9 Reasons Why I Choose to Workout with Dumbbells
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Do you sometimes feel overwhelmed by the vast amount of different type of workouts that exist these days?! HITT workouts, resistance band workouts, boot camp workouts… It’s like the options never end!
Well, I’m here to tell you that you don’t need to try out all of these different workouts to get results. All you need to do is pick ONE proven form of strength-training and stick to it.
But which one!? My favorite form of strength-training exercise is dumbbell workouts. While they may feel a bit intimidating to start with, I promise that the benefits are worth it.
What I discussed:
They are more effective than any other form of strength-training.
You have an infinite amount of versatility
You can choose where you workout
They helps identify and eliminate strength imbalances
They allow you to increase your range of motion
They enhance the mind-muscle connection
More Freedom of Movement.
Dumbbells work MORE muscles.
Dumbbells are great for progression.
Link mentioned in this episode:
If you want more from me, be sure to check out:
Instagram: @embraceyourreal | @movementwithjulie
Transcript:
Hey there, beautiful human. You're listening to Embrace Your Real with me, Julie Ledbetter. A podcast where I empower you to just be you. With each episode, I issue a dose of real talk and actionable advice for building your confidence, honoring your body, and unconditionally loving your authentic self. Stay tuned if you're ready to embrace your real. Let's get hugs, girl.
Sometimes overwhelmed by the amount of different types of workouts that exist? Like there's hit workouts, there's resistance band workouts, there's boot camp workouts. It's like the list never ends. There's always something new. There's always something that someone is trying out. And I know that it can feel stressful, it can feel overwhelming. And I'm here to just plainly and blatantly tell you that you don't need to try out all these different workouts to get results. All you need to do is pick one proven form of strength training and stick to it. But which one? Like which form of strength training is one that you should go with? And I'll just tell you, speaking from my experience, my favorite form of strength training is dumbbell workouts. And while they might feel a bit intimidating to start with, especially if you're just starting out or you're coming back to it, I can promise you and I can assure that the benefits are worth it.
And so in today's episode of Embrace Your Real, I'm going to be sharing with you nine reasons why I personally choose to work out with dumbbells. And maybe this will help you. Maybe this will give you some insight that either you knew a little bit about before or maybe you didn't know at all. And this kind of gives you just more education. That is always the primary goal of this podcast, is to either empower you as to educate you, encourage you so that you can feel more empowered in your journey and that you can make the decision for yourself, whichever route is best for you. And so I'm a big believer if you've been following me for any length of time. Have you been listening to this podcast for any length of time? You guys know I'm a firm believer in dumbbell workouts. I have personally been working out dumbbell only workouts strictly for almost four years now, and it has singlehandedly transformed everything for me. And I've built an entire program that thousands and thousands of women follow on a weekly basis. And I know that they work and I know that they're fun and they're engaging and they will get you results. And so that's why, again, why I just kind of want to share with you why I personally choose to work out with dumbbells. Before we dove in, I wanted to share this review. It comes from Anat Ashe. At 27, she gave a five star review and said, My daily inspiration. Thank you so much, Julie, for always encouraging us to stay consistent and love ourselves through our fitness journey. Thank you for reminding me of how much God loves me and that I was made in His image. You are a daily reminder to me that there's actual good people left in this world, and your workouts on Pinterest have been a daily motivation for me. Much love. Well, I love this on so many levels. First of all, I'm so grateful that this podcast is helping you to stay consistent with loving yourself and reminding you that you are made in God's image and also encouraging you to work out and honor your body with movement. That is truly those are the goals of this podcast. And so I'm just so grateful that it's helping you. Thank you for following me on Pinterest, and I'm so grateful that those workouts are helping you there. If you aren't following me over on Pinterest, it's just Julie Ledbetter. I love posting up all my workouts and snippets from the podcast as well as some recipes up there. So definitely check me out on Pinterest. I will link that in the show notes below. If you haven't already left a rating interview girl, that is the one ask I have of you for just tuning into this podcast. If this podcast is helping you in any way, if it's encouraging you, if you found something thought provoking or you're getting something out of this podcast, if you could scootch over to Apple Podcasts a tape and embrace your real first. Make sure you subscribe so that you never miss an episode that is app plus sign in the top right corner. And then once you're on that page, you can actually scroll down and leave a rating interview. Like I said, it really does help us out and it just helps not only the people that find the podcast kind of know what they can expect, but it also helps me and our team know what is helping you so that we can make more content of that.
Okay, so let's dove into the nine reasons why I choose to work out with the dumbbells. Number one, they are one of the most effective forms of strength training. So when you're doing demo workouts, you're actually providing your body with the two types of overloads that it needs to tone and build muscle. So the first type is mechanic overload, and this basically refers to the muscle growth that's stimulated by the contracting of the muscles. And the second type is the metabolic stress, which refers to the situation where the muscle is work, to the point where you experience muscle fatigue causing your muscle to increase in size as it works to repair itself. While pretty much all other forms of strength training can provide one form of overload and dumbbell exercises in particular almost guarantee that both of those mechanisms, those kind of overloads the mechanic as well as the metabolic are happening at the same time, which can lead to more effective workouts.
Number two is that you have really an infinite amount of versatility. There is no other equipment out there that gives you the amount of versatility that dumbbells give you, like with a single set of dumbbells. You can perform literally hundreds. I'm actually going to argue thousands upon thousands of different strength training and building exercises and variations. Right. And that's what I'm huge on. I am a huge, very Asian girl. I love the compound movements. I love the basic movements, but I also love kind of adding some variation to those to keep it fun, to keep it exciting. And there's something that your standard weightlifting machines, they just can't offer that for you. And while they might be great at targeting specific muscle groups in the body, they just can't compete with the versatility that free weights and dumbbells give you, nor the ability to target more than one muscle at a time. So check this out. Two pairs, like a pair of dumbbells, right? Two dumbbells alone will allow you to perform any type of variation shoulder press, shoulder lateral races, upright rows, deadlifts, bench press, bicep curls, tricep kickback squats. So much more. I could literally go on all day and kind of, as I mentioned before, using dumbbells and these exercises allows you to target more than one muscle group so you can really integrate multiple movements. Right. For example, a dumbbell squat to a shoulder press is going to focus on both lower body and upper body. So it's essentially going to be a full body movement. And I implement these all the time, just kind of off the top of my head as I'm thinking about next week's programing in movement, which usually we have back rows to tricep kickbacks. So you're literally working your back, you're working your core because you're bending over your stabilizing in your core and you're working your triceps through that kickback. And I have hundreds upon hundreds of different variations, compound movements, movements that target one if not more, sometimes three or four or five muscles in one movement overall. And that's the beauty of it. The beauty of it is that they're so fun, they're so effective, and there's so much versatility.
Number three, you can choose where you work out. So whether you feel like working out at the gym, in your basement, in your backyard, in your garage, in your living room, in your bedroom, dumbbells really give you the flexibility to do that, unlike a barbell, right? If it's at a actual rack, that's going to require that it has somewhere within four walls. So whether that's a garage, whether that's a basement, whether that's a gym, there are obviously you can put your gym on your porch, but just kind of going off of just really wanting to workout anywhere. You know, there's been times where I'm like, I just want to take my work out to the park. The cool thing about my workouts and dumbbell workouts in general is that I can take, you know, a pair or two of dumbbells. I typically take like light pair and then a medium to heavy pair. If I'm doing work out on the road or in the park or whatever, and I can literally just post about a park and I can get my workout in, which is awesome and such a great perk of dumbbell workouts.
Number four is that they can really help to identify and eliminate any strength imbalances. So when you're using a barbell or equipment or even your bodyweight with the help of resistance bands, you really have no choice but to work on both sides of your body at the same time. For the majority of resistance bands, right, there are some resistance band workouts that you can do one sided unilateral work, but the majority of those, especially a barbell and equipment. So for example, if you're doing a bench press with a barbell or you're using the leg press, you essentially have to do both arms or both legs to complete the exercise safely and have it be effective, give or take. Of course, you could use the leg leg press machine for one leg and do some unilateral work. But the majority of equipment, you're using both sides of your body. But when you're using dumbbells, you're essentially forcing your limbs to work unilaterally. And when that happens, this can easily help you to identify which side of your body is weaker and you can adjust your exercises to correct those imbalances. And that's something that, honestly, I didn't even realize until I started doing demo workouts strictly because I was relying so heavily on doing barbell curls and using a rope curl on the cable machine and all of those things. And so I was do I was working both of my arms and I wasn't realizing that one of my arms or one side of my body was actually overcompensating for the weaker side of my body. And I didn't notice that until I started dumbbell workouts. So that's another reason why I personally choose dumbbell workouts and why I absolutely love them.
Number five They allow you to increase your range of motion. This is huge. So if you're pushing yourself and opting for muscle overload, exercise is one of the most effective ways that you can do that is to increase your range of motion, and dumbbells can really add a new dimension of overload to your go to movements by extending the range of motion. Because with free weights, you really aren't limited by how far a machine can extend. Right? For example, if you think about a simple bench press, you're lying under the barbell that is supported by Iraq, and your range of motion is limited to go as low as the rack. Really? Allows you to bring and it can't travel through your body. Right. But when you pick up a pair of dumbbells and instead do your bench press, you can change that. Like just focus on the stretch at the bottom of the movement and convert that into an explosive press vessel. Make the same movements that you've been doing for a while, a lot more intense in a way that other alternate exercises can't or won't do that for you.
Number six, they enhance the mind muscle connection. Now, I've already mentioned this in the past episode, kind of really talking about how to actively engage the targeted muscles as you engage in movement during a workout can really help to intensify your workouts and how important that mind muscle connection is. Don't underestimate your mind. I know we talk about our mind in terms of like mindset and mentality and self-esteem and self-respect and all of those ways. And of course, that's important. And obviously having a healthy mindset is important, but I don't think that many people in the fitness world talk enough about the mind muscle connection. I hear it sometimes, but I don't hear it as much as some other, you know, kind of trendy topics. And the mind muscle connection is so powerful. And kind of when you're using that mind muscle connection, it's crazy how much more you can actually feel the intended targeted muscle working. For example, if you really want to activate your glutes, right? So I just a few weeks ago, I programed in our shoulders and glutes work out the forward lean, split squat. I absolutely love this so much and the forward line alone is going to allow you to engage those glutes more. But when you come at that exercise with, okay, my intended muscle group in this specific exercise is glutes, and you really try to activate every muscle fiber in your glute. I will tell you, my glutes were screaming at the end of just ten reps on each leg. Like ten reps. I did three rounds, ten reps and I was sore for days and it was really because I was challenging myself to have that mind muscle connection. So don't underestimate that. And you know, when you're with dumbbells, when you're kind of working muscles unilaterally, this can also make the opportunity for you to really think about a single muscle at a time which can make it much easier. So I want you to try that out. I want you to see how much stronger that connection can feel when you really focus on it, whether that's a tricep workout or a glute workout or a bicep exercise, whatever it is, and honestly try to do it on the muscle groups that you feel a little bit weaker on. So over the last nine or so weeks, I've really been focusing on intentional, deep core pelvic workouts, and I'm really excited. We have some really fun things coming up Inside Movement, which Julie I've just really gotten passionate about pelvic floor and deep core work not only as a woman who eventually wants to have kids one day, but I just think having a strong core in general is so important for your day to day life, as well as helps you in so many other exercises that are not even core exercises. Right, because you are unintentionally or intentionally using your core in so many movements. And so try this mind muscle connection on the movements that you don't feel as strong with, like in terms of just your overall confidence in them. And watch your confidence or watch the targeted intended muscle groups feel more activated. It's awesome.
Number seven, more freedom of movement. So where when you're bench pressing with a barbell, your arms and shoulders are in a fixed position and they kind of move through a set range of motion. Whereas in contrast, dumbbell presses allow one to alter the movement pattern slightly and let the shoulders move more freely. Right. Barbell pressing has a set range of motion similar to what I talked about in terms of increasing your range of motion. But dumbbell pressing allows you to externally or internally rotate your shoulders and bring the dumbbells lower down and then higher up on your body specific target like which can specifically target certain muscles and can also help you to press pain free. Another great example of this is there are so many different types of presses, right? So we have a hammer press where your arms are neutral and your knuckles are facing outward and you are pressing down. There's also this slight bend, which I call 45 degree angle, chest press, dumbbell, chest press. I personally, that's my favorite. I feel like I activate my chest muscles a lot more than just the normal kind of knuckles are straight out. Your hands are right out in front of you. Kind of how you would press a barbell when you're doing chest press with barbell, but there are so many different types. Another great example of this is bicep curls, right? So if you're doing bicep curls with a barbell, you can really only do bicep curls. You can't flip it to have your knuckles facing out and do hammer curls. There are so many different variations when it comes to that. And I personally love. I know all my movement. Usually, ladies, you probably know these these movements as I'm talking about them because I program them a lot because they're effective, they're fun, they're great variations. But I will always do, you know, sometimes a wide bicep curls, sometimes in front of me bicep curl into a hammer curl. So you can implement both of the different types of variations into one movement. Again, to keep it fun, to keep it spicy, and to activate different muscle groups in that movement.
Number eight, dumbbells work more muscles. So, yes, both free weights and machines will work many of the same muscles. But when you're comparing apples to apples, free weights can really just work more muscles than machines. Right. Think about this. When you perform a dumbbell shoulder press, not only are your shoulders engaged, but you're also engaging your career traps, your triceps, and your whole upper body is working to stabilize you. Whereas in a shoulder press machine, a fixed range of motion guides the way up and down, eliminating the need for that extra stabilization on your end. So the majority of the load is placing strictly on your shoulders without needing to recruit other muscles for help. And I'm not dogging on gym machines. I think that they're great, but I personally just love that I get a bigger bang for my buck. I love that I'm actually able to stabilize my core in something like a standing shoulder press versus me sitting down, you know, back up against something. And I'm on a machine at the gym.
And number nine, dumbbells are great for progression. So in general, weight machines are also they're great. They're great for beginners. They really are. They teach proper form and they can reduce risk of injuries. Whereas dumbbells, on the other hand, really do allow you to work more muscles and promote more functional movements. You really can see great results on a machine when you first start working out again. I'm not dogging machines. I think they're great. I think that they can work for so many people. But you will reach a point where your body will likely adapt. And if you really want to keep seeing results, you could switch up to dumbbells, you could incorporate dumbbells, or you could strictly go over to dumbbell workouts again. I personally, I started in a gym for years. I worked out in a gym. And if you've tuned in to any of my other episodes, you guys know that you kind of know my story of me just getting fed up and me thinking that the only workouts that I had that were good workouts were workouts in the gym within four walls. And I just I got trapped in this mentality where I was limiting my movement. And I didn't think that any other workouts besides at a gym was was considered a workout. And it was a really unhealthy mentality. And also I was dreading it. I started dreading my workouts and when I switched to demo workouts only and really challenging myself with different variations and, you know, never doing the same exact workout twice, I really found so much consistency. I've never been stronger, I've never been more excited about my actual workouts. And so if that's you, if you feel like you're at a place where you just want to try it out, like you're kind of listening to this and you're like, man, I've never done, you know, strictly dumbbell workouts. I've only ever relied on the machines. And I don't really know what I'm doing at the gym or in my workouts. I want to encourage you like check out my Moomoo Julie app. I have an app that gives you vibrating workouts every single week and there are thousands of women all over the literal world that do these workouts. And the beautiful thing about this is if you're a beginner, these workouts are for you. If you're kind of intermediate, these workouts are for you. If you're advanced, these workouts are for you. I've been working out for a decade now and I do all of these workouts. So for about 95 to 97% of all the exercises, I give alternate exercises, whether that's a body weight, whether that's easier, whether that's a no bench, because I do programs and bench workouts and exercises, but I never require a bench for my workouts because I understand that that's a big investment. And and so I always have no bench alternates. And I'm telling you, the the sky's the limit with dumbbells because you are truly able to go heavier in dumbbells, you're able to push yourself. I've done tons of podcasts on Progressive Overload, so go back in my library of episodes. I have a few that I've recently done in the last few months regarding I'm kind of how to spice things up, how to add weight if you don't have access to multiple different dumbbells, how to increase your overall weight in your workouts and kind of employment, progressive overload. So definitely check those out. But I'm telling you, dumbbell workouts have singlehandedly handedly transformed everything in my journey and they could possibly do that for you.
So let me recap the six reasons why dumbbell workouts are why I personally use them, and why I think that they can be a great option for you when it comes to muscle growth. Number one, they are very effective and very efficient in terms of strength training and they can be one of the most effective forms, in my opinion. Number two, they have an infinite amount of versatility. Number three, you can choose where to work out. So again, just that versatility in where you're able to work out if you're traveling, if you're on the road, if you just want to kind of change it up. It's an amazing thing that you can literally work out anywhere. Number four, they help you identify and eliminate any strength imbalances. Number five, they allow you to increase your range of motion. Number six, they can enhance the mind muscle connection. Number seven, you have a lot more freedom of movement within exercises. Number eight, dumbbells really do work more muscles than most generic gym machines. And number nine, demos are great for progression. Again, if you do want to check out my movie Julie app, I do have a 50% off code your first month, so you get five training workouts every single day. I give you two options to pick from each day, depending on your time constraints. We have a full exercise or a full workout, which takes you anywhere from 45 to 55 minutes on average for most subscribers. And then we have a 30 minute variation which both are effective. You can see results. If you strictly follow 30 minute workouts, you will see results if you if you follow the full workouts, if you do a hybrid of both of them, depending on your time constraints that day. And so you can pick one of those. So they're very time effective, very efficient. You can check it out by going to sale that's Sally Julie dot com again I will link that in the show notes below and I hope that this episode helped you. I hope that it gave you some sort of education. Maybe you learn something from it, maybe it kind of pushed you over and you're like, Okay, I am ready to try these demo workouts. You talk about them all the time. What's the hype? And so I hope you do. I hope that you check them out. Whether you do my program, you do somebody else's program. I just I'm a firm believer that dumbbells in general are so amazing and so versatile and you will definitely see amazing, incredible results using them. That is all that I have for today's episode. I love you so dang much and I will talk to you in the next one. All right, sister. That's all I got for you today. But I have two things that I need you to do. First thing, if you are not already following me on the gram, be sure to do so, Julie. A lot better. Yes. It's with an eye in the middle for that daily poser about real talk. Healthy tips and tricks and honest accountability to keep your mind and heart in check. The second thing be sure to subscribe to Apple Podcasts to never miss an episode. Thank you so much for joining me. It means the absolute world and I'm going to leave you with one last thought. The most beautiful women that I have met in my life are the ones who are completely confident and secure in being authentically themselves. Remember, that beauty goes so much deeper than the surface. So go out there and embrace your real because you're worth it.