You might think that by this point in quarantine, all dumbbells have vanished from the face of the earth, and you’re not entirely wrong. You’ve spent months in the pandemic getting stronger with your bodyweight exercises. You don’t have to spend money on equipment to work out at home if bodyweight exercises aren’t cutting. Alternatives to dumbbells are listed below.
Use your backpack:
Adding resistance to squats, lunges, and pushups with a backpack full of books is one of the best ways to simulate heavier weights. Simply pack your old college textbooks into that backpack you haven’t used since the start of quarantine and exercise as usual. As needed, adjust the weight.
Exercise Bands
To get a full upper and lower body workout, replace dumbbells with flexible exercise bands. Exercise bands, like various weight dumbbells, have varying degrees of protection. They are ideal for travel because they are lightweight and simple to pack, even in a small suitcase.
Bags of Rice
Rice that hasn’t been cooked, on the other hand, never expires. So, even if you don’t have exactly two bags on hand, you can buy some and be confident that you’ll eat them eventually. Plus, they’re made for back lunges with your arms at your sides.
Use an over-the-hand grip to grab the middle of these bags. Now keep them on your sides; your arms must not be bent in any way. Place the right leg backward while taking a couple of steps back with your left. Maintain a bend in the left knee and pause a little before the right knee comes in contact with the ground to lower your body slowly. Bring the right foot behind to the point where it meets the left one. That is one rep; you can do as much as you want before switching to the other side and repeating the process.
Use Plastic Water Bottles As Dumbbells
Arm exercises such as arm curls, arm overhead extensions, and arm overhead presses can be performed with a full 16-ounce water bottle instead of dumbbells. If this is too easy for you, increase the number of repetitions to 15 to 30.
A Suitcase with Anything You have Inside.
This idea can take your workout to the next level. You can fill the suitcase using cans or a combination of the items discussed above, or literally whatever else you want. But remember to measure the weight of the suitcase separately to determine how much it weighs. Once you’ve reached your desired weight, it’s time to increase your squats. Keep the suitcase at the same level as your chest and wrap your arms around it, as if you were giving it a bear hug.
Tighten your abs when your knees bend in order to make your body go low until your quads are as horizontal as possible. For lifting your own body and straightening your legs, press through your heels. Use your glute muscles by squeezing them and forwardly push your hips once you’ve reached the starting position. That counts as one rep. You may complete as much as you want.
Your Body
So, technically speaking, your body is not an item of your household. However, if you don’t have dumbbells and that is what you are here for, you can use them to your advantage. There are thousands of bodyweight exercises to choose from. On the other hand, the plank is a great exercise that targets several muscle groups at once.
Books
At home, at work, or anywhere else you can find them, books make a good substitute for dumbbells. If you want to work out both arms simultaneously, look for books that roughly break even with weight. As a solitary, substantial weight, use a large book, such as an unedited lexicon.
Bags of sand:
These can be quite heavy and easy to hold while exercising, making them a great option for toning. However, instead of filling any bag with sand, use a burlap sack or something similar to these saddlebags (the handles make these even easier to use).
You don’t even need to buy anything; simply collect sand and dirt from your backyard in a trash bag, stuff it into an old duffel bag, and go! What happens if you don’t have any sand on hand? Bags of rice or another similar grain can be used instead.
Use Cans
We all have a few unused cans of beans or soup stashed away in the back of our cupboards. Make sure the label says 16 ounces if you’re looking for a one-pound item. To put it another way, cans are as close as you can get to the feel of real dumbbells.
Triceps kickbacks are an excellent way to work those biceps. Stand next to a couch or a chair and rest the hand closest to the furniture on it to help stabilize yourself. Take an overhand grip on a can with your other hand and hinge your hips. Bend your elbow 90 degrees so that your upper arm is parallel to the floor. Return your arm to a straight, parallel to the floor position.
Use Ankle Weights
You can easily use lower leg weights instead of dumbbells. You just need to make a firm grip on them by securely wrapping them in a circle. Make sure that they are not floppy! After securely circling them, you are now able to use them in any of your preferred workouts.