How DOTS works
A bigger lifter can usually lift more, so comparing raw totals across weight classes says little about who is stronger for their size. DOTS fixes that by multiplying your total by a coefficient that falls as bodyweight rises. The coefficient is 500 divided by a fourth-degree polynomial of your bodyweight, with one set of constants for men and one for women, and bodyweight is held within 40 to 210 kg for men and 40 to 150 kg for women so the curve stays sensible at the extremes.
For example, an 83 kg man with a 580 kg total scores about 391.55. A 105 kg man needs about 649 kg for the same score, and a 66 kg man about 500 kg.
DOTS, Wilks and IPF GL points
All three formulas answer the same question in slightly different ways. Wilks is the oldest, a fifth-degree polynomial that the International Powerlifting Federation used until it introduced its own formula in 2018. DOTS is a newer fourth-degree polynomial and is widely used outside the IPF. IPF GL points have been the IPF’s formula since 1 May 2020; they use an exponential curve with separate constants for men and women, classic and equipped lifting, and full totals and the bench press, on a scale where top international performances land around 100.
DOTS and Wilks are scaled to land in a similar range, and at most bodyweights they give close but not identical scores. GL points sit on a different scale altogether, so a GL score can’t be compared with a DOTS or Wilks score directly.
Which score should you use?
If you compete, use the formula your federation uses for its best-lifter awards: IPF GL points in IPF federations, and DOTS or Wilks in most others. If you don’t compete, any of the three works for tracking your own progress, as long as you stick to one. Your score rises when your total rises faster than your bodyweight, which makes it a useful check during a bulk or a cut. OpenPowerlifting ranks results by DOTS, GL points, Wilks and other formulas if you want to see where a score sits among meet results.
Bench only and equipped lifting
DOTS and Wilks don’t distinguish between events or equipment, so the calculator applies them to whatever you lifted. IPF GL points do: choose bench press only and the calculator uses GL’s bench constants, and choose equipped and it uses the single-ply ones. For a raw bench-only meet, that is classic and bench only.
Tracking the lifts behind the score
Arclift doesn’t calculate DOTS, Wilks or GL points. What it tracks is what those scores start from: every set of your squat, bench press and deadlift, logged with one thumb. With Arclift Pro, its statistics chart an estimated one-rep max for every exercise and keep every personal record, so you can see your total moving between meets. The one-rep max calculator turns a heavy set into an estimated max, and the RPE calculator turns a target RPE into a weight for your training sets.
