A list of excellent exercises, only with dumbbells
In recent times, and with the closing of gymnasiums again happening, many have chosen to set up their own gym.
Or mini gym.
Or maybe just a few dumbbells to do some weight training, but without spending a lot of money.
The exercises included here, as the name implies, require the use of dumbbells at the very least, but the ideal is to have a bench as well, as many of the variations mainly require one.
If you don't have any, there are still exercises for you here.
Finally, the unique exercises are not that many, and many of them are just variations.
But do they give results?
Yes, and that is what matters.
Chest press
It could not be missing, it was obvious and therefore, we started with it.
This is the most popular exercise for working the chest with dumbbells and is very close to the famous flat bench press. The beloved Monday exercise.
Use this exercise in your training, as it is an excellent movement, if you have a bench.
Use this exercise also if you don't have a bank.
As?
Lie down on a flat, stable floor. Make sure it's not slippery. Do the movement as you would a bench, just be careful on the descent, as the ideal is to stay close to the ground, not just resting your arms between repetitions.
Variations
Inclined chest press
Also widely used, this variant works more sharply on the upper chest. If you have that chest area behind the others, prioritize this exercise.
This movement really needs a bench to create the angle.
Declining chest press
Difficult to guess, isn't it?
The declined press is another one of the exercises for the chest that you need a bench, and is similar to the previous ones, changing only the execution angle and focus area.
Chest press with one arm
To vary the chest presses a little, you can try this variant in which you work only one side at a time, and therefore, you have to give more focus to the side worked.
Try it. If you like it, keep it up. If you don't like it, change it.
Openings
Another exercise that you can include in your dumbbell training is the openings.
It requires less weight than chest press, so if you’ve limited yourself in that respect, the openings help.
Then, do you have a bank to do it? Great.
Don't you have a bank? No problem.
Like the flat chest press, you can do this exercise on the floor, taking the same precautions described above.
It is never too much to reinforce, be careful in the execution of the exercise, since neither arms nor dumbbells are supposed to touch the floor.
Variations
Slanted openings
Following the same line as the press, you can change the angle of the exercise and do it with a slope, giving greater focus to the upper chest area.
Here you really need the bank to be able to make this move.
This exercise, as expected, gives greater focus to the upper chest area, and is useful if that area is backwards compared to the rest.
Declined openings
Like the inclined variation, there is no exercise without a bench.
Here you go down the incline of the seat to be in a declined position.
In this way, you work the whole chest, but with a greater focus on the lower area compared to the other variations.
If you have a bank, try it out.
One arm openings
To vary your training a little, you can try this variation.
If done in a flat form, you can use it without a bench, on the floor, just as you would in the case of normal openings, but with the other arm to support and stabilize the movement.
You can also do it in the inclined declined form.
An example image of the type of work you can do on the floor, without benches, just dumbbells and weights.
The ideal is always to have the bank, which, as you can see, allows you several variations that are not possible without it. But if your budget is tight, you can get good training using only dumbbells.
Extra
You can also include push-up exercises, in which there are also several varieties, but nothing like a good workout with dumbbells.
This is an example of a push-up exercise, a little different than usual.
However, if we were to put the various varieties of push-ups, we would have to create a new article, since they are immense. (Maybe it will)
Conclusion
As you can see, although the exercises are few, the variations provide variety to the training, and allow a complete training only with the use of dumbbells and, preferably, also a bench.
With this equipment you can easily emulate a workout at the level of what you would do in the gym, with just less variety.
In terms of results, as long as you have enough weights to progress, you can also reach the same level as you would in a gym.
That is, an open or closed gym, as long as you have this equipment, the results will continue to appear.
Is there an exercise that was left out but that, in your opinion, should have been included?
Use the comment area below and tell us what it is!