The Two Dumbbell At-Home Workout

By Thomas King, MSc, CSCS, CEP

It’s only Day 2 off work from the COVID-19 related measures and I’m already starting to go a bit stir-crazy. Food is flying off supermarket shelves and your children may be driving you nuts at this point. If you would like a 30-minute distraction from the chaos that has become everyday life this last week, give the following workout a try.

To minimize the amount of equipment you’ll need, it will be a five-exercise “complex” workout. This means you do all five exercises with the same two dumbbells without putting them down. For the workout, try starting with 8 reps per exercise. Do 8 reps per exercise and transition to the next one. When you get to the end, rest about 2 minutes and repeat again for 3 to 5 rounds.

For added benefit, add our “5 At-Home Stretches for Total Body Flexibility” in your warm prior to doing this workout.

1. Dumbbell Romanian Deadlift

1. Hold one dumbbell in each hand.
2. Stand tall and soften the knees.
3. Push the hips directly backwards while reaching towards the floor with your hands stopping just below the knee.
4. Contract the hamstrings to pull yourself back up while squeezing the glutes hard. Repeat for 8 repetitions.

2. Dumbbell Bent Over Row

1. Stand tall, soften the knees and bend down to a position similar to the bottom of your Romanian deadlift.
2. Hold this position and row the weights up until you feel a good squeeze in the shoulder blades. Be mindful that you are not shrugging your shoulders while doing this.
3. Lower the weights to the starting position and repeat for 8 repetitions.

3. Dumbbell Squat to Press

1. Hold the dumbbells in the front rack position.
2. Squat down to your full squat depth.
3. Explode upwards pushing the weights overhead as you do.
4. Seamlessly begin the next rep. Repeat for 8 repetitions.

4. Dumbbell Push-Up

1. Place the dumbbells on the floor about 1.5 times shoulder width apart.
2. Perform full range push-ups touching your chest to the floor each time.
3. Repeat for 8 repetitions.

5. Dumbbell Plank Row

1. Place dumbbells about two inches apart.
2. Assume a push-up position on the dumbbells with your hands narrow and your feet about 2 times hip width wide.
3. Row one dumbbell up, return to the ground and row the other one up. Ensure your hips do not rotate while doing this to properly engage the core.
4. Repeat for 8 repetitions per arm.

There you have it. Complex workouts are a great way to squeeze a high quality workout into a short amount of time. If your dumbbells are heavier, try for 4-6 reps/exercise. If they are lighter, aim for 10-12 reps/exercise.

Only have a resistance band? Check out our “One Band Full Body At-Home Workout“

~Thomas 🏋️‍♀️

Do you have weights at home, but not sure what to do? We offer Online Strength Coaching. Receive a custom workout based on what equipment you have, your goals, needs, and current ability. Only 1-week commitment required.

Find out more HERE.

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