Written by Andrew Lenau | ISSA CPT & Sports Nutritionist
Fact checked by Tyler DiGiovanni, BSBM
FACT CHECKED
Deciding that you want to get stronger is exciting! However, it can be hard to know if you're actually making progress if you don't know where to start.
For those who don't know where to start when it comes to strength training, you have to create a starting point known as a strength baseline. Think of it as the foundation for building your strength and muscular endurance.
In this in-depth guide, I'll break down the importance of having a baseline, how to establish it, and the essential tests I recommend to determine your starting point accurately.
Table of Contents
- What is a Baseline?
- How to Establish a Strength Baseline
- How To Increase Your Overall Strength Baseline
- Outro
What is a Baseline?
The short answer is that a baseline is your starting point. When it comes to strength training, a baseline refers to your initial level of strength and muscular endurance before you start a training program.
It also gives you a snapshot of your current physical capabilities, serving as a reference point from which you can accurately and quickly gauge your progress over time. Some of the most crucial reasons for establishing a baseline are:
Personalization: It allows you to better tailor your training program to your needs and abilities.
Goal Setting: It helps you to set more realistic and achievable goals based on your starting point.
Progress Tracking: It is also a benchmark for measuring your progress and identifying areas needing improvement.
How to Establish a Strength Baseline
Creating a strength baseline usually requires you to conduct specific tests and assessments to evaluate various aspects of strength, endurance, and even your body composition, depending on whether you ever plan to compete.
Here's a step-by-step guide on how I test my clients as a personal trainer to establish their strength baseline effectively:
Strength Baseline Tests:
One-Rep Max (1RM) Test:
One of the most common ways to measure absolute strength is the one-rep max test. It helps to assess the maximum weight an individual can lift for a single repetition with proper form. Here's how I recommend people to conduct the 1RM test:
- Choose a compound movement such as squat, bench press, or deadlift.
- This may seem obvious, but I always recommend that you perform a general warm-up to increase blood flow, reduce the risk of injury, and prepare your muscles for the upcoming lift.
- Set up for the compound lift, start with the bar, and gradually increase the weight. I recommend only performing 5-8 repetitions with lighter weights to keep yourself from exhausting the muscles but still effectively warming up.
- Increase the weight until you have a challenging load on the barbell, and attempt a single repetition with proper form. If you are successful, increase the weight and repeat doing one rep until you get to a weight that induces failure.
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Note the maximum weight lifted as your 1RM for the selected exercise in a weight-lifting journal or on your phone, or use our Downloadable Strength Baseline PDF available further down.
Five-Rep Max (5RM) Test:
The five-rep max test helps you get incredible insight into your strength endurance and is slightly less taxing than the 1RM test. I recommend that people do this test if they aren't confident in their one-rep testing or are scared of getting hurt under heavy weights.
Follow these steps to complete the 5RM test:
- Select a compound movement similar to the 1RM test.
- Perform a thorough warm-up to prepare your muscles for the upcoming lift. I don't recommend doing more than one RM test per workout, as the risk of injury would be incredibly high.
- Gradually increase the weight in each warm-up set; I recommend completing around 3-5 repetitions with moderate weights.
- Load the barbell with a weight you believe you can lift for five consecutive repetitions with proper form. Always make sure to have a spotter on hand just in case you fail.
- Perform five repetitions with the chosen weight, using the proper technique for each rep. Increase the weight if you feel you can do so.
- Record the maximum weight lifted for five reps completed as your 5RM for the selected exercise.
Once you have these established and are on a consistent weight lifting program, you'll be surprised how many PRs you'll be setting.
Muscular Endurance Test:
Muscular endurance is essential for building strength and improving sustained physical activity. Testing endurance typically requires lighter loads, like your body weight, and is done for longer periods.
By increasing endurance, you will improve cardiovascular fitness, athletic development, mental willpower, and how long your muscles can work under load.
Two of the most common tests are the push-up or pull-up tests, both simple yet effective ways to assess upper-body muscular endurance. Here's how to conduct the push-up test:
- Start in a plank position with your hands shoulder-width apart and elbows fully extended.
- Lower your body until your chest touches the floor, then push back to the starting position.
- Perform as many push-ups as possible while keeping good form (keeping a straight line from head to heels).
- Write down the number of reps you completed before hitting failure as your score for the push-up test.
Mobility Test:
While it may not seem important when it comes to strength, mobility assessments are crucial for evaluating your range of motion and functional movement patterns. Having a mobility baseline can better identify any restrictions or limitations in your joints and muscles affecting your performance and increasing the risk of injury.
Here are two of the mobility tests I most commonly do with clients:
Squat Depth Test:
The squat depth test helps assess your ability to perform a deep squat properly. It also evaluates the flexibility and mobility of your hips, knees, and ankles.
It is best performed before a leg workout to determine whether you should continue; if you don't do well, you may want to consider working on more mobility exercises.
- Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and squat down as low as possible while keeping your heels on the ground and your chest up.
- Aim to lower your hips until you are below parallel to the ground.
- A passing score would be achieving a deep squat position without significant discomfort or compensations in your squat form.
Shoulder Mobility Test:
This shoulder mobility test, also known as the scratch test, focuses on testing the range of motion in your shoulders and upper back. It'll assess your ability to reach overhead and behind your back without causing pain or having any restrictions.
- Lift your right arm directly above your head.
- Bend your right elbow and place your right palm on the back of your neck, with your fingers pointing downward.
- With your left hand, reach behind your back and rest the back of your hand against your spine, palm facing away from your body.
- Gently slide your right hand down the back of your neck and your left hand up your spine, bringing them closer together.
- Once you've reached your maximum reach, the examiner will measure the distance between your fingers.
- Release the stretch by reversing the movement and returning to the initial position.
How to Use A Mobility Baseline As Part Of Your Training Program
- If you can do the mobility test without issues or having to compensate (green light), then you should continue with the planned training. If red light, perform corrective drills.
- Re-evaluate baseline performance by completing the test again.
- If a green light, proceed with the planned training. If a red light, incorporate additional drills.
- Review baseline performance once again.
- If it still indicates a red light, I recommend implementing regression exercises or taking a rest day.
- Reassess the baseline during the next training session and adjust accordingly.
If you need some help with mobility, read our articles on Improving Hip Mobility and Improving Shoulder Mobility.
Body Composition Test:
While not completely necessary for creating a strength baseline, if you plan on ever competing (like powerlifting or bodybuilding), understanding your body composition will make optimizing your fitness program, overall health, and nutrition easier.
A body composition analysis provides valuable insight into how the fat and muscle in your body are distributed, as well as if you need to lose weight or gain muscle. Here are two of the most common methods for body composition analysis:
Skinfold Measurements:
Skinfold measurements are one of the easiest ways to test body composition as it involves using calipers to measure the thickness of skinfolds at specific spots on the body. I'd recommend talking to a trained professional who knows what they are doing to get the most accurate results.
They will use calipers to pinch and measure skinfold thickness at sites such as the triceps, abdomen, and thigh. These measurements are then plugged into a formula to calculate body fat percentage.
Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis (BIA):
BIA measures the body's resistance to electrical currents to estimate body composition. It is able to do this by sending a low-level electrical current through the body and measuring how it travels through different types of body tissue.
There are multiple options, the most common being a scale with electrodes you stand on or holding a handheld device with electrodes.
If both of these aren't an option for you, you can check out our article on Fitness Calculators & Tools that can point you in the right direction.
How To Increase Your Overall Strength Baseline
Once you've been able to establish your baseline, the real work begins toward improving and surpassing your current limits. To make sure that you are increasing your strength baseline effectively, I would recommend that you use these strategies:
Progressive Overload:
Progressive overload is one of the most important principles when it comes to strength training. It involves gradually increasing the demands on your muscles over time to stimulate growth and adaptation better.
Here are a couple of the ways I recommend to apply progressive overload to your strength program:
- Increase Intensity: To get the most out of your workouts, make sure you're challenging yourself by slowly increasing the weights you lift during exercises. This will ensure that you're keeping your muscles under tension.
- Adjust Volume: One of the things I notice people never do is that they don't gradually increase the number of sets and repetitions performed for each exercise. Instead, they do the same sets and reps every week. Change things up, and it'll be easier to induce muscle fatigue and promote growth.
- Vary Frequency: Experiment with your training frequency; if you are recovering correctly, try incorporating additional workout sessions or training splits to give your body adequate stimulus for muscle and strength development.
- Follow a Program: One of the easiest ways to build strength without thinking too much or worrying that you are doing everything right is to follow a strength program. This 13-week training plan from one of our head coaches is a great option and will help you get the results you desire.
By consistently pushing your limits and progressively increasing the demands on your muscles, you'll start to see serious strength and muscle gains toward your fitness goals.
If muscle gains are what you're ultimately after, you should check out our Hypertrophy Program.
Proper Nutrition:
Nutrition plays an important role, if not the most important because good nutrition helps support muscle repair, growth, and overall performance. To fully optimize your strength gains, I always recommend that my clients focus on the following nutritional factors:
- Proper Caloric Intake: Typically, to see significant increases in strength and muscle gain, you need to consume enough calories to meet your body's energy needs, especially during intense training. Having a slight caloric surplus can make seeing these kinds of results manageable and achievable.
- Macronutrient Balance: Of course, your diet isn't just as easy as calories in vs calories out; you need to make sure your diet provides adequate protein, carbohydrates, and healthy fats to fuel workouts, facilitate recovery, and promote muscle protein synthesis.
- Hydration: If you don't stay adequately hydrated, you run the risk of having decreased exercise performance, cramps, and worse recovery. The recommended total daily fluid intake based on research is 3,000 ml for men and 2,200 ml for women, which should be more than adequate.¹
I always tell my clients that 60-70 percent of achieving their goals comes from having proper nutrition and hydration. So, by fueling your body with the right nutrients at the correct times, you'll provide your body with the foundation for prime strength development and recovery.
Adequate Rest and Recovery:
Outside of nutrition, rest and recovery are incredibly important parts of any effective strength training program. If you fail to focus on sufficient time for recovery, it can lead to overtraining, fatigue, increased risk of injury, and impaired performance.
Here are some tips I use and recommend to prioritize rest and recovery:
Quality Sleep: Research shows that getting 7-9 hours of quality sleep per night is best for optimal health benefits, especially when it comes to facilitating muscle repair, hormone regulation, and overall recovery.²
Active Recovery: Occasionally, on days that you take off from the gym, I recommend incorporating light activity, stretching, foam rolling, or yoga sessions to increase blood flow, reduce muscle soreness, and keep recovery going.
Rest Days: Sometimes, you can't help it, and you will need to schedule one or two rest days into your training program to allow your muscles and central nervous system to recover entirely from intense workouts.
I see too many people focusing too much on their training and not enough on their rest and recovery. By prioritizing rest and recovery, you'll optimize the adaptation process, reduce the risk of injury, and even aid you in making sustainable progress in your strength journey.
Consistency:
While you can see some success quickly, consistency is the key to long-term, significant success in strength training. Establishing and sticking with a consistent training routine is important for achieving and surpassing your strength baseline.
To avoid overcomplicating and giving up on your plans, here are some of the best ways I know how to maintain consistency:
Set Realistic Goals: While I can understand the dream of bench pressing 1000 pounds, I recommend establishing clear, more achievable goals to keep you motivated and direct your training efforts.
Develop a Routine: Day-to-day life can be chaotic, making getting in the gym consistently tricky. By creating a structured daily routine and scheduling your workout sessions in advance, you make it easier for yourself to stay consistent and more likely to succeed in achieving your strength goals.
Stay Motivated: The most significant factor when it comes to staying consistent is to find sources of inspiration and motivation to keep you focused and committed to your training journey, whether it's through personal achievements, supportive communities on social media, or even professional guidance by a coach.
I always tell people that by staying consistent with their training and lifestyle habits, they'll build momentum, develop better discipline, and ultimately improve upon their initial strength baseline. So pace yourself, and don't try to rush the process; you'll get there in time.
Outro
Despite what it may seem, working out is more about training smarter, not harder. So, establishing a solid strength baseline is an important step, regardless of where you are at in your fitness journey, because it provides valuable insights into your current level of strength and muscular endurance.
Armed with the information from this article, you should be able to set more realistic goals, track your progress more effectively, keep injuries at bay, and tailor your training program to maximize results.
References
- AE;, Meinders AJ;Meinders. “[How Much Water Do We Really Need to Drink?].” Nederlands Tijdschrift Voor Geneeskunde, U.S. National Library of Medicine, pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20356431/.
- Watson, Nathaniel F., et al. “Recommended Amount of Sleep for a Healthy Adult: A Joint Consensus Statement of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and Sleep Research Society.” Sleep, vol. 38, no. 6, 1 June 2015, pp. 843–844, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4434546/, https://doi.org/10.5665/sleep.4716.
Andrew Lenau
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