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1 1/4 Reps

One and a Quarter Reps

The one and a quarter rep technique is a very specific technique or way of training related to the three points of flexion (POF) in any movement. The three POF are mid-range, fully contracted and stretched. A brief description of these three points of flexion is required to illustrate the 1 1/4 reps technique.

The mid-range is where maximum force can be exerted in any movement like on bench-press it would be any form of press including dips. The contracted position would be where the most amount of tension can be achieved and in the case of the chest would be cable-crossovers or pec deck.

The last position is the stretch position, which in chest training would be the stretch at the end of the movement like when doing flies. It is this stretch POF that is needed when doing 1 1/4 reps training. The reason one does an extra quarter rep after the full rep has completed is because of the myostatic reflex.

The myostatic reflex also known as the stretch reflex is achieved when the bottom of the stretch is able to set off the emergency fiber activation required to happen in this stretched and very vulnerable position of the muscle. It activates the last muscle fibers in that muscle group in order to protect itself from farther harm.

It must be added here that the extra quarter lift added to the end of the complete reps is never a bounce but a deliberate quarter rep starting at the bottom of the stretch. This is done slowly lowering the weight under full control with a "twitch" as you reverse direction.

One needs to make sure that you are doing 1 1/4 reps with a moderate weight like 60% to 70% of 1RM to start off with. Although the principal is overload it is the achievement of that "twitch" as you change direction when stretching to the maximum where the extra fibers are activated.

You should then do one set of 1 1/4 reps before you complete 3 or 4 sets of normal bench-press or flys. The experts agree that when training with 1 1/4 reps you should select one body-part for each workout so that you can slowly measure your progress over time.

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