You might have heard the phrase “PR” thrown around in the gym and wondered why those letters hold so much weight. PRs are often the entire reason people go to the gym, and you have likely set and achieved multiple without even realizing it. Understanding PRs can take your fitness regimen to the next level.
PR often refers to something different for everybody, and it serves varying purposes depending on the person. We’re here to help you understand it. Find out what PR means, why it’s important, and how to hit more of them.
What Does a PR Mean?
A PR, or personal record, refers to the best performance someone has achieved in a specific movement or task. In a gym setting, this often refers to the heaviest weight someone has lifted in a given exercise or the most reps they’ve completed at a certain weight.
However, PRs can be used to measure any fitness objective, such as the number of times you visited the gym this month. PRs are used to track your progress, keep you accountable, and instill motivation for improvement by providing concrete and measurable reference points.
PRs look different for everybody. Individuals use them to measure what’s important to them. What motivates one person may not motivate another. The beauty of PRs is that they can be catered exclusively to one’s needs.
The Significance of PRs
Helps You Track Progress
PRs help you track progress toward a personal goal. For instance, if you want a 1-rep max (also referred to as 1RM) of 225 pounds for your squat and the max you’ve ever squatted was 200 pounds, you’ll be setting personal records on your way there. You’ll record when you squatted 210 pounds, 215 pounds, etc.
Breaking PRs allows you to track your progress and see how you’re doing on your efforts to achieve a goal.
Motivates You to Work Harder
PRs give you something to work toward. Assume you hit that 1RM of 225 pounds for your squat. You likely won’t want to stop there. Now that you’ve hit 225 pounds, you may decide you want to reach 250 pounds.
Setting a PR goal motivates you to keep working hard, and each one you achieve gives you another boost to keep going.
Builds Confidence
Achieving a PR gives you a sense of pride. Every time you break a personal record you thought improbable to reach, you gain confidence in your abilities. For example, at the beginning of your running journey, you may have found it difficult to run a mile. Then, when one day you complete a 5K without stopping, you feel a great deal of pride and confidence that you can achieve significant milestones as a runner.
Keeps You Accountable
Setting PRs is a way to keep yourself accountable for your goals. When you engage in a long-term commitment, PRs are used to ensure you’re staying true to that commitment. Setting PRs allows you to see where you faltered and where you succeeded.
Types of PRs
Weightlifting PRs
Weightlifting PRs refer to the maximum weight you’ve successfully lifted for a specific exercise. For example, your weightlifting PR could be the heaviest weight you’ve bench pressed or squatted.
This type of PR is an indicator of your top strength in a particular lift. This is your 1-rep max, or the maximum amount of weight you can lift in a single repetition for a certain exercise.
When testing your 1RM, always have a spotter and spotter arms on the rack for safety. Ensure you are sufficiently warmed up before attempting your PR, but also ensure you’re not fatigued. When doing your warmup reps, move slowly and controlled throughout the entire range of motion to ensure you’re activating every muscle.
Don’t make the mistake of constantly chasing PRs. Just because you broke your PR in one session, doesn’t mean you should try to break it again in the next one. Trying to do so puts you at risk of injury.
Cardiovascular PRs
Cardiovascular PRs refer to how long you perform an aerobic activity without excessive fatigue. For instance, your cardiovascular PR could be the longest you’ve been able to run or cycle at a high intensity. These PRs push you to work out longer and increase endurance, improving cardiovascular health.
Cardiovascular PRs are often useful in reaching other types of PRs. For example, cardiovascular endurance can improve your body’s recovery time and muscular endurance, helping you break your weightlifting PRs.
How to Consistently Hit More PRs
Outline Goals
Goals are essential to hitting more PRs and staying motivated. Think of what motivates you now, but focus on long-term success. For example, right now you may be inspired to lose weight, but setting goals to cycle on your Speediance VeloNix for 30 minutes 3 times a week will keep that motivation up while providing long-term success.
The right goals determine how many PRs you hit. If your goals lack ambition, you likely won’t push through your personal best, but if your goals are too ambitious, you can overextend. Finding the right balance is key to keeping the energy up.
Be Specific
When you want to improve a certain exercise, set a concrete and measurable goal. For example, if you wish to quicken your 5K time from its current 35-minute time, instead of simply stating you want to improve it, set a specific goal of 33 minutes.
Setting clear goals makes it easier to know what you’re working toward and measure your progress. Vague goals can make you less motivated to complete them and will not provide the same level of fulfillment when you achieve them.
Be Realistic
A good way to lose steam in your personal goals is by setting a PR out of reach. If you want to lose 30 pounds, setting a goal to lose it all in one month isn’t probable. Be realistic about how many months you’ll need to reach your goal and set monthly PRs that are obtainable. Make use of equipment like the Speediance Gym Pal to keep an eye on your weight and track your metrics.
Being realistic also involves customizing goals to fit your lifestyle. If someone were able to lose 8 pounds a month by going to the gym seven days a week, but you only have enough time to go to the gym 3 times a week, it’d be unrealistic to expect the same weight loss. What works for someone else won’t necessarily work for you, so ensure your goals are catered to your lifestyle.
Progressive Overload
Progressive overload is the principle of gradually increasing the demands placed on the body to encourage strength and muscle growth. For example, if you bench press 100 pounds for 8 reps, aim for 105 pounds for 8 reps in your next workout. Alternatively, you can increase the number of reps to 10 instead.
Progressive overload ensures your body continuously faces new challenges to adapt to, promoting strength and muscle gains, which help you toward your PRs. It’s especially useful when the gains have slowed down and you’ve seemingly hit a plateau.
Variety of Exercises
Varied exercises are essential to hitting PRs. For example, getting tunnel vision and only focusing on reaching your squat PR can be counterproductive, especially if you’ve hit a plateau. Instead, add a variety of exercises that contribute to your goal. Lunges, deadlifts, leg extensions, and core exercises can strengthen the muscles required for squatting.
Also, incorporate exercises that target the entire body’s wellness. Focusing only on one aspect of the body can create an imbalance. Include mobility and cardio exercises among your strength training regimen to encourage a well-balanced lifestyle.
Healthy Diet
You probably already know this, but your diet heavily influences how you perform in the gym. If you’ve eaten nothing but junk food before a gym session, you probably wouldn’t expect to have a great workout. Maintaining a healthy and balanced diet with enough protein not only provides the necessary fuel to power through a workout, but it also ensures your body can handle the stress it's under when you’re pushing for a PR.
Sleep
Getting enough sleep is essential to hitting new PRs. The average adult needs 7 to 8 hours of sleep a night to recover from rigorous exercise. Without enough sleep, your body cannot recover in time for your next gym session. Even if you manage to have a good workout, your hard work won’t affect your body on a cellular level because it hasn’t fully recovered.
Be Disciplined
Achieving any meaningful PR requires discipline. Solely relying on fleeting motivation and willpower makes it hard to be consistent. Instead, build healthy habits that encourage you to work toward your PR even when motivation is low. For example, if you want to exercise more consistently, discipline yourself into going to the gym 3 days a week. Once you’ve done that enough times, you won’t be going out of willpower anymore but out of habit.
Be Prepared for Setbacks
Anytime you set a goal, you have to be prepared for the chance you don’t achieve it in your set timeframe. There may be times when you feel at the peak of your game, only to fail your PR. Understand that these things happen, and let your setbacks be lessons on improving. You may need more time than you thought, or you may need to change your fitness regimen. Simply don’t let failure get you down, and stay committed to your long-term goals.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does PR Mean 1-Rep Max?
PR can mean 1 rep max in certain circumstances. A 1-rep max would be considered a weightlifting PR, because it involves seeing how much you can lift in a single repetition for a given exercise. Many types of PRs exist, and 1 rep max can be one of them.
What is a PR vs a PB?
PR stands for personal record, while PB stands for personal best. The two are typically used interchangeably and mean roughly the same thing. Both describe the best performance in a given activity, but some people use PR for their best competition performance and PB for their best gym performance.
Personal Records Drive Motivation, Progress, and Confidence
Personal records are essential to hitting new heights in your fitness journey. They keep you motivated, accountable, and confident. Setting PRs helps you track your progress while providing a tangible goal to work toward. Aiming too high can set you up for disappointment, while aiming too low can feel lackluster. Get your PR goals just right, however, and you’ll be eager to go to the gym.
Train for your weightlifting PRs with the Speediance Gym Monster 2 or achieve your cardiovascular PR with the Speediance VeloNix. Both pieces of equipment provide a compact design for surpassing personal records and breaking through plateaus at home.
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