Goodbye Chocolate Dumbbell Workout

Good morning!

I don’t know about you guys, but thanks to St. Valentine, we have been consuming a little more chocolate than normal around here. And by a little, I mean a lot. While it’s nice to treat yourself from time to time, there comes a point where I get sick of the sweets and feel like I need a good total body workout to get back on track.

You could easily complete this circuit at the gym or at home with a set of light and medium dumbbells. There’s six total rounds of each set starting with reps of twelve and going down by two each time (ten, eight, six, four, then two). When you get to two, rest for a minute and then start from the beginning to do it again!

Now let’s say goodbye to that chocolate, shall we?

As always, please listen to your body, rest, and modify as needed.

I haven’t personally tried this one out yet, only because I’ve been doing P90X workouts at home with Scott. I do, however, plan to turn to it sometime on a break tomorrow night in between teaching classes at the gym.

 

Your weights might vary, but I like to classify the following:

light: 5-8 lbs.

medium: 10-12 lbs.

 

If you are newer to lifting, I suggest you start here:

light: 3-5 lbs.

medium: 8-10 lbs.

 

Exercise Breakdown

 

• sit-ups

Get on the floor in a sit-up position: back and feet flat on the floor, with your knees bent to a ninety degree angle. Cross your arms over your chest. This is your starting position.

Tighten your glutes and hamstrings as you sit up, then slowly roll back to the starting position.

 

• push-ups

Get on the floor and position your hands slightly wider than your shoulders. Raise up on your toes, or modify by dropping your knees. Keep your body in a straight line from your head to toes (or knees) without dropping your middle or arching your back.

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Before you begin the push-up, contract your abs and keep your core tight. Think of pulling your belly button towards your spine, then lower and lift. If your form looks and feels correct, try to straighten your legs for more of a challenge!

 

• dead lifts (medium)

Start in a standing position with your feet under your hips. Holding two dumbbells by your sides, keep your arms straight and your knees slightly bent. Slowly hinge forward (bend at your hip joint – not your waist!) and lower the weights as far as you can without rounding or arching the back. Keep your shoulders pressed down and look forward, not directly at the ground.

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As you lower, bring the dumbbells in front of your body and close to your legs. Squeeze your glutes and keep your core tight to pull yourself up quicker then you bent down.

 

• upright rows (medium)

Start by standing with your feet under your hips and a dumbbell in each hand. Palms should be facing you, and your shoulders should be over your hips. Keeping the dumbbells close to your body, raise them to your shoulders while you bend your elbows out to the sides.

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Slowly lower them back down to the starting position.

 

• split squats to shoulder presses (light – medium)

Start with your right foot in front and left leg behind you. Lift your weights up and even with your shoulders with your palms facing the front. Lower into a spilt squat position and make sure that your front knee is at a ninety degree angle with you knee over your ankle. Keep your body centered and your weight evenly distributed between your front and back legs. Keep your chest lifted and engage your core so you don’t lean forward.

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Simultaneously press your arms up to a shoulder press while you come up to your starting position. Don’t shrug the shoulders, concentrate on keeping them down. This is one rep. Slowly lower back down to the split squat position and repeat. Complete one full set like this (12, 10, 8, 6, 4, 2 reps) then switch legs on the repeat set.

 

• crossover hammer curls (light – medium)

Start standing shoulder-width apart holding dumbbells with straight arms, palms facing your body. Cross the right arm over the chest and curl towards the left shoulder.

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Return to starting position and then repeat on other side. This is one rep.

 

• side lunges

Start standing straight. Step out to the right and shift your body weight over your right leg, squatting to a 90 degree angle at the knee. The objective is to try to get low enough to “sit down” (squat), keeping your back as upright as possible. Push off and bring your right leg back to the center. This is one rep. Repeat on left.

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Remember to keep your weight on your heels. Hold out your arms in front of you if you to help with balance!

 

• swings (medium)

Before you start, please note that this is not an arm exercise. If done correctly, it works the legs, abs, and booty.

Start standing with your legs slightly wider than your hips and toes slightly pointed outward. Hold a medium dumbbell in both hands and go down to a squat position while bringing the dumbbell between your legs. Make sure to keep your spine straight! Keep your chest open and shoulders down. Engaging your core, straighten your knees and bring your hips over your feet.

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Squeeze your glutes. Your arms will swing forward, and there’s no need to go higher then your shoulders. Think of a pendulum type of movement. Let the weight fall back between your legs and return to the squat. This is one rep.

 

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Please me know if you decide to give this workout a try, as I always welcome feedback.

Enjoy your Tuesday!

 

Disclaimer: Although I am a certified personal trainer, I am not necessarily your personal trainer. The workouts I post are what work best for me, and might not be the right type of exercises for you. I always recommend consulting a doctor or health professional before making changes to your diet and/or fitness routine. <3