It's easy to target each part of your body for muscle toning or building using movements that challenge those muscles. You'll find myriad websites that provide a list of exercises by body part, complete with written descriptions, pictures and videos of how to do the exercises. Reviewing some of the more common exercises for targeting muscles will help you get started on your quest to spot-work your body.
Arms
Work your biceps starting with biceps curls. The biceps are the inside part of the upper arm. Let your arm hang straight down at your side, palm facing forward, and lift the weight upward by bending your arm. Hold for two seconds, then lower slowly, using your muscles to brake on the way down -- don't let the weight drop with gravity. To work your triceps, or back of the upper arm, use triceps extensions. Place your dumbbell or hold a resistance band behind your head, between your shoulder blades. Lift your arm, turning your forearm outward so you palm finishes facing outward. Hold for two seconds, then return. Work your biceps and triceps with chair dips, placing your hands in front of your hips to work biceps and behind you to work triceps. Chin-ups, done with your palms facing you, will also work your biceps.
Chest
Push-ups, chin-ups, flyes and chest presses will help you build your chest. Perform chin-ups by raising yourself, holding, then lowering slowly. For flyes, start with your arms away from your sides, shoulder height, palms facing forward. Bring the weights or pull the resistance bands toward each other, keeping your arms straight, with your hands meeting in front of you. Raise and lower weights with muscle when doing chest presses; if you do them with dumbbells on a bench, don't let them start lower than your shoulders.
Back
Lat pulldowns are a popular way to build back muscles. You do these kneeling or standing, depending on the machine you use, and pull a bar down either behind your back or in front of you. Research by the Department of Exercise and Sport Sciences at the University of Miami found pulling the bar down in front of you, with a wide grip and palms facing forward, provided the most benefit. Pull-ups, done with your palms facing away from you, are another popular exercise for working your back, as well as chair dips with your arms behind you.
Legs
Deadlifts, squats, lunges, calf raises, hamstrings curls and leg presses are popular choices for working the legs. Be careful to use proper form when performing leg exercises to prevent back injury. Keep a straight torso on the way down and up when doing deadlifts, squats and lunges, using only lower-body muscles to raise you.
Core
Use crunches, sit-ups, leg raises, Russian twists, pelvic thrusts, kettlebell swings, an exercise ball and an ab roller to work your core. Be careful not to pull yourself up with your hands during sit-ups and crunches if you have your hands behind your head -- you'll use less core muscle and may strain your neck or lower back. Kettlebells and exercise balls are unstable and force you to use your core muscles during other exercises. Move side to side as well as up and back to add oblique work.
