9 Muscle Building Dumbbell Exercises For Seniors – Full Body

The exercises are listed from the biggest muscle groups to the smaller muscle groups. This is so you can do each exercise with the most intensity. If you start with the smaller muscle groups first, the bigger muscle groups might get tired too soon and you won't get the full benefit of the exercise.

9 great dumbbell exercises for seniors

Dumbbell Squat
Dumbbell Chest Press
Dumbbell Bent-Over Row
Dumbbell Shoulder Press
Dumbbell Pullover
Dumbbell Lying Triceps Extension
Dumbbell Biceps Curl
Dumbbell Weighted Crunch
Dumbbell Standing Calf Raise

What’s next

The following text contains 9 dumbbell exercises that will be explained in detail, including proper form and tips to maximize results.

And as I mentioned there’ll be workouts too.

The following paragraph explains the advantages of incorporating dumbbell exercises into a workout routine. Dumbbells provide a great way to build an effective total body workout because they offer a wide range of motion, work multiple muscle groups simultaneously, and are versatile enough to be used in a variety of exercises. Additionally, dumbbells are relatively inexpensive and can be found at most gyms or sporting goods stores.

Best dumbbell exercises for seniors

Why these particular exercises?

These nine dumbbell exercises provide a full body workout that can effectively increase your strength, build lean muscle, and reduce your body fat.

Compound exercises are the key

The first 5 exercises on that list I showed you above are all compound exercises:

• Dumbbell Squat
• Dumbbell Chest Press
• Dumbbell Bent-Over Row
• Dumbbell Shoulder Press
• Dumbbell Pullover

This is an important distinction.

A compound exercise is one that uses more than one major muscle group and more than one body joint.

Why does this matter?

Building your workout around compound exercises has a number of benefits.

Benefits of compound lifting exercises

Get stronger & build muscle faster

The American College of Sports Medicine recommends the use of compound exercises for the core of any strength training program with hypertrophy as one of its goals (1).

Compound exercises burn calories better

Although isolation exercises may not be as effective at burning calories as compound movements, they are still noted by the American Council on Exercise (2).

The dumbbell squat is a better exercise than the leg extension machine because it requires the use of more muscles.

Both of these exercises work your legs, so this is a good comparison to make.

The dumbbell squat is a compound exercise that involves multiple joints and several leg and hip muscles, while the leg extension machine isolates your quadriceps muscle while you sit there.

The squat requires considerably more effort, energy, and oxygen expenditure than the leg extension.

That energy is paid for in calories.

More effort = more cardiovascular benefit

Working out with compound exercises regularly will help improve your cardiovascular function. These exercises require more energy and oxygen, which will help improve your cardiovascular function.

Your heart rate will be up during an exercises that work multiple muscle groups.

As long as you take breaks between sets that are within the recommended time frame, your music will continue to play during your workout.

So, as you get stronger, you are also improving your cardiovascular health.

Improve your functional fitness

“Functional fitness” refers to day-to-day activities & movements.

Doing compound exercises can help you with activities you do every day, and can also help prevent injury.

This is because exercises that recruit multiple joints and multiple muscle groups are more effective.

All the different parts of the body need to be coordinated properly to perform strength training exercises.

This is a big help for all of us who are over 50 years old.

Our stability, balance, coordination, and general strength are not as good as they were when we were 40, let alone 30.

farming, weightlifting, carrying groceries, or climbing stairs. Compound exercises help to build our strength and confidence when performing physical activities in our everyday lives, such as farming, weightlifting, carrying groceries, or climbing stairs.

• running around with the dog
• unloading a ton of groceries
• climbing flights of stairs
• moving a heavy piece of furniture.

Dumbbell exercises for seniors: tutorial & videos

We will now look at each of the exercises in more detail.

The text says that the author will discuss the topics in the same order as they are listed, and that the order will be the same as the author's workout programs.

This is no accident.

This workout starts with 5 compound exercises that are arranged from the most intense to the least intense.

The first exercise that should be honored is the dumbbell squat because the squat is the most important compound exercise.

1. Dumbbell Squat

Key thoughts:

Keep your body engaged and upright, so that your head and shoulders don't tilt forward.

A big tip in the video is to keep your knees from going past your toes.

I can understand if you are experiencing stiffness in your knees or weakness in your hip muscles due to your age.

Don't worry if you can't get your thighs parallel to the floor.

Be sure to keep your form excellent, and squat down as best as you can.

2. Dumbbell Chest Press

Key thoughts:

I agree with the video that you should not let your elbows go below the level of your shoulders. This can cause shoulder pain.

The woman in the video could have lowered her elbows a bit more without risking injury to her shoulders.

A little bit of stretch is beneficial for your chest muscles.

What if I’m at home and don’t have a bench?

No worries, I gotcha covered.

This article will teach you how to do a chest workout at home without a bench.

I offer 5 alternatives to using a weight bench that you probably already have in your home.

To access the article, click on the link below. You can read the article by clicking on the link below.

All of the exercises in this workout can be done without a weight bench. Get creative if you don't have one.

Secondly, you can find videos online that show you how to do a chest press using something other than a bench.

First, you can do it on the floor:

Or you can do it on a Swiss ball if you have one:

3. Dumbbell Bent-Over Row

If you keep your back angled and straight at the same time, like shown in the video, you can use two dumbbells at the same time.

An excellent alternative to what is shown in the first video is to use one arm at a time.

You perform your reps with one arm, then turn around on the bench and perform your reps with the other arm.

Two-arm version of the bent-over row:

And here’s how you do the one-arm version of the bent-over row:

4. Dumbbell Shoulder Press

If you want to do the exercise standing like she does in the video, make sure you're standing near the edge of the bench. If you'd rather sit at the edge of the bench, that's fine too.

You will engage your core and leg muscles more when standing, which will help to stabilize you during the movement.

If you choose to sit, do so with good posture by keeping your abs and core muscles tight and your shoulders in a straight line.

5. Dumbbell Pullover

This workout routine is effective in working your chest and back muscles, as well as your arm muscles.

After working out our chest, back, and shoulders in the previous three exercises, it feels good to do a big stretch.

I wrote an article discussing the benefits, different forms, and more information on this exercise that I really enjoy. If you want to read it, follow the link here.

This is the final compound exercise, which is a great way to end before we move on to the four isolation exercises.

If you're looking for a non-bench alternative for this exercise, The Buff Dudes have a clever idea using a camping cooler.

A towel can be useful when doing an exercise that requires a hard surface.

The link in the text should take you to the right spot in their video.

If the aforementioned method does not work, then their dumbbell pullover segment can be found from 2:35 to 3:18 in this one.

6. Dumbbell Lying Triceps Extension

Key thought here:

Keeping your arms still, let your elbows act as a lever to lower the dumbbells down on either side of your head.

If you keep your upper arms from moving, you won't use your shoulder muscles as much to bring the dumbbell back up.

We don't want the triceps to be isolated in this exercise.

7. Dumbbell Biceps Curl

Key thoughts here:

Everybody & their grandmother (literally) does these.

It’s a simple movement that’s easy to imitate.

I have seen poor form in commercial gyms many times over the years.

Just a couple of important points to stay on track:

Keep your shoulders back and upright so they don’t roll forward.

Elbows should be kept close to the body. The woman in the video demonstrates this by keeping her elbows close to her hips, and this is a good method to follow. However, even if your elbows are an inch or two away from your hips, as long as you don't move them, this is also acceptable.

If you start moving your upper arms around while doing the triceps extension exercise, your shoulders will do the work instead of your triceps.

This is a biceps isolation exercise.

“All I gotta do is…act naturally”

So says the old song.

Keep your arms locked at your sides and your palms facing directly forward.

I would suggest that in addition to the approach you mentioned, you could also try dropping your arms to your sides naturally and see how that feels.

If you turn your palms away from your hips, your wrists will be a few inches away from your hips and your arms will be pointing out at an angle.

In this position, you and your biceps will be very comfortable and natural while you curl.

One last helpful biceps thing:

If you want a better bicep pump, don't raise the dumbbells all the way up, but stop just before that.

If you keep tension on the biceps muscle, it will not have a chance to relax when you bring the dumbbells up to your shoulders.

8. Dumbbell Crunch

This type of dumbbell crunch is called the long-arm dumbbell crunch because it is done with your arms extended.

The added weight from the dumbbells increases the amount of resistance your abdominal muscles have to deal with, which is beneficial.

You don't have to move much to still feel it in your abs.

And a variation:

Here is an alternate version of the weighted crunch in which the individual is using a medicine ball and holding it close to her body.

They say that you can achieve the same results with a dumbbell.

Some people find it difficult to position the dumbbell comfortably on their chest, as opposed to the long-arm version we just looked at.

Key thought:

Abs are muscles.

Everone has abs, although they might be hidden under a layer of fat.

Working your biceps will not only make them more toned and defined, but will also improve the strength of your upper body as a whole.

9. Dumbbell Standing Calf Raise

Since we use our calves constantly throughout the day when walking, they are usually quite strong for people.

Don't be alarmed if you can lift much heavier dumbbells than the woman in the video.

This video has a great way to make your workout more intense.

The movement she does without touching the floor keeps her calves constantly tense, which is good for their development.

pausing for a few seconds at the top of the movement.

Try and stay in flex mode for 5-10 seconds every 5-6 reps.

Variation

In the demonstration video below from ExRx, note that the guy is only holding one dumbbell.

He is improving his range of motion by using an aerobic stepper.

This means that he can lower his ankles below his toes when he is on the edge of the stepper.

This makes it easier for him to push himself up off the ground and increases his distance.

He only has one dumbbell so that he can hold himself up with his other arm.

I sometimes do 2-dumbbell calf raises off the edge of a step, but it's not an easy move for me, and maintaining proper balance is the challenge.

Things to consider regarding dumbbells

I'm trying to determine what kind of dumbbells you have access to, depending on whether you're at home or if you're a member of a gym.

The gym has all of the weights you would ever need, so you would be good to go.

I say this because you should ideally be using different weights for each exercise, depending on which muscle group is stronger or weaker.

The average person's leg muscles are significantly stronger than their arm muscles. This is likely because people use their leg muscles more often than their arm muscles.

If you don't have a pair of adjustable dumbbells at home, you'll need to find a way to do these exercises with the right weights to make progress.