Have you ever wondered how much weight you should aim to lift in the Bench Press, Squat and Deadlift as a natural trainer for your body weight? Casey Butt Ph.D from WeighTrainer.com has devised equations that utilise data of world record raw lifters from the 1940’s all the way up to 2010. He suggests that these equations are quite accurate predictors in regards to raw & drug free world champion lifts and that attaining these would put you up there with the very best in the world. Although this may not be realistic for most he says that typical trainees and hard gainers may reach approximately:
| Typical trainer | Hard gainer |
| 67% of predicted bench result | 53% of predicted bench result |
| 72% of predicted Squat result | 58% of predicted Squat result |
| 72% of predicted Deadlift result | 58% of predicted Deadlift result |
Casey puts it in context when he says that you need to “accept yourself for who you are and never stop trying to improve yourself – that’s the real measure of success, not only were you ultimately go, but where you came from as well”. Remember we all have our own genetic limitations and strengths so if anything I think this is a great tool to get you motivated to get stronger and push yourself to reach your potential with real numbers to aim for. So here are the equations:
Bench Press = 2.6536e-5 x BW^3 – 0.02590 x BW^2 + 8.7356 x BW – 439.90
(Lowered to the chest with no bounce).
Full Squat = 2.5122e-5 x BW^3 – 0.02993 x BW^2 + 11.2575 x BW – 676.60
(Upper leg lowered to parallel or below).
Deadlift = 1.6940e-4 x BW^3 – 0.12449 x BW^2 + 30.3879 x BW – 1776.51
(Conventional or Sumo style allowed)
(You can use a belt with all lifts- no straps for deadlifts).
Now these equations require you to convert kilograms into pounds before putting it into the formula. Here is an example of how I used it to work out my bench press, squat and deadlift. There are 2.2 pounds per kilo. I weigh 67 kilos so 67 x 2.2 = 147pds. Then you replace BW in the equation with your weight in pounds.
Bench Press = (2.6536e-5 x BW^3) – (0.02590 x BW^2) + (8.7356 x BW – 439.90)
(0.000026536x147x147x147) – (0.02590 x 147 x 147) + (8.7356x147 – 439.90)= 281.77 pd
Now I have to convert this back to kilos- 281.77/ 2.2=128 kg.
Typical would be 128 x 67%=85.67 kg
Hard gainer would be 128 x 53%= 67.84 kg
Full Squat = (2.5122e-5 x BW^3) – (0.02993 x BW^2) + (11.2575 x BW – 676.60)
(0.000025122x 147 x 147 x 147) – (0.02993x 147 x 147) + (11.2575x 147-676.60)= 411.3 pd
Convert this back to kilos- 411.3 / 2.2= 186.95 kg
Typical would be 186.95 x 72%= 134.6 kg
Hard gainer would be 186.95 x 58%= 108.4
Deadlift = 1.6940e-4 x BW^3 – 0.12449 x BW^2 + 30.3879 x BW – 1776.51
(0.00016940x147x147x147)- (0.12449x147x147) + (30.3879x147-1776.51)=538.5pd
Convert this to kilos-538.5/2.2=244.7kg
Typical would be 244.7 x 72%= 176.2kg
Hard gainer would be 244.7 x 58%= 141.9kg
At this body weight my best lifts are:
Bench: 110kg
Squat: 160kg
Deadlift: 200kg (with straps)
Although I am no elite lifter by any stretch of the imagination I am very happy with the numbers and progress I have made over the years. If you are interested in seeing where you are in relation to elite, typical and hard gainer lifters punch in your numbers and see where you stand- then use your results as a positive tool to motivate you to bigger numbers in the weight room!