4-Week Dumbbell Workout Plan Body Challenge

If you’re like most people, you want to look your best for the summer. But, let’s face it, getting in shape can be tough. That’s why we’ve put together the 4 Week Dumbbell workout plan body Challenge.

This challenge is designed to help you gain muscle and lose weight, so you can feel confident and look great on the beach or anywhere else. The challenge includes a workout plan and diet guidelines that will be key to achieving your goal.

Plus, we’ve prepared some tips and tricks to help you stay on track.

How Does It Work?

The program consists of two strength circuits and one modified Tabata circuit weekly. The strength workouts will facilitate muscle growth and some fat burning, while the Tabata will supercharge the fat burning!

You will need dumbbells to make the workouts effective, but you could potentially use other forms of resistance, although that will require some creativity on your part.

Diet Guide

Even though exercising is important for your summer body, eating five Big Macs daily won’t help you get there.

With proper diet habits being detrimental to your success, here are a few tips to keep in mind when tidying up your diet for the summer:

• Track your calories!

We generally suck at accurately estimating how many calories consume; that’s why we must track them. Getting a kitchen scale is a must.

You don’t need to be overly obsessed with every atom of food you consume. Just make sure you’re consistent with your measurements and tracking.

• If you want to lose fat, be in a slight caloric deficit.

Get your daily caloric needs by visiting any online calorie calculator and subtracting 500 calories from that. This should be enough to ensure sustainable weight loss.

If you want to lose a lot of fat fast, you can go on a bigger deficit, but chances are you’ll get back to your starting weight as soon as you finish the diet.

• If you want to gain muscle/weight, then be in a slight caloric surplus.

Again, calculate your daily caloric needs, then add 10 to 20 percent of that to your diet in order to bulk up.

A 20% surplus will likely result in more fat gain than the 10% option, but you’ll also gain more muscle.

• Consume 1.6-2.0 grams of protein per kg of bodyweight.

Getting enough protein is vital in building muscle and losing fat.

You can experiment with the carb-to-fat ratio with your remaining calories. Some people feel better on a low-carb diet, while others strive for a low-fat one.

Workout Guide

We have 3 training days per week, with the first and the last days being the strength circuit. You will repeat the strength circuit on the first and the last day of the week and do the Tabata on the second day.

Week 1:

Starting a bit light, we only have 2 circuits/sets during the strength workouts.

WEEK 1
Strength Circuit
Monday
#	Exercise	Sets	Reps	Rest
A1	Dumbbell Goblet Squat	2	10	/
A2	Overhead Press	2	10	/
A3	Dumbbell Deadlift	2	10	/
A4	Bent-Over Row	2	10	/
A5	Biceps Curl	2	10	/
A6	Laying Skullcrushers	2	10	2 min
Tabata
Wednesday
#	Exercise	Sets	Seconds	Rest
A1	Dumbbell Thruster	3	20	10
A2	Flutter Kicks	3	20	10
A3	Burpees	3	20	10
A4	Side Plank Right Arm	3	20	10
A5	Side Plank Left Arm	3	20	2 min
Strength Circuit
Friday
#	Exercise	Sets	Reps	Rest
A1	Dumbbell Goblet Squat	2	10	/
A2	Overhead Press	2	10	/
A3	Dumbbell Deadlift	2	10	/
A4	Bent-Over Row	2	10	/
A5	Biceps Curl	2	10	/
A6	Laying Skullcrushers	2	10	2 min

Week 2:

Intensifying everything a bit, we now have 3 circuits/sets during the strength workouts.

WEEK 2
Strength Circuit
Monday
#	Exercise	Sets	Reps	Rest
A1	Dumbbell Goblet Squat	3	10	/
A2	Floor Press	3	10	/
A3	Dumbbell Deadlift	3	10	/
A4	Bent-Over Row	3	10	/
A5	Hip Thrust	3	10	/
A6	Biceps Curl	3	10	2 min
Tabata
Wednesday
#	Exercise	Sets	Seconds	Rest
A1	Db Thruster	3	20	10
A2	Flutter Kicks	3	20	10
A3	Burpees	3	20	10
A4	Plank	3	20	10
A5	Plank Row	3	20	2 min
Strength Circuit
Friday
#	Exercise	Sets	Reps	Rest
A1	Dumbbell Goblet Squat	3	10	/
A2	Floor Press	3	10	/
A3	Dumbbell Deadlift	3	10	/
A4	Bent-Over Row	3	10	/
A5	Hip Thrust	3	10	/
A6	Biceps Curl	3	10	2 min

Week 3:

Things are getting even harder! We are starting to incorporate unilateral exercises now.

WEEK 3
Strength Circuit
Monday
#	Exercise	Sets	Reps	Rest
A1	Reverse Lunge	3	10/10	/
A2	Overhead Press	3	10	/
A3	Hip Thrust	3	10	/
A4	Reverse Fly	3	10	/
A5	Overhead Triceps	3	10	/
A6	Leg Raises	3	10	2 min
Tabata
Wednesday
#	Exercise	Sets	Seconds	Rest
A1	Dumbbell Thruster	3	20	10
A2	Flutter Kicks	3	20	10
A3	Russian Twist	3	20	10
A4	Mountain Climbers	3	20	10
A5	Jumps	3	20	2 min
Strength Circuit
Friday
#	Exercise	Sets	Reps	Rest
A1	Reverse Lunge	3	10	/
A2	Overhead Press	3	10	/
A3	Hip Thrust	3	10	/
A4	Reverse Fly	3	10	/
A5	Overhead Triceps	3	10	/
A6	Leg Raises	3	10	2 min

Week 4:

Your final week! Congrats on sticking with the challenge so far. This week will be the hardest yet, with most of the exercises during the strength circuits being unilateral.

WEEK 4
Strength Circuit
Monday
#	Exercise	Sets	Reps	Rest
A1	One and A Half Goblet Squat	3	10	/
A2	Alternate Overhead Press	3	10	/
A3	Single-Leg Hip Thrust	3	10	/
A4	Plank Row	3	10	/
A5	Biceps Curl	3	10	/
A6	Bicycle Crunch	3	10	2 min
Tabata
Wednesday
#	Exercise	Sets	Seconds	Rest
A1	In and Out Hop Squat	3	20	10
A2	Flutter Kicks	3	20	10
A3	Burpees	3	20	10
A4	Mountain Climbers	3	20	10
A5	Jumping Jacks	3	20	2 min
Strength Circuit
Friday
#	Exercise	Sets	Reps	Rest
A1	One and A Half Goblet Squat	3	10	/
A2	Alternate Overhead Press	3	10/10	/
A3	Single-Leg Hip Thrust	3	10/10	/
A4	Plank Row	3	10/10	/
A5	Biceps Curl	3	10	/
A6	Bicycle Crunch	3	10/10	2 min

Exercise Instructions

Now, let’s move on to describe each exercise. Always make sure to execute them with proper form. We will only include the exercise instructions once since many of them are part of the weekly workout routines, therefore if you find that some of them are missing from that week’s training that’s because those have been already described in the previous weeks.

Week 1

Exercise 1- Dumbbell Goblet Squat

• Hold the dumbbell vertically and grip it underneath the top part of it.
• Place it close to your chest.
• Breathe in and then squat to a comfortable depth.
• Make sure the dumbbell is close to your chest, squat back up, and reset.

Exercise 2- Overhead Press

• Lift up the dumbbells up to the top of your clavicles.
• Push the dumbbells over your head while keeping your elbows in front of you.
• Pause on top for a split second and then control the weights on the way down.

Exercise 3- Dumbbell Deadlift

• Hold the dumbbell close to your body.
• Push your hips back while keeping your center of gravity on the midfoot.
• Try to get your torso as parallel to the floor as possible without flexing your spine.
• Pause for a bit at the bottom, then come back up.
• Keep your back straight through the whole movement.

Exercise 4- Bent Over Row

• Assume a position similar to the bottom position of the deadlift.
• Holding the dumbbells right below your shoulders, start bringing the weight to the lower part of your chest.
• Squeeze your back at the top, then control the weight back down.
• Keep your back straight through the whole movement.

Exercise 5- Biceps Curl

• Stand up straight and hold the weight with your palms facing you.
• Curl the dumbbells in a controlled motion, squeeze at the top, and then go back down.

Exercise 6- Laying Skullcrushers

• Lay down on the floor, holding the dumbbells directly on your head.
• Your thumbs should be facing towards you.
• Lower the weights toward your forehead in a controlled manner.
• Pause for a split second, then lift them back up to the starting position.

Week 2

Exercise 1- Goblet Squat(described in week1)

Exercise 2- Floor Press

• Lay down on the floor and bend your knees.
• Make sure your elbows form a 45-degree angle to your body while holding the dumbbells.
• Press the weight upwards, so the dumbbells come close to touching
• Pause for a split second, then control the weight back down.

Exercise 3- Dumbbell Deadlift(described in week1)

Exercise 4- Bent Over Row(described in week1)

Exercise 5- Hip Thrust

• Lay down on the floor and bend your knees.
• Lift up your toes, putting all of your weight on your heels.
• Lift your hips, ensuring you aren’t extending through your lower back.
• Squeeze your glutes at the top, then go back down.

Exercise 6- Biceps Curl(described in week1)

Week 3

Exercise 1- Reverse Lunge

• Stand straight with your core engaged.
• You can either place your hands on your waist or keep them by your sides.
• Take a big step back with one of your legs, going down until your front knee gets close to 90 degrees.
• Push back and get back to the starting position.
• Either alternate legs between reps or do all of the reps on one side first.

Exercise 2- Overhead Press(described in week1)

Exercise 3- Hip Thrust(described in week2)

Exercise 4- Reverse Fly

• Assume a position similar to the bottom position of the deadlift.
• Holding the dumbbells right below your shoulders, lift them with relatively straight arms.
• You can have a slight bend in your elbows.
• Your arms should form a T shape if looked at from above.
• Squeeze your back at the top, then control the weight back down.
• Keep your back straight through the whole movement.

Exercise 5- Overhead Triceps

• Hold the dumbbell vertically and grip it underneath the top part of it.
• Lift it overhead.
• Bring down the weight behind your head, but be careful not to hit yourself.
• Pause at the bottom of the movement, then go back up to the starting position.

Exercise 6- Leg Raises

• Lay down on the floor with your low back tight against the floor.
• While keeping your back close to the floor, lift up your legs until they become vertical.
• Try not to bend your knees during the movement.

Week 4

Exercise 1- One and A Half Goblet Squat

• Hold the dumbbell vertically and grip it underneath the top part of it.
• Place it close to your chest.
• Breathe in and then squat to a comfortable depth.
• Go halfway up, back down to your maximum depth, and go up all the way.
• Make sure you aren’t bouncing during this exercise.
• Control the movement.

Exercise 2- Alternate Overhead Press

• Lift up the dumbbells up to the top of your clavicles.
• Keeping your elbows in front of you, push one of the dumbbells over your head.
• Pause on top for a split second and then control the weight on the way down.
• Repeat the same for the other arm.
• Alternate between arms.

Exercise 3- Single Leg Hip Thrust

• Lay down on the floor and bend your knees.
• Lift up your toes, putting all of your weight on your heels.
• Put one of your legs up in the air so all the stress is placed on the other leg.
• Lift your hips, ensuring you aren’t extending through your lower back.
• Squeeze your glutes at the top, then go back down.
• Finish all of the reps for one leg, then switch sides.

Exercise 4- Plank Row

• Get into a pushup position, then grab a dumbbell with one of your arms.
• Start rowing the weight, trying to keep your hips and core stable.
• Switch sides after finishing the reps for the first arm.

Exercise 5- Biceps Curl(described in week1)

Exercise 6- Bicycle Crunch

• Lay down on the floor with your low back tight against the floor.
• Bring one of your elbows up to the opposite knee, squeezing your abs.
• Get back to the starting position and alternate sides.

Conclusion

Whether you’re aiming for weight loss or lean muscle mass, this 30-day dumbbell workout challenge will surely set you on the right track to your desired fitness goals. Remember to follow the plan to the letter regarding nutrition and training intensity, and you’ll have a great fitness foundation!