CrossFit Seminar Staff member Julie Foucher demonstrates the Dumbbell Overhead Walking Lunge – here we are adding two elements of instabiility – first holding the weight overhead and second, using dumbells instead of barbells. Barbells do create more stability and allow one arm to compensate for the other, while dumbells force each arm to hold up it’s fair share of the weight.
This added instability helps to strengthen the core and also the smaller stabilising muscles in the shoulders, but progress your weights carefully so as not to destabilise the shoulder joint before it has had a chance to strengthen.
If you are struggling, you could replace the dumbells with a plate in the overhead position, which may feel more comfortable.
Points Of Performance
- Hold dumbbells at full arm extension
- Maintain lockout throughout movement
- One leg steps forward
- Keep heel of forward leg down
- Raise heel of back leg
- Lower torso until back knee touches the ground
- Forward leg shin remains relatively vertical
- Complete at full hip and knee extension
- Opposite leg begins next step
- Can be performed with 1 or 2 dumbbells
