Bingo wings, bat wings, lunch lady arms - these are some of the colorful terms I hear my clients use to talk about their upper arms. Ab workouts and arm workouts are what my clients request the most. The tricky thing about arm workouts is that you can't just do a few sets of arm exercises and immediately have Michelle Obama arms. You also have to throw in some cardio if you have any fat on your arms. You can build muscle, but if you have excess fat on your arms, it's going to be harder to see the muscle. (Also, what you eat can affect this, too. Make healthy choices! )
Many of us start working on our arms for vanity reasons; however, your arms do so much for you. They lift, reach and carry all types of things during the day. The stronger your muscles, the less likely you are to injure yourself while making a last-minute reach to catch a falling ice cream cone or picking up a jug of milk off of the shelf.
I never like to offer a toning workout without throwing in some cardio intervals, so you will have some cardio incorporated into this workout. Tank top arms don't just happen during the last week of May. You have to put in some time and effort to build up the muscle and burn off the fat. More importantly, stronger arms make it easier for you to do your day-to-day activities!
Start with a 5 minute warm-up and then do this circuit 2 times!
15 Push-ups
30-Second Quick Feet/Foot Fire/Football Run
1 min. BIG arm circles - 30 sec. to front/ 30 sec. to back
20 Jumping Jacks
10 Plank Arm Extensions (While planking, extend your right arm to shoulder height and return to starting position. Now extend your left arm to shoulder height - that's one repetition. Make sure you keep your hips level - they are going to want to sway from side-to-side.)
10 Skaters per side
15 Tricep Dips on the ground
30 sec. Quick Feet/Foot Fire/Football Run
1 Min. Bent Over Reverse Fly with no weights
20 Jumping Jacks
10 Skaters per side
5 Chaturanga Push-ups on your knees (see video for instructions)
