Exercise Equipment That Can Help Build Your Arms

Exercise Equipment That Can Help Build Your Arms
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Whether you plan to work out at a gym or at home, there are a number of exercise equipment options to help you build strength in your arms. According to the Mayo Clinic website, weight training offers a wealth of health benefits ranging from increased strength and muscle tone to improved bone density and weight loss. While practically anyone can tone their arm muscles with organic exercises such as push-ups, these exercise items can help accelerate the rate in which your arms begin to grow in strength and size.

Chin-Up Bar

Perhaps the least expensive exercise equipment for building the arms, chin-up bars can be easily installed in nearly any doorway of your house or apartment. According to Bodybuilding Magazine, chin-ups strengthen a number of important muscles, such as the deltoids, triceps, lats, trapezius and pectoral muscle groups. Perform a basic chin-up by gripping the bar so that your hands are roughly shoulder-width apart with your palms facing you, and slowly lift yourself until your chin touches the bar.

Dumbbells

The Mayo Clinic website recommends these inexpensive and versatile free weights for anyone seeking to get the most out of their weight lifting regimen. Generally available in increments of 5 pounds, dumbbells are small hand-held weights that can be used in a wide variety of exercises that can target individual muscles of the arms, such as the biceps, triceps, deltoids, forearm and media anconeus muscles. Dumbbells are available in the weight rooms of most gyms and can be purchased new or used at sports and athletics shops.

Exercise Bands

Sometimes referred to as resistance bands, exercise bands are a relatively new addition to the list of equipment options for arm exercises. Often constructed using elastic plastic or rubber fabrics, exercise bands allow for a number of bicep and tricep exercises the usually involve stepping on the center of the band with your feet and pulling up at the handles. Exercise bands are generally manufactured at a certain resistance level that can deteriorate over time with use, making them an equipment item that is generally best purchased new.

Preacher Curl Bench

The preacher curl bench can be found in a number of styles depending on the manufacturer, and can often be purchased used for exercisers seeking to conserve their budget. The design of the preacher curl bench allows for weight lifters to sit and rest their arms against an inclined platform as they lift dumbbells or barbells using hammer curl or bicep curl exercises. The primary function of the bench is to isolate the muscles in the arms from the rest of your body, allowing your arm muscles to receive the full impact of the weight without distributing it to the rest of the body and diminishing the workout. While somewhat more expensive than the other equipment listed here, the preacher curl bench can be an excellent item for any weight lifter looking to see dividends on their bicep exercises.

References

Article reviewed by SarahP Last updated on: Jun 14, 2011

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