Here is a list
of the dumbbell exercises for men and women on this site grouped by body parts.
Don't abandon your classical upper back exercises in favour
of these dumbbell exercises but use them as a variation for your workout routine.
The freedom
of dumbbell exercises allows you to hit each muscle from a slightly angle.
So a major benefit
of dumbbell exercises is that they are highly functional and tend to improve other aspects of your life to a higher degree that sitting down on leg machines.
Before I give you the Top 10 Dumbbell Exercises, I want to share the amazing benefits
of Dumbbell Exercises
Not exact matches
The Spartacus Workout entails a series
of minute - long
exercises including squats, pushups and
dumbbell lifts, with 15 seconds
of rest in between, according to MensHealth.com.
Among them: hold a pair
of 15 - pound
dumbbells for two minutes to build forearm and hand strength; «chest - ups» (like pull - ups, but a notch higher), designed to make shoulder muscles stronger and more flexible; and an array
of seated
exercises to isolate the lower back.
It's great for
dumbbell workouts and because it adjusts into 7 different positions, you can use it for a wide range
of exercises.
Each
of the two
dumbbells goes from 5 to 45 pounds, which means you have 90 pounds
of exercise potential.
Sit on an
exercise bench with back support and hold two
dumbbells in front
of you at about upper chest level with your palms facing your body and your elbows bent.
So regardless
of your goals, your rear delts deserve some attention, and luckily, there is an
exercise that will help you develop them in the shortest time possible — it's the reverse
dumbbell fly.
The first activity is actually a superset
of a couple
of exercises — breathing deep squats, followed by a pullover with a barbell or
dumbbell.
You can
exercise almost any body part to a certain intensity in any place you feel comfortable, like your home, workplace or perhaps hotel room and even though there's no substitute for the intensity loaded barbells and
dumbbells can provide, at least you can stop the breakdown
of muscle tissue and maintain your current muscle mass until you find yourself a proper place to train.
Perform this
exercise in the second half
of your workout and aim to get 10 - 12 reps on each set using heavy
dumbbells.
Waiter's Walk & Farmer's Walk Performed with a single heavy
dumbbell, these unusual
exercises are performed for distance instead
of a set number
of repetitions.
This modified version
of a one - arm
dumbbell row can help you put on mass and carve detail like no other
exercise, so make sure to include it in your routine if you want stellar back development.
Performing several sets with lighter
dumbbell allows you to check out your body system and see how your shoulders, chest and lats are taking the strain
of the
exercise.
Seated
dumbbell shoulder press — 4 - 6 x 8 reps.. For this
exercise, Reg used to change tactics every couple
of workouts.
Start with the decline
dumbbell press, which is one
of the most effective pec - building
exercises because
of the short range
of motion that prevents the delts and triceps from taking over.
On the other hand, most
exercise machines can be used to perform only one or two
exercises, while
dumbbells provide a huge range
of movements and almost every barbell
exercise can also be performed with
dumbbells.
In case you need more reasons to add reverse
dumbbell flies in your back routine, we prepared a list
of the most important benefits this great resistance
exercises has to offer:
If you've had joint injuries in the past or experience joint pain while performing the barbell version
of an
exercise, you should try performing it with
dumbbells, which allow you to alter your form and technique to suit your joints and work around existing issues, which can be impossible to do with a barbell.
The reverse
dumbbell fly is a bilateral
exercise in the horizontal plane
of movement which mainly targets the delts, the posterior muscles
of the rotator cuff and the upper back muscles.
-- Reg Park advises that the first two
exercises can be done with a super set — one set behind
of pressing behind the neck, followed by a set
of shoulder presses with
dumbbells, followed by a rest period.
If you're not a really big fan
of the farmer's walk, you can substitute it with Romanian
dumbbell deadlifts — without setting the
dumbbells down, perform shank levers / shank lever rows and Romanian
dumbbell deadlifts one after the other for a total
of 10 reps (5 for each
exercise).
The
dumbbell pullover earned its reputation as one
of the best chest builder
exercises.
The
dumbbell upright row is one
of the best
exercises for building the upper traps and shoulders.
One
of the best
exercises for developing the traps (besides heavy deadlifts) are the
dumbbell shrugs.
You can lift weights in the comfort
of your own home, by buying a pair
of dumbbells and looking at an
exercise video on your DVD.
You might not have any
dumbbells in your hands, but you'll still feel the effects
of this
exercise in your spinal erector, the group
of muscles that surrounds and stabilizes your spine.
Since shin splints can be caused by muscular imbalance, strengthen the muscles in the lower legs by doing variations
of walking on your toes and heels as well as this seated shin - strengthening
exercise using a
dumbbell.
In addition to decreasing fatigue in your lower back muscles, the
dumbbell variation will also decrease the risk
of injury, not to mention the lessened strain on that muscle group throughout the
exercise.
Muscles need to be challenged by a variety
of stimuli in order to grow and by focusing strictly on barbell
exercises, you'd be missing out on the muscle activation provided by
exercises done with
dumbbells or cables.
Using single or double
dumbbells, this variation requires more balance and coordination which may detract from the aim
of the
exercise; maximum power generation.
The beauty
of this technique is that it can be applied to numerous different barbell and
dumbbell movements, and various machine
exercises.
If you find this
exercise fairly easy, increase the incline, grab a pair
of dumbbells or put on a weighted vest to increase the intensity.
Make standing
dumbbell curls the cornerstone
of your biceps
exercises.
By isolating the side deltoid, this
exercise involves a much wider range
of motion compared with the lateral
dumbbell raise.
You've probably tried to push your upper pecs to grow with the help
of incline barbell /
dumbbell presses, incline cable flies and similar machine
exercises, but since you're reading this article, we can assume that you're doing some wrong.
A partial rep is defined as only using half the range
of motion for a particular
exercise, usually the strongest portion
of the rep. Shoulder sessions comprising
of both full reps and half reps can generate tremendous growth, so next time grab a pair
of dumbbells about twice as heavy as you normally would and perform only the first half
of every rep on side lateral raises.
Try, for instance to replace your bench
exercises with
dumbbell flyes, or to doing overhead triceps extensions instead
of doing pulldowns.
If you're new to the weight room, begin by finding a set
of dumbbells light enough to successfully perform a few sets
of 12 - 15 reps
of a given
exercise.
For example, if the squat is part
of your workout routine and you use the bar every time, try using kettlebells or or a
dumbbell strapped to your waist the next time you do this
exercise.
Variety
of exercises: Try Les Mills Grit Strength, a HIIT class using barbells, weights, and step - up platforms, or Exhale's HIIT 30, which uses med balls and
dumbbells during intervals.
Bodyweight
exercises can be just as effective as their
dumbbell or barbell counterparts, and they are a simple and highly effective way to burn fat, strengthen your entire body and even build admirable muscle mass without having to spend a ton
of money on gym memberships or expensive home equipment — and the best part is that you can perform them pretty much anywhere.
The
dumbbell bench press can be performed either flat, on an incline, or even on a decline for that matter, and it is one
of the most effective chest
exercises there is.
For most people, the barbell bench press will never lead to impressive, or even significant chest growth and it will become more
of a triceps
exercise, while performing the same
exercise with
dumbbells can be more effective for chest building.
This
exercise is a variation
of the overhead
dumbbell press, and Ahrens began using it out
of necessity.
When performed correctly, the one - arm
dumbbell row, also known as «the lawn mower» (because it looks like you're struggling to start a difficult lawn mower) is one
of the best upper body
exercises of all time.
Because
of this, do heavier
exercises like barbell and
dumbbell curls before engaging into high curl
exercise, to make the most
of the overload you place on the biceps.