Buying a set of dumbbells was one of my first monetary fitness investments and it has turned out to be one of my better. I still use those same dumbbells today and will continue to for the foreseeable future.
Dumbbells are very easy to use and there are numerous profitable exercises that you can use them for. Unless it isn’t possible, I always try and use the KISS principle with everything I do. Dumbbells fit into this principle perfectly.
Dumbbells are also very cheap and require virtually no maintenance compared to other types of exercise equipment. As far as weight training equipment goes, they are extremely portable and do not clutter up your house like so many other products do (just stick them under your bed or couch)!
Furthermore they are relatively safe to use if you stick to a few simple safety pointers.
1. Always look straight ahead and keep a straight back when performing repetitions
2. Never jerk the dumbbell, if you need to do this then you are using to much weight
Anyone (whether male or female) who is serious about their weight loss, fitness or bodybuilding goals should own at least one set of dumbbells - preferably the adjustable kind. Even if you don’t plan to make them part of your main routines I can guarantee they will be useful enough to be worth the purchase.
What exercises should I do with them?
As mentioned previously there are literally hundreds of movements you could implement into your routine using the simple dumbbell.
The basic exercise for beginners is the dumbbell curl, simply stand straight with your arms by your waist with dumbbells in both hands. Bring one dumbbell fully up and back down at a time, slow and steady. Pump your biceps as much as possible during the exercise for the maximum workout.
Other exercises that you can do are squats, deadlifts and lunges (exercises that are worth their weight in gold). Instead of using a barbell just hold 2 dumbbells. This can get hard on your hands once you progress but for beginners it’s actually better in my opinion as there is less room for error and therefore less room for injury.
How heavy should my dumbbells be?
Heavy enough that you can’t possibly do any more than 16 reps at one time. For starters I would do 3 sets of 6 reps, till you can get up to 12 or 16 and then put some more iron on. If your goal is to get as big as possible you probably don’t need to get up to 16 reps (i.e. use more weight instead of more reps). As always with weights, if in doubt, go with the lighter option at first.
Are they the be all and end all of free weights?
For some people, yes. Depending on your goals, they may be all you require. However for those focused on getting as big as possible, you’ll probably want at least a barbell and probably a few other pieces of equipment to go along with dumbbells.
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