Should I increase dumbbell weight or should I use throughout?

Asked by: Rebecca Smith

You don’t have to increase every time you work out. In fact it’s fine to keep using the same weight for 6 weeks straight and just add reps week by week. It’s a strategy that I use myself. At the end of 6 weeks, you’ll be more than comfortable with that weight so it’s time to increase.

Should I increase my dumbbell weight?

Use the “2 for 2” rule when deciding if it’s time to increase the amount of weight you’re lifting: When you can do two more reps with a given weight than you started out with for two consecutive workouts, increase the weight.

Is it better to increase weight or reps?

Generally, exercises with higher reps are used to improve muscular endurance, while higher weights with fewer reps are used to increase muscle size and strength.

Should I increase or decrease weight every set?

Strength coach and performance specialist Christian Thibaudeau believes that adding weight on each set is the best way to warm up the muscles and activate the central nervous system to get ready for heavy training without causing fatigue. It also gives you a chance to refine your technique on the lighter sets.

How often should you change your dumbbell weight?

Using the same weights for months at a time



“To continue to make progress, you must increase the demands (the resistance) on your body by increasing the weights every four to six weeks, or whenever you can.

Are 10kg dumbbells enough to build muscle?

Yes, a 10 kg bicep curl is a good lift and is certainly challenging enough to build muscle. This is especially true if you’re lifting with good form and performing plenty of sets and reps.

How much should I increase dumbbells?

If you’re using free weights such as dumbbells, the progression is fairly simple … just jump to the next weight up (usually a 5 lb. increase in most dumbbell sets). Many machines will have 2.5 weight increments, so just move up slowly and use your last few reps as a gauge to determine if you’ve found your new weight.

Will increasing reps build muscle?

More repetitions with lighter weights can build muscle as well as heavier weights — assuming they are done to the point of exercise-induced fatigue. And fatigue is the important point.

Should I increase weight every week?

Generally, you should limit week-to-week weight increases for any given lift to no more than 10 percent. Sometimes the weights available to you might mean you have to make a larger increase if you want to increase at all.

Is 20 reps too much?

Anything greater than 20 reps in a set is probably far too many. Performing this many reps in a set will have diminishing returns. If you can easily do more than 20 reps, then the weight you are using is probably too light or too easy to elicit any significant growth.

How often should I increase my weights?

Sulaver recommends adding weight every week. “But in baby steps — sometimes it’s only 2.5 percent heavier than the prior week,” he says. There’s a balance between pushing yourself and listening to your body’s limits that you’ll be able to find as you start lifting more.

How long should it take to increase dumbbell weight?

“Your body can start to adapt to small changes in roughly two to four weeks, so if you’re lifting the same weight on those dumbbell chest presses that you started with three months ago, it’s time to grab the next weight up,” he says.

What is the 2 for 2 rule?

The rule of twos or the ‘two-by-two rule’ is a practical formula for weight progression created by scientists Graves and Baechle. The principle is simple: if you can successfully complete two or more repetitions in the last set in two consecutive workouts for any given exercise, then the load should be increased.

Should I lift heavier every time?

The heavier weight leads to better increases in muscle strength, while the lighter-weight training induces increases in muscle endurance that the heavy-weight training does not. The real take-home message from these studies is that you should never stick with one rep range for too long.

How do I know if Im lifting heavy enough?

So, how can you tell how heavy is heavy enough? A good guideline is to lift heavy enough that the last 2-3 reps on each set feel challenging to complete but not so hard that you can’t do them with proper form.

Should I train for size or strength?

The choice between hypertrophy training and strength training has to do with your goals for weight training: If you want to increase the size of your muscles, hypertrophy training is for you. If you want to increase the strength of your muscles, consider strength training.

Why do bodybuilders not lift heavy?

So, do bodybuilders lift heavy or light weights? Bodybuilders tend to train with a mix of light and heavy weights. But as the goal is hypertrophy rather than strength or power, they are more likely to use lighter weights for higher reps than heavy weights.

Can you gain strength but not size?

Some people’s muscles tend to get stronger over time – but not bigger. There are several possible causes for this. But, usually, the underlying reason is all the same: they don’t have a good understanding of the differences between training for strength vs hypertrophy.

Do bodybuilders lift heavy or light?

And strength whereas lighter loads leads to more muscular endurance with less contribution to hypertrophy. So based on this it may seem that heavier loads is the way to go in terms of hypertrophy.

What builds muscle faster light or heavy weight?

So, in general, low reps with heavy weight tends to increase muscle mass, while high reps with light weight increases muscle endurance.

Is it better to lift heavy or light for biceps?

“But to build bigger biceps and triceps you have to focus on perfect form, moving through a full range of motion and, crucially, never lifting too heavy. The key to adding arm size is to getting a good pump through lifting lighter for longer – and executing every rep as perfectly as possible.”

How do I know if my dumbbells are too heavy?

If you’re not able to get past even the first five, then it’s a good sign your weights are too heavy. Cut back on the amount of weight you’re lifting until you feel as though you could do 1-2 more reps after your set — with good form — before needing to rest.

Do bodybuilders use heavy weights?

For long-term bodybuilding, you’ll eventually incorporate heavier training using lower repetitions and near-maximum weights. The purpose of heavier training in bodybuilding is to improve strength that eventually allows more high repetition training using heavier weights.

How do I choose dumbbell weight?

Choose the weight based on your strength level.



Start with a low weight, like 5 pounds (2.3 kg), and do a few repetitions of a simple exercise like bicep curls. Increase the weight by 2.5 pounds (1.1 kg) until you get to a weight that is difficult to use for the exercise. Then, go down one increment.

Is dumbbell enough to build muscle?

But, are dumbbells enough to build muscle? Yes, dumbbells are more than enough to build muscle. Ideally you would also be using barbells and cables to maximize strength and hypertrophy. But, dumbbells have been proven both scientifically and anecdotally to be one of the best ways to build muscle and strength.

Are 20Kg dumbbells enough to build muscle?

20Kg dumbbells are more than enough for most beginners. In fact 10kg dumbbells will probably be enough because there are so many exercises. But honestly, just get membership at a gym and separate your days for different muscles you are training.

Can I get ripped with just dumbbells?

There’s no overnight solution to get ripped, but with the right fitness plan, you can tighten and strengthen every muscle in your body using only dumbbells. The key to success is following a strict workout schedule and allowing your body to rest between workouts.