5 Things You Need to Know About Dumbbell Exercises for Women

Women tend to think that exercising with dumbbells will give them those really masculine biceps and that this type of exercise should be avoided at any cost. Well, you know what? That’s not really true. Exercising with dumbbells can give you beautiful, feminine looking arms as well as additional strength. Here are 5 things you need to know about dumbbell exercises for women.

1. Take Light Dumbbells

Of course, you are not going to take 10lbs dumbbells if you’ve never exercised with dumbbells before. Starting dumbbells should weigh between 2 and 3lbs.

Although you may physically be able to lift more weight, the general rule of exercising applies to exercising with dumbbells as well – start slowly and gradually increase the difficulty. Furthermore, you risk getting hurt while lifting heavy weights and torn muscles hurt like hell.

Think of your dumbbells as an exercise aid that won’t strain your body too much. You need to be able to do all of the exercises that you would normally do without dumbbells. Of course, you will need some more strength to do this, but you should be able to lift a dumbbell with your arm without feeling exhausted. If you can’t lift it normally, you can’t exercise effectively.

The best idea is to buy adjustable dumbbells so that you can start lightweight and increase the weight as you progress. They do cost a bit more, but they take up less space and you get a complete set of dumbbells.

2. The Areas Affected

People usually think that they can use dumbbells only to tone their arms and build up arm muscles. That’s totally wrong. Of course, lifting dumbbells will tone your arms, but that’s not the only thing they can do.

Use dumbbell exercises to tone your back as well, and even your legs. You may think that’s gibberish, but it’s not. Keep reading and find out how.

3. Exercises for Your Arms

Any type of exercise that involves lifting a dumbbell is a good exercise for your arms. Keep your arms straight or bend your elbows, either of those exercises works.

There are a huge number of dumbbell exercises for your arms, but the most common ones are biceps dumbbell exercises and triceps dumbbell exercises. Biceps exercises are those where you lift the dumbbells and bend your elbows while doing that. Still, keep in mind that you must not swing your arms at any moment or let your elbows move forward. Your arms should be kept in a straight line from your shoulders to your elbows. You can either sit down or stand while doing this.

If you have someone to help you exercise it’s a great idea to do negative biceps exercises. This means that someone should lift your arms as you would lift them yourself in a normal biceps exercise and you then need to lower them down. The point is to lower your arms as slowly as possible to really feel the weight of the dumbbells.

When it comes to triceps exercises, a very small and light exercise could do a lot of good. Stand straight, put your right leg behind your left and hold on to a chair or a counter with your left arm. Lean a little bit forward and hold a 2lbs dumbbell in your right hand. Lift your right arm straight behind your back, as high as you can, without leaning further forward. Repeat the exercise with your left arm.

4. Exercises for Your Back

Any dumbbell exercise that includes lifting your arms above the height of your shoulders is an amazing exercise for your back. You can combine exercises any way you want, as long as you do them both with straight arms and bent elbows.

1. Lift your arms straight, holding 2lbs dumbbells, in front of you or to the side. Make sure to lift them above your head or at least above your shoulders.
2. Place your arms to the side, elbows bent, at the height of your shoulders and lift until they are up straight. Return to the previous position and repeat at least 10 times. Make sure never to lower your arms below your shoulders.

Most of the dumbbell exercises for your back are good for your shoulder and scapula region. To work out the middle of your back, stand straight, straighten your arms in front of you a little bit below your shoulders holding the 2lbs dumbbells. Make a half of circle with each arm trying to connect the arms behind you. Repeat 15 times.

5. Exercises for Your Legs

If you add dumbbells to any leg exercise you already know, you can’t go wrong. Now, you might think: “How the hell is holding dumbbells in my hands going to help me workout my legs?” The answer is simple – additional strain.

Additional weight in your hands brings additional strain to your body. And when you exercise your legs while holding heavy dumbbells in your hands, you need more strength to perform the leg exercise. Of course, don’t use too much weight immediately, but do start with heavier dumbbells, for example, 4-5lbs.

Do squats while holding dumbbells in your hands. Or, take the dumbbells, bend your elbows, keep them at the height of your shoulders and do squats like that.

Check out this amazing dumbells workout video below, and prepare yourself for exercises.

Exercising with dumbbells can be really great for you. Light exercises like these, can help you tone your body and improve an already existing exercise routine. Try them today and share your comments!