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Looking for a cost-efficient, simple way to train your lower body? Enter: dumbbells, one of the easiest ways to give your legs a workout—that won’t require a gym membership or a $40 workout class.
Dumbbells offer so many benefits when it comes to building strength in your legs, says certified personal trainer Kristina Earnest, AFAA, NASM. For example, working with dumbbells allows you to touch on a wide variety of muscle groups such as quads, hamstrings, calves, and glutes, Earnest says. Plus, when you use different weights of dumbbells, you can tone and build more muscle mass as you increase your skills.
“Dumbbells are really a way to take your workouts to the next level,” Earnest says. When you use dumbbell leg workouts, you’re helping improve your coordination, strengthen connective tissues, as well as amp up the stability of your muscles and joints, Earnest explains.
And don’t think that dumbbell leg workouts are only applicable to people who focus on strength work for exercise—building leg muscle is essential for cardio-related sports, too, such as running, biking, swimming, and the like, Earnest says. You’ll want to incorporate strength days into your regimen so that your muscles can support you while in an aerobic and anaerobic state.
On top of all this, dumbbell leg workouts are conducive to working out in small spaces and at home, Earnest notes. All you need to do these workouts is a set of weights or, if you don’t have access to those, you can use household items that are heavier and similarly shaped: soup cans, wine bottles, a reusable bottle filled with water, textbooks, and more.
Now that you have the basics down, let’s get into some more specific questions you might have related to dumbbell leg workouts…