One dumbbell is all you need to improve athletic performance, build core strength, and get ripped.
If you want to develop your six pack, you don’t need a whole gym that is full of equipment. I mean, you can if you want to — but you can carve your core pretty well with just one dumbbell.
Bodyweight-only moves are great – They can sometimes be lacking, too. Tons of people think they’re working their entire core with exercises like hanging leg raises and mountain climbers — but they’re primarily recruiting the muscles in the midline of the abdominals, the rectus abdominis, with that type of work. They’re missing out on important gains for the external and internal obliques, which are important for lateral bending, trunk rotation, and explosive force.
These 4 moves strike the perfect balance. They only require a single dumbbell, and they directly target all of the muscles of the abdominal wall and lower back.
Precautions
See your doctor if you have any illnesses, injuries or other medical conditions.
Structure
- 1 mile run
- Then do the circuit below
- Then repeat for as many rounds as you can
Dumbbell Side Plank x 10 each side
- Place your right forearm on the ground and get into a side forearm plank.
- Grab the dumbbell with your left hand.
- Scoop the dumbbell underneath your torso then rotate your left arm and dumbbell towards the ceiling.
- Pause for 1-2 seconds then go straight into the scooping motion again.
Dumbbell Sit Up to Overhead Press x 20
- Start laying on your back with the Dumbbell behind your head
- Brace your abs and bring the dumbbell over your head and towards your legs as you sit up and press up over head at the apex of the sit up.
- Straighten your back completely when you press the dumbbell overhead and lock your elbows
- Reverse the movement and roll back down to the starting position
Dumbbell Russian Twist x 10 each side (20 total)
- Sit with your knees bent out in front of you, feet flexed, and heels on the floor.
- Hold one dumbbell in front of your chest, and lean your torso back until you feel your abdominal muscles engage.
- Slowly twist your torso from right to left. Remember to keep your core tight (and breathe!) throughout.
Half Kneeling Wood-Chop x 10 each side
- Kneel on floor with knees hip-distance apart
- Holding a dumbbell with both hands, arms extended.
- Rotate torso to the left, bringing weight to outside of left thigh, keeping arms extended. This is your start position.
- Using your core, lift weight diagonally across body and above your right shoulder, keeping arms extended. Reverse to start.
DONT HAVE DUMBBELLS? SEE MY OTHER AWESOME SWEATY WORKOUTS HERE:
Comment, send to your workout partner or pin it on pinterest and try it next time you’re looking for a good sweat session.