The converter says 47 lb per hand. Your dumbbells go 45, then 50. Here is what your kit can make, what the gap costs, and how to close it.
Match the effort, not the number on the plate. A rung you can actually load, run at the right effort, beats a number you cannot make.
Run the rung below at the top of the rep range instead of the bottom. The Playbook already does this where the load is capped by something other than your strength.
Dumbbell lying leg curl — “use 20 lb and chase reps and a 1-second squeeze at the top”.
The same weight, harder, without touching the number. This is loading rule 3, which the guide already applies whenever a swap loads a new part of the range.
Loading rule 3 — “slow the eccentric to 3 seconds”.
Buy the missing stimulus back with time under tension at the end of the rep. This is loading rule 2, written for bands, and it works the same way on a rung that is slightly too light.
Loading rule 2 — “1.5× the reps and a 1-second pause at peak contraction”.
A deeper rep at the same load is a genuine progression, and the guide treats it as the primary one for two of the eighteen swaps.
Heel-elevated goblet sissy squat — “add depth before you add weight”; reverse Nordic — “progress by adding range before load”.
Doubles the effective demand per limb without owning anything heavier, and it stops the stronger side covering for the weaker one.
Band lying leg curl — “it doubles the effective tension per limb without needing a heavier band”.
Blunt, and it costs you time rather than nothing, but it is the simplest way to match total work when the jump is genuinely too big.
Ours, not from the guide.
The permanent fix for a barbell. A pair each of 1.25 lb and 0.5 lb turns a 5 lb jump into a 1 lb one, costs less than a single plate, and is the cheapest meaningful upgrade on the whole gear list.
Ours, not from the guide.
A converter tells you 47 lb per hand. Your dumbbells go 45, then 50. This is the most common real complaint about training at home, and almost nothing addresses it.
The Playbook prescribes loads, not what to do when your kit cannot make them. The rounding is arithmetic; the ways to bridge a gap are drawn from the guide's own progression language wherever possible, and marked as ours where not.
Percentages of the target load. Under 1% counts as a hit. Under 5% and you take the nearest rung and move on. Under 12% and a tempo or rep change closes it. Past that, the kit is the limit and the honest answer is to say so.
General information only. Not medical, nutritional or personal training advice. Exercise carries individual risk. Consult a qualified professional before changing your training.