Upper Body Workout for Women
Upper body workouts are extremely good for women because they help to improve body image, prevent the risk of osteoporosis and sarcopenia, burn more calories and help to improve posture. There are many different variations of upper body exercises which are good for women. A good upper body workout consists of a mix of bodyweight exercises, dumbbell and barbell moves and gym equipment.
Some of the best upper body exercises include the close grip barbell bench press, assisted dips, pause push-ups, close grip lat pull-down, bird dog dumbbell row, farmers walk, seated Arnold press, band pull-a parts, TRX inverted rows, incline bench dumbbell biceps curl, dumbbell concentration curl and standing overhead triceps extension.
Today my workout consisted of a machine bench press, lat pull down, dumbbell front raise, dumbbell curls, dumbbell lateral raise, dumbbell overhead extension, dumbbell shrugs and prone back extension with elbow support.
Machine Bench Press:
Bench press, also known as chest press is a very effective exercise for the upper body for both men as well as women. It is a weight training exercise where a person presses a weight upwards while lying horizontally on a weight training bench. There are different types of this exercise which work different muscles of the body. They may involve lying flat, lying at an incline or decline or even placing your hands close together on the barbell. For women, a flat bench press is the best form and leads to more body confidence and empowerment. This exercise needs to be done 12-15 times (for one set) and this should be done for 2-3 sets.
Lateral Pull Down:
A cable-based exercise, the lateral pull-down is also known as selectorized machines. Coming with a stack of weights, you can insert a pin within the stack to select the weight that you want to lift. Working the back muscles, biceps, muscles on the sides of the chest and shoulders, arms and core this exercise is excellent to improve posture, stability and grip strength. A person when doing this exercise is seated and pulls a hanging bar to reach the chin level, then releases it back up with control and the same repeats to complete one set. Targeting the muscles just under the armpits, which also spread across and down the back this exercise is an excellent way to strengthen your upper body. There are many variations of this exercise: straight arm pulldown and reversing the grip. It is very important to pay attention to whether you arch your back when performing the exercise, whether your forearms are doing the exercise instead of the back, holding the bar too wide, pulling the bar too down and using fast momentum (instead of doing it slowly). This exercise needs to be done 12-15 times (for one set) and this should be done for 2-3 sets.
Dumbbell front raise: An exercise that primarily strengthens the shoulder and also works the upper chest muscles, dumbbell front raise can help you to build strength, this exercise is also known as shoulder front raise. This exercise is very easy to do. A person has to stand shoulder-width apart and lift the weights (whatever you find suitable) upwards while inhaling, You have to pause when your arms are horizontal above the ground and slowly bring them back down. This repetition needs to be repeated to complete one set (12-15 repetitions) for 2-3 sets. It is important for both men and women to have strong arms for everyday tasks such as placing grocery bags on the counter or placing items on shelves, etc.
Dumbbell Curls:
Working both the short head and long head of the bicep muscle, dumbbell curls are excellent for the upper body. By using dumbbells, it is easy to work both arms simultaneously. All a person has to do is stand with hip-width apart and have the arms holding onto the weight in front of the thighs. The biceps should be squeezed and the arms bent. The weights need to be curled upwards towards the shoulders, slowly and then slowly lower the weights to the thighs again. This exercise needs to be repeated 15-20 times for 2-3 sets.
Dumbbell Lateral Raise:
Known to be important for getting defined shoulders and upper arms, dumbbell lateral raises are excellent for working the upper chest muscles. This exercise is especially difficult as you have to work really hard to remain straight, lift high and hold the weight at the same time. You may even quiver with a few kilograms! This exercise also helps to make your waist look smaller. A person needs to stand straight, hold the weights by their sides and then slowly lift the weights simultaneously – lifting both arms up. After a brief pause, both the arms have to return to the starting position and again be lifted in the same manner. This needs to be repeated 15-20 times for 2-3 sets.
Dumbbell overhead extension:
A highly effective mass-building movement for developing all three heads of the triceps, the standing or sitting seated overhead dumbbell extensions are an excellent way to strengthen and tone the triceps muscles- the lateral, the medial and the long head. It involves extending a weight overhead through the extension of the elbow. Besides being performed either standing or seated, this exercise can also be performed with a single dumbbell, EZ bar, kettlebell, med ball or on a cable machine. If performed while standing, overhead extensions can serve as a great core stabiliser as they add extra pressure to control a strong posture through the movement. There are many variations of this exercise. These include skull crusher, overhead cable extension and kettlebell, Med Ball or EZ Bar Extension. To regress the movement you can lower the weight, and to progress the movement you can increase the weight and slow down the movement.
Dumbbell Shrugs:
A variation of the shrug, the dumbbell shrugs are good for building trap muscle size. These muscles help the body to move your head, neck, shoulders, arms and torso. It also stabilises your spine and helps with posture. This exercise can be included in your back workouts, shoulder workouts, upper body workouts and full body workouts. This exercise is done by simply lifting your shoulders with the desired weight (of the dumbbells) towards your ears. The grip needs to be neutral and you need to pause before lowering your shoulders back down again. An ideal of 15-20 repetitions needs to be done for 2-3 sets.
Prone Back Extension with Elbow Support:
This exercise is good for the arms, shoulders, core muscles and chest. Not only this, the prone back extension targets and strengthens the back muscles and improves posture, simultaneously giving you a taller and slimmer-looking physique. In this exercise, you have to lie flat on the floor with your arms facing downwards on the floor. Your palms need to be facing upward. The prone position is a medical term for lying flat on your stomach. Your elbows need to be placed upwards on the ground. You have to slowly raise yourself off the ground by pulling your shoulders back and lifting your legs up as far as they can go. Once that happens you have to look straight forwards. This movement needs to be repeated 15-20 times for 2-3 sets.
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