ActiveWorkoutsForget weight machines – you only need a set of dumbbells and these five exercises to boost upper body muscleWhether you can’t get on your favourite machine, or your new to the gym, this dumbbell-only workout is for youWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
ActiveWorkoutsForget weight machines – you only need a set of dumbbells and these five exercises to boost upper body muscleWhether you can’t get on your favourite machine, or your new to the gym, this dumbbell-only workout is for youWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
Whether you can’t get on your favourite machine, or your new to the gym, this dumbbell-only workout is for you
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
(Image credit: Getty Images)
(Image credit: Getty Images)
We’ve all had those days where we’ve waltzed into the gym and all benches, barbells and weight machines are occupied. What’s even worse is no-one seems to be in a rush to finish using them either. You may think this means your session is ruined, but think again. This upper body workout will help to build muscle in your shoulders, arms and back, and it only requires apair of dumbbellsand not even aweight bench.
If you’re worried that dumbbells won’t deliver the same gains that machines and barbells would, there’s no need to be. Astudyin the Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness that looked at the differences in strength, power and muscle using free weights and machine exercises, found improvements in strength and muscle to be similar using both bits of equipment. So, don’t sweat it if you can’t get on your favourite shoulder press machine, your hard-earned gains aren’t going anywhere.
This workout from Sweat App Founder, Kayla Itsines, is a classic hypertrophy-style session, so it’s high reps to help stimulate muscle growth. This means you’ll want to pick up a set of dumbbells that you can complete the set amount of reps below for, but find the last two to three reps difficult. If you’re just bashing them out easily with plenty of gas left in the tank it’s too easy. Complete three rounds in total, resting for 60 seconds between each exercise and two to three minutes between each round. Here’s your exercises:
One thing this workout didn’t include is a chest exercise, so here’s a quick10-minute chest workoutfor you to do afterward. Fancy more upper body workouts? Give thisfloor-dumbbell workouta try next, a great one if your legs are feeling a little dead from a hard lower body session the previous day (it also fires up your core muscles too. Alternatively, here’s another greatbeginner-friendly dumbbell workoutto hit your chest, arms and shoulders.
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