Hips and Hammies is a dumbbell strength workout for the posterior chain's two headline acts: the hips that generate power and the hamstrings that transmit it. Goblet squats, split lunges, deadlifts, single-leg deadlifts and weighted bridges - five movements that approach the same territory from five angles, because glutes and hamstrings are built by hinging, lunging, squatting and bridging, not by picking a favorite.
This one departs from the usual Darebee circuit format: it's a straight-sets strength workout with 30 seconds of rest between sets and exercises - short enough to keep a conditioning pulse, long enough to keep the reps honest. The order runs from bilateral to unilateral and back. Goblet squats open with the front-loaded depth work, then split lunges take the same load one leg at a time, 6 per side. Deadlifts bring in the hinge - the hamstrings' native movement - before single-leg deadlifts strip it down to one hamstring, one glute and one balance system per rep, the great equalizer between your stronger and quieter sides. Weighted bridges finish the session flat on the floor, where the glutes can be loaded and squeezed with nothing else left to help. Four sets of everything: the volume is the message.
Hug the dumbbell tall in goblet squats and sit between your heels. Keep the front shin vertical in split lunges with the rear knee dropping straight down. Hinge deadlifts from the hips with a flat back and soft knees, pushing the hips back until the hamstrings load. On single-leg deadlifts, keep the hips square and the moving leg in one line with the torso. Drive bridges through the heels and squeeze hard at the top with the dumbbell resting on the hips.
The mirror sees quads and abs. Chairs, stairs, sprints and every jump you'll ever take see hips and hammies - and today they got paid.
Make it Harder: Add a 2-second pause at the bottom of every hinge and the top of every bridge.
Make it Easier: Drop every exercise to 2 sets and go lighter on the single-leg work.
