I hear ya!
I’ve dabbled with the gym a little, and I do quite like it, but I struggle to get there.
I still want to work on my strength though for many reasons – not least that it’s great to feel strong in your body, but it has tons of other benefits too, like ramping up your metabolic rate so that you’re burning energy more efficiently, building stronger bones (which can become an issue during menopause), as well as supporting your heart and general health.
In the past, I’d always worried that weights equalled looking like a bodybuilder, which isn’t my bag, but the reality is achieving that kind of physique is hard. It takes time, dedication, and very specific training.
Working on your strength can help you get all the benefits I just mentioned, as well as helping keep you toned.
So what with struggling to get to the gym but still wanting to work on strength, I decided I could make do with bodyweight exercises and some dumbbells.
I got this set for £140…
While I prefer the feel of neoprene dumbbells, this was the best value set I’d found with a good selection of weights so it’s what I opted for.
The set includes 2 each of the following: 2.5kg, 5kg, 7.5kg and 10kg. Whilst it would be great to be able to go up in 1kg increments, that would involve spending more like £400 on a bigger set. If you’re in a similar situation and have a limited collection, panic not! When you start to feel like it’s getting easy with a particular set of dumbbells, you can increase the intensity by slowing your movement down or adding a pause mid-movement.
If you’re just starting out, here are a few tips I’ve picked up along the way…
- Focus on form before weight.
- Make sure you are doing the exercise properly to get the most out of it and avoid injury.
- Don’t rush – be intentional about the movement.
- Use your body to make controlled movements, no swinging or using gravity, etc.
- Engage your muscles, think about which muscles you’re using for the movement, and make sure you’re feeling it.
- Ideally, you’ll find the last couple of reps (repetitions) of each set (number of reps you do at a time) hard to complete.
- If you’re easily completing all sets and reps, you may benefit from going for heavier dumbbells.
Next up… what to do?
There are some good channels on YouTube where you can follow along which is great as you can see exactly how to do the movement and make sure your form is correct. This is important for getting the most out of the exercise and for preventing injury.
You can search ‘dumbbell workout’ on YouTube, but here’s a couple to get you started:
If you’d like a bit more support, have a look at James Smith Academy. James is a straight-talking PT who has a great app offering tailored workouts with coach support. I’ve done a couple of 12-week challenges with them and found it to be really good. There is a cost attached but it’s certainly cheaper than if you were to employ a personal trainer. He offers a free 7-day trial too if you fancy a look.
I find a home workout with dumbbells and body weight to be super effective, plus I get to do it in my pyjamas! So if this is something you fancy having a go at, but you’re nervous about the gym or can’t get there, give this a go!
Let me know how you get on.
Donna x