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Weekly Training Volume Calculator

Track your weekly sets per muscle group and total training load. Find out if you're hitting the minimum effective volume for muscle growth or exceeding your recovery capacity.

Weekly Volume Calculator

Sets · Reps · Total Load per Muscle Group

Weight Unit
Muscle Group
Sets/Wk
Avg Reps
Avg Weight
Chest
Back
Quads
Hamstrings
Shoulders
Biceps
Triceps
Glutes
Calves
Core / Abs
—
Total Weekly Tonnage

Weekly training volume is the single most important driver of long-term hypertrophy. The most practical unit is sets per muscle group per week — every direct working set in the 5–30 rep range counts. Total tonnage (sets × reps × weight) gives you an additional loading metric useful for tracking strength progression.

Leave a muscle's weight field blank or at 0 to score only sets/reps without load tracking. Supports both kg and lbs.

Volume Landmarks (Sets Per Muscle Group / Week)

LandmarkSets / WeekMeaning
Maintenance Volume (MV)~5–8Enough to maintain existing muscle; not enough to grow
Minimum Effective Volume (MEV)~10Minimum to stimulate new muscle growth
Maximum Adaptive Volume (MAV)15–20Optimal growth range for most lifters
Maximum Recoverable Volume (MRV)20–25+Upper limit — more volume causes overtraining

Ranges vary by muscle group, individual recovery capacity, training age, nutrition, and sleep quality. These are evidence-based guidelines from Dr. Mike Israetel's RP Strength research.

Frequently Asked Questions

For most intermediate lifters, 10–20 sets per muscle group per week covers the Minimum Effective Volume to Maximum Adaptive Volume range. Beginners can grow with 5–10 sets. Advanced lifters may need 15–25+ sets for lagging muscles. Start at the lower end and add sets gradually when progress stalls.
A working set is any set taken within 3–4 reps of failure (RIR ≤ 3). Feeder/warm-up sets don't count. Total tonnage = sets × reps × weight. Compound lifts count toward all muscles they involve (e.g. bench press counts for both chest and triceps).
Warning signs include declining workout performance over 2+ weeks, persistent joint soreness (not DOMS), disrupted sleep, and low motivation. If any of these appear, take a deload week (reduce volume by 40–50%) before resuming at a slightly lower volume level.
Yes. Spreading the same weekly sets across 2–3 sessions per muscle produces better results than doing all sets in one session. This is because protein synthesis from a session lasts ~48–72 hours, then returns to baseline — so more frequent stimulation generates more total growth signals. Aim for at least 2× per muscle group per week.
Use whatever unit you train in. This calculator supports both kg (used in Europe, Australia, and most of the world) and lbs (used in the USA). The total tonnage will display in your chosen unit. The sets-per-muscle-group metric is unit-independent — it's valid regardless of unit system.

Related Calculators

Progressive Overload CalculatorPlan your session-by-session weight and rep increments.Calculate → Deload CalculatorCalculate deload week volume based on your training load.Calculate → Strength Training Age CalculatorFind what volume range suits your training experience level.Calculate → Periodization CalculatorStructure your training into accumulation and intensity blocks.Calculate →