I am a member at one of the only gyms in my area but it has no barbells, loads of machines and dumbells with benches! can I have just as effective workout with just dumbells ie when I attempt to do some bench work

Yes if the dumbells are heavy enough.

A gym with no barbells isnt going to hav heavy dumbells.

ORIGINAL: wolverine198324

A gym with no barbells isnt going to hav heavy dumbells.

Possibly, but irrelevant.

Like Integra says, why dont you ask the gym manager/owner to buy one? they are expensive. I personally think that the gym owner is a plank if you dont have a simple piece of equipment such as a barbell.

17
6ft2
Body fat is out of the window now until I cut once again
Now on a bulk
Tryin to get up to 235lbs or there abouts

how can you not have a bar in the gym, thats like having a swimming pool without a swimming pool

13.12 Stone, 5ft9.5:
1RM Dead 205kgs
1RM Bench 130kgs
1RM Smith Flat Bench 150kgs
1RM Squat Unknown, but 150kgs for 2.

Thats a pap gym right there mate! LOL buy your own and take it with every time! That would get some stares!

EPIVOL, the first journal!!!!  *click me*

make the most with what you got, just use the Dumbells mate but make sure they're heavy, sometimes I prefer dumbells over the barbell for bench anyway.

OK first of all, what someone else said about taking your own bar LMAO so funny mate please do that, that would make my day if i went your gym, 2nd of all what is a gym without a barbell ............fitness centre????? cause it aint a gym lol

I would suggest to him to buy a barbell and all the relevant weights and say sorry to you and refund half your membership for bein an incompetant sh1t lol!!!

Failing all this, buy a bench at home, can be quite expensive or just use hand weights/ dumbells, but theyve got to be heavy we are talking at least 20's upto 35's.

Ive only been training 3 months and already pectoral flies (dumbells) 32.5s kgs on each side, your chest is a big muscle that can grow very quick.

s33nyboy

you dont need a barbell can do everything with dumbells pretty much

the only bar i ever use is the ez bar for curls

If a gym does not have a barbell, then they are not trying to accomadate a person building serious muscle so find another gym if you can mate.

"A great pleasure in life is doing what people say you cannot do."

ORIGINAL: Integra

ORIGINAL: wolverine198324

A gym with no barbells isnt going to hav heavy dumbells.

Possibly, but irrelevant.

Not totally irrelevent, relevent to the poster's requirement of heavy.

I would have thought that the fact that someone is asking this question, means that the dumbells at this gym will be heavy enough for him on chest work. But i would have thought more important is how is he going to squat/deadlift. I guess he has a plan to DB lunge, sumo squat, DB deadlift - not ideal. In summary yes for your original question about chest work but what about the rest.

No it is irrelevant and offers nothing to the thread.

DB squats are fine if they are heavy enough, as are deadlifts.

We've established the gym doesn't have a barbell but what good will bringing your own one in or getting the gym to supply one do - we haven't established whether there are any plates to put on the barbell yet.

Let's assume there are unlimited plates available. This means the OP can now do deadlifts. How about squats? How about bench pressing? Cue a new post entitled "my gym doesn't have a squat rack or power cage - what shall I do?"

OP - what weight do the dumbbells go up to? That may provide some information to base a suitable routine around. Not having a barbell doesn't automatically mean the dumbbells won't be heavy enough but some clarification of the weight would be useful.


To all the posters stating he *needs* a barbell - what exercises and bodyparts will this allow the OP to train that he can't already do effectively with dumbbells?

My Vids  ~  Praise The Lord - My Journal

ORIGINAL: Lord Monkcheese

To all the posters stating he *needs* a barbell - what exercises and bodyparts will this allow the OP to train that he can't already do effectively with dumbbells?

He would struggle to bench press without a barbell!

Yeah i agree if he has enough weight on the DBs to challenge the muscles he still has the world at his feet

Explain how he'd safely bench press with only a barbell and no rack/specific bench for bench pressing?

Clean the barbell into position each set?
Bench until near failure then somehow climb out from under the bar?
Use sub-maximal weight so he can bench safely?

Or perhaps just use the dumbbells and get a safer and more effective work-out.

My Vids  ~  Praise The Lord - My Journal

i've never done a bench press in my life but can dumbell press 40kg per side for reps

you do not need a bar

Wow, I didnt think this thread would create such a fuss! The dumbells go up to 40 kg so I think that this would be ample for me to start building some serious muscle. I would really apreciate someone putting up a work out for me based around dumbells and the machines that are common place in the gym

ORIGINAL: evo360

Wow, I didnt think this thread would create such a fuss! The dumbells go up to 40 kg so I think that this would be ample for me to start building some serious muscle. I would really apreciate someone putting up a work out for me based around dumbells and the machines that are common place in the gym

Do you have:
Cable machines row/lat pull down etc?
Leg press?
Leg curl machine?
Dip & chin bars?

How many times/week do you plan on training?

no dip or chin bars but I think just about everything else. I am currently going to the gym every day do do cardio work so I can work on the weights every day too if needed