If having toned, strong arms is one of your goals this year, it’s seriously easy to get started. All you need to build strong arms is a pair of dumbbells, a resistance band, and about 15 minutes.
Dumbbells make it possible to work all of your arm muscles—think your delts (shoulders), biceps (fronts of your upper arms), and triceps (backs of your upper arms)—from pretty much anywhere, whether it’s at the gym or in your bedroom.
Enjoy.
The workout
The purpose of this at-home workout is to increase strength and build muscle in the upper body, specifically the arms. These exercises are beneficial not only for creating a well-proportioned physique but also for functional strength, bone health, muscular balance, stability, and posture.
We will be engaging major upper body muscles, including the shoulders, biceps and triceps. Each exercise will target the muscles differently to ensure well-balanced muscle development and strength.
Best for: All females looking to improve their strength and muscle definition whilst utilising minimal equipment. Follow this routine if you’re in a time-crunch or needing the flexibility of an at-home workout.
Benefits of arm exercises
These exercises provide many benefits in relation to aesthetics, functionality, and strength. In terms of aesthetics, these exercises help to build a well-defined, athletic appearance throughout the upper body.
In a functional context, performing these arm exercises can assist you throughout day-to-day life. The movements replicate the way we push, pull, lift and carry objects or move during activities. It is also highly practical as it helps to improve the body’s alignment and posture.
This workout also has injury prevention benefits, allowing you to effectively build strength and muscle endurance around the shoulder girdle. For example, several of the exercises help to strengthen the rotator cuff muscles, a key stabiliser of the shoulder joint. Additionally, the compound movements in this workout, the Arnold Press and Bench Dips, force multiple muscle groups to activate at the same time, improving inter-muscular coordination. On the other hand, the isolation movements (e.g. lateral raises, skull crushers and banded bicep curls) will challenge stability and balance, promoting overall joint health.
1. Arnold press
Breakdown:
- Grab two dumbbells that are slightly lower in weight than what you would use for a regular shoulder press.
- If using a bench, set it on a slight decline. If standing, start with your knees soft at hip distance apart.
- To commence the movement, your hands will be supinated, meaning your palms face towards your body. Your arms should be in line with your shoulders and hands in line with your face.
- Press the dumbbells overhead, extending through the elbows, whilst simultaneously rotating your palms to face forward so that they are pronated. You can even do it a little slower compared to how the video above starts off (you’ll note she slows down in the second to third rep).
- Reverse the movement to continue the repetitions.
Benefits:
- Utilises all three heads of the deltoid, the triceps and upper chest.
- Creates more time under tension, beneficial for developing lean muscle mass.
- The rotational component tests stability and coordination.
Common mistakes:
- Hitching at your shoulders is something you should avoid as it compromises the activation of the deltoid, forcing you to use your traps and leads to poor posture.
- Prevent placing excessive stress on your rotator cuff by avoiding any flaring of the elbow far out to the side. Keep the dumbbells close to you at the start of the movement.
- Ensure you keep your core engaged.
2. Bench dip
Breakdown:
- Start by finding an elevated surface – preferably a bench, however a chair or couch will also work.
- Get into your starting position by placing your hands on the edge of the surface with your fingertips facing towards your hips, arms shoulder width. Your feet should be on the ground with your knees at a 90-degree angle.
- Commence the movement by bending at your elbows, lowering the body down until your upper arms to forearms create a 90-degree angle.
- Push yourself back up until your arms are straight, without locking out your elbows.
- To make the exercise harder, bring your feet further away from your body – or do the opposite to make it easier.
Benefits:
- Beneficial for developing strength in the triceps.
- Beneficial for joint support.
- Great skill to work on for confidence in body weight movements!
Common mistakes:
- Only lowering your hips and not actually bending through your triceps – seems simple however is something I see people doing!
- Letting your ribs flare out means your core is not engaged!
- Jutting the chin forward, leading to tension throughout the neck.
3. Lateral raises
Breakdown:
- Choose a pair of dumbbells, relatively light in weight.
- Stand with your feet hip width apart, knees soft, core engaged, and shoulders relaxed.
- Arms begin by your sides with your palms facing inwards.
- Raise your arms out to the sides, leading with your elbows, bringing them slightly forward (30-45 degrees) in front of your body – just in line with shoulder height.
- Pause for a second at the top, then control the weight back down to your sides, back to the starting position.
Benefits:
- Accessory movement for the shoulders – specifically medial deltoid.
- Great for building muscle and shoulder stability
Common mistakes:
- Leading the movement using your hands – letting the elbows droop down.
- Choosing a weight that’s too heavy and doing partial range of motion. We want full range here!
- Excessive momentum. Ensure you’re using your shoulders to execute the movement rather than just forcing weight up by using your legs or swinging.
4. Tricep skull crushers
Breakdown:
- Grab a pair of dumbbells and hold in your hands with a neutral grip.
- Lay down on your back (preferably on a bench) and drive your shoulder blades downwards whilst squeezing your glutes and core.
- Bring the dumbbells by your chest and extend them upwards towards the ceiling so that they are in line with your shoulders.
- Bend at your elbows to lower the dumbbells to the sides of your head in a slow, controlled manner.
- Extend your elbows to shoot the dumbbells back to the starting position.
Benefits:
- Fantastic way to activate the long head of the triceps which is often neglected.
- You should fee the burn in the back of your arm. Use high rep ranges and light weight!
Common form mistakes:
- Flaring elbows out to the sides. Ensure you properly engage the triceps group by keeping your elbows above your eye line.
- Shifting the elbows back and forth will take the tension off your triceps.
- Not getting full range of motion is another issue as it reduces the effectiveness of the exercise.
5. Banded hammer curls
Breakdown:
- Step both feet on top of a resistance band with your legs hip width apart.
- Hold either side of the resistance band and with your palms facing in towards each other – in a thumbs up position with your arm by your sides.
- Contract your biceps to draw your hands closer to your shoulders.
- Slowly control your hands back to the start position.
Benefits:
- The band is a fantastic way to switch things up and creates consistent tension.
- Dumbbells are terrific too if you have them, just ensure the are light enough to isolate the bicep muscle.
Common form mistakes:
- A common error is moving the elbows – you want to ensure that they are pinned at your sides throughout.
- Arching your back is something that occurs when we are using momentum as the driving force of the movement. Keep the torso tight and still throughout!
- Neglecting the lowering phase is a common mistake. This is what stimulates the most muscle growth so ensure you slow down when lowering.
Xenia Godridge is a fitness coach at Virgin Active Wynyard.
