Comparison of the Effect of Various Weight Training Loads on Strength

Seventy-nine male subjects were used in this study to determine which proportions of maximum strength (1-RM) used in training were as effective for increasing strength as training with the 1-RM. Three groups trained twice weekly with 66, 80, or 90 percent of the 1-RM, plus one weekly effort with the 1-RM. A fourth group trained three times weekly with the 1-RM; a fifth group, with 66 percent of the 1-RM; a sixth group, with the 1-RM only once weekly; and the seventh group acted as a control. After six weeks of training, the group that trained with two-thirds of the 1-RM three times weekly and the control group had mean strength scores which were significantly less than the means of the other groups.