Dumbbell workouts are nice because you don’t need a lot of equipment. Maybe you’re afraid of getting under the bar and would rather stick to something a little more manageable.
Whatever your reason, the best way to start this 4 day dumbbell workout routine is to just do it. Almost any gym or fitness center will have a rack of dumbbells for your all-you-can-eat gains buffet.
Don’t want to go the gym? That’s okay, too. Below will be a few links to some dumbbell sets that are affordable and would work perfect for this workout.
Before we jump into the workout, I’m going to go over some nutrition tips, recommended supplements if your nutrition is on point, links to some equipment, your cardio schedule, and of course the 4 day dumbbell workout routine.
Diet and Nutrition Tips
You can beat your muscles down in the gym but the only way to build muscle is to fuel your body with quality food. This is why it is so hard to build muscle while you are trying to cut weight — you are eating fewer calories than you burn, so what fuel do you have to build muscle?
When it comes to eating better, I try to implement an 80/20 rule. I aim to have 80% of my meals prepared by me, using the best quality food I can afford. Fresh and frozen meat, veggies, fruit, and rice are on my weekly grocery list. You don’t have to buy the natural grass-fed free-roaming hand-massaged beef and free range chickens that take strolls on the beach to benefit from eating whole foods.
Eating healthy isn’t as expensive as everyone makes it out to be. Think of it as an investment.
Learn to Cook
Cooking isn’t as hard as you may think. I never was allowed in the kitchen as a child so trust me when I say anyone can do this with some patience. The trick is learning technique and then going after the complex meals.
Don’t get me wrong, I don’t know how to cook 5 course gourmet meals, but I have no problem eating enough varieties of a protein and vegetable to keep me happy. I made a pretty good meatloaf and lasagna once.
Long story short here is the sooner you learn to cook, the sooner you will notice changes in your performance and physique.
Recommended Supplements
Note: If you cannot get good foods into your mouth, this section is irrelevant. You really can’t out train and out supplement a crap diet.
Pre-Workout
MTS Nutrition Clash
I personally like apple mango, but all flavors are good.
This is a great blend without too many stimulants.
Protein
MTS Machine Whey Protein: 5lbs
This is in my opinion the best tasting protein on the market. Period.
Great blend with no secrets, no amino spiking, and it is some of the best in the industry.
So far I’ve had Red Velvet and Cookies and Cream. Both are A+.
BCAA
MTS Nutrition Machine Fuel
Marc Lobliner has his sweetening on point with these supplements.
I’ve used mixed berry and grape and I love them both.
Multi-Vitamin
Optimum Nutrition Opti-Men
Once you get your diet on point, taking a multi-vitamin is important as a strength athlete.
Get the most of your gains and life with this multi-vitamin.
Cardio and Conditioning Tips
I would recommend doing a short 20-30 minute cardio session post workout at least twice a week for optimum muscle growth and recovery.
If you are running low on time, a short 5-10 minute high intensity interval session at least twice per week will help with maximizing your progress.
Note: Some low intensity walking, hiking, bicycling, etc is helpful to improve your quality of life and recovery from your workouts.
Don’t Want to go to the Gym?
Maybe you don’t have time to go to the gym or you want to train at home… what next?
If you haven’t been following me, I started an eCommerce store called Strength Junkies and I sell home and commercial gym equipment.
I am an authorized dealer for Troy Barbell and BodyCraft and adding more manufacturers soon.
Below I will suggest a couple of different dumbbell sets you could buy that would work well with this routine.
Dumbbells
Adjustable dumbbells make training easy at home because you don’t need to have a wall full of dumbbells to train anything you need.
There are a few sets and options I offer and I’ll go over their benefits and downsides below.
Before we get into the different sets, here are the threaded and regular handled dumbbell explanations.
Threaded Handles
- Pros: Holds strong for exercises like goblet squats and overhead tricep extensions.
- Cons: It sometimes comes a little loose when training and when changing weights it can be a pain.
Regular Handles
- Pros: Easy to slide weights on (it’s just like the regular Olympic size).
- Cons: Weights can slide and the collars could come loose after a while.
Bench
“You get what you pay for” is a saying that generally is true… especially with gym equipment.
You can get adjustable benches everywhere and if you aren’t too serious about training… I guess any bench would do.
If you are working on starting your own home gym or you really want a quality bench, York Barbell has some amazing products.
4 Day Dumbbell Workout Routine
Everyone’s schedules are different. Quit making excuses and carve our four days for you to train. It’s ideal to get plenty of recovery between workouts — try to limit your workouts to two or three days in a row before taking a rest day.
Sample 4 Day Dumbbell Workout Routine
- Day 1: OFF
- Day 2: Legs
- Day 3: Chest
- Day 4: OFF
- Day 5: Back
- Day 6: Shoulders
- Day 7: OFF
| Legs | ||
| Exercise | Sets | Reps |
|---|---|---|
| DB Squat | 3 | 8 |
| DB Stiff Leg Deadlift | 3 | 12 |
| DB Lunges | 3 | 12 |
| Concentration Curl | 3 | 12 |
| Chest | ||
| Exercise | Sets | Reps |
|---|---|---|
| DB Flat Bench | 3 | 8 |
| DB Incline Bench | 3 | 8 |
| Incline DB Flys | 3 | 12 |
| DB Side Bend | 3 | 12 |
| DB Tricep Kickback | 3 | 12 |
| Back | ||
| Exercise | Sets | Reps |
|---|---|---|
| Single Leg DB Deadlift | 3 | 8 |
| Bent Over DB Row | 3 | 8 |
| DB Pullover | 3 | 12 |
| Cross Body DB Hammer Curl | 3 | 12 |
| Shoulders | ||
| Exercise | Sets | Reps |
|---|---|---|
| Seated DB Overhead Press | 3 | 8 |
| DB Shrugs | 3 | 12 |
| Standing Bent Over Laterals | 3 | 12 |
| Weighted Decline Bench Situp | 3 | 12 |
| 1 Arm Seated DB Tricep Extension | 3 | 12 |
4 Day Dumbbell Workout Routine Tips
Performing exercises correctly is important for growth and lowering the risk of injury. Ego lifting can be fun sometimes, but it won’t build the consistent gains you are looking for.
Progressive overload is one of the most important things to focus on, just after consistency. If you consistently train and consistently add weight or reps to your exercises, you will make progress.
Nutrition is important. That doesn’t mean you can’t eat hamburgers and nachos, it means you have to start monitoring what you are eating. You can have a 1,200 calorie bacon cheeseburger and fries as long as the rest of your day is light. Try to apply the 80/20 rule. That means 80% of your calories should come from nutritious sources, while 20% of your calories can come from what you enjoy. If you eat 2,000 calories per day, you can essentially eat 400 calories of junk food as long as you eat 1,600 calories from nutritious sources. Log your food.
Know your goal. I made the mistake of wanting to get jacked while being very overweight. This slowed my weight loss progress. What is your goal? Do you want to lose weight and get fit? Are you skinny want want to build muscle? Trying to get as strong as possible? If you’re overweight and want to build muscle, I would invite you to lose fat and then slow bulk with nutritious foods.
Like the idea of a dumbbell only workout routine but need it to be a 3 day routine? Check out this 3 day powerlifting dumbbell routine.
As always, be sure to comment or ask any questions below, I would be happy to answer them. Be sure to follow us on Facebook and sign up for updates.
I have a battle rope can I substitute some excercises for it? if so what exercise should I take out and what should I do.
You could substitute the rope for Dumbbell Overhead Presses and weighted decline situps… try it out and let me know how you feel afterwards.
Cutty
How can I make this routine into a ( 3 ) day routine
The easiest way would be to take the shoulder exercises and just go down the list and put the first 2 exercises in day 1, next 2 in day 2 and the last exercise into day 3.
Set it up how you like – if you want bent over laterals and tricep extensions on your back day then do that. It’s a bit open.
I’ll be making a 3 day dumbbell routine here shortly… there’s been a lot of people asking for it.
Cutty
Art,
Or you could try this 3 day dumbbell routine.. it’s similar but a little different. Just wrote it earlier this morning. :)
Cutty
What if I’m short for time and only have two 25lbs and two 50lbs dumbbells? Can I still do this routine even if I cant add more weight??
Just do 3 sets to failure using the weight you have, that’d be the best thing without buying more equipment. If you are trying to get some equipment let me know, I run Strength Junkies and I have a few adjustable dumbbell set ups you could check out.
Will this also workout your core?
Yes
Cutty,
I’d like to add pull-ups to the workout. Where would you suggest putting them in? Also, how many reps and sets would you suggest? Thanks for your time!
Josh
Put them into back day and do like 2-3 sets of as many as possible at the end of your workout, that should help really put the hit on your lats.
Cutty
Thank you for the workout routine, i’m starting it this week.
Question – for exercises such as cross body db hammer curl. Does that mean that you do 12 reps per arm per set? Or 12 reps altogether?
Bill, 12 reps per arm :)
Let me know how it feels!
I started on Monday and my legs are sore.. I’m 46 so my recovery time isn’t what it used to be, My chest is sore from Tuesdays workout. So far I like this routine. A few weeks ago I was trying another routine with all dumbells that had power cleans and clean and jerks and I think I overdid it because now I have plantar fasciitis in my left foot. I’m going to stick with this routine and see how it goes.
Good luck Bill. I understand about the soreness. Take your time and build up – you will eventually not get as sore if you keep with it.
I’ve been having feet and ankle problems myself so I understand how terrible it is.
Hey Cutty, Can this workout be used as a substitute for the 12 week/weight cardio program you created? I workout in a small gym, haven’t worked out in a year.
This is a great workout to get back into the swing of things. Any workout I write has a general purpose in mind (unless otherwise stated) so this routine is a great substitute for the 12 week program.
Hello,
I started this routine based on an internet search and have been doing it for 5 weeks and have seen some progress. My question is should I do each exercise separately or in a circuit? I currently do them in circuit with 30 sec. rest between and I get a good heart rate going, but am wondering if I am not getting the correct pump for each exercise. Thank you for your feedback and website.
You could do either. Most people prefer to do them one exercise at a time, or somewhat “superset” 2 exercises. So for instance do a dumbbell squat set and then do a dumbbell stiff leg deadlift set. Doing everything in a circuit sounds like it is a lot of work, but if you have the ability to do that, it definitely won’t hurt.
Thank you for the kind words, and I’m glad to hear you are making progress!
Hey cutty, what about the arms day? I’m beginner would you help me
You can add in 3 exercises for your arms twice per week. There’s no real need to add more arm work but if you feel like you would like more then adding 3 exercises twice per week would be alright.