Weighted pull-up calculator
Enter a set you've done and get your 1-rep and 2-rep max, with your bodyweight counted, plus what to add for any number of reps.
Using the numbers
Weighted pull-ups: 2 warm-up sets, then 5 sets of 3 pull-ups at about 85% of your 2-rep max, 3 min rest. The load under the result is 85% of your 2-rep max.
The 2-rep max is a safer test than a single, and it's the pull-up test in the Blok Sessions app. Retest at the end of a light week, when you're fresh.
Can't add weight yet? Slow negative pull-ups build the strength to get there. Between blocks, pulling maintenance hold on to it. One-arm pull-ups come once weighted pull-ups are going well.
Pulling is one part of climbing strength. Your fingers have their own hangboard calculator.
Warm up first, and stop at the first sign of pain in your elbows or shoulders. Training is at your own risk.
In the Blok Sessions app
Test it, and watch it go up
The max 2-rep pull-up is one of five benchmark tests in Blok Sessions. Log it and the app keeps it as a share of your bodyweight over time, next to your finger tests, so you can see a block of training work.
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Questions
How do I work out my weighted pull-up max?
Do a set of 2 to 5 clean reps with added weight, then enter your bodyweight, the added weight and the reps. The calculator estimates your max from the whole load you pulled, your body included. Testing a true single is harder on the elbows and fingers and tells you little more.
Why does bodyweight count?
Because you lift it on every rep. A 70 kg climber adding 20 kg pulls 90 kg. Leave the body out and the estimate for someone heavier or lighter comes out wrong.
How accurate is it?
Close for sets of 2 to 5 reps, looser above 10. It uses the Epley formula, a standard estimate from lifting. Use it to set training loads, and retest every block.
How much weight should I train weighted pull-ups with?
The catalog's weighted pull-ups are 2 warm-up sets, then 5 sets of 3 pull-ups at about 85% of your 2-rep max, 3 min rest. The calculator works that load out for you.
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