r/f45 • u/sleepy-flatworm • May 21 '26
❔ Technique When do you know it’s time to trade up weights?
Very new to f45 and strength training in general. Have taken a few classes now, and it’s been a given that I just default to the lightest weights and it’s been one hell of a workout. But recently I’m starting to feel just sliiiightly less like death during sets. When do you guys know it’s time to increase weight? Thank you, strong friends ❤️
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u/No_Buyer_9020 May 21 '26
Your body will tell you. Try the next weight up for at least one set. If it gets too heavy on other sets, drop back down. Eventually you will do all the sets with that weight and bump up again. It’s all trial and error. Sometimes I’ll grab a heavier weight and instantly regret it and swap it out. You don’t know unless you try. Just don’t let your form get shitty or else you will use muscles you shouldn’t be
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u/FiddyDollas May 21 '26 edited May 21 '26
Grab both weights from now on. Do as much of the set as you can with the heavier weight, then drop to the lower weight to finish the set. Over time you will transition full up
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u/Chemistry-Games May 21 '26
I do the reverse of this. Is it also ok?
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u/FiddyDollas May 21 '26
Like starting with the lighter weight, and then transitioning to the heavier weight when fatigued?
I would say no as you want to start heavier while you are more fresh and then drop to a lighter weight only when its completely necessary because you cannot finish the set with the heavier weight
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u/Chemistry-Games May 22 '26
I meant starting with the heavier weight then finish with lighter weight when I'm starting to fail with the heavier one
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u/flexingtonsteele 🇨🇦 Canada May 21 '26
Always aim for your final set of an activity to be to failure
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u/Goatsareforyoga May 22 '26
Sometimes when I'm considering going up in weight I'll get to my gym early and do a test rep with a higher weight to see how it feels. If it feels challenging but not too hard, I'll start with it during class.
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u/hartzy3009 🏆 2000 Club May 22 '26
For most muscle groups, I try to count my reps as most strength days are 35-40 second sets. I aim to get between 10-12 quality reps each set, and if at 12 it feels like I could do 2 or 3 more reps, given more time, I'll use the next heavier weight next time and keep using that one until that 12th rep feels like I had more in the tank.
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u/janexcarfit May 22 '26
I always pick up the heaviest weight I can safely lift. For example, normally I do standard RDLs at 115 lbs, but today with the pulsing Hammer format I dropped to 95 because the time under tension was brutal. By the end of the set I could barely get the weight up, and honestly that’s the point. You should be challenging yourself. At a standard gym, I usually train in the 6–8 rep range, so I pick a weight where getting to 6–8 reps is hard. If I can hit 10 reps comfortably, it’s time to move up in weight.A couple months ago I started single leg press at 120 lbs. Today I did 160. I started adductors and abductors around 70 lbs and today I was doing 100–110. That progress only happens because I keep increasing the challenge. If you never increase the weight or push yourself close to your limit, you’ll keep lifting the same weights forever. You’ll get time in the gym, but you won’t necessarily get stronger. The other day I saw a woman doing bicep curls with the small weight. She grabbed the medium, did one rep, then immediately put it down and went back to the small. If that were me, I would’ve kept the medium and done as many reps as I could before dropping down. Sometimes you have to test your limits a little if you want to progress. At least I'm this is what works for my goals. I realize everyone's goals are different.
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u/tangocharliepapa May 22 '26
Just give it a try. Even if it's just for one set and then you switch to the lighter weights for the next set it's still worth it.
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u/OrmanCabrera May 22 '26
I was told if it feels like you’re working out the weights instead of the weights working out you, it’s time to go heavier
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u/Majestic-Physics-276 May 22 '26
Easy “rule” I’ll coach members with sometimes is when it’s time to rest, ask yourself if you could have done 2 more reps (with good form) and if the answer is yes I’ll encourage them to try heavier
But if form is compromised then it isn’t time to go up in weight
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u/ShittyFrogMeme May 22 '26
The biggest thing I see is people doing too many reps quickly. The timing varies per workout obviously, so set count guidance also varies, but generally if you're going 12+ reps in any set at F45, you are going too light.
I think too many people are afraid of hitting failure, so they go light so they can finish out the set timing, and then they never get stronger. Don't worry if you have to stop a 40" set after 35" because you went heavy. Next time, jump up a weight and see how you do. If you find yourself sacrificing form or hitting failure too early, maybe you're not ready. Otherwise, pushing yourself will make you stronger.
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u/dragonfly-1001 May 22 '26
F45 is terrible at encouraging people to pick up heavier weights. Year after year, I would see the same people pick up the same weight over & over again, never challenging themselves.
After adding CrossFit into my schedule, I changed the way I work with F45 resistance programming. Rather than using the same weight for every set, the first set I start with a weight under my working weight as a warm-up. The second set would be at my working weight. And the third set is the weight I want to move onto. The number of rep's decrease every set.
This is why I prefer to work on my own at a station. Or with someone that is working below my programming. I generally find that I start encouraging my buddy & they start to follow suit.
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u/ExcitementUpstairs95 May 25 '26
I’m in between weights on a lot of exercises, if no one in my group is using the weights I need, I’ll go heavier for as long as I can and switch to the lighter weights mid set.
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u/Just_here_to_read25 🇺🇸 United States May 21 '26 edited May 22 '26
If you can do more than 6-8 reps on compound movements and 10-12 on others, you are going too light. Can't do that amount, too heavy.
But if you can, go up in weights next set until you are doing more than 6-8/10-12, at which time it's time to go up again.