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

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

Dumbbell Romanian Deadlift Start Position

Dumbbell Romanian Deadlift Stretched Position

2. Dumbbell Bent Over Row

Stand tall, soften the knees and bend down to a position similar to the bottom of your Romanian deadlift.
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.
Lower the weights to the starting position and repeat for 8 repetitions.

Dumbbell Bent Over Row Contracted Position

3. Dumbbell Squat to Press

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

Dumbbell Squat to Press Starting Position

4. Dumbbell Push-Up

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

5. Dumbbell Plank Row

Place dumbbells about two inches apart.
Assume a push-up position on the dumbbells with your hands narrow and your feet about 2 times hip width wide.
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.
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.

Darrin Goulding

Personal Strength Training by Jon-Erik Kawamoto

Emily Noble

I recently visited Newfoundland for one month, and was looking for a good place to train while I was there. Jon and the team at JK conditioning really took the time to assess what I already knew, and set achievable goals for the time that I had with them. The gym was such a great place to push yourself. It had everything you needed, but more importantly it had a well organized, very knowledgeable, and really motivating group of trainers to push you at each workout. Not to mention a really nice group of other members who also motivated me to go that little bit further. I would highly recommend the gym to anyone who has a goal and wants to find a place to help them achieve it.

Stephanie Hartery

I’ve always been a gym rat, but was getting tired of the same ol’ routine. My better half was attending JKC and encouraged me to try it out. My favourite part of JKC is that is isn’t a gym – it’s a community. Jon and Thomas are awesome, and I love that every time I go I know who’s working out with me and we can socialize while working on our health. Everyone is supportive, encouraging and genuinely looks out for one another. It’s an upbeat and positive experience and I can honestly say that I look forward to each and every workout.

Paul Heffernan

I have never previously seen the passion and level of care that Jon and Thomas bring to everyone who works out at JKC. Their knowledge, insight and skills are extraordinary, and they work with everyone individually to ensure the best possible results. The attention to detail and to every person’s specific requirements and goals, and the incredible, constant encouragement they provide, is, in my opinion, what truly distinguishes JKC from any other program in which I’ve participated. I am extremely pleased with the progress I’ve achieved thus far, and it’s largely attributable to Jon and Thomas and the approach they take to training and working with people.

Astrid Billfalk-Kelly

Personal Strength Training by Thomas King

I wanted to add strength training to my cardio, but have always felt gyms to be a bit intimidating, and was worried I would hurt myself without some supervision and help. JKC was highly recommended by several work colleagues. Thomas and Jon are both fantastic, making sure that everyone gets a highly personalized work out in a very supportive environment. The attention to detail and professionalism are second to none. The groups are very small, but very supportive and make the workouts even more fun. Since getting pregnant (36 weeks as I write this) I’m so happy that they continue to help me get stronger while always being safe.

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