As a personal trainer, I’m constantly dispelling the myth that you can “spot train” certain areas of your body. Exercises that target your core, arms, and legs have plenty of benefits, but doing them won’t reduce body fat or shed inches in those regions. The only way to lose fat is by eating fewer calories than you burn each day, and even then, you can’t dictate where on your body you’ll see that loss.
So when fitness trainer Olivia Lawson’s recent “Hourglass” workout popped up on my YouTube feed, I was skeptical (and a bit annoyed). Was this yet another influencer trying to convince the masses that doing her workouts would result in a specific body type? I didn’t want to judge it without trying it first, so I pulled out my favorite dumbbells and pressed play.
How to do Olivia Lawson’s 30-minute Hourglass dumbbell workout
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If you’re new to exercise, consider meeting with a certified personal trainer first. You’ll want to make sure you’re moving with proper form to avoid injury.
You’ll need a moderately-heavy and a heavy pair of dumbbells for this workout, along with a yoga mat. I used 10 and 20-pound dumbbells, and that felt appropriate. If you have more options at your disposal, I’d keep a pair of lighter dumbbells handy, too. One of the best ways to train at home is to invest in a pair of the best adjustable dumbbells.
Lawson begins her workout with a seven-move warm-up and then moves into work intervals. You’ll perform 22 exercises for 45 seconds each, with 15 seconds of rest in between. She wraps things up with a six-move “core finisher” and a five-minute cool down and stretch.
Overall, I enjoyed this workout. It was engaging, easy to follow, and included most of the fundamental movements you’d want to do regularly. Here are my other observations.
1. It was a comprehensive full-body workout
Lawson targets nearly all of the major muscle groups in this workout, using variations on classic exercises like squats, deadlifts, lunges, and presses. My lower body, core, and shoulders were definitely fatigued by the end, and I woke up the next day feeling a little sore but not incapacitated.
There weren’t a lot of chest or tricep-focused moves in the program, but that doesn’t mean they won’t be working in a synergistic capacity. Plus, you can always pause the workout and throw in a few push-ups and tricep dips if you want (I did).
Doing each exercise only once kept things moving, and the 30 minutes flew by. I usually like to repeat exercises when I’m doing my own workouts, but there was something refreshing about doing a totally new movement for each interval that rolled around. If you’re someone who gets bored easily, a ‘no repeats’ workout like this one could be a game-changer.
2. Some of the exercises aggravated my lower back
I’ve had lower back issues since my teens, and a recent pregnancy has only made those issues worse. I’m slowly getting better, but certain exercises can further irritate that area.
Lawson includes a lot of exercises that are done in a bent over position, like bent over rows, bent over flys, and deadlifts. She also clumps them all together, so you spend a lot of time in that stance. Eventually, my back started to ache, and I had to modify.
Lower back issues are incredibly common, so I would have loved to see Lawson include a few quick alternatives for these exercises. I ended up bracing myself against a table and doing the bent-over row one arm at a time.
3. I had to modify a few of the core exercises
Pregnancy has also severely weakened my core, and I’ve been working to rebuild my strength in a safe, appropriate way.
A few of the exercises in the core finisher, like the deadbugs and planks, already have a place in my rehabilitation program. However, bicycles and crunches are still off limits for me. Instead of doing those, I substituted a round of bird dogs and side planks.
Lawson doesn’t bill this as a postpartum-friendly workout, so I can forgive her for the lack of modifications here. Still, it would be nice to see some alternatives.
4. This workout alone won’t give you an hourglass
Lawson mentions in the workout’s caption that having a “small waist” comes down to genetics, a strong and toned core, and a low body fat percentage. She also admits that you can’t spot train and diet is the main factor behind fat reduction, but she does go on to say that you can build an hourglass shape by lifting weights.
Will your body composition change through resistance training? Absolutely. Will it give you an hourglass shape if you don’t already have the right anatomical makeup? Not necessarily. That doesn’t mean this workout isn’t worth doing — it’s perfect for intermediate or advanced fitness levels, and packs a full-body punch in a relatively short time frame. Do it to get stronger, not to achieve a certain body type.
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