The 12 Best Dumbbell Exercises At Home

Training at home can be tough if you don’t have any equipment, thats why adding dumbbells to your at home training set up can be extremely beneficial to your workout routine. With over 150 exercises available to you from a pari of dumbbells your home training will never be boring again. Use these 12 exercises to create your next at home dumbbells workout.

3 min read
Sean Klein
Written by
Sean Klein
Published on
15/06/22
Last updated
22/02/24
Primary
Upper Body
Horizontal Pull
Core
Trunk
Rotation
Secondary
Upper Body
Horizontal Press
Primary
Upper Body
Horizontal Press
Secondary
Upper Body
Vertical Press

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Primary
Lower Body
Squat
Primary
Lower Body
Hip Dominant
Secondary
Upper Body
Horizontal Pull
Primary
Lower Body
Hinge
Primary
Upper Body
Vertical Press
Primary
Upper Body
Vertical Press
Core
Trunk
Resisting Rotation
In This Resource
  • Benefits Of Dumbbell Exercises At Home
  • 1. Unilateral Training
  • 2. Variety Of Exercise
  • 3. Effectiveness
  • 4. Exercise All Abilities
  • How To Use Dumbbell Exercises At Home
  • 1. Use A Mixture of Dumbbell and Bodyweight
  • 2. Use Progressive Overload
  • 3. Train Your Full Body
  • 4. Set Your Home Workout Space

Benefits Of Dumbbell Exercises At Home

1. Unilateral Training

One of the major benefits of using the dumbbell to train at home is the amount of unilateral exercises available to you. This means that if you only have one dumbbell or one dumbbell of a variety of different weights you can still get a huge amount of effective exercises into your training regime. This means you can keep a minimal set up and still make your training fun and interesting through a large variety of effective exercises.

2. Variety Of Exercise

Dumbbells are on of the most popular pieces of gym equipment and therefore have the largest variety of exercises available with them. With a pair of dumbbells you can easily have over 150 different exercises. Variety can be important when training at home because it prevents mundanity and boredom from repeating the same exercises all the time.

3. Effectiveness

Dumbbells are one of the most effective pieces of gym equipment, which is why they are ubiquitous to all gyms over the world. This is because of their simplicity and there ability to work all the foundational movement patterns. Having a pair of these at home that you use consistently will be enough to remain fit and healthy for years.

4. Exercise All Abilities

They can be used by beginners and advanced individuals alike. From some of the most simple exercises to the most complex, this tool used to strengthen the body is one of the most versatile making it excellent at working with all populations.

How To Use Dumbbell Exercises At Home

1. Use A Mixture of Dumbbell and Bodyweight

Creating a training routine that has both bodyweight exercises and dumbbell exercises gives you access to over 300 exercises from all the foundational movement patterns. This means you pretty much have a lifetime of variation when it comes to keeping your training fun and effective.

2. Use Progressive Overload

Progressive overload is the simple principle of making your training more and more challenging as you train. This can either be through adding weights to the movements you’re using or adding volume through repetitions or sets. This process ensures that your training is creating the desired effects and adaptations rather than keeping you in the same place and seeing little progressions.

3. Train Your Full Body

With a training programme that incorporates both dumbbell exercises and bodyweight exercises you’ll have no excuse to train your entire body, you’ll be able to target every muscle group and movement pattern in your training plan. Don’t forget to add pulling exercises into your home dumbbell training as it will help build both postural and core strength.

4. Set Your Home Workout Space

Training at home can be tough if you’re not very intentional about setting your space. Creating a proper environment from where you can train from will ensure consistency but also enjoyment. This might mean buying a few pieces of equipment, a proper exercise mat, ensuring there are no distractions.

If you enjoyed this resource you can find more below or try Programme, a fitness app that plans every workout for you – based on your progress, equipment and lifestyle.

This resource was written by Sean Klein. Sean Richard Klein has thousands of hours of coaching experience and a BSc in Sports Science with Management from Loughborough University. He owns a gym in Bayonne France, CrossFit Essor, which runs group classes and a Personal training studio.

Sean Klein

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