Muscular Endurance Standards
Instructions
Enter sex, body weight and optionally age and body fat %. If you're younger than 40, entering your age will have no effect and if your body fat % is in the healthy range (<20% for men, <33% for women) it will also have no effect. If you don't know your body fat %, you can use the linked calculator to estimate it.
Muscular Endurance Ranks
The primary purpose of the ranks is to help with setting realistic goals and give you some benchmarks to work towards. The time frames for each rank are fairly broad as there are many factors that affect the development of muscular endurance. However, they assume that you're generally healthy, with no underlying conditions or injuries and have the mobility to perform all the exercises correctly. They also assume that your diet is reasonably good and that your training is both consistent and intelligent.
The other assumption is that the trainee is following a balanced program. Times to attain the given number of reps may be significantly lower if muscular endurance in that particular excercise is the sole focus of the program.
| Rank | Time | Score | Description | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ● | Untrained | <1 month | <30 | Average or below average. |
| ● | Beginner | 1-4 months | 30-40 | Better than average. |
| ● | Novice | 4-12 months | 40-50 | Much better than average. |
| ● | Intermediate | 1-2 years | 50-60 | Fit. A healthy, achievable goal for most people. |
| ● | Advanced | 2-4 years | 60-70 | Very fit. Difficult to achieve for most people. |
| ● | Elite | 4+ years | 70+ | Among the best. Nearing the average maximum potential. Likely able to compete at some level. |
What is this table telling me?
The table shows the minimum reps needed to reach each of the muscular endurance ranks for a lot of exercises. The reps on the table are based on competition data, world records, and the average time needed to attain each rank. From there, they are adjusted to reflect your personal details, like sex and body weight.
Why are some of the reps negative?
Many of the exercises have a standardized added weight based on the trainee's body weight. For Beginner trainees, this weight is often too high to even be lifted for one rep, making the reps for that rank negative. The weights were chosen for ease of use and to allow most trainees to test their muscular endurance without having to do hundreds of reps.
How is all of this helpful?
These standards allow you to compare yourself to almost any other trainee. The standards are adjusted by sex, body weight, age, and body fat % so that a 120lb woman could meaningfully compare herself to a 200lb man. As mentioned earlier, the rank system is meant to help with setting realistic goals and giving trainees something to aim for.
