Weighted Pull-Up and Dip 1RM Calculator
Written by Thierno Sadou Diallo, formula verified per our methodology • Last checked on 9/10/2026
For a weighted pull-up, the load lifted is bodyweight + added weight. With 75 kg bodyweight, +20 kg of added weight, and 5 reps, the effective 1RM is about 111 kg, a maximum added weight of about 36 kg.
Explanation
Classic 1RM calculators, like our 1RM calculator, are designed for a barbell exercise where the load lifted is the one on the bar. For a weighted bodyweight movement (pull-up, dip), that assumption is wrong: the load actually overcome on each rep is the entire bodyweight plus the weight belt, not just the belt. Ignoring bodyweight leads to massively underestimating the strength developed and miscalibrating progression. This calculator applies the Epley formula — 1RM = load × (1 + reps ÷ 30), the same one used by our estimated reps for a load calculator — to the effective load (bodyweight + added weight), then subtracts bodyweight from the result to show two useful figures: the effective 1RM (what your heaviest pull-up is worth, bodyweight included) and the theoretical maximum added weight (the weight you should be able to add to the belt for a single rep). As with any 1RM calculation from reps, reliability degrades noticeably beyond 8 to 10 reps, and the result remains a statistical estimate: the only exact measure of a 1RM is a real single-rep attempt, to be done only warmed up, safely, and with cautious progression.
Example: 75 kg bodyweight, +20 kg, 5 reps
Inputs
Bodyweight: 75 kg. Added weight: 20 kg. Reps: 5.
Calculation
Effective load = 75 + 20 = 95 kg. Effective 1RM = 95 × (1 + 5 ÷ 30) = 95 × 1.1667 ≈ 110.8 kg. Maximum added weight = 110.8 − 75 ≈ 35.8 kg.
Result
This lifter should be able to perform a pull-up with about 36 kg of additional weight.
Frequently asked questions
Why not subtract the weight of the arms, which aren't lifted?
Some advanced protocols subtract a small fraction of bodyweight (the arms and sometimes the front of the trunk stay relatively still relative to the bar during a pull-up). This calculator uses the simplest and most common convention — full bodyweight — because the exact fraction to subtract varies with morphology and technique, and the difference remains modest for the progression estimate, which is this calculation's main use.
Does this calculation also apply to bodyweight squats or lunges?
The principle is the same — factor the fraction of bodyweight actually moved into the added load — but the fraction involved is different: during a squat, a large part of bodyweight moves up and down, whereas during a pull-up, only the lower part of the body is truly lifted over the full range. This calculator is calibrated for vertical pulling (pull-up) and vertical pushing (dip) movements.
At what level does added weight make sense?
Adding weight is only worthwhile once the bodyweight movement is mastered for about ten clean reps: adding weight to a pull-up that's already hard unloaded means working in a rep range too low to progress healthily and increases the risk to the shoulders and elbows. This calculator assumes already-solid technique.