The dumbbell is one of the oldest pieces of strength training equipment — and it has endured for good reason. With one dumbbell or a pairx1 gaming, you can build a full-body workout that challenges your balance, stability and coordination.

Because they are hand-held, you can add resistance to any exercise while still moving freely.

“I find that when clients first use dumbbells, they’re often surprised at how connected they feel to their movements,” said Chloe Bardos, a trainer based in Vancouver, Canada.

To maintain control throughout a dumbbell movement, you have to engage your core and the muscles that stabilize your body. Learning to do this during a workout can improve your body’s ability to control its position as you move in everyday life, which is increasingly important as you age, said Ms. Bardos.

To perform most dumbbell movements, your limbs have to work independently. That can help you spot if one side of your body is weaker or less mobile than the other. You can begin to correct those imbalances by exercising with a weight that you can handle on your weaker side, said Priscilla Del Moral, a trainer in New York.

To build a full-body dumbbell workout, the Times asked Ms. Bardos and Ms. Del Moral to recommend exercises that are beginner-friendly and can easily be scaled up in difficulty as your strength improves.

Time: 30 minutes

Intensity: Medium

We are having trouble retrieving the article content.

Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.

Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.

Thank you for your patience while we verify access.

Calls for school crackdowns have mounted with reports of cyberbullying among adolescents and studies indicating that smartphones, which offer round-the-clock distraction and social media access, have hindered academic instruction and the mental health of children.

Overall, violent crime fell 3 percent and property crime fell 2.6 percent in 2023, with burglaries down 7.6 percent and larceny down 4.4 percent. Car thefts, though, continue to be an exception, rising more than 12 percent from the year before.

Already a subscriber? Log in.

Want all of The Times? Subscribe.x1 gaming