No Plates? No Problem: Use Adjustable Dumbbells for Barbell Exercises

Adjustable dumbbells are popular in home gyms for a pretty obvious reason: one pair of dumbbells can replace an entire rack of individual weights.

That's already a lot of versatility packed into a relatively small amount of space.

But what if those same adjustable dumbbells could also take on some of the work normally done by weight plates?

That's where Dualbell dumbbell to barbell converters come in.

Getting More From Adjustable Dumbbells

The idea behind Dualbell is simple. Instead of limiting your dumbbells to exercises where you hold them in your hands, Dualbell allows compatible dumbbells to attach to a standard 1" bar.

Your dumbbells can then provide the resistance for barbell-style exercises.

In the video accompanying this article, I start by placing my adjustable dumbbells into the Dualbells already on the bar.

Then the fun starts.

I clean the bar from the floor, take it overhead, lower it into position for a squat, press it overhead again and return it to the floor. From there, I move to a floor press and finish with a curl.

Different movements. Same adjustable dumbbells.

No weight plates required.

My Dumbbells Double as Plates

That's really the point of the video.

My dumbbells double as plates.

It doesn't mean they stop being dumbbells. When I take them off the bar, I can go right back to using them for regular dumbbell exercises.

Dualbell simply adds another way to use them.

For someone building a home gym, that can mean getting additional exercise possibilities without necessarily adding another complete category of weights.

Making Adjustable Dumbbells More Adjustable

I've used the phrase “Make Adjustable Dumbbells More Adjustable” before, and this is exactly what I mean by it.

I'm not changing how the dumbbell itself adjusts. I'm expanding what I can do with it.

Adjustable dumbbells already give you multiple weight settings in one piece of equipment. Add Dualbell, and compatible models can also become the resistance for exercises performed with a bar.

That can be particularly useful when space is limited, when you're starting to build a home gym, or when you simply prefer getting more use from equipment you already own.

Traditional Dumbbells Work Too

The concept isn't limited to adjustable dumbbells.

Dualbell works with most traditional dumbbells and many adjustable dumbbells, depending on their handle dimensions and design. Dualbell accommodates compatible dumbbell handles up to approximately 1.38 inches (35 mm) in diameter.

The converters slide onto standard 1" (25 mm) bars, allowing you to use dumbbells with straight bars and other compatible standard bars.

That creates plenty of possibilities for presses, rows, curls, deadlifts, squats, landmine exercises and other barbell-style movements.

More Exercises. Less Equipment.

Every home gym is different.

Some people have dedicated rooms filled with racks of weight plates and specialty equipment. Others are working with a corner of a basement, garage, apartment or spare room.

Dualbell isn't about saying one approach is better than another.

It's about providing another way to train.

If dumbbells are already a major part of your home gym, why not give them another job?

Use them as dumbbells when you want dumbbells.

Put them on a bar when you want barbell-style exercises.

Then take them right back off.

No plates? No problem.

Your dumbbells are still dumbbells.

They can just do a little more.