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How to Choose the Best Hex Dumbbells for Your Home Gym

Hex Dumbbells are different from the typical round dumbbells due to the six-point hexagonal structure that prevents them from rolling while providing quality and durability. Hex dumbbells help you do various exercises to build strength and muscles.

Emilia Moore
How to Choose the Best Hex Dumbbells for Your Home Gym
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Dumbbells are the most used equipment at the gym and can be a great addition to your home gym collection. Whether you are a beginner or a fitness pro, buying a dumbbell set can be challenging as you have to choose from the multiple available options in the market. 

If you are thinking of buying a dumbbell set (or maybe a collection of different weights), rubber hex dumbbells are the best option. Unlike round dumbbells, hex dumbbells do not roll away due to their six-point hexagonal shape construction. 

You can use the hex dumbbells for many different exercises and even intense training sessions. Through this article, we will familiarize you with the advantages of hex dumbbells and share some amazing tips to buy the ideal hex dumbbells for your home gym. 

Benefits of Hex Dumbbells

Hex dumbbells allow you to perform workouts that help lose weight, build muscles, and increase bone density. 

These durable, workout-friendly dumbbells last long and help perform different upper-body, lower-body, and full-body workouts. Let us see how these dumbbells will benefit you during your home-gym training sessions. 

1. Hardwearing and Robust

Rubber hex dumbbells are made from durable cast iron and are coated with protective rubber. This makes the equipment durable and strong that lasts long to have a lifelong investment at your home gym. 

2. Quality Feel and Look

The hex dumbbells have a premium look that will fit nicely into any gym. It gives a premium look that fits well to any fitness facility due to the protective rubber, hexagonal structure, and black colour. 

3. Do Not Roll Away

The primary benefit of hex dumbbells over standard rounded weights is their inability to roll away. Standard rounded weights are more likely to roll during exercise. This can be dangerous in a gym setting and create a hurdle in your workout tempo. 

When doing circuit training, you will find yourself switching between cardio and weights frequently. The hex dumbbells will remain in the same place you left them, as they won't move about on the floor. 

4. Minimize Noise

Rubber coatings help reduce the noise of dumbbells being dropped and placed on the ground. This is especially useful for home gyms that keep noise levels down to the lowest. 

It is crucial to have equipment that is not too loud. It allows you to work out early in the morning without having to wake your family or disturb your neighbours.

Best Exercises for Hex Dumbbells

You can do various exercises using hex dumbbells to increase your heart rate or build muscles. You can stimulate muscle growth directly by using hex dumbbells with crucial upper body exercises like shoulder press, one-arm row, and bench press.

Hex dumbbells can be helpful in various floor workouts, such as dumbbell push-ups. You can also do the following exercises with hex dumbbells:

1. Bicep Curl 

Hex dumbbells allow a better range of motion than barbells, which helps you build more strength. Dumbbell bicep curls are a trendy exercise that focuses on your biceps primarily. 

If your fitness goal is to build bigger biceps, this is the ideal exercise. It targets both the long head and short head of the bicep branch. The exercise improves grip strength and performance during compound exercises that require excessive grip strength. 

There are several variations to this exercise:

No matter which variation you adopt, it is essential to control your body and opt for the best technique. 

How To Do It:

  1. Stand straight and hold both the dumbbells in both your hands.
  2. Make sure your palms face upwards. 
  3. Keeping your biceps tense, curl the dumbbells as far up as possible.
  4. Squeeze the biceps, then go back to the starting position.
  5. Repeat for required reps. 

2. Goblet Squat 

The goblet squat is a variation of squats that helps build leg muscles. It places particular focus on the quads. You must incorporate this fundamental exercise in your routine to strengthen and tone lower-body muscles. 

Generally, squatting is a basic human movement that involves almost every muscle in the body. Whatever your fitness goals are, doing squats will help improve performance and mobility in daily life. 

How To Do It:

  1. Choose a hex dumbbell and hold it at your chest level. Put your hand under the dumbbell.
  2. Bend your knees slightly, then push your hips back to squat. 
  3. Once your thighs get paralleled to the floor, you should pause.
  4. Make sure to keep your core braced throughout the exercise and push back through the heels of the foot. 
  5. Repeat for the desired number of reps. 

3. Bent-Over Row 

The dumbbell row is a variation on the barbell bent-over row, which is an exercise that helps build muscles and strength. You can vary the position of your back muscles. To maximize the growth of your back muscles, try different angles and hand positions.

You can perform the hex dumbbell row during your back exercises, upper-body workouts, pull workouts, and full-body workouts.

How To Do It:

  1. Stand while maintaining a neutral grip on the hex dumbbells in your hands.
  2. Keep your head up until your torso is parallel to the floor or slightly higher. Then, drive the elbows behind your body and retract the shoulder blades.
  3. Move the dumbbells towards you until your elbows reach the midline. Then, slowly lower them back to their original position.
  4. Continue repeating until you reach the desired number of reps.

4. Dumbbell Chest Press

The dumbbell chest press is a great exercise to build your upper body strength. You need to stabilize the weight in each hand. The exercise works great for both sides of your chest.

How To Do It?

  1. Lie on a bench with a dumbbell in each hand.
  2. Your hands should be on the sides of your shoulders.
  3. Press your feet into the ground.
  4. Press the weight above your chest by extending your arms completely.
  5. Bring them down, and you can lower them below shoulder level.
  6. Do the same for the required number of reps.

5. Dumbbell Lunge

Dumbbell lunge is a classic strengthening exercise that targets your quads primarily. It is a variation of conventional lunges performed with the bodyweight only. The calves, glutes, and hamstrings are emphasized as secondary targets to build strength. 

How to Do It:

  1. Set the barbell just below shoulder height and load the weight.
  2. Grab the weight with a wide grip and take the weight off the rack. 
  3. Take a step back, hinge your hips backward and lower yourself to squat.
  4. Once you feel your thighs parallel with the floor, come back up. 
  5. Keep your knees bent; go for another rep.

Tips for Choosing Hex Dumbbells

We will include some essential tips and tricks to simplify buying hex dumbbells and make it easy for you to pick the right one. These guidelines will help you choose the more favourable one for your home gym or commercial facility. 

1. Weight Range

The whole point of owning dumbbells is that you have the range of most dumbbells, between 2.5lbs. and 60lbs. With 5lbs. increments, you should find dumbbells that will progress as you gain strength in your workouts. 

You don't have to purchase all the dumbbells at once. However, with time you will need more dumbbells from a range of 5-60 pounds as you get stronger through your exercises. You will be using different weights for different exercises and will need additional weights in a matter of months.

Some people don't like having different dumbbells in your gym. However, if you have dumbbells under 5lbs, you can find a wide range of different weights. You can achieve an entirely different look, even with the lightest dumbbells.

2. Shape

All dumbbells come with a handle that has weights on both ends. The shape varies from dumbbell's weights, or "heads," which can take on different shapes. There isn't much to be concerned about, but there are some things you need to know.

There are two types of dumbbells available: round and hexagonal. 

Because the round dumbbells don't have edges, they can be slightly more comfortable. The hexagonal dumbbells have pointy edges, but the difference is not huge. 

The positive point to consider is hexagonal dumbbells are designed to stop rolling when placed on the ground. It can also prevent the dumbbells from getting into your toes or hurting you or someone around you. This anti-rolling feature makes hexagonal dumbbells a better choice.

3. Material

Under the hood, all dumbbells are made from steel. It makes no sense to make them from another material. Only the outside of the weights can make them different.

Three common outer layers for dumbbells you would find are: 

  • Bare steel 
  • Rubberized
  • Chrome

It's time to send chrome dumbbells back to the 80s. They’re outdated because; no one has time to polish them. However, they might look good when new; they’ll no longer look good after a while. 

So, you have two options left: rubberized or "naked." 

There are many benefits to both.

Rubberized dumbbells have a rubber coating on the outsides, making them safer for your equipment and gym/home floor. They also make less noise when dropped. A bonus is the rubber's ability to grip, which you may find helpful and enjoyable.

However, the rubber can start to tear off or become less durable with heavy use. But that's not often seen. Rubberized dumbbells last for years in a commercial gym. 

The "naked" dumbbells that don't have any coating are simply hard steel coated with rust protection. They may last longer but aren't as durable as rubberized ones. They may also be less comfortable to use, and they look rough and industrial. 

Often, rubberized dumbbells make an excellent choice for most people, whether for home or commercial use. 

4. Handle

When choosing a dumbbell, many people neglect to observe the handle of a dumbbell. The handle is the most crucial part of a dumbbell because you are most in contact with it. There are four parts to a dumbbell's handle.

  • Material
  • Texture
  • Diameter
  • Shape

Let's examine each of these aspects in more detail and decide what we want.

Material

Metal is the primary material for most dumbbell handles. It is durable, easy to clean, and has served its purpose well for many years. Sometimes, a rubberized handle is another option. But, these types of handles are often the first thing that wears off. It also becomes messy to clean and function. 

However, it can provide a good grip and is slightly less tiring on your hands. On the other hand, metal handles for dumbbells make the best long-term choice. 

Texture 

The metal handle comes with a subtle cross-hatch design. This design is called "knurling." It gives dumbbells extra grip, so they don't slip in your hands, which really helps during sweaty workouts. 

Most dumbbells have this feature and you shouldn’t purchase the one that doesn’t. 

You can have shallow or deep knurling. However, deeper knurling will give more grip, making your hands feel rougher and less comfortable. The more heavy the weights you use, the more critical knurling is. 

Diameter

Recently, there has been a lot of debate regarding a dumbbell's handle. Most people prefer a handle diameter between 1" and 1.4". This diameter gives you a secure, comfortable grip and doesn't require too much effort while you grasp.

Professional and elite athletes use thicker than 2" handles. Thick handles can be beneficial for strength training. Heavy dumbbells can make the 25mm handle feel uncomfortable because all weight is concentrated in one place. 

Thicker handles make heavyweights more comfortable as they spread the weight out more evenly. For comfort, it is not necessary to lift heavier weights with more than 1.5" to 2.5" diameter handle. Grip under 1.5" seems to be the best for most people. 

Shape

The handles of dumbbells can be either straight or slightly bent in the middle. The dumbbells with bulbous handles provide slightly more comfort and grip. 

A well-shaped, ergonomically designed handle that ensures a secure grip will make you more powerful and easier to lift, especially while using them to gain muscle strength.

5. Looks

No one can deny the fact that appearance does matter when it comes to setting a personal workout space. So, you should keep this factor in mind while purchasing equipment for your home gym. 

Let's suppose you have two dumbbells. Both work the same way, but one looks better. Of course, you will go for the one that looks better. 

When investing in your gym, you will want to own a gym that looks better. A good-looking gym will want you to go there more often and stay motivated. You will feel stronger and more energetic if you exercise more. 

Dumbbells are available in many different forms and finishes. The most popular ones are:

  • Cast iron with enamel finishing 
  • Cast iron with rubber finishing 
  • Cast iron with chrome finishing

It is up to you to decide what you want. People mostly prefer rubber finishing as they are less noisy when colliding and on the floor. 

6. Brand, Warranty, and Customer Service

Dumbbells are metal-made, strong, and rarely break. But suppose they do wear out or split. In that case, it is better to deal with a company with a good warranty policy and accessible customer service. They might not be repairable, depending on how the dumbbell was constructed.

It's important to know that you can count on reliable brands for customer service in such a case. That's going to be a problem with the cheap weights that you bought from any non-authorized company.

Customer service is expensive, and companies providing you long-term benefits can cost more than the cheap products available on the market. 

You can rely on the durable, non-rolling rubberized hex dumbbells by DMoose if you want to upgrade your home gym with stunning workout-friendly dumbbells. These dumbbells are available in various sizes and are made from high-quality steel and durable cast iron joined by solid cold-rolled steel chromed ergonomically designed handle.

The Bottom Line

Dumbbells are essential equipment for your home gym. Typically, the weights attached to either side of the dumbbells are round in shape. Hex dumbbells come in a hexagonal shape with edges that prevent dumbbells from rolling while you are exercising and prevent injuries. These are excellent pieces of equipment that make less noise, help you perform various exercises, and last long. However, choosing the right one will help you gain the maximum benefits from your workout sessions. 

Reading List

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Emilia Moore

I'm Emilia Moore, and I hold a master’s degree in Community Health Education. As a freelance writer based in the United States, I’ve had the privilege of contributing to a variety of online publications. My work has appeared not only on DMoose but also on several well-known blogging platforms, where I share my passion for health, wellness, and education.

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