Bulgarian dumbbell squat, barbell, glute weights - teenflixsports

Bulgarian dumbbell squat, barbell, glute weights

The Bulgarian squat is a great alternative to work the muscles of the lower body. It is a practical option to tone the legs , buttocks , among other secondary muscles. Performing the Bulgarian squat requires balance, strength, and balance throughout the body. At first glance, it may seem a bit complex for beginners, but it is not, since doing them without weight or with very little weight will help anyone who practices sports and seeks to tone their body. Its technique is very easy and it is also quite useful for exercising the lower part of the body.

The Bulgarian squat is rarely seen in gyms because there are machines that help work the muscles we work just like doing the Bulgarian squat. Despite this, its popularity is increasing both for beginners and advanced in the world of fitness, due to its benefits and practicality. The Bulgarian squat can be done in the gym using different tools such as bars, deadlifts, dumbbells, among other options. It is also easy to do the Bulgarian squat at home either using dumbbells, bands, or simply without using weights, as long as you are performing the exercise properly and with a higher number of repetitions, you will notice that you will not need weights.

If you are interested in knowing more about how to do the Bulgarian squat correctly, continue reading, we will tell you in detail what benefits it offers you and what muscles you will work. We also tell you the variations of exercises that exist, and what are the ideal routines depending on your purpose in muscle development.

Contents

• What is the Bulgarian squat?
• Bulgarian Squat Benefits
• What muscles are worked with the Bulgarian squat?
• How to do the Bulgarian squat?
• Avoid mistakes when doing squats
• Bulgarian squat variants
• Bulgarian dumbbell squat
• Bulgarian barbell squat
• Bulgarian squat with kettlebell
• Bulgarian Jump Squat
• Bulgarian squat with elastic band
• Bulgarian squat routines at home

What is the Bulgarian squat?

The Bulgarian squat is an ideal exercise to work and tone the legs, strengthen the buttocks, hips, among other muscles. It basically consists of placing the tip of one foot on a bench and bending the other leg until it is parallel with the ground. It can be done in the gym or at home easily, using dumbbells, or another instrument, whether with weight or not, but that helps you do the exercise properly.

For many people, exercising at home is practical, knowing how to do the right exercises. For others it is preferable to do it in the gym with a greater variety of machines and dumbbells. If what you are looking for is to put together your training routine, doing the Bulgarian squat with a dumbbell, barbell and weights will be a very practical option to simultaneously work the muscles of your lower body, and you can do it at home, in the gym or in some other place that can be used for its function.

Bulgarian Squat Benefits

As we previously mentioned, when you perform the Bulgarian squat  you will obtain benefits that will help strengthen your entire body, since it requires balance and tension of practically all muscles. In addition to this, there are other benefits that you should know and that we will share with you below:

• It contributes to taking care of the back, since it uses less weight compared to the deadlift or conventional squats and it takes care of the posture throughout the movement. In this way we avoid the possible risks of injury due to poor execution.
• Improves the stability of the body and with it the symmetry, resulting in a better balance and control of body movement.
• Contributes to the conditioning of ligaments and muscles to improve technique and performance of movements.
• It is used to work the intermuscular coordination of the trunk and the lower body, including the toning of the buttocks .
• Take care of and strengthen the muscles of the back, improving the posture as the movement is carried out.
• It is a safe movement, it can be done at home with your own body weight.
• You hardly need material to perform it, using dumbbells or some other instrument with little weight if you want more complexity.
• It is a global and multi-joint exercise that activates a lot of muscles, including muscles of the upper body in a secondary way.
• Easy to practice anywhere, and for all levels of experience.

What muscles are worked with the Bulgarian squat?

The Bulgarian squat will allow you to mainly work the lower body. Doing this exercise also incorporates many muscles in the body, therefore balance and overall strength are necessary. The main muscles that are worked in the squat are the legs, buttocks , hips, and lower back. In addition, some tension is carried out in the arms and shoulders to support the weight of the dumbbells .

To a large extent, the hamstrings  and lower back are also involved. Performed correctly, the Bulgarian squats provide you with better coordination between these parts of the body.

glute training with squats

The main areas to work are the buttocks and knee joints. As the distance between the feet increases, the muscles involved will range from the gluteal to the quadriceps. Being able to regulate which of the two muscles you want to work.

It is important to understand that if you want to work the gluteus it will depend on how much focus you give it in training. For this you must pay attention to the height of the bench  that supports your foot stretched out. We recommend that if you want to increase the gluteus muscle you do different height and length tests, so that you feel more work in the gluteal area than other muscles.

Remember that if your intention is to grow muscle , you should increase the weight and difficulty of your training. Without a doubt, you can achieve it by doing these exercises and concentrating the exercise on the gluteus .

Quadriceps exercises with squats

As we previously discussed, the most important thing is to identify in which area you work one muscle more than the other. To work the quadriceps you must pay attention to the length and opening of your feet. As in the gluteus work , we recommend paying close attention to the height of the bench and the distance from one foot to the other. Test before you start to identify leg work.

Since the quadriceps is the largest muscle in the body, you must perform the Bulgarian squat correctly , so avoid doing it fast and warm up a bit. Remember that in this exercise the muscle is worked a lot and as you implement weight with dumbbells , you will notice the difference.

How you can notice the Bulgarian squat will help you tone the most important muscles of the lower body in an easy way. Also, if you add weight as you improve, you will tone your upper body muscles in response to the force of lifting the weight with your hands. In the same way, as secondary musculature, the abductors, the twins and the core muscles are activated. It is also important to note that if you use dumbbell weights or a barbell with plates, the whole body is activated. This includes strength resistance of the abdomen, biceps, triceps, trapezius and back. these  muscles They will be used more or not, depending on the amount of weight that is being supported in the arms at the time of the execution of the Bulgarian squat.

How to do the Bulgarian squat?

If you will do the Bulgarian squat at home or in the gym, you must have a wide bench that supports the weight of your leg, we recommend the proper use of dumbbells . start with the lowest possible weight and go up as you feel comfortable. In addition, we suggest that it will be ideal that during the coupling process you can see yourself in the mirror to verify your posture in all executions.

1. We recommend you warm up beforehand to avoid any injury that could harm your muscles .
2. Stand on your back, one meter from the point of support, and raise your right foot back to place the instep on the bench or point of support.
3. Your left foot will be resting on the ground and your leg completely straight.
4. Bend the front leg in such a way that the thigh is parallel to the ground and the knee does not exceed the ball of the foot. Meanwhile, the back knee will slowly lower.
5. Be sure to perform the exercise with your chest out and your trunk completely straight.
6. Return to the starting position quickly, pushing your body with the heel of the front foot and pay attention to the work of the gluteus .
7. We suggest you do 2 sets of 10 repetitions each and, at the end, change feet.
8. Perform 2 more sets with the same number of repetitions.
9. As you get more practice, either at home or in the gym, you can increase the number of repetitions.
10. If you feel like you've mastered the exercise, add some weight, dumbbells , and do exercise variations to your reps.

Avoid mistakes when doing squats

The most common mistakes in doing the Bulgarian squat are usually due to the fact that it seems easy at first glance and when performing the exercise there may be an error in the proper weight and in the incorrect position of the body that can hurt your muscles. We suggest you start slowly imitating the movement and then make changes in distance and weight.

One of the most common mistakes is using a bench that is either too high or too low to place your foot. The height should be comfortable and at the height of your knees. This way it will be much more comfortable and easier to change feet.

Another mistake that often happens is that the feet are not at the proper distance. Remember that you will have to open or close your feet, depending on the muscle you are going to work the most. In the same way, identify if you will exercise your legs and quadriceps or the glutes . Otherwise you will not feel the work and you can fall into the error of gaining weight and hurting your ligaments.

Bulgarian squat variants

Since it is an exercise that is becoming popular, and that also gives notorious results, variants to perform the Bulgarian squat have increased . Below we share other ways to do it, so choose the one you like the most and the one that you think best suits your muscles and your routine. We recommend you try all the options so that you avoid it becoming routine.

Bulgarian dumbbell squat

As we have previously commented, we can increase the difficulty and weight of the Bulgarian squats using dumbbells. There are several ways to use the dumbbell so that you feel greater resistance in your buttocks and legs.

One way is to hold the dumbbell with the arm opposite the leg we're working on. Stability, in this way, is more easily achieved and it is possible to gradually increase the weight. The weight should fall dead on the arm that holds the dumbbell while the other arm can be used to maintain balance.

Another variant to use the dumbbells is using 2, one in each arm and both as deadlifts.

Bulgarian barbell squat

In this case we perform the Bulgarian squat with a barbell on our shoulders, this will be in the gym, as opposed to doing the Bulgarian squat at home . Doing it with a barbell drastically increases the weight on the entire body. This additional weight is used when the exercise is mastered, and helps muscle development and growth. We recommend using a bar that has a lock, since it will be easier to change the leg and gluteus , and you will do the series more comfortably.

In case you do not have a bar that has insurance, we recommend that the weight be optimal and that, as with dumbbells, you increase little by little. This way you will avoid having an accident and you will be able to do better. Doing the Bulgarian barbell squat is very efficient, since you will be able to easily notice the work you are doing at the moment and it will be a new challenge for your routine.

Bulgarian squat with kettlebell

He does the Bulgarian squat with a weight, it is very common due to its practicality, it increases the use of more muscles in the body and tones them, below we share some points that you can take into account.

• The squat is performed holding the kettlebell in front of the chest, remember to maintain strength and height throughout the execution.
• In addition to legs and buttocks , you will feel that your arm and shoulder muscles will work, this will increase the challenge and resistance to the exercise.
• Change the kettlebell on the arm opposite the leg, this will serve to balance the weight and reinforce the difficulty.
• Use two kettlebells, one in each arm, this exercise is the most used because you feel the work in the arm muscles . Also for many, carrying the two weights seems to be more comfortable on the back.

Bulgarian Jump Squat

Doing the Bulgarian jump squat will be easy, you just have to take into account that the bench where you are supporting your leg, has a height like your knees. Remember to take into account the distance of the foot, not too close to the bench and not too far. Having these data you can start the exercise. Now you will have a very simple way to do the Bulgarian squat at home

We suggest you start doing a small test before and if you are a beginner do not use dumbbells . The foot that is recharged on the bench must remain there. Make short jumps, you will notice that the knee of the leg that is at rest will go down noticeably towards the floor, making a movement going down and up. This will allow the leg that is doing the jump to drop down enough to work the corresponding gluteal and quadriceps muscles during the exercise.

Bulgarian squat with elastic band

The execution of the Bulgarian squat with an elastic band is almost identical to that if we do it with a dumbbell , you will also work the buttocks and legs, the difference is that here we place the rubber under the foot and tense with the arms. you will feel resistance when raising the body. Remember that what should work is the leg, not the biceps. Here we share some examples.

• Classic: The band is placed under the foot to work, making standing up more difficult when performing the Bulgarian squat , thus strengthening the lower back.
• Full Body: The band is placed under the foot to work, but unlike the previous one, the arms must be stretched upwards as much as possible while holding the elastic. In this way the adductors are worked intensely.

Bulgarian squat routines at home

Establishing a progression in intensity, we propose the following routine depending on your level.

• Beginner: 3 series of 6-8 repetitions.
• Intermediate: 4 series of 10-12 repetitions.
• Advanced: 4-5 series of 10-15 repetitions with weight on top.

If what you are looking for is to give more focus to toning the buttocks , legs and quadriceps, we suggest the following routine:

• 5 series of 5 Bulgarian squats.
• 4 sets of jump squats - calf raises.
• 5 series of 5 side squats.

If what you are looking for is to give more focus to the growth and development of the buttocks , legs and quadriceps, we suggest the following routine:

• 4 series of 8 to 12 Bulgarian squats.
• 4 sets of jump squats - calf raises.
• 5 series of 8 12 normal squats.