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Wilks vs DOTS vs IPF GL vs Sinclair
A 90 kilogram lifter and a 60 kilogram lifter cannot be compared on raw total alone, so the strength sports use coefficients that adjust your result for bodyweight. Here is what each of the common formulas is for, and where you will run into it.
Why these formulas exist
Heavier athletes can usually lift more in absolute terms, so to crown a "best lifter" across weight classes you need a way to put everyone on the same scale. Each formula takes your result and your bodyweight and returns a single comparable score, and they differ mainly in the data they were built from and how they behave at the extremes of bodyweight.
The powerlifting formulas
- Wilks was the long standing standard for years and is still widely recognized. It applies a coefficient to your total based on bodyweight, and it is the number most older lifters grew up comparing.
- DOTS is a newer formula that many lifters and federations moved to because it is seen as treating the range of bodyweights more fairly. It serves the same purpose as Wilks and is calculated from your total and bodyweight.
- IPF GL points, sometimes called GoodLift, is the official scoring used by the IPF. It has separate coefficients for different divisions, such as raw versus equipped and full power versus bench only, so it is tied closely to how that federation runs its meets.
The weightlifting formula
- Sinclair is the Olympic weightlifting equivalent, used to compare snatch and clean and jerk totals across bodyweights. It is updated each Olympic cycle, so the exact coefficients change over time while the idea stays the same.
Using them in training
These scores are not only for meet day. Tracking your DOTS or Sinclair over a training year tells you whether you are getting stronger relative to your bodyweight, which is often more meaningful than watching a raw total that moves whenever your weight does. Ægir Iron calculates Wilks, DOTS, IPF GL, and Sinclair on your meet plans automatically and plots them on a performance chart, so you can see real progress rather than doing the math by hand.