep from 2002 to the present, and consulting for individuals, high school programs, and collegiate programs in the areas of training design, jump improvement, speed training, rehabilitations, and specialized programs for football, basketball, soccer, and volleyball.

Prior to his collegiate and international career, Schexnayder was a successful mathematics teacher and prep coach at St. James High School for 11 years, coaching football, track and field, and cross country.

The Vacherie, La., native was class valedictorian at St. James High in 1979, and earned both his bachelor's and master's degrees at Nicholls State University. He graduated cum laude with a B.S. in physical education in 1983 and later added a master's degree in administration and supervision in 1988, again earning cum laude honors.