Welcome to our FAQ on CoachMePlus, where we'll clarify the concepts of Exercise Baseline and Shared Baseline. This guide will help you understand the differences between these two functionalities and how to effectively use them in your training programs.

Watch a full webinar of this process and more:

What is an Exercise Baseline?

An Exercise Baseline is specific to a single exercise within your library. When you set an Exercise Baseline for an exercise, it only applies to that particular exercise and does not carry over to any other exercises.

Key Points:

• Specificity: Each exercise has its own one-rep max (1RM) baseline.
• Application: Baselines are unique to each exercise and cannot be shared across different exercises.
• Setup: To establish an Exercise Baseline, you must perform a test set for that exercise at least once. This initial test set provides the baseline value.
• Updates: The Exercise Baseline can be updated by conducting new test sets.

What is a Shared Baseline?

A Shared Baseline is a versatile baseline that can be applied to multiple exercises. It allows you to use a single 1RM value across various exercises, making it easier to program workouts that reference this shared value.

Key Points:

• Versatility: A single 1RM value can be used for multiple exercises. For example, a back squat 1RM can be applied to both back squats and front squats.
• Application: Shared Baselines can be referenced in different exercises, making them a convenient option for programming.
• Setup: You can enter a Shared Baseline manually through testing. CoachMePlus provides out-of-the-box shared baselines for common exercises like back squats, bench presses, etc.
• Customization: Administrators can clean up or customize the list of shared baselines in the system to remove redundancy and create new baselines as needed.

Differences Between Exercise Baseline and Shared Baseline

• Scope:

  • Exercise Baseline: Specific to one exercise.
  • Shared Baseline: Can be applied across multiple exercises.

• Flexibility:

  • Exercise Baseline: Fixed to a single exercise.
  • Shared Baseline: Flexible and can be used for various exercises.

• Setup and Update:

  • Exercise Baseline: Requires a test set for each exercise to establish and update the baseline.
  • Shared Baseline: Can be manually entered or updated through testing, and applied to multiple exercises without additional test sets.

Practical Examples

Using an Exercise Baseline:

• Scenario: You want to set a baseline for a barbell back squat.
• Action: Perform a test set for the barbell back squat to establish the 1RM. This value will be used exclusively for the barbell back squat and no other exercises.

Using a Shared Baseline:

• Scenario: You want to use the back squat 1RM for programming front squats as well.
• Action: Enter the back squat 1RM as a shared baseline. This shared value can now be referenced for front squats, back squats, or any other exercise where you want to apply a percentage of the back squat 1RM.

Conclusion

Understanding the distinction between Exercise Baseline and Shared Baseline in CoachMePlus allows you to optimize your training programs effectively. Use Exercise Baselines for specificity and Shared Baselines for versatility, and customize your system to suit your training needs.

If you have any further questions or need assistance, feel free to reach out to our support team. Happy training!