Post: #1

So I got my dumbells just before Christmas. I mentioned that I'm weak and that I've not been counting the weight as I prefer to just do the exercise. I started out doing a set of 10 bicep curls each arm. I kept this up for three days and then took a break. I struggled a little bit near the end.

Today I did one set exactly the same. This time I'm able to do it without the struggle near the end. Since I'm building my strength and ability to take on the 5x5 training, I thought I'd share my progress. I'm thinking at this point to start learning another exercise to add than just curls. I'm also thinking to add an extra set to my workout routine.

This may seem really pathetic to most of you but I'm really happy that I've been able to improve in a week. Maybe I was just rusty? Either way, I will be making use of this part of the forum to ask questions and stay motivated. Thanks for the guys who responded with my last post in here.

Any exercise I can do at home with dumbells is welcome at this point. I've got my 'Starting Strength' book now too so will be reading it over the next few weeks or more.

Post: #2

Bro change your mindset first. You're not weak if you took the steps to becoming a stronger man. Keep it up

Post: #3

You can do a surprising amount with a set of dumbells. When I was a teen I would just sit in my room and crank out set after set of curls with only a pair of dumbells, and it did get results. Not fantastic results, but more than any of my peers were getting.

Are they adjustable dumbells? If so they can be pretty versatile - flyes, shoulder press, pullovers, tricep extensions, one armed rows, lat/front raises...you can get a whole body workout.

Post: #4

(12-30-2016 10:30 PM)king bast Wrote:  You can do a surprising amount with a set of dumbells. When I was a teen I would just sit in my room and crank out set after set of curls with only a pair of dumbells, and it did get results. Not fantastic results, but more than any of my peers were getting.

Are they adjustable dumbells? If so they can be pretty versatile - flyes, shoulder press, pullovers, tricep extensions, one armed rows, lat/front raises...you can get a whole body workout.

Yes, they are adjustable. I will have to learn the exercises you just mentioned, thanks for the list and input

Post: #5

Get familiar with the barbell. Even if it has no weights on it.

Post: #6

If you send me a PM I can hook you up with a handful of BW exercise books that will do more for you than dumbbell curls.

Post: #7

Good stuff OP. Make those dumbbells your personal bitches. The catalyst that brought me from fat kid with manboobs to reasonably swole teenager was (aside from puberty, which never hurts) grabbing a weight bench, barbell, dumbbells, and some weights from my neighbors' trash one day the summer after 8th grade. Set it all up in my backyard and spent three months discovering the novel concept of physical activity. I have fond memories to this day of brushing sand off the bench and checking underneath for black widow spiders before each workout.

Even some janky ass equipment can yield results. Or no equipment. Most important ingredient is personal motivation. Intestinal fortitude.

My only home workout equipment that I have now is two 20 lb dumbbells that my 65 year old aunt gave me when she was cleaning out her garage. Minimal weight, but on days I simply can't get to the gym I'll bang out set after set, rotating pretty much through the movements king bast outlined above with some body weight push ups and squats thrown in, no rest between sets, and in 15-20 minutes I'm spent.

Post: #8

What's your BMI data?

What's your height and weight right now?


Also don't just jump right into lifting heavy, get the form and technique correct first.

Don't work yourself into a problem with your body.

Post: #9

Good stuff so far. How's your diet? Make sure you're getting enough protein to aid in muscle growth, and try to keep up a caloric surplus-- it'll be easier to lift when you've got more energy and mass.

Post: #10

(01-01-2017 02:35 AM)Space Cowboy Wrote:  Good stuff so far. How's your diet? Make sure you're getting enough protein to aid in muscle growth, and try to keep up a caloric surplus-- it'll be easier to lift when you've got more energy and mass.

You bring up protein, I want to point out that you can over dose yourself with protein and do damage to some organs.

I would suggest to the OP, get in touch with a nutritionist to get a proper number on how much protein you will need for your goal, some gyms actually have a person for this. As much as you can find out from the internet on the subject, just get some human interaction going.

Don't be idiot just consuming crazy amount of protein supplements, it may come back to haunt you later in life.

Post: #11

You're not going to overdose on protein. Before you take advice from anyone on here about how to build muscle, check to see if they have built any themselves.

Post: #12

Change your language and don't mentally handcuff yourself as a "weakling." If you lift, you're a lifter, plain and simple.

Post: #13

Today is Monday. I'm going to learn some of the movements mentioned in the replies. Thank you all for your support and advice. Will keep posting in this section for advice etc. Think I should get some useful information on nutrition. Any books out there?

Post: #14

5x5 is a great beginner exercise. Also, heady over to bodybuilding.com. Look at the Exercises section, and you can filter by equipment- dumbells. Great diagrams and videos for newbies.

Don't fall into the trap of trying something new every other day because somebody on a forum (no disrespect guys) or some roid filled Youtuber says so. Stick at your exercises- you've seen that results can be achieved with repetition and rest. Learn the discipline of lifting.

The iron never lies- and right now it says you're getting stronger. Keep it up.

Post: #15

(01-02-2017 03:40 AM)PoetryOfEros Wrote:  Today is Monday. I'm going to learn some of the movements mentioned in the replies. Thank you all for your support and advice. Will keep posting in this section for advice etc. Think I should get some useful information on nutrition. Any books out there?

I really don't recommend reading books on nutrition or diet unless you're diabetic or you want to do something like full time ketogenic or vegan diets and you want to know which nutritional deficiencies to avoid.

This post here will save you a lot of trouble, as I had to wade through mounds of bullshit and hyped up nutrition books in order to find that the answer was in front of my face the whole time.

(09-29-2016 05:11 PM)Hannibal Wrote:  General rules of thumb.

Eat a gram of protein per pound of bodyweight.

Take in 10-20% of your calories in the form of fats.

Take the rest in as carbs.

Protein is 4 calories per gram.
Carbs are 4 calories per gram (not counting fiber, those are 0).
Fats are 9 calories per gram.

Eat whole foods and supplement with fish oil and protein powder if you like. Eat sensible foods and not retarded stuff like pizza, ice cream, and baskets of fries unless you're having a really hard time gaining weight.


To lose weight.

Multiply your bodyweight (in pounds) by 10-12. This is your daily caloric goal. 12 is your training days and 10 is your non training days. For you that would be about 1400 calories on your non training days and 1700 calories on your training days.

To maintain weight

Multiply your bodyweight by 15 (in pounds). Daily caloric goal would be 2145.

To gain weight

Multiply your bodyweight by 16-20 (in pounds). For you that's a range of roughly 2300 to 2800 calories. Obviously you want to dial it low for starters and then every week or two, if you're not gaining anything, you dial it up a bit, maybe 50-100 calories in the form of carbs.

Use Myfitnesspal to figure out how many calories and macros you're getting with your food choices.

This advice was directly cribbed from Lyle Mcdonald's website and Paul Carter basically says the exact same thing. Calorie counting works. It is very, very generic advice but it'll get the job done.

As far as getting the actual calories in, I recommend finding a couple different dishes (like chicken and rice, spaghetti, beef stew) and making large batches of it to plan your meals out ahead of time. Then go with something for breakfast like a cup of oatmeal, a protein shake, and a banana. Simple stuff.

I know strength training has been all the rage the last five or ten years and it would probably be a good idea for you to do that for three or four months for starters, but a bodybuilding program wouldn't be a dumb idea after that.

You could probably do a low end on a bulk (like your bodyweight x 16 = calories) with a strength program and come out stronger and not much fatter on the other side. I'm guessing you're 23 years old so you're pretty young yet.

As far as generic bodybuilding advice, a very generic routine would be 3 days a week with a push day, a pull day, and legs. Pick a big movement (like bench, rows, or squat) and do a set of 10-15 for two or three sets, then pick three or four littler movements somewhat related like pec flies, curls, leg curls, tricep extensions or whatever and do like 3 or 4 sets of 15-20 for light weight.

My offer still stands on the bodyweight training books. You can do just fine with bodyweight exercises if you know how to progress properly with them.

Post: #16

I also workout at home with dumbbells.

When you say dumbbells, do you mean fixed weight dumbbells or adjustable dumbbells?

I am not saying I'm an exercise guru, but I think my workout program is okay, and it's dumbbell only. The workouts hit pretty much everything at some point. My current workouts:

Workout A
Dumbbell Squats
Dumbbell floor press
Dumbbell one arm dumbbell row (with arm adducted - held close to the body)
Calf raises, while holding dumbbells
Dumbbell reverse bicep curls

Workout B
Dumbbell Squats
Dumbbell bicep curl and overhead press combined
Dumbbell one arm dumbbell row (with arm abducted - held further from the body)
Dumbbell tricep kickbacks
Planks, with weights in a backpack

I alternate between the two, leaving at least one rest day inbetween.

I'm still not sure about what to recommend in terms of sets and reps. What people's bodies respond to varies wildly, and one man will do better with 5x5, another better with 3x8, some might even do better with 20 rep sets. I think as a beginner, rather start with higher rep ranges, and then cut down if you feel it's not doing anything after 3 - 6 months. It's much easier to move from a high rep range down to lower rep range, than to go from a low rep range to a higher rep range. Hopefully you will discover what rep/set range works for you.