I have always liked working out with free weights in favor of machines. I prefer barbells and dumbbells because they allow me to do a wide variety of exercises with a minimal amount of equipment.

I have a workout bench that has an adjustable seat (for bench presses and other seated exercises) as well as a squat rack and an attachment that allows me to do leg extensions and hamstring curls. I have to fit my workout into one hour, so I exercise two body parts a day. I do exercises for each body part twice a week because this allows a sufficient amount of time in between each workout for the muscle group to fully recuperate.  I should mention, there are some muscle groups that don’t require a long period of time for recuperation. The abdominals are one of these muscle groups. The calves and forearms are two other muscle groups that recover relatively quickly.

I monitor each workout with my heart rate monitor to ensure that I keep my heart rate in its target zone for at least 35 minutes.  Whenever possible, I combine exercises for two different muscle groups in the same set, without pausing in between exercises. Instead, I complete the two (or three, as is the case when I do squats, calf raises and side laterals) separate exercises and then pause for about 30 seconds before beginning the next set.  This helps get and keep my heart rate up AND it saves time. It’s a win-win for me, as I just LOVE multitasking!!!

This is my current workout routine:

Mondays and Thursdays:

Legs and Shoulders (4 sets each)

Leg Extensions + Dumbbells Shoulder Presses

Squats followed by Calf Raises followed by Bent Arm Side Laterals for Shoulders (3 diff muscle groups)

Stiff Legged Dead Lifts + Barbell Upright Row

Leg Curls + Rear Shoulder Raises

Midsection*

20-30 minutes on elliptical or stationary bike

3 minutes of stretching

Tuesdays and Fridays

Chest & Triceps

Flat Bench Dumbbell Presses + Dumbbell Tricep Presses

Incline Chest Flyes + “Scarecrow” Tricep Extensions or Tricep Kickbacks

Dumbbell Pullovers + Bench Tricep Dips

Midsection*

20-30 minutes on elliptical or stationary bike

3 minutes of stretching

Wednesdays and Saturdays

Back & Biceps (my back and biceps respond very quickly strength building exercises, so I only do two exercises for each muscle group)

Bent Over E-Z Curl Back Rows + Bicep Curls (with E-Z Curl Bar)

One Arm Dumbbell Rows + Dumbbell Bicep Hammer Curls

Midsection*

20-30 minutes on elliptical or stationary bike

3 minutes of stretching

*Midsection (1 set each, as many as I can do)

• Leg Raises, bringing my feet over my head and then returning them down almost all the way
• Side Bends with Over Head Dumbbell presses with legs wide, knees slightly bent
• Full Sit Ups on an incline board

After I am finished on the bike or elliptical and right before I stretch, I usually apply one of my Pore Me Masques : it’s that multitasking thing again! My pores are quite “receptive” to whatever ingredients are in the “masque of the day” because I perspire a lot, so my pores are “open”.  I allow the masque to set as I’m stretching and preparing to get into the shower.

If you are interested in exercising with free weights at home, but don’t want to get a lot of equipment, you can get a VERY good workout with just a pair of adjustable dumbbells. If you’d like for me to give you a workout that only requires dumbbells, please post your request and I will post an AWESOME workout for you here!