Machine Load Converter

Enter what you lifted on the machine. Get the starting load for each of the three swaps — or a straight answer about why that swap has no pound figure.

A worked example

You pressed 140 lb for 10 on the chest press machine and someone is on it today. The three swaps for the horizontal push pattern convert like this:

Flat dumbbell bench press140 ÷ 2 hands = 70, less 20–25% = 52.5–56 lbStart at 55 lb per hand · 3 × 8–12
Barbell bench press140 less 20% = 112 lb on the barStart at 110 lb · 4 × 5–8
Standing one-arm band pressNo pound figure exists — band tension is a curve3 × 15 per side, 1-second hold

Match the effort, not the number on the plate. If the swap lands within one rep-in-reserve of what the machine produced, the session counted.

The three loading rules

1Free weight replaces a machine
Cut the load by 20–25% of the machine equivalent and keep the same rep target. You are now paying for stability that the machine was providing free.
2Band replaces a cable or machine
Run 1.5× the reps and add a 1-second pause at peak contraction. The band gives you almost nothing at the stretch, so you buy the missing stimulus back with time under tension at the end where it is loaded.
3The swap loads a different part of the range
Slow the eccentric to 3 seconds and stop 1–2 reps short of failure for the first two sessions. New tension positions produce more soreness at the same effective stimulus. Ramp in.

Every swap, and what it converts from

Five of the eighteen swaps are anchored to the weight you used on the machine. The rest are not, and no arithmetic will make them so.

Swap	Converts from	Sets × reps
Pattern 1 · Vertical pull
ABand lat pulldown	Set by band tension, not poundsNo pound figure — band tension is a curve. Reps and a hold are the load rule.	3 × 15
BDumbbell pullover	Starts from your judgement, not the stackStart 20% under your own first guess — not off the stack	3 × 10–12
CHalf-kneeling one-arm lat row	Converts from the stackHalve the machine load for two hands, then cut 20%	3 × 10–12 per side
Pattern 2 · Horizontal pull
AChest-supported dumbbell row	Converts from the stackHalve the machine load for two hands, then cut 10–15%	3 × 10–12
BBarbell Pendlay row	Converts from the stackCut 20–25% off the machine load	4 × 5–8
CBand seated row	Set by band tension, not poundsNo pound figure — band tension is a curve. Reps and a hold are the load rule.	3 × 15–18
Pattern 3 · Hip hinge
ABarbell Romanian deadlift	Starts from your judgement, not the stackStart 15% under your own first guess — not off the stack	3 × 8
BSingle-leg dumbbell RDL	Converts from another lift35–40% of your two-leg RDL, in one hand	3 × 8 per side
CBand pull-through	Set by band tension, not poundsNo pound figure — band tension is a curve. Reps and a hold are the load rule.	3 × 12–15
Pattern 4 · Knee extension
AReverse Nordic curl	Bodyweight — no load to convertBodyweight. Range and tempo are the progression.	3 × 6–8
BHeel-elevated goblet sissy squat	Starts from your judgement, not the stackStarts from your judgement, not the stack	3 × 10–12
CSeated band leg extension	Set by band tension, not poundsNo pound figure — band tension is a curve. Reps and a hold are the load rule.	3 × 15–20 per side
Pattern 5 · Knee flexion
ANordic ham curl	Bodyweight — no load to convertBodyweight. Range and tempo are the progression.	3 × 4–6
BDumbbell lying leg curl	Capped by what you can holdThe heaviest dumbbell you can hold. Chase reps, not load.	3 × 15–20
CBand lying leg curl	Set by band tension, not poundsNo pound figure — band tension is a curve. Reps and a hold are the load rule.	3 × 15–20 per side
Pattern 6 · Horizontal push
AFlat dumbbell bench press	Converts from the stackHalve the machine load for two hands, then cut 20–25%	3 × 8–12
BBarbell bench press	Converts from the stackCut 20% off the machine load	4 × 5–8
CStanding one-arm band press	Set by band tension, not poundsNo pound figure — band tension is a curve. Reps and a hold are the load rule.	3 × 15 per side

How these numbers are worked out

Only five of the eighteen swaps in the Playbook are anchored to the machine's stack weight. The rest are bodyweight, capped by your grip, set by band tension, or explicitly started from your own judgement. This file says which is which instead of producing a number for all eighteen.

Every figure here is a starting load to test in one set, not an equivalence. Pulley ratios differ between manufacturers, carriage weight is rarely marked, and limb length changes leverage. Run the first set, count your reps in reserve, and adjust from there.

Machine loads are treated as the number showing on the stack or the plates you loaded. Pulley ratios and carriage weight are not modelled, because manufacturers do not publish them consistently.
For two-handed dumbbell swaps the machine load is halved first, then cut. The Playbook spells this out for the chest press and it is applied the same way everywhere else.
Bands are never given a pound figure. Their resistance changes through the rep and with your distance from the anchor, so a single number would be wrong at every point except one.
Results are rounded to the smallest jump you told us you own, and the unrounded range is shown next to it.

General information only. Not medical, nutritional or personal training advice. Exercise carries individual risk. Consult a qualified professional before changing your training.