Selecting DB and KB Weights
Written By Kyle Ligon - MovementLink Head Coach
For barbell work, to ensure you’re using weights that will get you optimal results, we’ll prescribe percentages based on an estimated 1 rep max. You can learn more about estimating your 1 RMs in here. But, when we are using dumbbells and kettlebells, referring to a percentage of a 1 rep max doesn’t make sense any more. This article will help you learn how to dial in what weights to use in workouts.
In a workout, you may see things written like:
15 Double DB Thrusters (Heavy)
15 KB Swings (Heavy)
100m DB One-arm Farmer’s Carry (Medium)
You don’t need to get these correct right away, as you take classes and complete workouts, you’ll start to hone in on what these references mean for you.
The first thing to understand is that the Heavy+/Heavy/Medium/Light descriptors are not specific to the exercise, so the dumbbells used for Double DB Thruster (Heavy) and DB One-arm Farmer’s Carry (Heavy) are the same, regardless of how hard you feel like the exercise is. A common mistake made is people adjust their DB weight based on how hard it feels like the exercise is, but those adjustments have already been made in the MovementLink programming with the number of reps, distance, etc.
Next, the most common descriptor is Heavy, so hone in on your Heavy weights and calculate the other descriptors off of that:
Medium = 75% of Heavy
Light = 50% of Heavy
Very Light = Less than 50% of Heavy
Heavy+ = The next bump up from Heavy
Your Heavy Dumbbell and your Heavy Kettlebell are likely different weights. For most people, your heavy weight for your kettlebell will be more than your heavy weight for your dumbbells.
Selecting your Heavy DB and KB:
Estimating at first and then adjusting as you go is the approach. When estimating Heavy for the first time, 3 reps in warm-up for most exercises are doable with near perfect technique, but feel like a 7-8 out of 10 effort. They feel a lot heavier than I want them to feel, but that’s also part of warming up. Once the excitement of the workout starts, I can usually move the weight around better than I imagined I could from the first warm-up reps. You should tell your coach that you are trying to figure out your weights and they can watch you throughout the workout and let you know if you’ve got them correct.
Progressing to the Next Level
If you think you might be ready for a bump up in weights, some workouts are better than others to test the waters of heavier DB and KB weights. Mainly, we want to be sure that 1) the integrity of our technique is maintained and 2) we don’t overdo the stimulus by doing too many reps at too heavy of weight. It’s normal for technique to be challenged more with heavier weights, but need to prioritize technique over intensity for a bit when we are upgrading our weights.
These are the best workouts to test the waters with:
Shorter workouts - If you get it wrong and it’s too heavy, there’s just not enough time to get a ton of bad reps in or enough time to do way too many heavy reps.
AMRAPs - The predetermined length of your workout ensures you’re not stuck doing a predetermined total amount of rounds and reps with weight that’s too heavy.
Exercises you’re very comfortable with allows a bigger margin of technique.
Additionally, another strategy is to reduce the number of reps to about 75% of the prescribed reps. So if the workout says to do 10 Double DB Thrusters (Heavy), you could do 7 each round with your heavier weight. If that workout goes well, you can increase the reps your using with your heavier weight until you get up to the full reps with your new weight.
In case you know your barbell weights and are curious, the total DB weight ends up being about equivalent to 85% of what would be on a barbell. So, if you are using 2 x 50lb dumbbells (100lb total), that would be equivalent to about a 115lb barbell.
Now that you understand how to select your DB and KB weights, if you want to get a better feel for how we customize the other parts of your workouts from selecting barbell weights, selecting what height box to use, how we describe different levels of effort for cardio exercises, and how to scale bodyweight exercises like pull-ups and push-ups, you can explore more through the buttons below: