Help me with dumbbell workout/diet, please...

kaji

Can anyone recommend a dumbbell-only workout routine?

I've tried doing a routine with compound and isolation exercises but found it too difficult and exhausting. I read that it would be better for someone like me to just focus on compound exercises til I get stronger.

I'm 6 ft 2, 163 pounds. I have dumbbells, adjustable bench and a pull up bar.

I'd really appreciate some help. I want to get bigger/more muscular.

I've created the following workout- Workout A on Mondays, Workout B on Wednesdays, Workout A on Fridays, Workout B on Mondays and so on and on... for the time being!

Workout A
Quads-Squats
Chest-Bench press
Middle back-Incline row
Biceps-Hammer curls
Abs-Ab roller



Workout B
Hamstrings-Deadlift
Shoulders-Shoulder press
Lats-Pull-ups
Triceps-Bench dips
Traps-Upright rows
Abs-Ab roller

3 sets of each with 12, 10, 8 reps. Whatcha all think?



Also, this is my proposed diet:

Breakfast Porridge with berries & linseed
7:05am Pint of milk

Snack 1/2 a whey pancake
8:45am

Lunch Banana & apple
11:00am 5 almonds

Lunch Chicken & veggies & rice in a lunchbox
12:45pm

Pre-workout 1/2 a whey pancake
3:15pm Orange
5 almonds

Post-workout Protein shake
4:45pm Vitamin tablets

Dinner Dinner (meat such as chicken/turkey/salmon with veggies such as brocolli/asparagus, and brown rice/pasta)
5:10pm Pint of milk

Snack Tuna salad or mackarel salad or scrambled egg salad (on different days)
8:00pm Glass of milk

Night-time Cottage cheese
11:00pm Casein

I will add olive oil to any salads that I have. I added more healthy carbs, such as brown rice & pasta. I added in a whey pancake, split into 2. It's handy as its non-messy for me to eat in work and its better than just a whey shake on its own.

ColmBr

Try the 5X5 workout.
Here is a link. http://stronglifts.com/stronglifts-5x5-beginner-strength-training-program/

It's great for size and strength and is a lot less time consuming. Very basic exercises too and your progress can be easily tracked.

I do it and I am lifting a lot heavier than i was before I started in May.

Your workout contains higher reps which is not really what you want to be doing for increasing muscle mass and size.

thegreatiam

strong lifts is a barbell routine.

the reason that this program and other similar programs (starting strength) is progressive increase in weights.

they take advantage of the fact that as a non lifter you will make your greatest gains in strength and have quick recovery and can handle and recover from progressing weights heavy and quickly.

to do this you need a barbell, as dumbbells become more tricky to do the required exercises easily. you will quickly out grow a dumbbell set (the squats in strong lifts add 7.5kgs a week)

they are great programs for starting lifters and those still in the quick recovery phase, but op you should look into getting access to a barbell as you will quickly surpass those dumbbells.

the routing I do is a variation of strong lifts and is
workout a
squat
bench
bent over row
pull ups

work out b
squat
overhead press
dead lift
dips

This is an easy enough program and you can do a dumbbell version of each exercise (although you will need barbells soon)

also you should look into the reps and sets of the mentioned programs, they use 3x5 and 5x5 so that you can use heavier weights and have correct form (your form will struggle as you increase reps)
at the beginning stage you will get better benefit quicker with higher weight and fewer reps.