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The perfect arms 30-day challenge is designed to punish your arms for a whole month and give you sexy and toned arms all ready for that summer wear at the beach! Remember no pain, no gain!
Push Ups
Push-ups are a bodyweight staple exercise. They are great for working your chest and triceps.
Place your hands shoulder width apart on the floor, making sure your hands are directly below your shoulders.
Straighten your back and legs, standing on the balls of your feet.
Slowly lower yourself down, bending your arms until your one or two inches above the ground. Make sure not to flare your elbows out too much. At most your elbows should be out at a 45 degree angle to your body.
Tense your chest and triceps, pushing yourself back up. This is one rep.
Tricep Dips
Tricep dips are an excellent way to workout your triceps with little to no equipment.
1. Find a platform, chair, bench, etc. and stand with your back to it.
2. Place your palms on the platform, slightly closer than shoulder width. Have your fingers over the edge of the platform to make gripping it easier.
3. Extend your legs in front of you whilst keeping your hips close to the platform.
4. Lower your body slowly until your elbows are at 90 degrees.
5. Tense your triceps, slowly straightening your arms to lift your body back up. This is one rep.
Lunge Dumbbell Shoulder Press
This variation on the lunge uses its momentum to perform a shoulder press.
- Stand with your feet hip width apart. Hold a dumbbell in each hand, cleaned up to shoulder height.
- Step forward with one leg, lowering down on the other until your knee touches (or almost touches) the floor. Your front foot should be directly below your knee.
- Tense your abs and explode back off of your front foot, using your momentum to raise your knee upwards and to press the dumbbells up above your head.
- Lower your leg back to your initial position. This is one rep.
- Repeat with the other leg.
DB Pec/Back Fly
Pec flys are a great way to hit the center of your chest. They are really awesome chest exercises for women!
1. Lie down flat on a bench or on the floor with a dumbbell in each hand, resting on your tighs.
2. Use your thighs to raise the dumbbells up above you, with your palms facing each other.
3. Slowly open your arms, keeping your wrists in the same position and with a slight bend in your elbows.
4. Tense your chest to bring the two dumbbells back up in the air and together, holding for 2-3 seconds, concentrating on contracting the centre of your chest muscles. . The movement should only occur in your shoulders, not your elbows. This is one rep.
Dumbbell Bicep Curls
- Stand (torso upright) with a dumbbell in each hand held at arms length. The elbows should be close to the torso and the palms of your hand should be facing your thighs.
- While holding the upper arm stationary, curl the right weight as you rotate the palm of the hands until they are facing forward. At this point continue contracting the biceps as you breathe out until your biceps is fully contracted and the dumbbells are at shoulder level. Hold the contracted position for a second as you squeeze the biceps. Tip: Only the forearms should move.
- Slowly begin to bring the dumbbell back to the starting position as your breathe in. Tip: Remember to twist the palms back to the starting position (facing your thighs) as you come down.
- Repeat the movement with the left hand. This equals one repetition.
- Continue alternating in this manner for the recommended amount of repetitions.
Bent Over Lateral Raises
These lateral raises are a great way to hit your glutes in a very different way, helping to shape your booty!
1. Start on your hands and knees. Hands directly beneath your shoulders.
2. Place one of your legs straight out your side as show. Correct your balance with your other knee.
3. Tense your glute, raising that leg out until it is straight out to your side. Hold for 2-3 seconds.
4. Slowly lower it back down. This is one rep. 5. Repeat with the other leg.
Straight-Arm Pullover
Lie with your upper back on an exercise bench and your knees bent. Your feet should be flat on the floor. Hold one end of a dumbbell with both hands above you.
Lower the dumbbell behind you as far as you can, keeping your arms straight. Inhale as you lower the dumbbell.
Lift the dumbbell back up above you. Exhale as you lift the dumbbell.
Plank Glute Kickback
To mix in some glute exercises with your abs, as well as upping the difficulty, try some glute kickbacks.
- Whilst in a standard plank position, tense your glutes one at a time, raising your leg slowly and holding for 2-3 seconds at the top.
- As you’re resting on one less limb, the plank will become more difficult to hold also.
- Repeating once with each leg is one rep for this exercise.
Front DB Raise
Front raises will work your trapezius as well as the back of your shoulders.
1. Stand with your feet hip-width apart, holding a dumbbell in each hand by your side.
2. Tense your core and slowly raise one arm up so it is straight out in front of you, with your palm facing the floor. Hold for 2-3 seconds. You should be tensing your trapezius and shoulder as you do this.
3. Slowly lower the dumbbell back to your side. This is one rep.
4. Repeat with the other arm.
Standing Row
This move will work the upper arms and shoulders.
- Stand with your feet hip distance apart, and place a dumbbell in each hand. Your closed palms should be facing your body. The shoulders should be over your pelvis, with knees slightly bent.
- Keeping the dumbbells close to your body, raise them to your shoulders, bending your elbows out to the sides.
- Slowly lower them to the starting position. This counts as one rep.
- Complete two to three sets of 10 to 12 reps.
Standing Hammer Curl
Hammer curls are a great variation on the standard biceps curl. They are performed in the same way but you don’t rotate your wrists. The dumbbell remains side on for the entire movement.
Hammer curls work out the three muscles in your biceps in a different way to normal curls, making them a good option to also use. Seated DB Curls
This variation on the bicep curl (or hammer curl) helps prevent any momentum transfer from your legs. This makes it easier to concentrate on the contraction of your biceps.
- The hammer curl is a great exercise for the biceps and forearms. Set up by grasping a set of dumbbells and standing straight up with the dumbbells by your sides.
- You should be using a neutral grip, meaning your palms are facing your body.
- Bend your arms slightly to take tension into the biceps.
- Keeping your body fixed and elbows in at your sides, slowly curl the dumbbells up as far as possible.
- Squeeze the biceps at the top of the movement, and then slowly lower the weight back to the starting position.
- Repeat for desired reps.
Lying Rear Deltoid Raises
- While holding a dumbbell in each hand, lay with your chest down on a flat bench.
- Position the palms of the hands in a neutral manner (palms facing your torso) as you keep the arms extended with the elbows slightly bent. This will be your starting position.
- Now raise the arms to the side until your elbows are at shoulder height and your arms are roughly parallel to the floor as you exhale. Tip: Maintain your arms perpendicular to the torso while keeping them extended throughout the movement. Also, keep the contraction at the top for a second.
- Slowly lower the dumbbells to the starting position as you inhale.
- Repeat for the recommended amount of repetitions and then switch to the other arm.
Variations: You can perform this exercise with just one arm and also keeping the palms of the hands facing back as opposed to facing your torso.