The RAVEN Method is how we coach at Iron Raven. Each lift is progressed or regressed to suit you, and taught as learning to move a barbell properly.
No experience needed. You start wherever you are today, and every session moves you a step on, at your pace, measured rather than guessed.
World champions themselves, and coaches to world, European and British champions and record holders.
Every coaching decision traces back to one of these.
Squat, bench, deadlift, row and press. Everything we coach is built on these five.
Each lift is placed on its own ladder and tested on its own, so there’s no generic programme.
Every lift can be progressed or regressed. Same pattern, different point on the line.
You move up when your movement and your numbers say you’re ready, not the calendar.
Every session has a purpose. Every exercise traces back to one of the five lifts.
Every lift measured the same way, every time, so the numbers mean something.
Each lift is tested on its own, usually in a normal session, and retested on its own every 6 weeks, or whenever your coach sets. Your bodyweight is recorded at every test.
A short pre-screen decides where each lift starts. Then it’s pass or fail against clear standards on the ladder.
Your heaviest good set of 1, 3 or 5 reps, turned into an estimated max so every test compares fairly.
Five checks on every lift. Load only counts when the movement passes.
Each lift on its own clock. Changes under 2.5 kg are measurement noise, not progress.
Every lift climbs its own ladder: easier versions first, then the barbell, then load. Where it sits on that ladder, adjusted for your age and bodyweight, gives its tier, so heavier and older lifters aren’t penalised.
Forge is a floor to reach and keep, not a finish line. There’s always a next tier.
Plain English. The level numbers stay with your coach. You see your tier, what you lifted and what comes next.
Example · sample data
Sample member
You lifted 52.5 kg × 3
Squat 60 kg × 3 for Temper · 7.5 kg to go
You lifted 32.5 kg × 3
Bench 37.5 kg × 3 for Temper · 5 kg to go
You lifted 100 kg × 3
Deadlift 120 kg × 3 for Steel · 20 kg to go
You lifted 27.5 kg × 3
Row 32.5 kg × 3 for Temper · 5 kg to go
Standing dumbbell press, no leg drive
Press 27.5 kg × 3 for Forge
In person in Tonbridge with Jason or Helen. Assessed, coached and retested on the floor.
Coaching at Iron RavenCoached by us wherever you lift. Programming, assessments and retests run through the app, with your coach reviewing your filmed lifts.
Online coachingFor gym members, £10 a month on top of your membership. We programme you through the Iron Raven app; you train on your own and test and score your own lifts.
Gym membershipAny coach can draw a diagram. The proof sits next to it.
Tell us where you are now and where you want to be — we'll recommend the right way in.