Adjustable Dumbbells

Select The Weight

There are few pieces of fitness equipment that have come on to the market in recent years that are as popular and useful as the adjustable dumbbell set. Adjustable dumbbells look much like a pair of regular dumbbells, except they contain a range of plates designed to add or subtract weight from the dumbbell without having to remove weights manually. One simply turns a small knob on the side of the dumbbell to select the appropriate weight, and the dumbbell pulls away from its base with that much weight on it. A good pair of adjustable dumbbells can replace an entire set of dumbbells, eliminating the need to have dozens of weights kicking around the house. Below we’ll look at two of the more popular adjustable dumbbells options on the market today, made by Bowflex.

Benefits of Adjustable Dumbbells

The Bowflex SelectTech 552 adjustable dumbbell set was one of the first on the market, and like many of Bowflex’s prior home fitness innovations, it took the market by storm. For the first time, individuals could perform a huge range of dumbbell-based exercises without needing to head to a gym. The Bowflex SelectTech 552 ranges in weight from 5 to 52.5 pounds, and allows users to select weight sizes that are unavailable in many dumbbell sets. Dumbbells can be used to perform a huge selection of exercises that target muscles in the legs, back, chest, arms, shoulders and abdominal areas – a complete workout. It’s truly amazing that with just a pair of 552s and a small weight bench, one can transform their den or garage into a home gym.

Bigger guys who are accustomed to working out with heavier dumbbells will prefer the Bowflex SelectTech 1090, which is essentially a 100 lb. adjustable dumbbell set. The Bowflex SelectTech 1090 ranges from 10 to 90 pounds, allowing even stronger, athletic types to use these dumbbells for a wide range of exercises. The Bowflex SelectTech 1090 is excellent for building bigger arms, especially in the bicep and triceps areas. Those who are looking to add muscle mass can set the 1090 to heavier weights and with a good training program such as 5×5 or negatives can start building size immediately. Since the Bowflex SelectTech 1090 goes all the way down to 10 pounds in weight, it’s still possible to train smaller muscles for much greater definition by performing high-repetition sets with lower weights than normal. Even fast twitch muscles can be adequately trained with the Bowflex SelectTech 1090, making these very effective for those who are into high-endurance upper body sports like boxing or mixed-martial arts.

While they look a bit daunting at first, actually using the Bowflex SelectTech dumbbells couldn’t be much easier. The dumbbells start out in the base plate, which contains all of the different weight plates that make up the total weight of the dumbbell set. By using the dial on the dumbbells, you select the weight that you want, and you lift the dumbbells out of the base plate. That’s it! Using adjustable dumbbells makes lifting a range of weights much easier, and the flexibility provided by the small increases in weight allows for some very fine tuning of muscle tone.

Heavier Weight Adjustable Dumbbells

This flexibility is exactly what makes adjustable dumbbell weights so attractive to those who want to work out at home. Imagine having an entire set of dumbbells ranging from 10 to 90 lbs., rising in 5 lb. increments. That’s a total of 18 dumbbells – 36 if you want to have one for each hand! Clearly, adjustable dumbbells are the way to go when putting together a home gym. Picking up a set of adjustable dumbbells like the Bowflex SelectTech 1090 allows for individuals to have the training ability that a full set of dumbbells provides, but without taking up a ton of space in the basement, garage or den.

Women that are looking for a great set of dumbbells for home workouts would do well to check out adjustable dumbbell sets like the Bowflex SelectTech 552. The 552 ranges in weight from a light 5 pounds to a moderately heavy 52.5 pounds, a range that includes most of the weights an average woman would use for training. Another benefit of the Bowflex SelectTech 552 series is that the weights increase in small increments, which makes moving up to a slightly higher weight very easy. Women are somewhat less apt than men to try to jump to the heaviest dumbbells possible, as many prefer the toned, lean physique that high-repetition workouts with lighter dumbbells can provide.

Working Out With Adjustable Dumbbells

Adjustable dumbbells like the Bowflex SelectTech 552 also work very well with many of the popular workout programs, such as P90X and the Insanity Workout. Using adjustable dumbbells for P90X makes perfect sense, as one is unlikely to have a wide range of dumbbells at home that will accommodate the different weights required for arm, shoulder and back exercises. With adjustable dumbbells you can simply select the weight you need and when you’ve finished your reps and switch to the next exercise, you can quickly adjust the dumbbells to your next weight. If you train at home, using adjustable dumbbells for P90X or other workout programs makes things much quicker than trying to use a regular dumbbell set which requires a change of weight each time.

Adjustable Dumbbells – In Conclusion

If you’re considering putting together a home fitness facility, or you want to get rid of that ugly stack of plastic dumbbells filling up the basement, take a look at adjustable dumbbells. With the Bowflex SelectTech 552 and Bowflex SelectTech 1090 offering an excellent weight range and the convenience of only needing to have two dumbbells around, adjustable dumbbells are the perfect piece of equipment for home gyms. With the easy price comparison widgets here on this site you’ll be able to find the best prices around for adjustable dumbbell sets. Free shipping is included as well, which can save big bucks as adjustable dumbbells are quite heavy.

Get started on building the ‘new you’ with an adjustable dumbbell set like the Bowflex SelectTech 552 or 1090 today!