Renegade Dumbbell Rows

There are lots of exercises you can use to work off stomach fat and tighten the core muscles, including Cable Crunches, Hanging Leg Raises, and the Seated Ab Crunch. But chances are if you’re on this site, you’re interested in using Renegade Dumbbell Rows as part of your core toning and stomach fat workout. This exercise was actually “invented” by John Davies, a coach, and it’s often promoted as being one of the most difficult core training exercises, but it’s also suggested to be one of the most effective.

The reason Renegade Dumbbell Rows are deemed to be so effective is that they engage the core muscles in the very way nature intended them to be used: to stabilize the torso. During this exercise the user is forced to keep their body as rigid as they can, which means they have to contract their core muscles hard. This hard contraction gives the core muscles an intense workout, and without it, the body would sag.

That said, Renegade Dumbbell Rows have other side benefits, including working the chest and back, and enhancing grip strength too. To get started, the only prop you’ll need is a set of flat bottomed Hexagonal style dumbbells, which are put on the floor shoulder width apart. Now you get into the push up position, with your hands on the dumbbells, making sure that your chest is always hanging over them throughout the exercise.

Don’t forget about your feet, they should be a little wider than shoulder width. From head to toe, the body should be level, looking a lot like a plank, but make sure your butt isn’t sticking up. You then begin shifting your weight toward your left side, all the while keeping a picture in your mind that your pushing the left dumbbell into the ground. Once stable, drag the right dumbbell toward your hip, using a rowing like motion, and then bring it back into position on the floor in a controlled fashion. At that point your weight is shifted to the right side, and you do the same move using your left arm. You continue to alternate until your set is complete.

It’s important to remember that no matter what side you’re working to make sure your hips are locked so that the core muscles are thoroughly engaged, which is the reason why you’re doing this exercise in the first place. You can probably see that this is a challenging exercise, but once you start doing Renegade Dumbbell Rows, you may well find that they are fun too.