Forget burpees — this dumbbell workout sculpts your abs and arms in 15 minutes

Summoning the motivation to do a workout can sometimes be a challenge, but one thing that always makes it a bit easier for me is if I’m planning to do a standing workout. Despite the fact these workouts can be just as tough and effective as training on the floor, it feels less daunting to me to stand in one place and do my exercises.

So if you’re looking to avoid moves like planks, burpees and sit-ups with your core workout, this 15-minute standing abs and arms session is a great one to try. It’s been put together by fitness trainer Maddie Lymburner, who goes by MadFit on YouTube, and all you need to do it is a set of dumbbells.

Lymburner herself is using 10-pound weights in the workout, but you can use whatever dumbbells are suitable for your fitness level — you’ll be doing moves like the overhead press where you raise them above your head, so if in doubt it’s best to err on the lighter side. If you have a set of the best adjustable dumbbells you can change the weight as and when required to fit your needs in the workout.

Watch MadFit’s 15-minute abs and arms workout

Throughout the workout you’ll be doing an exercise for 45 seconds and resting for 15 seconds. The moves in the session are done in groups of two, which you repeat before moving on the next group of two.

For example, you start with marching dumbbell curls, then do overhead presses combined with standing bicycle crunches, then repeat those moves before you move onto the next set of two exercises.

Lymburner demonstrates each move during the rest breaks in the workout, and also continues to give form tips throughout each set, so keep your ears and eyes open to make sure you’re using her advice to get your technique right.

To target the abs while standing, you do several exercises where you lift your knees or kick out to engage the core, while your biceps, triceps and shoulders are worked by a series of curls, raises, and presses. Often you’re doing these moves as combination exercises to hit the core and arms in one go, so you can maximize the time you’re working these muscles in the 15 minutes.

This is a beginner-friendly workout but one that’s easy to progress to make it challenging enough for all fitness levels. You can increase the weight of your dumbbells for one, or even look at doing the circuit twice for a 30-minute session, or add it onto the end of a leg workout to create a full-body session.

If you don’t have dumbbells or would rather do a bodyweight session, this 20-minute standing abs workout uses dance moves to get your heart pumping while crunching your core. For those days when you are happy to hit the floor for your training session, I found this 20-minute abs workout an enjoyable challenge.

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