Dumbbells for Barbells

kmorris246

Hi everyone! My name is Kathy, and I'm new to NROL for women! Just began my first workout today, but had to do some modifications, as I do not yet have a barbell. Therefore, I'm using dumbbells in replacement for the barbell squat, and also using dumbbells (dumbbell bent over row) for the cable seated row. I'm hoping this is ok?
Any advice anyone can give me for right now to get me through would be awesome. I'm hoping to get a barbell set-up soon!

Also, how did everyone start out with calories? Right now, I'm set up for a 0.5 lb loss/week, but I have been for quite some time. Should I up it to Maintaining?

Also, are you guys adding back in exercise cals? I normally workout with an HRM with a chest-strap, so this is normally calculated pretty accurate for me.

I am soooo appreciative of any advice/feedback anyone can provide. Thanks :-)

almc170

Hi Kathy, I don't really have anything to add, except to say that you're not the only one trying it with dumbbells. From what I gather, dumbbells are fine in the beginning. I am looking around for a used barbell and weight set, though. As far as calories, I have mine set to a .5lb loss and I'm eating exercise calories. However, I'm prepared to keep tweaking as necessary.

kmorris246

Thanks! That does ease my mind a bit- lol! I really want to make sure I'm sticking with this, so hopefully the dumbbells will get me through for a while :-)

sbrBirdy

I'm starting Stage 2 today (have yet to look at it) but I did Stage 1 with dumbbells, and felt like it was fine. A barbell is just not an option right now.

Smuterella

This is good to hear as I'm planning on starting this after I finish Chalean Extreme and had the same question.

kmorris246

I'm starting Stage 2 today (have yet to look at it) but I did Stage 1 with dumbbells, and felt like it was fine. A barbell is just not an option right now.

Awesome! What kind of modifications did you use?

sarah2002

How heavy are your dumbbells? My heaviest are 15 pounds, and I found that those were way too light for squats and deadlifts. For the rest of the moves, I pretty much stuck with dumbbells until the very end (I just finished stage 1).

sbrBirdy

I "borrowed" my husband's power blocks, which go up to 50 pounds each. I just finished Stage 1 and was up to 35 pounds for the lunge, and 35-40 for the squat (per dumbbell). 15 pounders would have never worked for me.

The only thing I had difficulty with was the squat. And it wasn't a big deal. They actually have dumbbell modifications in the book. The problem I had with the squat was where to hold the dumbbells. The book (and other places I looked) had you holding them straight down by your side. When I was working with a trainer, he had me hold them on my shoulders. On the shoulders is very awkward for me... I feel like I'm struggling to keep them in place as I squat down. BUT, I also feel like there are some back stabilizing muscles that don't get worked out when I hold them by my side. That's why I listed a range on the squat - I can hold 40 in each hand and squat with them by my side. On my shoulder I need to back down to 35 each.

I did Stage 2 Workout A today and it felt good with the dumbbells. I backed down to 25 for the Front Squat/Push Press, mostly because I can't press more than that. For the Horizontal Wood Chop, I did the lay on the floor modification and held a dumbbell in my hand.

If I ever am in doubt as to dumbbell modification, I do a video search on Google. There are tons of videos showing form. Exrx.net is another good site. They have a ton of modifications with videos.

almc170

Thanks for sharing your experience. Sounds like my pair of 40lb adjustables should be sufficient for the near future.

kmorris246

How heavy are your dumbbells? My heaviest are 15 pounds, and I found that those were way too light for squats and deadlifts. For the rest of the moves, I pretty much stuck with dumbbells until the very end (I just finished stage 1).

We have dumbbells sets that go up to 50 lbs, so I'm thinking I should be good for now?

kmorris246

I "borrowed" my husband's power blocks, which go up to 50 pounds each. I just finished Stage 1 and was up to 35 pounds for the lunge, and 35-40 for the squat (per dumbbell). 15 pounders would have never worked for me.

The only thing I had difficulty with was the squat. And it wasn't a big deal. They actually have dumbbell modifications in the book. The problem I had with the squat was where to hold the dumbbells. The book (and other places I looked) had you holding them straight down by your side. When I was working with a trainer, he had me hold them on my shoulders. On the shoulders is very awkward for me... I feel like I'm struggling to keep them in place as I squat down. BUT, I also feel like there are some back stabilizing muscles that don't get worked out when I hold them by my side. That's why I listed a range on the squat - I can hold 40 in each hand and squat with them by my side. On my shoulder I need to back down to 35 each.

I did Stage 2 Workout A today and it felt good with the dumbbells. I backed down to 25 for the Front Squat/Push Press, mostly because I can't press more than that. For the Horizontal Wood Chop, I did the lay on the floor modification and held a dumbbell in my hand.

If I ever am in doubt as to dumbbell modification, I do a video search on Google. There are tons of videos showing form. Exrx.net is another good site. They have a ton of modifications with videos.

Now I know who I need to go to for modification advice ;-) Thanks for your help!