Upper body strength is important whether you are an athlete or not. Think about all the daily activities you perform that involve the strength of you upper body. Chopping wood, shoveling snow, pushing a lawnmower and picking up grocery bags are all examples. To build strength, you need to focus on all the major muscle groups that are found in the upper body. This includes the chest, shoulders, back, triceps and biceps.
Step 1
Lie face up on a workout bench to do dumbbell chest presses. Hold the weights an inch apart above your chest with your arms straight and your palms facing your knees. Lower the weights down by your sides by bending your elbows. Stop when your upper arms are parallel to the floor, push the weights back up and repeat. Keep your core tight throughout the exercise.
Step 2
Lift a barbell over your head to do push presses. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and hold a barbell with a slightly wider than shoulder-width grip at upper chest height with your palms facing forward. Lower your body down slightly by bending your knees and explode back up as you push the bar straight above your head. Stop just short of locking out your arms, lower the bar back to your upper chest and repeat.
Step 3
Grab a set of dumbbells to do bent over rows. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and hold the weights in front of your thighs with your palms facing you. Bend forward at the waist and let the dumbbells hang straight down toward the floor. Your back should be just above parallel to the floor at this point. Lift the weights up to the sides of your stomach and squeeze your shoulder blades together. Slowly lower them back down and repeat.
Step 4
Perform a set of triceps dips with two benches. Place the benches parallel to each other and slightly wider apart than the length of your legs. Place your hands on the edge of one bench and place your heels up on the other bench. Lower your body down toward the ground by bending your elbows. Stop when your upper arms are parallel to the floor and push back up. Stop just short of locking out your arms and repeat.
Step 5
Twist your wrists to work your biceps. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and hold dumbbells down at your sides with your palms facing in. Curl the weights up and turn your wrists so your palms are facing your chest. Squeeze for a second, lower the weights back down and repeat.
Tips and Warnings
- Perform 12, 10, 8, 6 and 3 reps of all the exercises. Add weight to each set until you get to the point where you can only do 3 reps with good form for your last set. Take take days off in between each workout.
Things You'll Need
- 2 benches
- Barbell
- Dumbbells
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