Due to WFH shenanigans, I’ve been working out from home for almost 6 months now using a treadmill and a pair of adjustable dumbells. And while I’m making some modest but non-negligible gains on my chest and have lost considerable fat on the waist, I’ve also been losing fat on my glutes at an alarming rate. This is no joke, my ass is looking flat and unsexy. I’ve been using this dumbbell program, and it works out well enough for upper body, but I just don’t feel it in my glutes, the squats simply don’t go heavy enough and I can’t really fit a squat rack in my small apartment. Does anyone have an alternative exercise that trains glutes? Do resistance bands work? What do you recommend for butt
Kettlebells could work well for you. Front squats, Bulgarian split squats, somersault squats for quad heavy movements. Swings, deadlifts and good mornings for posterior chain. Could implement some lunges as well. Some of those movements can even be done with your dumbbells, but to me nothing beats the bell for most of those.
Right, do the 10,000 kettlebell swing challange and your glutes will definitely grow.
Absolutely. That was one of the first kettlebell programs I ever ran during the COVID lockdowns. Really good for your mentally too. That number of swings daily requires you to push past perceived limits and test your resolve. After week 2, I think I finally “got it” and my brain sort of properly wired itself for just staring in the alley behind my place while I did the same thing over and over again.
Question: how in shape were you before starting this? I’ve only been going to the gym for like six months—I’ve seen some noticeable improvements in appearance and I feel much more capable, but that regimen strikes me as incredibly difficult. I’m not a weight lifter, I’m a thinner, leaner person and when I do most arm/upper body stuff, (depending on the exercise, obviously), ranging between 15lbs per arm (for lunges), to the highest being 90lb total for seated row.
I was in pretty OK shape when I started on this, though the lockdowns had already been in effect for about half a year when I started and I definitely lost a step trying to figure out how I was going to keep lifting. But, before the the lockdowns I had been program lifting for about five years mostly around powerlifting and had the following 1RMs: back squat 435 lbs, bench press 280 lbs, deadlift 465 lbs, overhead press 175 lbs. Nothing crazy for that length of time, but being natty and just doing it as a hobby and not “professionally” while also being a dad and having a job, I was happy with where I was.
I would say you could definitely do this on a lower weight than 53 lbs and still get a lot of benefit. You could replace the dips with push-ups, the chin-ups with inverted rows, stuff like that to make it a little easier for you since you are a little early on your fitness journey. Dan John originally made this program as a sort of challenge to regular lifters as a break from traditional lifting to try something different and clear their heads/bodies of the grind of traditional programming. So, it is designed with the experienced lifter in mind. But I think you could modify it to the point where it’s still a challenge, but it’s your challenge.
Interesting, I see my initial impression that this would definitely be beyond me in its original form was a good impression. I appreciate the time and info