Can You Train Effectively With Dumbbells?
Dumbbells are a great tool for aiding in strength & hypertrophy training. They're also one of the best pieces of equipment for mixed modal conditioning, and are used all of the time in our favorite CrossFit/Functional Fitness WODs.
If you don't think you can get an effective training session done with only a pair of dumbbells or with access to a few different pairs, I'm here to try and prove your opinion wrong.
In today's blog, we're going to explore a few different ways in which we can use dumbbells to aid in making big strength gains and for improving our overall general physical performance. So if you've got a few pairs of dumbbells, prefer to train with them, or just want to check out a few tips and tricks for bettering your training arsenal, keep on reading.
Strength & Hypertrophy Training with Dumbbells
Utilizing the dumbbell can be an integral part of any athlete's journey to getting stronger and building lean muscle mass. The benefits of using this piece of equipment largely outweigh the idea that you can't make serious gains if you only use them. Here are a few ways the dumbbell can help you make serious gains:
- Build Lean Muscle Mass - Dumbbells are great tools for hypertrophy training. It's often far easier to use a single dumbbell or a pair of dumbbells for higher rep work sets or exercises that require lighter loads than what a loaded barbell can provide.
- Correct Muscular Imbalances - Utilize the dumbbell for unilateral exercises! When we correct muscular imbalances we can make huge improvements on our bilateral movements.
- Build Overall Strength - All strength training relies on external resistance, if we focus on proper progressive overload, building strength and packing on lean mass while using dumbbells can be wildly effective.
How to Progress Your Strength & Hypertrophy Training with Dumbbells
As mentioned above, all strength training relies on external loads being applied to the body. We must continuously challenge the body to adapt to heavier loads, more volume, or more challenging physical scenarios if we intend to build strength and build muscle mass. Here are two ways that you can ensure that you use progressive overload tactics while only using dumbbells:
- Increase the Weight - Use heavier loads each time you perform an exercise. Even if you only increase the load by 5 lb, you're still going to force your body to adapt!
- Increase the Number of Repetitions - If you don't have access to heavier loads you aren't going to miss out. By increasing the total volume, or the number of repetitions you perform across all of your work sets you can ensure that you will still make great progress, and keep on building muscle and strength!
DumbbellRx Strength & Hypertrophy Track Workout Sample
A. Every 3:00 Minutes Until 40 Repetitions/Side; At WMR8
Max Unbroken Repetitions/Side: Half Kneeling Single Arm DB Overhead Press; 20X1
WMR8 = Max Weight for 8 Unbroken Repetitions
B. 3 Sets; Each For As Many Repetitions As Possible; At WMR15
1:00 Minute: Dual DB Front Foot Elevated Reverse Lunge - L; 20X1
1:00 Minute: Dual DB Front Foot Elevated Reverse Lunge - R; 20X1
1:00 Minute: Rest
WMR15 = Max Weight for 15 Unbroken Repetitions
C. EMOM x 8:00 Minutes; For Max Total Repetitions; At WMR15
Max Unbroken Repetitions: Dual DB Alternating Biceps Curl; 10X1
WMR15 = Max Weight for 15 Unbroken Repetitions
D. Every 3:00 Minutes Until 40 Repetitions/Side; At WMR8
Max Unbroken Repetitions/Side: Dual DB Staggered Stance Straight Leg Deadlift; 20X1
WMR8 = Max Weight for 8 Unbroken Repetitions
Effective Conditioning Using Dumbbells
Get over thinking that you need to use a barbell for everything. Utilizing the dumbbell for effective, meaningful conditioning work may be one of the most underrated concepts out there right now.
I'm not saying that using the barbell in conditioning is wrong, or that it's not effective for that matter. But what I am getting at is there are a ton of benefits to using dumbbells in mixed modal conditioning that you may be missing out on by putting all of your focus on the barbell. Check these out:
- Improve Imbalances - Fatigue will affect each side of our bodies differently. With a massive audience of unstable shoulders from left to right from barbell training, to low grip endurance on non-dominant sides, utilizing the dumbbell will help to combat some of these issues in fatigued based settings.
- Keep It Aerobic - It's not very often that dumbbells cause strength limitations (assuming you scale correctly). Aerobic work is designed to be just that, aerobic. By eliminating modalities that rely heavily on an individual's strength we can ensure that we actually work the aerobic system and aren't challenging our strength endurance.
- Volume Accumulation - One of the most important factors in improving conditioning is the accumulation of volume over time, and let's be honest here, pounding away at hundreds of reps with a barbell can really beat your body up. The dumbbell offers a less destructive option for the shoulders and wrists and can be really useful when focusing on accumulating a lot of volume.
DumbbellRx Conditioning Only Track Workout Sample
For Time: At Sustained Effort
60 Dual DB Front Rack Walking Lunge Steps/Side
45m Dual DB Farmer's Carry (60 Steps)
50 Dual DB Deadlift
30 Single Arm DB Hang Power Snatch/Side
RX: 50/30 lb Dumbbells
RX+: 70/50 lb Dumbbells
Scaled: 35/20 lb Dumbbells
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