Rack pull percentage
The overloading pull — and how much overload is honest.
A range, not a number — because the same variation costs one lifter 4% and another 14%. The app turns it into a single weight and remembers your coefficient.
Want the exact number?Set the pause and the eccentric, pick reps and RPE, get one weight — and the app learns your own coefficient.
Get the free appHow much weight should you use for rack pulls?
A rack pull from just below the knee is typically 100–110% of your competition deadlift, and considerably more from above the knee. The bar starts past the hardest part of the pull, so the load is limited by your grip, upper back and lockout rather than by the floor.
Pin height and typical load
| Variation | Typical range | What moves it |
|---|---|---|
| Floor (competition) | 100% | The reference |
| Block pull, 5 cm | 98–106% | Barely an overload |
| Just below the knee | 100–110% | The useful overload range |
| At the knee | 105–118% | Grip usually becomes the limit |
| Above the knee | 110–130% | Ego territory — set a cap |
Where rack pulls stop being useful
A rack pull starts the bar above the floor, skipping the part of the lift where most people fail. The higher the pins, the less lift is left and the more weight you can hold, which is why "above the knee" numbers get silly fast.
Useful overload lives just below the knee. There the bar is past the hardest breakpoint but you still have to move it a real distance, and the load stays close enough to your competition deadlift that the positions transfer.
Above the knee, the limiting factor becomes grip and how much spinal loading you are willing to accept, not strength that carries anywhere. If you are chasing a number rather than a training effect, that is the point where the variation stops being worth it.
What moves your number
- Pin height, which is the whole variable — record it, or your numbers mean nothing.
- Grip: without straps, grip caps most lifters before their back does.
- Lockout strength relative to strength off the floor.
- Whether you lower under control or drop the bar, which changes the fatigue completely.
How to find your own number
Three sessions and a bit of honesty are enough to replace the range with your own coefficient.
- Work up to a set of 3 on the rack pull and stop at RPE 8 — two reps left in the tank, honestly judged.
- Divide the weight you used by the weight you would have used for 3 reps @ RPE 8 on your competition deadlift. That ratio is your coefficient.
- Repeat it once or twice over a training block. If the number holds within a couple of percent, that is your number — use it instead of the range.
PRO What the app does with it
- Applies the pause and the eccentric on top of the variation, second by second — the first second costs the most, the following ones progressively less.
- Crosses it with the RPE chart, so you get the weight for 3 reps @ RPE 8 on that variation, not just a max.
- Learns your personal coefficient from a set you actually did, then remembers it for every future session.
- Works offline, in the gym, with the plates already worked out.
Stop guessing on your variation days
RPE Calculator for Android is free. The variation calculator — pause, tempo, deficit, boards — comes with the one-time Pro unlock. No subscription.
Get the free app Launching on Google Play — final testingFree download · Pro is a single one-time unlock · No subscription
Frequently asked questions
Should rack pulls be heavier than deadlifts?
From below the knee, usually 100–110% of your competition deadlift. From above the knee they can go far higher, but the carryover drops as the weight goes up.
What height should rack pulls be?
Just below the knee is the most useful setting for a powerlifter: past the hardest breakpoint, but with enough range left for the positions to transfer.
Do rack pulls build a bigger deadlift?
They build lockout, upper back and grip, and let you handle supramaximal loads safely. They do not fix a weak start — that is what deficit pulls are for.