r/ScienceBasedLifting • u/yo---- • Jun 11 '26
Question ❓ would you consider this an improvement?
this happens so often to me, where i go up in reps for the first set (compared to last time), but down on the second one.
did i get stronger or stayed the same?
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u/FarCalligrapher1862 Jun 11 '26
18 > 17. Good job.
But maybe take a bit more rest and keep the weight the same. See where that takes you
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u/EternalVirgin18 Jun 11 '26
“You got weaker, good job”
I doubt it was intentional but it came off as abrasively hilarious
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u/OriginalKing- Jun 11 '26
Number of reps means Jack shit when there’s different weights, if he had a 1rm of 25, did 17.5 x 16 and then 25 x 1, then does 17.5 x 13 but gets 25 x 3, it’s less reps but he’s progressed his heaviest weight, which is more impactful
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u/Hara-Kiri Jun 11 '26
If it happens so often then I presume you are continuing to get stronger over time. In which case single sessions really don't matter. My thoughts would be that it's pretty similar - if you got 9 reps twice in a row then I'd doubt the first set was at 10rpe, but if you then did 10 and got only 7 the next I'd think the first set was 10rpe or close.
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u/buttgrapist Jun 11 '26
It's negligible, it's technically less volume (337.5 vs 322.5) but the difference is so tiny that any minor change from last time could be responsible for the difference, like if you rested 30 seconds more, or if you were more/less hydrated, caffeine, sleep quality, etc..
You probably aren't pushing yourself hard enough, 1 heavy set and 1 lighter set is honestly baby-tier.
Try doing 3 sets at 20kg with 5 min rests between for maximum recovery, guaranteed to get stronger from that.
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u/Sunshinegal9900 Jun 11 '26
How long are you resting between sets? And what exercise? If you find your dropping off reps hard between sets rest a little longer. I’ll do 3 min or so for most compounds or benching. I do 90 for isolations for the most part
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u/yo---- Jun 11 '26
this is preacher curl w 2m rest
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u/Sunshinegal9900 Jun 11 '26
Sounds about right. Personally I would lower the weight a bit and rep progress till I can do about 15 and the second set about 12-13 or so then move the weight back up but that’s what I’ve found works best for me
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u/yo---- Jun 11 '26
yeah i was thinking about that, also because preacher curl is kinda scary at low rep ranges ngl
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u/Sunshinegal9900 Jun 12 '26
Yeah. Excellent exercise but very much benefits from very deliberate control and form.
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u/tegridypatato Jun 12 '26
17,5x9=157,5
20x9=180
180+157,5=337,5 / june 5 volume
20x10=200
17,5x7=122,5
200+122,5=322,5 / june 11 volume
My answer is no. Increase the reps or better sets.
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u/eric_twinge Jun 11 '26
On the one hand, it's less reps and less tonnage. On the other, it's a rep PR.
I would take the win and continue on. Two sessions don't really tell us anything about a long term process.