Leangains RPT
Martin Berkhan's Reverse Pyramid Training. Each compound starts at your heaviest (AMRAP top set), then drops 10–20% for more reps. Three intense sessions: Day A = Deadlift + Pull-up; Day B = Bench + Incline DB; Day C = Squat + Leg Press. Low volume, high intensity. Pairs with 16:8 IF but works standalone.
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What is Leangains RPT?
Most routines pyramid up to a top set; Martin Berkhan's leangains program flips it. In reverse pyramid training you warm up, then hit your heaviest set first — while you're freshest — as an all-out rep-max attempt. Strip about 10% off the bar and do a second set aiming for two more reps, strip roughly 20% from the top weight for a third set targeting four more. Three working sets per lift, each one meaningful, nothing wasted.
The rpt program here runs three days a week with one focus each: Day A is deadlifts and weighted pull-ups, Day B is bench press with incline dumbbell work, Day C is squats and leg presses, each day rounded out with a couple of accessories at 3×8–12. The main strength lifts run a 6–8 rep top set; the secondary movements sit at 8–10. Berkhan built RPT as the training arm of Leangains — his 16:8 intermittent fasting protocol — but the routine stands entirely on its own with or without the eating window.
Is Leangains RPT right for you?
Reverse pyramid training suits intermediate lifters who prefer intensity to volume and want maximum return from three short sessions — which is exactly why it's the standard recommendation for training through a cut, where recovery is scarce and every set has to count. The catch is that heavy near-limit sets performed fresh demand technique you can trust: if your deadlift form degrades the moment a set gets hard, build more of a base on a conventional program before putting the hardest set first.
How progression works
Each lift progresses off its top set alone. Reach the top of the range — 8 reps on the 6–8 lifts, 10 on the 8–10 lifts — and the weight goes up next session: 2.5 kg on upper-body lifts, 5 kg on squats and deadlifts, with the back-off sets rising automatically since they're percentages of the top weight. Miss the same top set twice and the load drops 10% for a rebuild run. Rests are long by design — three minutes after the top set, tapering to two — and Durata calculates the 90% and 80% back-off weights for you, which removes the mid-session arithmetic that ruins most people's first month of RPT.
Durata runs this progression for you — every session's weights are computed automatically from your training maxes and logged AMRAP sets.
Leangains RPT — every set, every session
Percentages are of your training max (TM). AMRAP = as many reps as possible on the final set.
Day A — Back Focus
| Exercise | Sets × Reps | Rest |
|---|---|---|
| Deadlift (Barbell) | 1×6–8+ AMRAP 1×8–10 @ 90% 1×10–12 @ 80% | 3:00 |
| Pull Up (Weighted) | 1×6–8+ AMRAP 1×8–10 @ 90% 1×10–12 @ 80% | 3:00 |
| Bicep Curl (Barbell) | 3×8–12 | 2:30 |
Day B — Chest Focus
| Exercise | Sets × Reps | Rest |
|---|---|---|
| Bench Press (Barbell) | 1×6–8+ AMRAP 1×8–10 @ 90% 1×10–12 @ 80% | 3:00 |
| Incline Bench Press (Dumbbell) | 1×8–10+ AMRAP 1×10–12 @ 90% 1×12–14 @ 80% | 3:00 |
| Bicep Curl (Barbell) | 3×8–12 | 2:30 |
| Triceps Pushdown | 3×8–12 | 2:30 |
Day C — Leg Focus
| Exercise | Sets × Reps | Rest |
|---|---|---|
| Squat (Barbell) | 1×6–8+ AMRAP 1×8–10 @ 90% 1×10–12 @ 80% | 3:00 |
| Leg Press (Machine) | 1×8–10+ AMRAP 1×10–12 @ 90% 1×12–14 @ 80% | 3:00 |
| Lying Leg Curl (Machine) | 3×8–12 | 2:30 |
| Leg Extension (Machine) | 3×10–12 | 2:30 |
| Standing Calf Raise | 3×10–12 | 2:30 |
Leangains RPT — common questions
What exactly is reverse pyramid training?
Doing your heaviest set first instead of last. After warm-ups, set one is a maximal-effort rep target at your working weight; set two drops about 10% for a couple more reps; set three drops around 20% for a few more still. You express strength fresh and accumulate volume as you fatigue, rather than the reverse.
Should the top set go to failure?
To technical failure — the last rep you can complete without form breaking — not to a grinding miss. On deadlifts and squats especially, Berkhan's advice is to stop when bar speed dies. The top set is flagged as an all-out set in the log; that flag decides your progression, so honesty matters more than heroics.
Do I have to do intermittent fasting with it?
No. The 16:8 fasting window and the training were published together on leangains.com, but nothing in reverse pyramid training depends on meal timing. Plenty of people run the lifting alone; the pairing is popular on cuts because both halves are built around doing less, better.
Why so few exercises per session?
Because the top sets are genuinely maximal. A rep-max deadlift set followed by rep-max weighted pull-ups is a large systemic hit; stacking four more compounds on top would either dilute the effort or wreck recovery. Three working sets per big lift, a couple of accessories, done in about 45 minutes.
How long are the rests supposed to be?
Three minutes after the top set, about two and a half after the second, two after the third. Cutting these short is the most common RPT mistake — the back-off sets are only productive if you arrive at them recovered enough to earn the extra reps.
Source: Martin Berkhan — leangains.com
Durata is not affiliated with or endorsed by the program's author. The program structure (sets, reps, exercise selection) is presented as published methodology.
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