Warm-Up Set Calculator
Tell it the weight you are working up to and it writes the ramp for you — rounded to real plates, never lighter than the empty bar.
What the calculator does
A warm-up ramp is arithmetic you should not be doing between sets. Gym Journal takes the working weight you are about to lift and builds up to three warm-up sets underneath it, at 50%, 70% and 90% of that weight, for 10, 5 and 1 reps.
The percentages and the number of sets are both yours to change. Three is the maximum; one is the minimum. Whatever you set becomes the ramp for every exercise until you change it again.
Turning it on
- Open the Profile tab and go into Settings.
- Turn on Warm-Up Calculator.
- Open Warm-Up Percentages to change the ramp from the default 50 / 70 / 90, or to use fewer than three sets.
The parts that are easy to get wrong
Every generated weight is rounded to the increments you have told the app your gym stocks, so it asks for loads you can actually build rather than 62.4 kg.
Nothing is ever generated below the weight of the bar. If 50% of your working weight is less than an empty barbell, that set becomes the empty barbell instead.
Duplicate sets are dropped. If rounding puts two percentages on the same weight, you get one set at that weight, not two identical ones.
If your working weight is at or below the bar, no warm-up sets are generated at all — there is nothing to ramp up from.
It’s free, and it’s in the app
439 exercises, 40+ ready-made routines, and unlimited workout logging — no account required to start.
Frequently asked questions
Can I change the warm-up percentages?
Yes. Profile → Settings → Warm-Up Percentages. The default ramp is 50%, 70% and 90% of your working weight, for 10, 5 and 1 reps. You can edit each percentage or drop to one or two warm-up sets instead of three.
Does it work with dumbbells and machines?
It works from a target weight and your rounding settings, so it applies wherever you lift a number. The bar-weight floor only matters for barbell work; for everything else the rounding increments are what keep the suggestions loadable.
Is the warm-up calculator free?
Yes. It is part of the free app, along with unlimited workout logging and the full 439-exercise library.