What type of dumbells to get?

jwiley78

I've been looking at doing either Les Mills Combat or P90X after I finish my last week of Insanity. In order to do either of these it looks like I need to purchase some dumbells. Anyone have any suggestions as some good quality dumbells?

These are ones I have been looking at from Bowflex but they seem kind of expensive and I'm wondering if I could get some good quality ones cheaper.

http://www.amazon.com/Bowflex-SelectTech-Adjustable-Dumbbells-Pair/dp/B001ARYU58/ref=sr_1_1?s=sporting-goods&ie=UTF8&qid=1358306280&sr=1-1&keywords=dumbells+adjustable+set

Also, for anyone that has done Les Mills combat. Do you recommend getting the weighted gloves?

waldo56

I'm personally a fan of hex dumbbells and prefer those to any others.

contingencyplan

If you're looking into adjustables go with Powerblocks. They're far superior to the Bowflex ones, and you can expand the weight beyond the initial 50 lb capacity when (not if, but WHEN) you outgrow it. Don't think you will? Trust me. You will. 50 lb dumbbells isn't much for someone who works out regularly. Only a few weeks before I was pressing more than 50 lb dumbbells. Plus once you eventually outgrow these Beachbody program (again you will, when you see how limited they are in their programming) you can use these dumbbells for proper workouts.

Elleinnz

Still waiting for my combat DVD's to arrive :-) There is a Combat Challenge group on here - they might be able to answer your questions - personally I did not order the gloves, as it needs to be shipped to New Zealand. From some discussions I saw it seemed you can get the same results with wrist weights....

jwiley78

Thanks for the advice. It is going to be a couple weeks before I purchase them so I'm going to keep looking around but I will definitely take your advice into consideration.

This is my last week of Insanity so I'm going to do some light workouts for the next week to let my knees, ankles, and hips recover some.

timeasterday

I'm personally a fan of hex dumbbells and prefer those to any others.

Same here. I am slowly building a nice collection. I like that they don't roll all over my wood floors. Would love to have the adjustable kind but I can buy a lot of hex dumbbells for the price of those things.

sjohnny

I have the handles that take standard plates. I bought them at Play it Again Sports (a used sporting goods place) for $3 a piece. Weight plates are 59 cents/pound. I was going to buy hex dumbbells but realized that storage would quickly become an issue. They do roll around and if you want to quickly change from one weight to another you're kind of screwed but for what I'm doing with them I really dig them.

waldo56

I'm personally a fan of hex dumbbells and prefer those to any others.

Same here. I am slowly building a nice collection. I like that they don't roll all over my wood floors. Would love to have the adjustable kind but I can buy a lot of hex dumbbells for the price of those things.

That and the weight distibution of a hex dumbbell is in general more useful (not to mention, the weights aren't going to fall off no matter what you do).

You don't need to build a big collection all at once. I started with a set of 15's and 25's, eventually got a set of 35's a few months later, that lasted me a long time. I'll probably end up getting a set of 50's eventually.

I really only use them to shore up areas of my bodyweight program though.

Leadfoot_Lewis

I have the Bow Flex adjustable dumbbells and I love them. I've had them for 6 years now and have had no issues with them. They're worth the extra $ IMO.

contingencyplan

One of the fundamental exercises of functional training programs is an exercise called Renegade Rows, which involves using your dumbbells as pushup stands. These are best done with conventional hex style dumbbells, and one of the only adjustable ones that are suitable are the Powerblocks I mentioned above.

Avoid the Bowflex ones because they're made at like 4-5 different manufacturing plants and quality can be very spotty because they don't actually all use the same parts. If you read amazon reviews on them you'll see a lot of people complaining about different things that vary from unit to unit because little differences (like whether a retainer pin is made from metal or cheap plastic) varies depending on production location.

Leadfoot_Lewis

OP - Try a bunch of them out before you purchase. Not to be a punk Contingencyplan, but the Powerblock's are a pain to change weight and lifting them is like having a box with a handle in the middle - very annoying to use IMO. Of course we're both going to partial to the brand of weights we use, but don't kick the Bowflex's to the curb because 1 or 2 people on Amazon claim they're cheap. Doing a quick review on Amazon, the Bowflex's receive 4.5 out of 5 stars (and to your defense, so did the Powerblocks). If you don't drop them and take care of them, the Bowflex's WILL last. Again, I've had mine for 6 years and consistantly use them 3-4 times a week with no issues.

sjohnny

One of the fundamental exercises of functional training programs is an exercise called Renegade Rows, which involves using your dumbbells as pushup stands. ..

Doing these with dumbbells using round plates adds a whole other dimension!

contingencyplan

TBH I don't own either one. I've used both, but I really have no intention of purchasing either one for the home because I prefer kettlebell training over conventional weight training. My main point behind recommending Powerblocks over most others is because the 52.5 lbs that the Bowflexes max out at just isn't enough. There are WAYS to modify your form to increase difficulty, but these are more conducive to aesthetic gains than functional strength/fitness gains. As I said before in just a few weeks of joining a gym and starting on a regular lifting regimen, I outgrew 50 lb dumbbells for many upper body exercises very quickly (rows, bench press, etc...) so I simply cannot recommend something that maxes out at 50 lbs for most people. Many people buy these dumbbell sets for the purpose of following along with workout programs like P90X and for that they're fine but once you eventually move on to more conventional strength training regimens you'll find the weight these sets max out at just doesn't cut the mustard. However I have had no problems changing the weight on Powerblocks in about 2 seconds flat, and I like that they can be used for Renegade Rows. Most adjustable dumbbell sets cannot.

contingencyplan

One of the fundamental exercises of functional training programs is an exercise called Renegade Rows, which involves using your dumbbells as pushup stands. ..

Doing these with dumbbells using round plates adds a whole other dimension!

Yes but can also be a huge safety hazard done on smooth flooring.

sjohnny

One of the fundamental exercises of functional training programs is an exercise called Renegade Rows, which involves using your dumbbells as pushup stands. ..

Doing these with dumbbells using round plates adds a whole other dimension!

Yes but can also be a huge safety hazard done on smooth flooring.

That's the "other dimension" to which I referred.

moustache_flavored_lube

I have these which is am reasonably happy with http://www.amazon.com/Golds-Gym-Adjustable-Dumbbell-Stand/dp/B004WE26T8 they have lasted 3 years. My only complaint is they are a bit bulky on lower weights which makes some movements awkard, and sometimes you have to fiddle a bit to change the weight.

I used them for p90X, and have since progressed to mostly work in the gym so I can use a squat rack barbell bench ...

Leadfoot_Lewis

FWIW - There are 2 types of Bowflex adjustable dumbbells. The set I have goes from 5 to 52.5 lbs (plenty for l'il old me). The 1090's go from 10 to 90 lbs. The majority of people won't use anything near 90 lbs for dumbbells.

jwiley78

I really like the Bowflex 552s I think. It still seems hard to justify spending that much money on dumbbells but all the prices are comparable. Guess I just wasn't expecting to pay that much.

Anyway, as far as doing the push-ups I will probably just opt to get some push-up bars. They seem fairly cheap.

I still have a few weeks before I'll be looking to buy anything so I've got time to read reviews and view other products.

Still wondering though, does anyone recommend training/weighted gloves? Do I need them? Do they need to weighted?

Leadfoot_Lewis

Still wondering though, does anyone recommend training/weighted gloves? Do I need them? Do they need to weighted?

I've always worn gloves when lifting. I think they help with grip (others will disagree with this) plus I do a lot of barbell lifts and they help prevent calluses (others will disagree with this too). As far as what brand to buy, I have a pair of Nike's a got at the outlet store about 5 years ago. They've held up well, just one hole on by my index finger. Schiek makes really nice stuff but they're pricey. I wouldn't get weighted gloves as they're awkward (to me anyway) as the weight is usually on the top of the hand.

TR0berts

I have a pair of Weider PowerSwitch DBs, and they work really well. For DB pushup-rows, I just turn them so the tops (where it's angled and the bar lifts up and out of the plates) over. That gives me a sturdy 2-point bottom so that I don't flail around.