But can you get a good chest and triceps workout at home? And what if all you have is a pair of light dumbbells?

In this post, you’re going to get an awesome workout for your chest and triceps. And it’s not going to matter how much weight you’re lifting.

I’m going to show you some ways to make your workout more intense. Even with lighter dumbbells.

I’m writing this post during the time when we’re all under quarantine and most gyms around the world are closed.

This post is not intended to knock lifting heavy weight. Rather, it’s intended for those times when you can’t make it to the gym or your gym is closed for whatever reason.

If you already train at home, this is an awesome workout to add to your training routine.

Your Chest and Triceps Workout at Home

Let’s get into the meat and potatoes right away – your workout. Naturally, you’ll start with chest and finish with triceps.

Here are some important notes about the workout:

• You need 2 pieces of equipment – dumbbells and a bench
• A rep range is listed for each exercise as this will depend on the amount of weight you’re using (for ‘at home workouts’ I’m assuming you may not have access to heavier dumbbells)
• Rest about 1 minute between each set
• You’ll be using some specific training methods for some exercises – I’ll explain these below…

Training Methods You’ll Use for Increased Intensity

Here’s what makes the workout interesting and more intense. And this is going to help you build muscle even with using light dumbbells.

Ending your last 5 reps with concentrated reps – For your first two exercises, dumbbell flyes and dumbbell press, you’ll do the last 5 reps as concentrated reps. This means…

• Doing these last few reps slower
• Focusing on the negative part of the rep, taking 3-5 seconds to lower the weight
• Holding a squeeze at the peak of those reps for 2-3 seconds

Unilateral reps – Your 3rd and final chest exercise will be unilateral dumbbell press. This gives your pecs more time under tension, which leads to muscle growth.

• Lower one dumbbell while holding the other up
• Don’t lock out the extended arm; have a slight bend in that elbow to keep the tension on the muscle, not your joints
• Once you press the dumbbell up, repeat with the opposite arm

Focused reps for triceps – There’s no ‘special’ technique or methods for your tricep exercises. But you do need to be 100% focused on forcing those muscles to work harder. Don’t just go through the motions.

• Contract/flex your triceps at the peak of each rep
• Force your triceps to work harder by slowing down the reps; don’t speed through these exercises
• Get a full range of motion for triceps

**Be sure to continue reading after the workout. I’m going to give you more tips for each exercise and show you ways to make these movements for effective for building muscle.

The Workout

Video: Training Chest and Triceps at Home

***In the video, I mentioned the pre-workout supplement I’m taking. You can read my full PreFIERCE review here.

Dumbbell Exercises for Chest and Triceps

Now, let’s go through each exercise in more depth. You’ll find images and a description of each exercise below. And I’ll share some best practices on how you can make each chest and triceps exercise more effective for building muscle at home.

Dumbbell Flyes

This is a standard dumbbell flye exercise but there are some ways to make this target your pecs more. And remember, this is one of the exercises you’re ending with concentrated reps.

• Make sure you get a deep stretch at the bottom of the movement; you don’t have to over-exaggerate here, but you want to feel that stretch
• Flex those pecs at the top of the movement; this is where you get the maximum muscle-building benefits
• If you rush through this exercise, you’ll miss the muscle building benefits; just going through the motions is not going to grant you the results you’re looking for

Dumbbell Press

Dumbbell press is an excellent chest-building exercise. It’s basic, but remember, you’re also ending with concentrated reps for dumbbell press.

• When you press the dumbbells up, focus on forcing your chest muscles to move the weight
• Also, concentrate on making your chest muscles feel the tension on the negative part of the press

Unilateral Dumbbell Press

If you want to take your chest workout to the next level, do unilateral dumbbell press. This is going to build more muscle because you’re keeping constant tension on your pecs throughout the entire set. And we all know that time under tension is what builds muscle.

• Start as if you’re doing a normal dumbbell press
• Only bring one dumbbell down towards your chest while holding the other up
• Don’t lockout that other arm; keep a slight bend in your elbow as I mentioned earlier as this will keep tension on your muscle, not your joints
• Get a nice contraction at the peak of each rep before lowering the other dumbbell

Lying Tricep Extensions

This exercise is a great mass builder for your triceps. And doing them with both dumbbells simultaneously places more tension on the muscle as you have to balance the dumbbells.

• Start by pressing the dumbbells directly above you, like a dumbbell chest press
• Turn your grip so that your palms are facing one another
• Keeping your elbows in the same position, bend your arms to lower the dumbbells towards your head
• You can go as low as the dumbbells being beside your head, a little deeper than 90 degrees
• As you press the dumbbells back up, make sure you’re forcing your triceps to do the work by keeping strict form
• At the top of the movement, you can rotate your wrists outward a little to get that extra contraction in your triceps

Overhead Single-Arm Tricep Extensions

You can do these standing or seated. Or you can alternate how you do them each workout for variety, which is always a good thing.

• Extend one arm holding the dumbbell above your head
• Slowly lower the dumbbell behind your head
• Use strict form and keep your elbow in that same position so that your triceps are forced to do the work
• Flex that muscle once you get to the top of the movement

**One additional tip is to start with the opposite arm every other workout. This helps even out the strength in both arms.

If you’d like more chest and arms workouts you can do at home with light dumbbells, check out these posts below:

Intense Chest Workout with Dumbbells at Home
Arm Circuit Workout at Home

Training Chest and Triceps at Home

Training at home is quite different than going to the gym. At the gym, you have an array of equipment and machines and access to different exercises.

At home, you may be limited. And in this case, we’re assuming you only have a pair of light dumbbells.

But that doesn’t mean you should skip your workouts. As you can see in this workout, there are techniques and methods you can use to increase your intensity.

Also, with the right mindset, you can build just as much muscle at home as you can in the gym. Don’t get me wrong – I’m an avid fan of lifting heavy. But it’s really not about how much weight you lift. It’s how hard you’re making your muscles work.

Part of having the ability to train harder is having 100% focus during your workouts. And there’s a specific pre-workout supplement that helps me with that, and can help you as well. So be sure to read my full review and experience on the pre-workout PreFIERC here.

Excuses Don’t Build Muscle,

Jason

In this post, you’re going to get a super intense quad workout that you can do at home. All you need is a pair of dumbbells, and it can even be a pair of lighter dumbbells.

This workout is going to give you the overall volume your quads need to grow by forcing you to pump out more reps.

Here’s the thing, your quads have more slow-twitch muscle fibers than other muscles. So they respond best to higher reps and volume.

Even though this is a workout you can do at home, it’s going to be tough. So go mix up your favorite pre-workout drink because you’re going to want to train your quads after reading this!

I’m writing this post during the time when we’re all under quarantine and most gyms around the world are closed.

This post is not intended to knock lifting heavy weight. Rather, it’s intended for those times when you can’t make it to the gym or your gym is closed for whatever reason.

If you already train at home, this is an awesome workout for you to try.

Your Exercises for Quads

Before we jump into the workout, let’s go over the exercises you’ll be doing for quads. These are all different types of squats, some of which you may have never tried before (so you can expect to be sore after your workout).

*If you’d like to skip ahead to the workout, click here.

• ‘Normal’ dumbbell squats
• Sumo dumbbell squats
• Front dumbbell squats
• Single-leg dumbbell squats

I’ll explain each exercise in detail below and also give you some tips on how to make these more effective for building your quads.

*The first three exercises are ones you’ll perform giant sets with. I’ll explain more when we get to the workout.

Dumbbell Squats

This movement mimics a normal barbell squat. The only difference is the weight with dumbbells is distributed a little differently. However, dumbbell squats can be just as effective as barbell squats.

Here are some tips for dumbbell squats:

• You can hold the dumbbells above your shoulders, as seen in the image, or hold each dumbbell by your side
• Make sure you have that natural curvature in the movement as you squat; dumbbells actually make this a little easier
• Keep the pressure on your heels rather than the front part of your feet; this will help prevent knee pain and injury
• Since you’re more than likely using lighter weights with dumbbells, go for a full range of motion

Sumo Dumbbell Squats

This is a type of squat that you won’t see often but it can be extremely effective at building parts of your quads that you didn’t know you had.

You’re going to target different muscles in your quads by doing sumo squats with a dumbbell.

Instead of using both dumbbells, you’ll only use one. In most cases I would say use a heavier dumbbell for sumo squats because of this. However, you can stick with lighter weights (you’ll see why when we get to the workout!).

Here how to do sumo squats:

• You’ll have a much wider stance with sumo squats than regular squats
• Point your feet outward
• Hold one dumbbell with both hands in front of you, keeping it close to your body
• As you squat down, make sure your knees are pressing outward; this will help with your balance and ensure you’re targeting certain parts of your quad muscles

Front Dumbbell Squats

This movement is very similar to regular dumbbell squats. The difference is you’re holding the dumbbells with your palms facing towards you. So the weights will naturally be held a little lower and out in front of your torso.

Front squats target your quads directly whereas regular, or normal squats put a large emphasis on your glutes as well. This makes front squats an excellent exercise to getting that tear-drop shape in your quads. And it’s a great leg toning exercise for women.

Here are some additional tips for doing front squats with dumbbells:

• Start with a slightly more narrow stance than with regular dumbbell squats
• Although your legs are closer together, make sure your knees do not fold inward; press them outward throughout the movement
• Develop that mind-to-muscle connection and focus on working your quads throughout each rep; visualize them growing and flex the at the peak of each rep

Single-Leg Dumbbell Squats

You’ll end your workout with single-leg squats with dumbbells. I’m not going to pull any punches; this is a tough exercise. And it’s going to be tougher after doing the other exercises we just went over, especially in the way you’ll be doing them.

Doing single-leg squats require 100% focus, balance, and stability. You’ll only be doing a couple of sets of these at the end of your workout for quads. But trust me, it’ll be more than enough.

Here are some ways to do single-leg squats

• You can actually do these with no weights at first to get used to the movement; you find that your body weight is enough to get the job done
• If you’re using a dumbbell, you can hold it with both hands keeping is close to our chest; this helps with balance
• As you squat with one leg, lean forward a little while kicking the other leg back behind you
• Keep the pressure on your heel throughout the movement
• Keep your core tight throughout this exercise

**I have a recent post going into more depth about these different types of squats in my post: 4 Types of Dumbbell Squats

***You can also watch the below video as I go through how to do each exercise…

Video: 4 Types of Dumbbell Squats

**In the video, you see me drinking my new favorite pre-workout before I get started.

I encourage you to read my full review by clicking the button below. I tested this pre-workout for 4 weeks before giving my thoughts…

Intense Quads Workout

This is going to be different than your typical bodybuilding workout where you do 3-4 sets of an exercise and move on to the next. Instead, the bulk of your workout is going to consist of giant sets.

What are giant sets? They’re basically supersets but with at least 3 exercises (supersets are typical going from one exercise to another, then stopping).

In this case, you’ll be combining the first three types of squats we went over for a giant set. So here’s what your set will look like…

Dumbbell squats > Sumo Dumbbell Squats > Front Dumbbell Squats

• Do 10 reps of each type of squat
• No rest between the 3 exercises
• Once you perform a giant set, rest for about a minute before starting the routine again
• You’ll do anywhere from 3-5 giant sets (start with 3 sets of giant sets and add another each week until you’re doing 5)

You’ll end your workout with just two sets of single-leg squats. Of course, since these are single-leg you’ll actually be doing a total of 4 sets.

One final note – once you finish this workout for quads, make sure you stretch. I have an entire stretching routine specific for leg training in this post: 5 Stretches You Need After Your Leg Workout

Here’s your workout…

Training Quads At Home

Training your quads at home can be just as effective as going to the gym. You’ll clearly see that once you try this workout.

The key is making sure you get adequate volume. And pumping out the amount of reps with these types of exercises is going to make your workout more intense. So everything works together here.

It’s also a good idea to make sure your energy level is up and that you have what you need to stay focused during this type of workout.

The one supplement that helps me is a pre-workout called PreFIERCE.

I tested this pre-workout for 4 weeks before promoting it. I wanted to make sure it passed my sustainability test, and it did. You can read my full review here.

Excuses Don’t Build Muscle,

Jason

You be thinking: ‘Are squats with dumbbells effective?’

They can be extremely effective. I’m going to show you 4 types of dumbbell squats you can do to build more muscle in your legs. And the best part is you can do these at home.

You’re also going to get a full leg workout using these variations of dumbbell squats. I have a specific sequence of how these exercises are performed to give you the best leg workout for building lower body muscle.

You’ll also get tips for each type of dumbbell squat that will help you target specific areas of your legs. So go drink your pre-workout and get ready for an awesome leg workout!

I’m writing this during the time when we’re all under quarantine and most gyms around the world are closed.

This post is not intended to knock lifting heavy weight. Rather, it’s intended for those times when you can’t make it to the gym or your gym is closed for whatever reason.

Many do not have heavier weights at home, and buying weights can be expensive. So this workout shows you how to use what you have to get an intense workout (or you can buy a pair of lighter dumbbells, which aren’t so expensive).

4 Types of Dumbbells Squats

Squats are awesome, plain and simple. But did you know that you have more options with dumbbells?

We’re going to dig into the different types of squats you can do. I’ll also explain the techniques and tips to make your leg muscles work harder and grow.

Regular Dumbbell Squats

You can call this a ‘regular dumbbell squat.’ It mimics the barbell squat. There’s just a subtle difference in how the weight is distributed.

With barbell squats, you have the barbell sitting on top of your traps. You can’t exactly put the weight of the dumbbells that far back, so instead the weight is distributed across your shoulders.

This is going to make dumbbell squats feel different. And if you’ve never done them, your legs will be sore the next day in places they usually aren’t.

Here are some tips on how to make your dumbbell squats more effective:

• Start by holding the dumbbells over your shoulders as if you were getting ready to do a shoulder press
• Take a medium stance with your feet a little further than shoulder width apart
• As you squat, make sure you keep the dumbbells in the same position (you may have a natural tendency to move them)
• Do not round your back; rather, keep a slight arch in your lower back to prevent rounding, and poke your rear out as you squat down (this applies to all types of squats)
• Use a full range of motion
• Flex your quads and glutes as you return to the starting position
• With all squats, press with your heels (not with the balls of your feet)

*Some will hold the dumbbells by their side as if you were doing lunges. I personally prefer hold them up above your shoulders as explained above. But you can try both ways and see what works best for you.

Sumo Dumbbell Squats

Sumo squats will work muscles in your legs that you didn’t know you had. The movement is also quite diverse. At first, you’ll feel your inner thighs working. But when you start squatting back up, you’ll feel your outer quads.

This is an awesome and often underrated exercise for building legs. And it’s such a simple exercise to add to your leg workouts at home with dumbbells.

Here are some ways to make sumo squats work best for you:

• Start with a wide stance and also point your feet outward
• Hold one dumbbell with both hands in front of you, letting it hang close to your body (you don’t want the dumbbell away from your body)
• Make sure your knees stay out as you perform the dumbbell sumo squat
• The dumbbell should almost touch the ground before you come back up
• As you squat back up, try pushing your legs out even more as this will help activate your outer quads

Front Dumbbell Squats

Doing front dumbbell squats may at first look like regular dumbbell squats. But you’re going to be holding the dumbbells differently.

And this difference is going to shift how the weight is distributed across your body, which will impact which leg muscles are targeted more. In this case, your quads that are going to be super-targeted (now when you go to Super Target, you’re going to think of front dumbbell squats and you’ll be flexing your quads every step down the aisles…lol!).

Here are some ways to make sure you’re doing front dumbbell squats right:

• You’ll want to start with a slightly narrower stance that regular dumbbell squats
• Hold the dumbbells in front of you with your palms facing towards you (keep them close to your torso)
• Make sure you’re rear is poking out as you squat down
• Even though your legs are closer together, push your knees out and away from you as you squat back up to the starting position

Single-Leg Dumbbell Squats

Are you ready for the toughest leg exercise you’ll ever do? Single-leg squats are going to engage more muscles in your legs – muscles that you’ve probably never worked before.

This exercise requires you to have ultimate balance and stability. And doing this exercise is going to help you build that up, as well as building up your leg muscles.

Here’s how to do single-leg squats with dumbbells:

• With both hands, hold a dumbbell against your chest
• Take one leg and kick is back a little behind you, as you see in the images above
• As you squat with the other leg, lean your torso forward
• To help maintain your balance, keep your core tight and perform these reps a little slower than normal
• Once you get back to the starting position, do the same with the other leg (I find that alternating legs each rep works best as opposed to doing multiple reps one leg at a time).

*If you’re new to single-leg squats, I’m going suggest that you try these with no dumbbells at first; just use your own bodyweight.

Video: 4 Types of Dumbbell Squats

**In the video, you see me drinking my favorite pre-workout before I get started.

You can learn more about PreFIERCE here.

The Workout

Now, let’s combine the different variations of dumbbell squats and create a leg workout that you can do.

The exercises are in a strategic order. Each squat variation will compliment one another as you go through the workout, giving you a well-rounded pump and burn in your quads and glutes.

Here are a few notes about the workout:

• Do 3 sets of each exercise
• Rest about 1 minute between sets
• The reps below are an example; this may be different for you depending on how much weight you’re using
• The reps will typically be higher for sumo squats because you’re only using one dumbbell
• For single-leg squats, feel free to start out with just your body weight until you get used to the exercise (this exercise requires an extreme amount of balance and stability, and doing these over time will help you build up that balance and stability!)

**Make sure you stretch your quads and hamstrings after doing this leg workout.

You can find what stretches I recommend for leg day in this post: 5 Stretches You Need After Your Leg Workout

Doing Dumbbell Squats at Home

Squats, in general, are indeed the king of exercises. They’re essential for building and shaping your leg muscles.

Whether your goal is to gain lower body muscle size or get ripped and toned legs, squats are going to be key. And now that you have these different types of dumbbell squats, you can target your leg muscles from all angles.

Lastly, I want to leave you with some additional resources for your leg workouts at home below:

• Legs and Shoulder Superset Workout at Home
• Leg Workout at Home with Light Dumbbells
• TruFIERCE PreFIERCE Pre-workout I’m taking

Excuses Don’t Build Muscle,

Jason

This will be a relatively quick workout; you should be done in about 20 minutes. You’re also going to learn a few cool techniques to make your workout more intense.

The best part is you don’t need any equipment other than a pair of dumbbells. I’ll even show you how to get a good workout if all you have are light dumbbells.

I’m writing this during the time when we’re all under quarantine and most gyms around the world are closed.

This post is not intended to knock lifting heavy weight. Rather, it’s intended for those times when you can’t make it to the gym or your gym is closed for whatever reason.

Many do not have heavier weights at home, and buying weights can be expensive. So this workout shows you how to use what you have to get an intense workout (or you can buy a pair of lighter dumbbells, which aren’t so expensive).

Shoulders and Arms: The Workout

Alright, here’s the full workout for shoulders and arms. But first, let’s go over a few notes before you start…

• You’re going to do 3 sets of each exercise
• Rest 1 minute between exercises
• For arms, you’ll be supersetting a bicep with a tricep exercise, so you’ll do 3 supersets (and rest 1 minute between the supersets for each)
• Make sure you have a dedicated and clear area at home for this workout
• You can essentially use the same dumbbells (same weight) for each exercise

**I’ll go into more depth explaining the techniques and exercises below the workout.

So be sure to read through those as you’ll find helpful tips to make your workouts at home more effective.

The Workout

**In the video above, I talk briefly about this awesome pre-workout I’m taking called PREFIERCE by TRUFIERCE.

You can learn more about PREFIERCE BY TRUFIERCE here.

Workout Methods Explained

Now, let’s dig deeper into the methods and techniques used in this workout. Building muscle at home can be a challenge, especially if you have limited weights and equipment.

But that’s okay because using these methods will make your workouts more intense and help you build muscle more effectively.

Extended Sets with Unilateral Reps

For the first exercises, standing dumbbell overhead press, you’re combining unilateral reps with ‘regular’ reps in one set. That essentially makes this an extended set. It also makes the exercise way more intense!

You’ll start right out of the gate with unilateral reps for your first 10 reps. Then you’ll immediately pump out 10 more reps with more arms, simultaneously.

• First 10 reps = unilateral
• Next 10 reps = both arms, simultaneously

Those unilateral sets make your shoulders work harder so by the time you get to your regular reps, your muscles will be pre-exhausted.

*If you’d like to learn more about unilateral workouts, check out my post: Unilateral Workout for Chest and Back At Home

Supersets for Arms

Chances are you’re already familiar with doing supersets. But there’s a little caveat to this particular workout.

Instead of going from, let’s say a bicep to another bicep exercise, you’re working the opposing muscle in the superset. This is called ‘agonist-antagonist sets.’

In this case, you’ll start with a tricep exercise. The reason for that is because your triceps make up the most of your arm mass. This method gives you that entire pump in your arms.

• Tricep exercise
• no rest!
• Bicep exercise

Talk about a pump! Your arms will be pumped and jacked up-looking from all angles after doing these supersets.

*Here’s a workout you may also like to try for arms using supersets in this post: Arm Circuit Dumbbell Workout At Home with Supersets

Dumbbell Exercises for Shoulders and Arms Explained

Now, I’m going to give you a chest and back workout where you use unilateral sets with other non-unilateral exercises. This is more in line with a standard bodybuilding style workout.

Standing Dumbbell Press

• Start in the standing position by pressing both dumbbells over your head
• In a controlled manner, bring one dumbbell down while holding the other arm up in that steady position
• Press the dumbbell back and repeat with the other arm
• As instructed in the ‘methods’ section above, you’ll do this (unilateral reps) for 10 reps and then do 10 reps with the arms, simultaneously

Lateral Raises (Single-Arm)

• Find something to brace your arm on, like the pole you see me holding on to (this is a column on the patio)
• Hold the dumbbell with your other arm and raise it up
• You don’t have to go too high (like many do); you want to keep the stress on the shoulder muscle, not your joints
• When you release the dumbbell, bring it back down to the starting position slow, and controlled; this will work the muscle even harder
• Once you do your set with the one arm, repeat with the other

Overhead Tricep Dumbbell Extensions

You’re doing 2 variations of overhead tricep extensions in this workout. The tips below apply to both variations.

• You’ll start by hold the dumbbell(s) over your head
• When you bring the dumbbell(s) down behind your head, make sure you keep the tension on your muscles (triceps)
• As you press the dumbbell(s) back up, flex your triceps at the peak of the rep

Dumbbell Curls

Like the exercises for triceps, you’ll also be doing 2 variations of dumbbell curls. The first is hammer curls, which you’ll do these with both arms simutaneously.

The other type of curls will be with a regular grip, palms facing outward. And you’ll alternate each arm. The below tips apply to both variations of curls. .

• Make sure you have a firm grip on the dumbbells before curling the weight up; this is going to help you contract your biceps harder, which will help build that muscle
• Keeping your body as straight as possible (no swaying or jerking), curl the dumbbell(s) up
• When you get to the ‘peak’ of each rep, flex your biceps hard
• Release slowly, with a controlled motion; this forces your biceps to do more work, helping them grow

*If you’d like a full dumbbell workout for all muscle groups, check out my post: Muscle Building Workout At Home with Dumbbells

The Secret to Training Shoulders and Arms at Home

Well, there’s actually no ‘secret’ to training your shoulders and arms at home. But there are a few things you need to consider if you want your workouts to be effective, especially for these muscles.

• You must force your muscles to do the work; don’t just go through the motions
• Use strict form meaning don’t jerk or use momentum to lift the dumbbells
• Flex your shoulders, triceps, and biceps at the top of each rep for the relevant muscle
• Do not allow any distractions during your workouts; stay focused
• Have a dedicated and cleared-out space for your workouts at home

In fact, you should apply these strategies to all of your workouts, in general. The reason I’m harping on these muscles is because it’s really easy to get caught up in just moving the weight from point A to B.

You have to stay focused throughout your workout and make every rep count. Especially when you’re training at home where it may be easier to get distracted.

I hope you give this workout a try. And feel free to share this post!

**Also, don’t forget to check out the pre-workout I’m taking called PREFIERCE.

Excuses Don’t Build Muscle,

Jason

And if you want to take your workout to the next level of intensity, I’m going to show you how to use unilateral sets for both chest and back exercises.

The good news is that you can do this even if all you have is a light pair of dumbbells.

In this post, you’ll get 2 different workouts you can do. Both have you training chest and back together.

And I’ll also go deeper into ways to make your workouts more effective with the unilateral method (wait until you do this; you’ll be super-pumped!). In fact, you’re going to make those light dumbbells feel heavy.

I’m writing this during the time when we’re all under quarantine and most gyms around the world are closed.

This post is not intended to knock lifting heavy weight. Rather, it’s intended for those times when you can’t make it to the gym or your gym is closed for whatever reason.

Many do not have heavier weights at home, and buying weights can be expensive. So this workout shows you how to use what you have to get an intense workout (or you can buy a pair of lighter dumbbells, which aren’t so expensive).

How to do Unilateral Sets

*If you’re already familiar with unilateral training, you can skip this part and scroll down to the next section.

So, what is unilateral training?

Robbie Fioritto from the Elite Performance Sports Gym gives a simple explanation below…

Unilateral training is a style of training in which you are only working one limb at a time.

Easy examples to think about are the traditional barbell bench press (using both arms to press the weight) and the barbell back squat (using both legs to squat the weight). 

UNILATERAL TRAINING – WHAT IT IS AND SHOULD YOU BE DOING IT? by Bobby Fioritto M.S., https://www.elitesportsperformancegym.com/unilateral-training

Now, we’re going to make this more intense by keeping constant tension on the muscle of non-working limb. And I’ll explain that further below.

Your goal here is to increase time under tension for your muscles. That leads to more muscle growth.

Unilateral Exercises for Chest and Back

There are 2 key exercises you’ll be using the unilateral method for.

1. Dumbbell press (the exercise we just went over as an example)
2. Dumbbell bent-over rows

How to do Unilateral Dumbbell Press

• Press both dumbbells up
• Bring one arm down while keeping the other arm up
• Once you press the one dumbbell back up, bring the opposite arm down, reversing the pattern
• Once both arms have done their job, you can count that as 1 unilateral rep

How to do Unilateral Dumbbell Bent-over Rows

• Pull both dumbbells towards your lower torso and hold them there
• Bring one arm down while keeping the other arm up
• Once you pull the one dumbbell back up, bring the opposite arm down, reversing the pattern
• Same as above, that’s 1 total rep

This video below, which is actually the first workout in this post, shows you how to perform unilateral sets for both dumbbell bent-over rows and dumbbell press:

**I mentioned the pre-workout supplement I’m taking in this video. At the time of writing this, I had been taking this for more than 2 weeks. I never had to increase the dose beyond 3/4s a scoop and it delivered that same energy, mental focus, and pump every single workout!

GET BETTER WORKOUTS HERE

Chest and Back Workouts (2)

As I mentioned in the beginning, I’m going to give you 2 workouts you can do at home for training your chest and back together. You’ll need a bench and a pair of dumbbells for both.

And remember, light dumbbells are okay because I’m going to show you how to make these workouts super intense.

1) Unilateral-Only Chest and Back Workout

In theory, this first workout is extremely simple. But don’t let that fool you because it’s going to be tough!

You’re only doing 2 exercises here. And it’s all unilateral-based. However, you will be extending these sets by adding other techniques to the end of each set.

Here are some notes about the workout:

• You’ll be alternating chest and back exercises (instead of 3-4 sets of chest followed by 3-4 sets of back, you’ll do a chest exercise followed by a back exercise, then repeat)
• Rest about 1 minute between each set
• Once you do the unilateral part of your set, you’ll pump out regular reps, and you’ll follow that up with a few controlled reps; this is one giant, extended set

Here’s the workout…

Part I

This equals one ‘huge’ set! So you’ll essentially be doing around 30 or more reps.

Now, you’ll rest for 1 minute and do the same for the next exercise, which is dumbbell press…

Part II

Again, you’re hitting around 30 or more reps here. Rest for about 1 minute and go back to your bent-over rows.

You can repeat this cycle as many times as you want. In the video, I recommended doing 3-5 rounds of these exercises.

2) Chest and Back Workout with some Unilateral Sets

Now, I’m going to give you a chest and back workout where you use unilateral sets with other non-unilateral exercises. This is more in line with a standard bodybuilding style workout.

Here are some notes about the workout:

• You’ll still be alternating your chest and back exercises, but you’ll do multiple sets for each exercise before going to the next exercises (ex: 3-4 sets of the same exercise for back, then 3-4 sets of the same for chest)
• Rest about 45 seconds between each set
• You’re going to end your workout with unilateral sets; this allows you to focus on other exercises, but end your workout with the greatest of intensity

Note about reps:

Your rep ranges may be higher or lower depending on the amount of weight you use. For those with limited access to weights when all you have are a pair of light dumbbells, I challenge you to pump out as many reps as possible, like 30, 40, and even 50.

In addition, if you’d like to learn more about the benefits of training chest and back together, you can read about that and get another chest and back workout in my post here: Chest and Back Circuit Workout at Home with Dumbbells

I’ll also show you more methods to increase your workout intensity using lighter dumbbells in this post: How to Build Muscle at Home with Light Dumbbells

Chest and Back with Dumbbells

There’s no doubt that pushing and pulling heavy loads on a barbell will indeed build muscle. But the problem is you may not always have access to a gym or heavier weights.

And you now realize that with this whole situation of being under quarantine. Or what if your gym suddenly closes and there are no other options?

**There are ways to build your own home gym. You can read more about that here: Get the Blueprints to Building Your Own Home Gym, Cheap

Training with a light pair of dumbbells is better than not training at all. So make the most of what you have, or have access to at the time. And use these techniques, like unilateral sets, to make your workouts more intense, and more effective.

Excuses Don’t Build Muscle,

Jason

In short, yes, it’s possible. But you have to understand that training legs at home will be much different than when you’re at the gym.

In this post, you’re going to get a complete leg workout you can do at home with light dumbbells. More importantly, I’m also going to show you some methods that will make your workout more effective.

In fact, you’re going to be surprised at how brutal this leg workout is. Trust me, you’ll be out of breath and your quads will be on fire!

And I’m going to show you how to work every angle of your legs at home your quads, hamstrings, glutes…and even your calves!

I’m writing this during the time of the COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak when most gyms around the world are closed.

This post is not intended to knock lifting heavy weight. Rather, it’s intended for those times when you can’t make it to the gym or your gym is closed for whatever reason.

Many do not have heavier weights at home, and buying weights can be expensive. So this workout shows you how to use what you have to get an intense workout (or you can buy a pair of lighter dumbbells, which aren’t so expensive).

Leg Workout

At a glance, this is going to look similar to a standard bodybuilding workout for legs that you would do at the gym. The differences are:

1. You’ll be performing the same movements as you would with a barbell, but with dumbbells
2. You’ll be doing higher reps, which is awesome for growth in your quads

Below are some notes about the workout before you get started:

• Your rest time between sets should be about 1 minute
• Since your doing super high reps for most exercises, you may be tempted to rush through them; although you will be moving fast, pumping those reps out, don’t get sloppy
• Lightly stretch your quads and hamstrings between sets (just simple stretches will do, like holding one leg behind you and toe touches)
• Take something to boost your energy and mental focus before you workout, like what I’m taking: PreFierce pre-workout

Lastly, push yourself during this workout! If you’re new to doing this many reps you may want to quit your set too early. You’re working different muscle fibers here but you’ll be surprised how far you can go when you really push yourself.

Here’s the workout…

**There are images and details for each exercise below the workout.

*Dumbbell Squats: Depending on how heavy your dumbbells are and how much endurance you have, you may not get all 25 reps for dumbbell squats. And chances are you won’t on that last set.

In this case, you will do a rest-pause set. Let’s say you get 19 reps. You’ll rest for about 15 seconds and then pump out the remaining reps until you get 15.

**Toe Raises: You’re going to do one extended set here, which is basically comprised of several rest-pause sets. You’ll pump out as many reps as you can do (with light dumbbells, I get about 25 reps). Then you’ll rest for 10 seconds and pump out more reps.

Keep repeating this until you get a total of 75 reps. I promise you that you will feel your calves burning!

Leg Exercises with Dumbbells

You’re probably familiar with the leg exercises in the workout above. But these are quite different with dumbbells so I’m going to give you some additional tips below.

Dumbbell Squats

Doing squats with dumbbells will feel much different from regular barbell squats. In fact, you may feel your quads working even more with dumbbell squats.

This is largely due to the position of the weight. With barbell squats, the weight is behind your neck on the top of your traps. But with dumbbells, that weight is directly above your shoulders so you’ll be recruiting other parts of your quads and glutes that you may have not felt before if you’re doing dumbbell squats for the first time. Here are some tips.

• Keep a shoulder-width stance with your feet slightly pointed outward
• You’ll hold the dumbbells in the starting position as if you were about to do a shoulder press
• Since you’re probably doing these with light dumbbells, take advantage of that and do a full range squat, going all the way down
• Flex your quads and glutes when you get back to the top of the movement (standing position)

Dumbbell Stiff-leg Deadlifts

Stiff-leg deadlifts are known for working your hamstrings. But doing them with dumbbells can help you target your hams even more. Here are some tips to consider.

• Maintain a slight arch in your lower back; you do not want to round your back
• You’ll start with the dumbbells by your side but then you’ll naturally shift to holding them in front of you as you bend forward; this gives you a better range of motion at the top than you get with a barbell
• Keep the dumbbells close to your body throughout the movement; this will help keep tension on your hamstrings
• Tap into your mind-to-muscle connection and concentrate on making your hamstrings pull your body back up each rep

Dumbbell Sumo Squats

Doing sumo squats with dumbbells is a great exercise to work your inner leg thighs. But you can also target other areas in your legs throughout each rep by making a couple of little shifts. I’m going to show you how to do that below.

• Make sure you have a wide but balanced stance
• Point your feet out but keep the pressure on your heels the entire time
• Don’t let your legs cave in as you squat down; keep them pushed out
• As you’re squatting up, push your legs out even more; this will also involve your outer thighs as you get back to the standing position
• Keep your shoulders blades clinched as much as possible, and have a slight arch in your lower back; this will help with balance, which will help you focus more on working your leg muscles throughout the movement

Dumbbell Lunges

You’re going to do standard dumbbell lunges here, just like you would at the gym. But the best part about doing these at home is you can expand your range by doing walking lunges outside in your yard or on your patio.

Walking lunges are awesome because throughout every step you take (that was not intended to be a Police song pun!), you’ll target a different part of your leg muscles. Here are some tips to make lunges more effective:

• Take deep strides when doing these; you don’t want your knee to be over your foot
• Keep constant tension on the quad muscle of the leg once your foot that’s stepping out touches the ground; control that rep (you’ll feel your glutes working here, too!)
• As you’re pushing your body back up with that leg, focus on the hamstring muscle of your other leg to assist in that movement; now you’re working the agonist and antagonist muscles at the same time
• Once you’re back at the standing position, give all of your leg muscles a good squeeze before taking the next step with your other leg

There are some muscle-building advantages to working agonist and antagonist muscles together. You can read more about that in my post: Lean and Strong Workout with Agonist and Antagonist Supersets

Dumbbell Toe Raises

Doing toe raises while holding a pair of dumbbells sounds simple enough, and it is. But you’ll find that this exercise requires more balance than you probably thought. So here’s how to do them (without falling over):

• Keep your torso straight and core super tight; this will help you with balance
• Keep the pressure on the balls of your feet throughout the exercise; this will keep constant tension on your calf muscles
• Flex your calves at the top of each rep
• Instead of letting yourself fall back to the starting position, control your reps, forcing the muscles to work harder on the descent of the movement
• The ’75 reps’ you’re doing for this specific exercise will indeed make your calves grow!

I show you more methods to increase intensity with light dumbbells in this post: How to Build Muscle at Home with Light Dumbbells

Making Light Dumbbells Feel Heavy

You can get an awesome workout at home even if all you have is a pair of light dumbbells. The key is to force your muscles to work harder every rep. And to do that requires some intense focus.

Here are some more tips to make your leg workouts effective so you can build muscle at home:

• Concentrate and focus on the muscles you’re targeting throughout each rep
• Even though you’re doing higher reps with lighter weights, don’t rush through your reps
• On the note above, don’t let your form get sloppy
• Try your best to keep tension on your leg muscles during the entire set
• Make sure to stretch your quads and hamstrings between sets and after your workout; this helps reduce soreness and can help with muscle recovery and growth

Earlier, I recommended taking a pre-workout supplement. We all need that extra boost, and the specific product I’m recommending really helps with mental focus, which is key to training at home.

PreFierce is what I’ve been taking and it gives you that energy and mental focus so you can pump out these high reps. And it’s consistent every workout (the effects do not wear off like most pre-workout supplements do).

You can learn more about PreFierce and how to purchase by clicking here.

Try this light dumbbell workout at home on your next leg day. And feel free to share this article.

Excuses Don’t Build Muscle,

Jason

In this post, you’re going to get a shoulder routine you can do at home with just a pair of light dumbbells.

You will be doing ultra-high reps, doing a total of 300 reps for shoulders. I’m also going to take you through 2 specific methods for that. And this is going to give you that extreme pump.

You’re also going to be training every angle of your shoulders. I’ll go through each exercise with images below as well.

I’m writing this during the time of the COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak when most gyms around the world are closed.

This post is not intended to knock lifting heavy weight. Rather, it’s intended for those times when you can’t make it to the gym or your gym is closed for whatever reason.

Many do not have heavier weights at home, and buying weights can be expensive. So this workout shows you how to use what you have to get an intense workout (or you can buy a pair of lighter dumbbells, which aren’t so expensive).

4 Dumbbell Exercises for Shoulders

You’ll be doing 4 exercises for this shoulder routine. I’ll go through each one below.

These are going to be basic shoulder movements that will give you the best results. And then I’ll show you exactly how you’re going to do a total of 300 reps.

Dumbbell Shoulder Press

You can do these seated, or standing if you don’t have a weight bench at home.

You’ll be pumping out a lot of reps so don’t expect every rep to be perfect. With that said, here are some tips for dumbbell shoulder press:

• Try to get a full range of motion
• Stay completely focused, forcing your muscles to do the work (don’t shift your body or jerk the weight)
• When you get within 5 reps of your goal for that set (we’ll get to that below in the workout), start slowing those reps down to make your muscles work harder

Bent-over Raises

You’re going to be doing 3 different types of lateral movements. This one is going to work your rear deltoids, which is often an underdeveloped muscle (this is why you’ll do this exercise first in the series of lateral exercises).

Here are some ways to make sure you’re targeting your rear delts with bent-over raises:

• Make sure you have a slight arch in your lower back as you lean forward; don’t round your back
• Maintain the same position with your arms throughout the movement (a slight bend in your elbows is okay); do not turn this into a bent-over row
• Use as less momentum as possible
• When you get to the top of the movement (arms extended), you can rotate your wrists out a little and that will help you contract your rear delts

Front Raises

Doing front raises with dumbbells will, of course, work your front deltoids. There are a few ways to make this exercise more effective below.

• Keep your torso straight throughout this movement; don’t sway or jerk your body to lift the dumbbells
• You can do these one arm at a time or simultaneously