Working out your upper body can be important for your overall balance and performance in various sports. You might also just want to reshape your shoulders and improve the balance between your lower body and your upper body.
No matter your reason for wanting to work on your upper body strength, using the right exercises is important to make sure that you are getting the most out of your workout. If you are looking to improve the way that you train your upper body, this guide will be a big help. These are the best exercises to help you to effectively train your upper body during your workout each day.
If you are ready to learn the best exercises for your upper body workout, you need to read on!
Exercises for the Best Upper Body Workout
1. Bench Press
This is one of the most effective upper body workouts because it targets both the chest and the arms at the same time. You can also do this workout with any amount of weight that works for your level of strength and experience. You might even just use the bar if you are just getting started with this kind of movement.
When adding bench press to your routine, make sure that you have your hands slightly wider than shoulder width and that you are using an overhand grip. You should also be sure that you are bracing your core and pressing your feet into the ground so that you do not hurt your back while performing this exercise.
2. Bent Over Row
This is another exercise that is great for all levels of experience since you can modify it as needed. You will need to use the bar again for this move and you can add as much or as little weight to it as you need for your level of fitness. You can add this move into any arms and shoulders workout to target your shoulders and also to challenge your core and glutes.
You will hold the barbell about shoulder-width apart and use an overhand grip. Make sure that you bend your knees just slightly and then bend forward and hinge from the hips. Make sure that you keep your shoulder blades pulled back and then raise and lower the bar toward your sternum. The lowest point of your movement should be just below your knees.
3. Chin-Ups
This is a more advanced movement that you might have to build toward. Not everyone can do these without lots of practice and time gaining strength in their upper body. This exercise is a great gauge for your overall upper body strength as well, which can help you to guide your training progress toward areas of weakness.
Chin-ups should be done by placing your hands shoulder-width apart on a sturdy bar. You will brace your core and use an underhand grip to lift yourself up. You will want to aim to be able to lift your chin over the bar and then extend your body in a controlled way back to hang down off the bar.
4. Incline Flyes
This is a great chest move that will target all the areas of your chest as well as challenge your core and your balance. Incline the bench that you are using just slightly and then use the right size dumbbell for your level of strength. You will want to start with dumbbells that you can easily lift so that you do not cause injury to your muscles.
Lie on the bench and extend your arms up above your face. Keep your elbows softly bent and extend your arms to the side until they are almost straight out from your shoulders. Then lift them back to the top position.
5. Bicep Curls
This is a great basic exercise that can be done with various weights according to your fitness level and strength. You can do this motion with the weight held flat in your palm with your knuckles pointed toward the ceiling, or you can turn your hands so that your thumbs are on top. Whether you are doing traditional bicep curls or hammer curls, you will want to do a set amount of reps each set and then rest.
This exercise can seem simple but it is easy to overtrain it. Make sure that you are not throwing the weight to pick it up. This will injure your back. You will want to decrease your weight if you find that you are throwing your weights to get them up into the curled position.
6. Push-Ups
While this might seem like a simple exercise, push ups actually challenge your chest, shoulders, arms, and core. You can do push-ups anywhere as well, which is another nice benefit of using this method to train your upper body.
Push-ups can be modified and be done from your knees or from a full plank position. Make sure that you listen to what your body is telling you and do not force yourself to do the full push-up movement if you are not ready for this challenge. You might also want to do this exercise where you can see your form to make sure that you are not swaying your back.
Training Your Upper Body Effectively Can be Easy
Taking care of your upper body training is easy when you use the right exercise routine. Make sure that you add any of these exercises to your routine carefully and that you start out with light weights and work your way up to heavier weights. Preventing injury is easy when you work with new exercises carefully at first.
Training your upper body is easy when you use these great exercises for your training routine. Balancing your upper and lower body strength is no trouble at all when you use these skills to improve your overall fitness and body composition. Upper body strength is an important part of a well-rounded training plan and these exercises are some of the most effective ones that you can use.