Custom Exercises
Create your own exercises when the built-in library doesn't have what you need.
Creating a custom exercise
- Open the exercise library
- Tap Create Exercise
- Enter a name
- Set muscle activation percentages
- Select the equipment it uses
- Optionally set a movement pattern, a bodyweight factor, and whether it uses two dumbbells
Each exercise name must be unique in your library. Names are compared case-insensitively, and you can't reuse the name of a built-in exercise — this keeps your history, volume, and PRs tied to a single exercise instead of splitting them across duplicates.
Setting muscle activations
The most important part of a custom exercise is its muscle activation percentages. These determine how the exercise counts toward your volume per muscle group.
For each muscle group the exercise targets, set a percentage (0–100):
- 100% — This is the primary target muscle. One set = one full effective set for this muscle.
- 50–80% — A significant secondary contributor. The muscle works hard but isn't the main focus.
- 20–50% — A supporting role. The muscle is involved but not heavily loaded.
Example: Incline Dumbbell Press
| Muscle | Activation | Reasoning |
|---|---|---|
| Chest | 90% | Primary target, incline shifts some work to upper chest but overall chest activation is high |
| Front Delts | 60% | Significant involvement due to incline angle |
| Triceps | 50% | Assists in pressing but not the focus |
Tips for setting percentages
- Start with a similar library exercise and adjust. If you're creating "Close-Grip Bench Press," look at the regular bench press activations and increase triceps / decrease chest.
- Don't overthink it. Rough estimates are fine. The difference between 50% and 60% triceps activation is small in practice.
- Primary muscle should usually be 80–100%. If no muscle is above 50%, the exercise is very diffuse and may not be worth tracking per-muscle.
Default resistance type
Choose the resistance type that matches how you typically perform this exercise:
- Weight for barbell/dumbbell exercises
- Cable for cable exercises
- Machine for machine exercises
- Bodyweight for bodyweight exercises
- etc.
You can override this per set when logging, but the default saves time.
Two dumbbells (per-hand weight entry)
If the exercise is performed with a pair of dumbbells (or one handle per hand), turn on Uses two dumbbells. You'll then log the weight of one dumbbell, and the app counts both toward your training volume — the same convention as the built-in dumbbell exercises. Leave it off for single-implement movements (goblet squats, one-arm rows), where you log the total weight held. See Dumbbell exercises.
Not sure which bodyweight factor or implement setting to pick? The Load Playground shows how each one changes your load, volume, and e1RM before you save anything.
The exercise's detail view shows a Weight entry badge — One hand ×2 or Combined weight — so you always know which convention applies.
Editing custom exercises
Open the exercise from the library and tap Edit (mobile: on the exercise detail view; web: on the exercise page). You can change the name, muscle activations, equipment, movement pattern, bodyweight factor, and the two-dumbbell setting.
Changes apply to future logging. Past sets keep the convention they were logged under — each set records how it was entered, so your history, volume, and PRs stay correct even if you change the two-dumbbell setting later.
Deleting custom exercises
Remove a custom exercise from your library. Logged sets for this exercise remain in your workout history.