Dumbbell Workout Handbook: Strength & Power

Now is the time to improve your explosiveness and speed! The exer-cises used in this program are primarily athletic movements used for sports-specific workouts. Power phases like these work to build your functional fitness and supports greater gains in your other strength workouts.

This program builds on the basic movements (Clean, Snatch, and Jumps, plus their variations) and utilizes progressive overload, slowly adding intensity and volume weekly, to focus on explosive power. The program focuses on completing 3–5 reps per set for 3–6 sets per exercise. It is important to allow yourself a full rest between sets. Power is only built if you can give your best effort and you cannot do that while tired.

These power workouts also introduces you to Dynamic Effort (DE) sets. These are sets that utilize traditional strength exercises (Squat, Press, Shrug, and Row ) but do so with faster repetition speed in an effort to create more power. You must use slightly less weight than in the past to allow the dumbbell to move faster.

Finally, each workout finishes with a Strength Assistance exercise designed to “fill in the gaps” of the Power and Dynamic Effort exercises. These focus on back (pull) and single leg exercises (balance) to offset all the Push, Deadlift, and Squat exercises.

Program Notes: Circuit the warm-up/activation exercises. Dynamic Effort reps should be a controlled movement, quick on the way down and explosive on the way up.

PVC or Barbell Overhead Squat - 2 sets of 10 reps with a 3 second pause at the bottom

Program Notes: Circuit the warm-up/activation exercises. Dynamic Effort reps should be a controlled movement, quick on the way down and explosive on the way up. Choose a weight for your Squat Jump that is about 10–20% of your body weight.

Program Notes: Circuit the warm-up/activation exercises. Dynamic Effort reps should be a controlled movement, quick on the way down and explosive on the way up.

POWER WORKOUTS WEEK 2: 3’s

Providing a different rotation of power exercises to keep your muscles and movements fresh, this week sees a changeover to sets of 3 for most of the power exercises. We also add a new dynamic effort exercise and a new strength assistance exercise.

Program Notes: Circuit the warm-up/activation exercises. Dynamic Effort reps should be a controlled movement, quick on the way down and explosive on the way up.

PVC or Barbell Overhead Squat - 2 sets of 10 reps with a 3 second pause at the bottom of each squat rep

Program Notes: Circuit the warm-up/activation exercises. Dynamic Effort reps should be a controlled movement, quick on the way down and explosive on the way up.

POWER WORKOUTS WEEK 3: 5’s

Incorporating another change-up in the rotation of power exercises to keep you engaged and prevent plateaus, this week also incorporates cluster sets. Cluster sets break down one traditional strength set into multiple mini-sets. With only a few, well timed, short breaks within a set, you are able to get more reps at a specific weight.

Using a 6-rep max weight, do a set of 3 reps with 10–20 seconds of rest for 3 sets.

Set 1: Shoulder Press max weight reps

Rest 10–20 seconds or 3–4 big deep breaths.

Set 2: Shoulder Press max weight reps

Rest 10–20 seconds or 3–4 big deep breaths.

Set 3: Shoulder Press max weight reps

Rest 2 minutes and perform the remaining sets.

WORKOUT NOTES

Circuit the Warm up/Activation exercises

If available, you can substitute a Kettlebell for a Dumbbell for the Hang Clean

DE reps should a controlled quick on the way down and explosive up

Program Notes: Circuit the warm-up/activation exercises. Dynamic Effort reps should be a controlled movement, quick on the way down and explosive on the way up.

PVC or Barbell Overhead Squat - 2 sets of 10 reps with a 3 second pause at the bottom of each squat rep

Program Notes: Circuit the warm-up/activation exercises. Dynamic Effort reps should be a controlled movement, quick on the way down and explosive on the way up.