Drop Set Load Calculator

How it is calculated

Each drop removes the same percentage of the weight you are currently holding, so the weights shrink geometrically:

final load = start load × (1 − drop % / 100)drops

total reduction = start load − final load

Start load is in kilograms, drop % is the cut per step (0 up to just under 100), and drops is how many times you reduce the weight, not counting the starting weight. Both results are shown in kg with two decimals. Because each cut applies to the already lowered weight, three 20 % drops take off less than 60 % in total. The tool gives only the final load and total reduction, so work out the weights in between by multiplying step by step. Zero drops returns the start load, and a drop of 100 % or more returns no result.

Common mistakes

• Adding the drops: three 20 % drops are not a 60 % cut. Each one applies to the lower weight, so the total is 48.8 %, and the final load is 51.20 kg, not 40 kg.
• Counting the starting set as a drop. With 3 drops the set has four weights (100, 80, 64 and 51.2 kg), so enter 3, not 4.
• Entering the target as a percentage of the start weight (such as 80) instead of the drop. The field wants the cut, so 80 would remove 80 % per step.
• Entering the weight of one dumbbell where the exercise uses a total load, or the other way round, so the result does not match what you load.
• Using the exact result as the plate you load. Real plates come in steps, so round to the nearest increment you can actually put on the bar.