How to track progressive overload: add reps, then weight, and log every set.
Progressive overload is the idea behind most strength training: ask your muscles to do a little more than last time, then a little more again. The idea is simple; remembering exactly what you did last time is the hard part. Here is a simple way to progress, double progression, and how to log your sets so the next step is always clear.
4 min read
01 / The idea
More reps, more weight, or more sets.
You can make an exercise harder by adding reps at the same weight, adding weight, or adding sets. For most people the first two are enough, and both are easy to track: all you need is the weight and reps of every set.
Progress is rarely a straight line. Some sessions you add a rep, some you repeat. What matters is the direction over a couple of months.
02 / Double progression
Add reps until you reach the top of the range, then add weight.
Pick a rep range, say 8 to 12. Keep the weight the same and add reps each session. When every set reaches 12, add a small amount of weight and start again near 8.
| Session | Weight | Reps per set | Next time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 60 kg | 10, 9, 8 | Same weight, one more rep |
| 2 | 60 kg | 11, 10, 9 | Same weight, one more rep |
| 3 | 60 kg | 12, 11, 10 | Same weight, one more rep |
| 4 | 60 kg | 12, 12, 12 | Add 2.5 kg, start at 8 |
| 5 | 62.5 kg | 9, 8, 8 | Build back up to 12 |
The rule needs only two things from last time: the weight, and whether every set reached the top of the range.
03 / How much to add
Small jumps go further.
| Exercise | In kg | In lb |
|---|---|---|
| Light loads, under 20 kg or 45 lb (dumbbell raises, curls) | 1 kg | 2.5 lb |
| Upper body (bench press, rows, overhead press) | 2.5 kg | 5 lb |
| Lower body (squats, deadlifts, hip thrusts, leg press) | 5 kg | 10 lb |
Jumping too far usually costs reps: instead of dropping from 12 to 8, you drop to 5. If the smallest plates in your gym are too big a step, add a rep or a set instead.
04 / When to hold back
Keep the weight on days you are not recovered.
After a short night or on a run-down morning, it is reasonable to repeat last session's weight instead of adding more. Repeating still counts: you practise the lift, and the increase waits until next time.
If you stall for three or four sessions in a row, change one thing: a lighter week, a different rep range, or more rest between sets.
05 / Logging it
Log every set, under the same exercise name.
- Weight and reps for every set. Not only the best one. Double progression needs all of them.
- One name per exercise. “Bench press” and “Flat bench” become two separate histories. Pick one and keep it.
- The rep range with the exercise. So you know where the top of the range is.
- Last time, before you start. The whole method is last time, plus a little.
06 / In GymTribe
Last time and today’s target, on the same screen.
When you reach a set in GymTribe, a strip shows what you did on that exercise last time and a target for today. Reach the top of your rep range on every set and the target moves up: “You hit 12 reps on every set last time. Add weight, start at 8.” Otherwise it asks for one more rep at the same weight. Tap the target to fill in the weight and reps.
After a night under 6 hours, or a morning you logged waking up tired, the app keeps the weight the same for today and suggests adding it next time. If you feel good, Go heavier puts the increase back.
Over the weeks, each exercise's charts and personal records show whether the trend is going up. How to track strength progress explains what each chart shows, and the 1RM calculator turns any set into an estimated one-rep max.
Keep it boring
Last time, plus a little.
Progress comes in small, unremarkable steps. This is general training information, not medical advice; if you have an injury or a health condition, check with a qualified professional before adding load.
