Monitoring Your Effort: The “RIR” Concept

Written By Ben Hagopian

RIR, or "Reps In Reserve," is a useful concept to gauge your effort level during training. It refers to how many more repetitions you could perform at the end of a set before reaching failure.

Why It Matters: Training with the right intensity is crucial for making progress. For strength and hypertrophy, aim for an RIR of 1-2, meaning you should be able to do 1-2 more reps before you need to stop. For endurance, you might aim for an RIR of 2-3. With an RIR of 1-2, you should be pretty fatigued (but not completely exhausted) towards the end of a set.

How to Apply It:

  • Strength Training: Finish each set with only 1-2 reps left in the tank.

  • Hypertrophy Training: Aim to have 1-2 reps in reserve by the end of each set.

  • Endurance Training: You should be able to do a few more reps (2-3) before stopping.

Ben Hagopian
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