A thruster chains a squat into a press, and this dumbbell thruster counter wants both. It reads your knee bend and how high your arms rise, and counts each full rep out loud.
Both sides are read together. Start each set with the dumbbells pressed overhead during the five-second countdown, then lower to your shoulders and squat.
Phone setup
Set the phone upright at chest height, a few steps back, so your whole body and your arms overhead fit in the frame.
Stand half-sideways to the phone; square-on, the camera can't read your squat depth. Start each set with the dumbbells pressed overhead.
- A set that starts with the dumbbells at your shoulders can miss its first rep, so begin pressed overhead.
Form cues
- Press overhead to start. Open every set with the dumbbells locked out above you.
- Lower to your shoulders. Bring the weights down to rest on your shoulders as you begin to sit.
- Squat deep. Sitting to the bottom, with the dumbbells at your shoulders, is the far position of the rep.
- Drive up into the press. Standing and pressing in one move completes the rep.
Common mistakes
- Squatting without pressing. A squat alone doesn't count. The press has to follow it.
- Pressing without squatting. A press alone doesn't count either. Sit down first, then drive up.
- Bouncing a shallow squat. A shallow, bounced squat can be missed. Sit all the way down before you drive up.
How FitnessBruh counts it
Two signals are read together: your knee bend, from hip to knee to ankle, and how high your upper arms rise at the shoulder, from hip to shoulder to elbow. Both have to reach the far position together and return together; neither alone counts.
Standing with the dumbbells pressed overhead is the start, the squat bottom with the dumbbells at your shoulders is the far position, and driving up into the press completes the rep.
Counting begins once the camera has a steady view of your shoulders and hips, so get into your half-sideways stance during the five-second countdown.
FAQ
Does a squat alone count as a thruster?
No. A squat alone or a press alone doesn't count. Both signals have to reach the far position together.
Why stand half-sideways to the phone?
Square-on, the camera can't read your squat depth. Stand half-sideways, at chest height, a few steps back.
Where should the dumbbells start?
Pressed overhead. A set that starts with them at your shoulders can miss its first rep.
