How the Strength Score Works

Your score in three steps

Supalifts builds the score from the bottom up.

Every rank is worked out again each time you open the screen. Nothing is stored, so a new body weight or a birthday changes your ranks straight away.

How one lift is ranked

Log a set and tick it done. Warm-up sets are left out.

For lifts with weight, your best set becomes an estimated one-rep max. Reps above 15 count as 15, so a light set of 25 reps does not inflate the number. The estimate is then divided by your body weight. A 100 kg bench press means more at 70 kg than at 110 kg.

Bodyweight lifts are ranked on reps in one set. That covers pull-ups, chin-ups, push-ups and dips. The plank is ranked on how long you hold it.

Each lift has its own ladder. Where you land on it gives you a tier and a division, like Gold II, and a figure for how many lifters you are stronger than.

Why your one-rep max can differ from other apps

Supalifts may show a different one-rep max from other apps for the same set. Many apps use a fixed formula such as Epley or Brzycki, which gives each extra rep the same value at any weight. Supalifts uses a newer formula, fitted on more than 300,000 real sets, that values each rep by how heavy the set was.

Light dumbbell and cable sets get more credit: a 13 kg curl for 10 reps reads about 22 kg here and about 17 kg with Epley. Heavy barbell sets land close to other apps: 100 kg for 5 reads about 117 kg either way.

The 15-rep cap above is another reason the numbers can differ. The Est. 1RM card in the app uses the same formula, so the number you see there is the one your rank uses.

The eight tiers

Every tier is worth 30 points. Each tier has three divisions of 10 points: I is the way in, III is the last step before the next tier. The last column shows how many lifters you are stronger than when you reach that division.

Points make the score easy to read. A tier is always 30 points wide, so climbing from Silver to Gold takes the same work on the scale as climbing from Diamond to Legend.

How a muscle is scored

A muscle’s score is the average of its two best lifts. Only the best two count, so an easy accessory never pulls a muscle down.

A muscle needs two lifts before it shows its true score. With one lift, the missing one counts as zero. A Gold bench press on its own is half a chest score. One strong lift cannot stand in for a trained muscle.

Each lift counts for one muscle only, the one it works most.

The eight muscles that count

Your Strength Score averages these eight. A muscle with nothing logged counts as zero.

That is a sample. Supalifts ranks 140 lifts across these eight muscles, machines and cables included. Open any muscle’s page to see its full list.

Core, calves and forearms get their own rank and medal too. They are scored on their single best lift and stay out of the Strength Score.

A worked example

Here is a lifter three weeks in. Every number below is points on the 0 to 240 scale, not kilograms. A lift’s points come from its rank.

Add the eight muscle scores and divide by eight: 688 ÷ 8 = 86 points, Silver III.

Next week they add a lateral raise (92 pts) and train hamstrings for the first time: Romanian deadlift 110 pts, seated leg curl 102 pts. Shoulders rise to 94 pts. Hamstrings rise to 106 pts.

New total: 840 ÷ 8 = 105 points, Gold II. That is 19 points in a week, without a heavier set anywhere.

Filling the gaps is the fastest way up. After that, the score climbs as your best lifts do.

Provisional until you log 16 lifts

Until all eight muscles have two lifts, your score shows as Provisional. Dots under the score fill in as you log each lift, two per muscle.

The number is real while it is Provisional. It is just low, because the gaps count as zero. Log 16 lifts and you see where you truly stand.

Leave out up to two muscles

Not everyone can train all eight muscles. An injury, missing equipment or a programme that focuses on other muscles would leave a gap that counts as zero and pulls your score down. That says nothing about your strength, so Supalifts lets you leave up to two muscles out. It keeps the score fair for everyone.

Open that muscle’s page from Progress › Rank and turn off the Include in rank switch. The muscle keeps its own rank and medal, but it drops out of your Strength Score completely: it no longer counts as zero, and the score averages the muscles that are left. You then need two lifts for each muscle that is still in.

Your target

240 is the very top of the ladder, so Supalifts gives you a closer target from the level you chose at setup.

Pass your target and the next one takes its place. Change your level in You › Basic info.

Why your score moves

You logged a new muscle or a second lift

A gap that counted as zero now counts. This is the biggest jump you will see.

A best set turned 91 days old

The score is your current strength, so sets older than 90 days drop out. Your next best set in the window takes over. A muscle’s page shows how many days each best set has left.

Your body weight changed

Ranks compare your lifts with your body weight. Gain weight and lift the same, and some ranks dip. Lose weight and keep your lifts, and they rise.

You had a birthday

Standards change with age, so ranks move a little.

You lifted more and the score barely moved

Points climb steadily inside a tier, so a small gain moves it a little. If the lift is your third best for that muscle, it does not count yet.

You tried a new exercise

This can only help. Only your best two lifts per muscle count, so a first attempt at something new never lowers your score.

You left a muscle out or put one back

The average is worked out again over the muscles that remain.

Where to find it

Open Progress. The Overview card shows your score, your target and your tier. The Rank tab lists all eight muscles plus core, calves and forearms. Tap a muscle to see every lift that counts for it, its rank, and what it takes to reach the next division.