Beware of Adjustable Dumbbells

health

Aug 16

There are times when you want versatility over functionality, and there are other times — like now — when you just want a dumbbell, or a Kettlebell, to be what it is and nothing else. Yes, we’re talking about a unique disdain for a common workout prototype: Saving money to compress space and time; but that idea is, at times, dangerous, and misleading to efficiency.

Adjustable dumbbells and Kettlebells may appear to be money-saving and time-salvaging — but they are not what they appear to be; you cannot just look at that type of Bell and know its weight and size and that isn’t a good thing when you are working out. You want your bells to be “as they are” so you may visually know how much weight you’re about to lift. Yes, judging the effort needed to lift something matters.

I understand Kettlebell competition Bells are designed to all look and feel the same on the outside — changes in paint color indicate the adjusted weight inside — but for amateur Bellers, being able to know what you’re about to lift based on size and shape — “it is what it is” — has intrinsic value in helping the eyes prepare the body for the lifts to come.

Many adjustable dumbbells and Kettlebells have an awkward construction consisting of layers of weight or nested bundles of metal creating a clunky and awkward symposium of unity. Predictability and perception are paramount in the working of your weights and fiddling around with adjusting instead of just picking up is what helps create a disincentive to actually getting the work done.

Sure, nested and adjusted weights save space and probably some money — but at what overall cost and price to your safety and health? Having a Bell that is the weight that it is and completely autonomous and self-contained is the right way to move forward your amateur weighted workout. It is better, and safer, and smarter to have two separate Bells than to have 10 in one — of anything! Don’t be fooled by a false price and the theory of compression.

Make more room.

Spend a little more money.

Leave behind the expectation that everything must be manageable and moldable and interchangeable. Sometimes just being what is meant to be is the best way to exert power over your most effective workout.