STUCK FOR AN upper body session? Step this way.
Here, we’ve designed a very quick six-exercise routine for you which trains each of the major upper body muscles; these being shoulders (deltoids), chest (pectorals), upper back (trapezius), biceps and triceps.
After a warm-up and stretch, get straight into it. This session can be done in 30 minutes.
1. Bench press
Lie flat on a bench with your feet pressed into the floor. Placing an appropriate weight on the bar, unrack it and lower it to your mid chest with a wide grip.
Push back up until your elbows lock out. This completes one rep.
Perform five sets of five.
2. Seated Cable Rows
This exercise targets your middle back as well as shoulders and biceps.
Sit down on the machine and place your feet on the front platform provided, making sure your knees are slightly bent.
Take the handle of the machine with both hands. There are several different types of handles but a T-bar or V-bar works best. Extend your arms and pull back until your torso is at a 90-degree angle from your legs. Your back should be slightly arched and your chest should be sticking out. This is the starting position.
Keeping your torso stationary, pull the handles back towards yourself while keeping your arms close to it until you touch the abs. Breathe out as you perform that movement. At that point you should be squeezing your back muscles hard. Hold the position for a second and slowly go back to the original position while breathing in.
Do three sets of 12 reps.
3. Seated Dumbbell shoulder press
A very straight-forward and effective one next. Simply sit with your back pressed firmly against the bench, taking a dumbbell in each hand.
Position the dumbbells on your shoulders, just below your ears. This is the starting position. Now, exhale and press the weights upwards until arms they’re extended overhead. Lower to the starting position and repeat 10 times for three sets.
4. Lat Pull-Downs
Sit at the machine with a bar attached to the top pulley. Extend both arms and grab the bar wider than shoulder-width and bring your torso back slightly.This is your starting position.
As you exhale, bring the bar down until it touches your upper chest. You need to really focus on squeezing the back muscles once you reach the fully contracted position.
The upper torso should remain stationary and only the arms should move. Hold for a second before slowly raising the bar back to the starting position (your arms are fully extended). Inhale during this portion of the movement.
Do three sets of eight reps.
5. Lying Barbell Extensions
This exercise is a little difficult so if you’re a beginner you need to select a very light weight to ensure you get the movement correct. To start, lie on a flat bench with a straight bar placed on the floor behind your head and your feet pressed firmly on the floor for stability.
Grab the bar behind you and raise it up, extending your elbows fully but keeping the grip narrow. As you breathe in, slowly lower the weight until the bar lightly touches your forehead while keeping the upper arms and elbows stationary. Remember, it is an exercise solely for the triceps so it’s important you feel a contraction.
Now, use the triceps to bring the weight back up to the starting position as you breathe out and repeat seven more times with two more sets of eight afterwards.
6. Barbell Curls
This is one of the best exercises for the biceps but it’s one that many get wrong. Start by standing up, feet shoulder-width apart, your back straight and your arms fully extended.
Grab a barbell and looking forward, with your elbows tucked in at your sides, slowly curl the bar up until you can’t flex your elbows any more.
Slowly lower it back to the starting position and repeat 9 more times for 3 sets of 10.
The reason so many get it wrong is because they end up swinging the hips, negating the influence of the biceps. It’s just as important to keep your elbows tucked in close to your side, acting as a pivot point.
That completes the session.