Home exercise equipment runs the gamut from big machines, such as treadmills and ellipticals, to small, basic supplies such as medicine balls and jump ropes. There's no question that all of that equipment can provide notable benefits for your workouts, but if you can choose just one type of supply for your home gym, make it a sturdy set of dumbbells.
Types
There are dozens of dumbbells on the market, so zeroing in on those that will be most useful to you is important. You may want to choose weights with neoprene coatings or grips if you know that you'll be dealing with sweaty hands during your workouts. If that's not a concern, try metal grips instead. Adjustable dumbbells are useful for adding variable amounts of weight for different exercises. Above all, prioritize durability and quality so that you can use the dumbbells you buy for years.
Benefits
Strength training has a plethora of advantages. It's possible to strength-train and build muscle without dumbbells through calisthenics or with machine weights, but the affordable and versatile nature of dumbbells really makes them useful for home-based exercise. According to the Mayo Clinic, lifting weights can help you build muscle, improve your stamina, strengthen your bones, control your weight and manage chronic health conditions such as diabetes, osteoporosis, arthritis, back pain and depression. Overstock.com says muscle development through methods such as dumbbell exercise reduces the risk of joint injury and can boost calorie-burning activity.
Exercises
As the American Council on Exercise points out, free weights are more versatile than machine weights and other strength training equipment because they can be used for so many different exercises. Try using them for rows, curls, kickbacks, lateral raises or overhead presses, and hold them while doing lunges or squats to add resistance to the exercises. You can even use dumbbells to enhance traditional cardio activities. Hold light to medium hand weights while walking, jogging or doing other exercises to add resistance and make the activities more difficult.
Considerations
One of the most important components of using dumbbells is maintaining proper form during exercise. If you're lax with your form or simply don't know how to do an exercise correctly, you can strain your joints and muscles and increase your risk of injury. Thus, before you try out a new dumbbell exercise at home, watch a fitness professional at a gym or in a class demonstrate the move first, or check out a video example on an exercise DVD or health website. Work up to heavier weights with time, and always clear your exercise regimen with a doctor before beginning.
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