Decide your next session from the last two. Linear or double progression sizes the jump by lift and plates, in lb or kg, plans six sessions ahead and counts the sessions to a goal weight.
When to go up in dumbbell weight, rep by rep
Decide your next session from the last two. Linear or double progression sizes the jump by lift and plates, in lb or kg, plans six sessions ahead and counts the sessions to a goal weight.
With dumbbells even the smallest jump is a big share of the weight: going from 25 to 27.5 lb adds 10%. That is why light dumbbell work usually runs on double progression: add reps inside a range first and move up only when every set reaches the top. The calculator below is filled with an example curl: 3 x 10-15 at 25 lb, and 15 reps in every set on the last two sessions. Press Calculate for the next weight and six sessions ahead, then put in your own range.
Progressive Overload Calculator
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Progressive overload, one session at a time: add weight, add reps or hold
Five reps in every set on Monday, five again on Thursday, 225 lb on the squat bar. This progressive overload calculator turns those two results into the next session: go up, stay, repeat or reset. It runs linear progression (the weight rises after every good session) or double progression (reps first, then weight), sizes the jump by exercise type and the plates you own, in lb or kg, plans six sessions ahead and counts the sessions to a goal weight. Here the answer is 235 lb, a jump of 10 lb (4.4%).
The stuck bar: too much, too soon, or never
What the calculator decides instead
It applies one published rule and states its own rules openly. The American College of Sports Medicine advises adding 2-10% to the load once you can do one or two reps more than the target on two consecutive sessions, less for small muscle groups and more for large ones.
From the training log to the next bar weight
- Type of progression - linear for a fixed rep target such as 3 x 5, double for a rep range such as 3 x 8-12.
- Type of exercise - lower-body compound, upper-body compound or isolation. It sets the jump: 5%, 2.5% or 2%.
- Units and working weight - lb or kg, and the weight of your working sets, warm-ups excluded. Decimals such as 102.5 are fine.
- Sets and reps - the number of working sets, the target reps (linear) or the bottom and top of the range (double).
- Reps in the weakest set - from the last session and, optionally, from the session before with the same weight. The weakest set decides, usually the last one.
- Smallest jump, goal weight, sessions per week - optional. Empty jump means 5 lb (2.5 lb for isolation) or 2.5 kg (1 kg). Then read the decision, the plan for the next session and the six-session table.
Which answer you get, and when
"Target" means the rep goal in linear progression and the top of the range in double progression. Every row below is a branch of the calculator.
| Last session | Session before | Decision |
|---|---|---|
| target reached | target reached, or left empty | go up by the jump (double: back to the bottom of the range) |
| target reached | below target | stay, one more session to confirm |
| inside the range (double) | anything | stay, aim for one more rep per set |
| below the bottom | at or above the bottom, or empty | repeat the same weight |
| below the bottom | below the bottom | reset to about 90%, rounded down to your plates |
Seven lifts run through the rules
Go up to 235 lb (+10 lb, 4.4%). The goal arrives on session 9, about 3.0 weeks, if every session goes to plan.
Stay at 185 lb. One good day is not two; the jump of 5 lb (2.7%) waits for a confirmation.
Repeat 205 lb. A single miss does not take weight off the bar.
Drop to 180 lb (205 x 0.9 = 184.5, rounded down to 5 lb) and build up again in 5 lb steps.
Go up to 140 lb and back to 8 reps. Each weight then takes five sessions (8, 9, 10, 11, 12 reps), so 155 lb comes on session 16, about 8.0 weeks.
Go up to 27.5 lb, a jump of 10.0%. Small weights make even the smallest jump large in percent, which is why double progression suits them.
Go up to 147.5 kg (+7.5 kg, 5.4%). The first session at or above the goal is session 6, at 185 kg.
Default jumps for common bar weights
What the calculator adds with the default smallest jump (5 lb, or 2.5 lb for isolation). The 2% floor is why isolation work at 135 lb gets 5 lb rather than 2.5 lb.
| Working weight | Lower-body compound | Upper-body compound | Isolation |
|---|---|---|---|
| 45 lb | +5 lb (11.1%) | +5 lb (11.1%) | +2.5 lb (5.6%) |
| 95 lb | +5 lb (5.3%) | +5 lb (5.3%) | +2.5 lb (2.6%) |
| 135 lb | +5 lb (3.7%) | +5 lb (3.7%) | +5 lb (3.7%) |
| 185 lb | +10 lb (5.4%) | +5 lb (2.7%) | +5 lb (2.7%) |
| 225 lb | +10 lb (4.4%) | +5 lb (2.2%) | +5 lb (2.2%) |
| 315 lb | +15 lb (4.8%) | +10 lb (3.2%) | +7.5 lb (2.4%) |
| 405 lb | +20 lb (4.9%) | +10 lb (2.5%) | +10 lb (2.5%) |
In kilograms the defaults are 2.5 kg (1 kg for isolation): 100 kg gets +5 kg on a squat, +2.5 kg on a bench press and +2 kg on a machine. If you own fractional plates, enter the smallest jump, for example 2.5 lb, and a 95 lb overhead press moves to 97.5 lb instead of 100.
Eleven good sessions under each method
The two methods spend the same good sessions in very different ways. A linear 3 x 5 bench press at 185 lb, with every session made, adds 5 lb each time: the next session is at 190 lb and the first session at 240 lb is session 11. A double-progression row at 3 x 8-12 that has just earned its first jump from 135 lb to 140 lb needs five sessions per weight, so its first session at 150 lb is also session 11. Eleven sessions, 55 lb on one bar against 15 lb on the other.
That gap is the whole point of double progression, not a flaw in it. Reps carry the progress while the weight waits, so the lifter keeps beating the log without asking the joints for a heavier bar every few days. And when a linear lift starts missing, which usually happens after a few months, switching that lift to a rep range keeps the "add something every session" habit alive at a pace the body can follow. Enter your own numbers with a goal weight and the calculator counts these sessions for you, from the same sequence as its six-session table.
Questions from lifters about adding weight
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Calculator verified by the LiczGrupa.pl team
Content, formulas and results have been reviewed for accuracy and relevance by our team of specialists.
Reviewed by: Patryk Matyjasik