In gym shorthand, two plates is two plates on each side of the bar. With 45 lb plates on a 45 lb bar that is 45 + 4 × 45 = 225 lb. One plate is 135 lb, three is 315 lb and four is 405 lb. In kilograms, two 20 kg plates a side on a 20 kg bar is 100 kg.
How much is 2 plates?
Two plates is 225 lb: two 45 lb plates on each side of a 45 lb bar. The sum is 45 + 4 × 45 = 225 lb. The bar counts toward the total, and "two plates" means two on each side.
The other shorthand follows the same sum. Take the bar off the total and halve what is left: that is one side. Each side of 225 lb carries 90 lb, which is two 45 lb plates.
| Shorthand | Per side | The sum | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| One plate | 45 lb | 45 + 2 × 45 | 135 lb |
| Two plates | 90 lb | 45 + 4 × 45 | 225 lb |
| Three plates | 135 lb | 45 + 6 × 45 | 315 lb |
| Four plates | 180 lb | 45 + 8 × 45 | 405 lb |
The same totals come out of the barbell plate calculator, which also gives the plates for any other weight.
How much is 2 plates in kg?
It depends on which plate. On a 20 kg bar, two 20 kg plates on each side is 100 kg: 20 + 4 × 20 = 100. Two 25 kg plates on each side is 120 kg: 20 + 4 × 25 = 120. In kilograms, ask which plate someone means.
| Shorthand | With 20 kg plates | With 25 kg plates |
|---|---|---|
| One plate | 20 + 2 × 20 = 60 kg | 20 + 2 × 25 = 70 kg |
| Two plates | 20 + 4 × 20 = 100 kg | 20 + 4 × 25 = 120 kg |
| Three plates | 20 + 6 × 20 = 140 kg | 20 + 6 × 25 = 170 kg |
| Four plates | 20 + 8 × 20 = 180 kg | 20 + 8 × 25 = 220 kg |
Four a side needs eight plates of one size. RIGOR's standard kilogram rack holds eight 25 kg plates but four 20 kg ones, so there 180 kg comes out as 25 + 25 + 25 + 5 on each side: 20 + 2 × 80 = 180. The same 100 kg can also be a 25 and a 15 on each side, which is how the calculator loads it: it uses the fewest plates, and between two ways with equally few it starts with the heavier plate.
Do not turn 225 lb into a number of kilogram plates. RIGOR keeps kilogram and pound equipment as separate lists and never converts a target into plates you do not own: see the weights your gym can make.
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How much is one plate on bench, and what about 3 and 4?
One plate a side is 135 lb, three is 315 lb and four is 405 lb. A bench press is a barbell lift, so the bar counts exactly as it does for a squat. The sums are the ones in the table above.
In kilograms on a 20 kg bar:
- One plate: 60 kg with 20 kg plates, 70 kg with 25 kg plates.
- Two plates: 100 kg or 120 kg.
- Three plates: 140 kg or 170 kg.
- Four plates: 180 kg or 220 kg.
What if two plates means two in all?
Then it is one on each side: 45 + 2 × 45 = 135 lb. Count the plates on one end and double it, or ask. "How many plates" can mean the number on each side or the number on the bar, and those two counts differ by a factor of two.
A side does not have to be one size of plate. A 45 lb and a 25 lb plate on each side is 45 + 2 × (45 + 25) = 185 lb. A single 25 lb plate on each side is 45 + 2 × 25 = 95 lb.
How heavy is a barbell?
A standard bar is counted as 45 lb in gyms that work in pounds and as 20 kg in kilograms. Rogue lists its 45 lb Ohio Power Bar at 45 lb. USA Weightlifting's rules for an online event say men use a 20 kg bar and women a 15 kg bar. Other bars vary, so check the end cap or weigh it.
A lighter bar changes the sum. Two 20 kg plates on each side of a 15 kg bar is 15 + 4 × 20 = 95 kg, not 100.
A plate is labelled with its weight. Titan lists its 45 lb plate at 45 lb, and the biggest plate in RIGOR's pound rack is 45 lb. In kilograms the biggest in that rack is 25 kg.
What do a Smith machine and a leg press weigh?
There is no single standard. The number varies by machine, so check the machine itself.
On a Smith machine the bar rides on guides, and some are counterbalanced. Valor Fitness says the bar of its counterbalanced Smith machine weighs 36 lb and that the counterbalance "effectively" reduces it to 0. Two plates a side on it:
| Machine | Stated bar weight | Two plates a side |
|---|---|---|
| Valor, no counterbalance | 36 lb | 36 + 4 × 45 = 216 lb |
| Valor, counterbalance fitted | 0 lb | 0 + 4 × 45 = 180 lb |
For a plate-loaded leg press this page gives no figure for the sled: its weight varies by machine, and the label or manual is the place to look. In RIGOR's gym setup, the Smith machine and the sled hold no plates of their own and load from your weight plates. A plate-loaded machine's logged load is the plates alone, from 0: four 45 lb plates on a leg press are logged as 180 lb. You can add the machine's own weight in its settings; left blank, it counts as 0.
How does RIGOR log the total?
For a barbell lift, RIGOR logs the total including the bar: the bar and every plate on it. The first session of a lift always says which convention applies (per dumbbell, total including the bar, a machine setting), so 225 is logged as 225, not as 90 a side or "two plates". If it is your first time under a bar, the first day at the gym walks through picking a weight and logging it.
Each target is a weight your gym can make: the bar plus pairs of your plates. When a number cannot be made exactly, the plate calculator gives the nearest loads below and above. A percentage from the 1RM calculator often lands between loadable weights, so take the nearest one below. For the sets before it, the warm-up calculator starts with the empty bar and rounds every step to weights the plates can make.
The weight goes up by the smallest step your plates allow, and fractional plates make that step smaller. The rule that decides when is double progression, and a program such as the 3 day full body workout shows it over weeks.
RIGOR shows the plates for every set
When is the plate math different?
This page is arithmetic and equipment, not a training study, so there is no research to cite. The bar and plate figures come from the pages listed under sources, and the totals are the same sums the plate calculator does.
Questions
How much is 2 plates?
Two 45 lb plates on each side of a 45 lb bar: 45 + 4 × 45 = 225 lb. If two plates means two in all, that is one a side: 45 + 2 × 45 = 135 lb.
How much is 2 plates on each side?
225 lb with 45 lb plates and a 45 lb bar. In kilograms on a 20 kg bar it is 100 kg with 20 kg plates and 120 kg with 25 kg plates.
How much is one plate on bench?
One 45 lb plate on each side of a 45 lb bar is 45 + 2 × 45 = 135 lb. The bar counts like any other barbell lift.
How much is 2 plates on bench in kg?
20 + 4 × 20 = 100 kg with 20 kg plates, or 20 + 4 × 25 = 120 kg with 25 kg plates, on a 20 kg bar.
How heavy is a barbell?
A standard bar is counted as 45 lb in pounds and 20 kg in kilograms. There is a 15 kg bar too: USA Weightlifting's rules for an online event have women use one. Check the end cap or weigh it.
How much does the bar weigh on a Smith machine?
It varies by machine. Valor Fitness gives 36 lb for the bar of its counterbalanced Smith machine, and says the counterbalance effectively reduces it to 0. Check the machine.
