One bell locked overhead, lunge without leaking.
Keep the working arm glued by your ear, don't let the bell drift forward or back.
Lunging with one dumbbell locked out overhead makes the quads and glutes do their normal lunge work while everything from your grip to your hips fights to keep the weight stacked. The overhead arm turns each rep into a shoulder stability hold and a trunk brace, so any lean or wobble shows instantly. It earns its place for building legs and total-body control at once, with far less load than a normal lunge needs to feel hard.
Either pairing works and both are worth training. Pick one arrangement, do your full set, then swap so each combination of arm and leg gets its turn.
Your shoulder is tiring or your ribs are flaring as you descend. Keep the arm locked and by your ear, brace your ribs down, and drop the weight before the position degrades.
Stationary first. Stepping forward and back from one spot keeps the balance demand manageable while you learn to hold the bell stacked. Walk them only once static reps are rock solid.
