Your lower body plays a big role in everyday activities, from walking and bending down to providing stability when carrying heavy objects. Having a strong lower body is essential, but fortunately, you don’t need a gym to build those muscles. This dumbbell-only glute workout can help you get started.
This routine features six exercises that target the glutes and lower body using a pair of standard dumbbells or a pair of the best adjustable dumbbells. and the trainer demonstrates each move on her Instagram, showing how you can efficiently build strength and muscle without the need for a barbell rack or other big gym machines.
The workout, designed by popular online fitness trainer Kayla Itsines, consists of three rounds, which will feel demanding so it’s important to focus on nailing proper form and following Itsines’ demonstrations. Remember to take rest periods between exercises and rounds to help your muscles recover and perform optimally.
- Bulgarian Split Squats, 20 reps (10 per side)
- Reverse Lunge, 24 reps (12 per side)
- Goblet Squat, 15 reps
- Squat Pulse, 20 reps
- Straight-Leg Deadlift, 15 reps
- Donkey Kick, 30 reps (15 per side)
- Repeat for three rounds
Watch Kayla Istines' dumbbell lower body workout
This dumbbell routine combines compound movements and isolation exercises to help you build lower body strength and muscle.
The mix of squats, lunges, and deadlifts engages major muscle groups like the glutes, quads, and hamstrings, while the pulse and donkey kick exercises add a layer of muscle endurance and help target specific areas like the glutes.
One of the great things about this lower body workout is that anyone can try it. As long as you have a dumbbell size that you're comfortable lifting for all the exercises and feel challenged, you're good to go.
If you have access to multiple weights or an adjustable dumbbell set, you can introduce progressive overload by increasing the weight after round one to give your muscles an extra challenge.
Another reason why we rate this workout is that it can help boost your functional fitness thanks to it mimicking movements we use in everyday life, like squatting, bending, and lunging.
Targeting the muscles involved in these actions helps improve your strength and stability in real-world tasks, such as lifting, carrying, or climbing stairs. Plus, the inclusion of unilateral exercises also improves balance and coordination, which are key components of functional fitness.
If you're looking for more strength-building workouts, we feature plenty of routines targeting muscle groups throughout your body, which you can find below. We also emphasize the importance of maintaining good mobility to enhance performance and reduce the risk of injury.
In line with the lower body theme, we recommend trying these three mobility exercises before or after Itsines' lower body workout to help unlock tight hips and release tension in your glutes.
