Strength training for arms....
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A chinup/pullup bar would be more effective than either the dumbbells or kettlebells IMO. Chin-ups not only give the biceps plenty of work, they're also a compound movement that works plenty of other upper body muscles as well. If you can't do an unassisted pull-up (which many people can't), stand on a bench/chair/footstool/whatever and use your legs to assist you on the way up, then let yourself down as slowly as you can. A combination of chinups and pushups would do wonders not only for your arms, but your whole upper body. Your strength would pretty quickly move beyond 10 lb. dumbbells/kettlebells, but it will be quite a while before you can pump out a lot of unassisted chinups. A portable, door-mounted chin/pullup bar will only cost you around $30.
^^this.
If you cannot do chin ups, start with negatives where you jump to the top position and hold as long as you can, then let yourself down as slowly as possible.
Also push ups are incredibly versatile and effective. When you get to where you can do a decent amount with proper form you can elevate your legs to make it harder. Plus you can move your hands wider or narrower to focus more on different muscle groups (e.g. very narrow brings a lot more triceps into it).
diamond push ups will kick your triceps in the *kitten* quick and hard0 -
10lb isn't enough for anyone. Save the money, get it when its worth spending!
Stop it! 10 lbs may not be enough for you and your big dude muscles, but for somebody that just starts weight training is good enough and better than don’t doing anything at all, especially if they don’t have previous strength training experience.
It gets really annoying to read how people are put down unless they lift 50 lbs with each arm.
To the OP, go ahead just use the weights that you can afford to buy, practice good form, go on line and get information about how to use proper techniques and graduate to heavier weights when you can afford to buy them and afford the lifting.
How much does your purse weigh? Your child? A bag of groceries? He wasn't being rude.0 -
Another vote for push ups. If you feel COMPELLED to get either kettle bells or dumb bells and want to do curls, I'd vote for dumb bells because they're easier to hold onto for that (in my opinion) without tweaking your wrists. And if you're wondering how heavy to go, do some reps in the store before you buy them. If you can do 15 with 10 lbs, go heavier. If not, you're good for now with those.
Editing to add that I prefer dumb bells for thrusters, too. Just more comfortable for me to hold. Kettle bells rest on the backs of my bony wrists and I don't like that.0 -
And also another vote for push ups, and chin ups.0
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Only you know your true body strength and ability. Not all exercises for arms and shoulders can be done with good form and still using the same weight of dumbbell....at least for myself. I bought several dumbbells with different weights, and all under 12 pounds so far. I get an awesome workout. Look up videos on the proper form, and watch yourself in the mirror for technique corrections as you do them if you need help learning new exercises. The more you do, the stronger you will get, and increase to higher weights when it gets easier for you. You'll definitely burn more calories and raise your metabolic rate as you build muscle and start burning fat. Good luck and go workout!!0
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Go slightly heavier than you need on the dumbbell, like 12.5 or 15lbs and grow into it. If you can't do many reps at 15lbs (like maybe 3 or 4), I think that's fine. You will get better. Personally I think dumbbells would be great because they're versatile, its not just about bicep exercises. That's your chest, shoulders, traps, triceps, forearms, you name it.
Do pushups and especially dips! Many people have posted about pushups but don't forget the dips. You can do them with a chair. Some of the best free upper body training.
Just my 2 cents.0 -
Bodyweight exercises and a "through the doorframe" type pull-up bar (the type that hooks over the door lintel the other side rather than the type that twists against the door posts) for my vote. Lots of bodyweight exercises on You Tube and other sites already mentioned.0
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Push ups and Chin ups always work....maybe you should invest in some thicker resistance bands. I bought some from Walmart that were 15 bucks for 3 (golds gym ones) and if you band them all together and place your feet in the proper places, you can definitely get a lot more than just 10 pounds of force. Also on my off days from the gym, I do a combination of resistance training with push ups and chin ups while I'm wearing my 50 pound weight vest. Sometimes I feel like I get a better workout doing this than actually going to the gym.0
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You can also sling the right number of resistance bands across a pull-up bar to provide just enough support for an assisted pull-up.
edit: also, when push-ups become too easy, you can sling a resistance band or two across your back under tension to great more push-up resistance. No reason why body resistance exercises can't keep you going for a long time.0 -
Resistance bands are a great work out tool. They can virtually be used for any workout you do in the gym if you are looking for a good burn.0
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My trainer uses weights under 10 lbs with me. It's how she uses them that works. Trust me, she isn't easy on me.0
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I would go with bodyweight exercises and a pull up/chin up bar, or resistance bands. Save your money until you can afford more in terms of dumbells/weights.
The guy who mentioned that 10lbs isn't enough for anyone, he wasn't being rude, just stating that it's not all that much weight, even for a lot of women (he said he trains women) That's fine if that's all you can manage now, but I guarantee you that after a little while of those, assuming you're aiming to increase over time, it will become easy and then where do you go from there? Also, different exercises require different levels of strength. 10lbs may be enough for some upper body, isolation exercises, but for lower body (squats etc) or deadlifts if will get easy VERY quickly, if it's not too easy already.0 -
I'm gonna straight out answer your question.
I personally would go for the Dumbbells. (particularly if you're a beginner to weights)
You can use them for bigger compound movements such as DB Clean & Press, For normal unilateral types of movements such as a bicep curl, or you can use them for isolation such as DB tricep Kickbacks. You can also do rows, pushes and pulls through all planes of movement for a well-rounded workout.
Goblet squats with a dumbbell is a good one for leg strength too.
I think kettle bell is the next step up when you want to do stabilising core exercises such as kettle bell swings for anterior and posterior core or unilateral kettle bell clean and press for lateral core etc...0 -
10lb isn't enough for anyone. Save the money, get it when its worth spending!
Stop it! 10 lbs may not be enough for you and your big dude muscles, but for somebody that just starts weight training is good enough and better than don’t doing anything at all, especially if they don’t have previous strength training experience.
It gets really annoying to read how people are put down unless they lift 50 lbs with each arm.
To the OP, go ahead just use the weights that you can afford to buy, practice good form, go on line and get information about how to use proper techniques and graduate to heavier weights when you can afford to buy them and afford the lifting.
How much does your purse weigh? Your child? A bag of groceries? He wasn't being rude.
^I second this.
My wife's purse weighs almost that much and she carries it all day. Same with our child when he was a little younger. You are stronger than you realize. My teenage daughter would receive no fitness benefit from 10 lb dumbells and I would wager you are stronger than she is.
Weights are $1 per pound at Walmart. Either buy an amount sufficient to limit you to 8-10 reps of a particular exercise or stick with bodyweight exercises until your finances will support.
Curling 10 lb dumbells just to go through the motion will only serve to waste your valuable time.0 -
Between the choices... Dumbells. You really don't need them. Bodyrock and Pinterest both have some great body weight moves. 10 lbs is enough to start but you will like grow out of them. I mostly use 15-25 lb right now.0
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If she's considering 10 lb weights, she's probably not ready for even modified pull ups. There's a test I used when buying dumbbells and ended up with an 8 lb set and I'm not that weak. I haven't used them in ages, but should try them now. I do 25ish lbs on the machine at the gym. My trainer sometimes uses 4 lb weights with me, but has me do 3 sets of 3 different lifts and pushups. That's a good workout for me. When your weights get too light for curls, you can make it harder or do more reps.0
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I got a 15kg dumbell set from a supermarket for £20. Cast weights with spinlocks. They sell extra weights individually so I can buy more as I need/can afford. You should be able to find similar, that way you can go from 2kgs up to 15kgs, all for £20, and for a few ££'s you can buy more weights each month to add to the set,0
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10lb isn't enough for anyone. Save the money, get it when its worth spending!
Stop it! 10 lbs may not be enough for you and your big dude muscles, but for somebody that just starts weight training is good enough and better than don’t doing anything at all, especially if they don’t have previous strength training experience.
It gets really annoying to read how people are put down unless they lift 50 lbs with each arm.
To the OP, go ahead just use the weights that you can afford to buy, practice good form, go on line and get information about how to use proper techniques and graduate to heavier weights when you can afford to buy them and afford the lifting.
10 lbs is a light weight. A beginner will quickly outgrow anything very limited. OP, the 10 lb weights may be cheap, but you'll find yourself buying 15's, 20's and so on as you progressively get stronger. That can be a higher cost. If you're going to get dumbells, consider saving up and getting adjustable ones that will allow you room to grow. I'd suggest, however, an adjustable kettle bell and the means to perform some bodyweight movements in your home. This will allow you to perform compound exercises that will make you stronger without breaking the bank. You can always add more later.0 -
I vote dumbbells. That way you can use them for various workout videos, like 30 Day Shred.0
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