There are two things that will make any morning better: A great cup of coffee [1] and a solid workout. Can you really kickstart your day before your morning dose of caffeine ever hits your blood stream? Absolutely! While your morning roast is brewing (or your tea is steeping), you can get an arm pump right in your kitchen [2] using three simple arm exercises.
According to certified personal trainer Sarah Chadwell [3],"Bodyweight exercises are extremely effective for building and toning muscles and fending off arm flab." Here are her favourite morning exercises.
Arm Circles
Arm circles are a great dynamic warmup, which ensures you're ready to start your day off right. You can even hold a container of creamer in each hand if you really want to shake things up.
"Arm circles are a great warmup [5] for your shoulders [6], back, triceps and biceps, and they are also great for increasing shoulder stability as you move your arms in multiple planes of motion," Chadwell says.
How to Do Arm Circles:
- Stand tall with your feet hip-width apart.
- Optional: Hold a coffee creamer in each hand for extra weight.
- Extend your arms out at shoulder height so that they are parallel to the floor.
- Make 15-20 small arm circles forward. Then repeat the circles, but moving backwards.
- Do two sets of arm circles in each direction.
Incline Push-Ups
Push-ups [7] are a great part of any workout. You may not love them, and figure you can avoid them unless you're in the gym, but you'd be wrong to do so.
"Incline push-ups [8] are a variation of the traditional push-up that people of all fitness levels can do," said Chadwell. "You can use incline push-ups to build up to doing regular ones. They are a go-to move for building muscular endurance of your upper body including your chest, shoulders, and triceps."
How to Do Incline Push-Ups:
- Stand facing your counter top or a sturdy kitchen chair or couch. Place your hands slightly wider than shoulder width on the edge of your chosen platform.
- Position your feet together and behind you to get into a push-up position. Keep your torso and back straight. Your arms will be perpendicular to your body.
- Keeping your body straight, bend your arms and lower your chest down until you almost touch your platform. Pause for a 1 count.
- Finish the move by pushing your body back up until your arms are almost fully extended.
- Repeat for 3 sets of 12 to 15.
You can challenge yourself by simply changing your foot position. If you move your feet away from your platform, you decrease the angle of your body thus creating more resistance, making the exercise harder.
Chair Dips
A chair should be quick to find in the kitchen or dining room, and you can use it to tone your triceps [9]. "Your triceps are going to wake up when you start incorporating dips in your morning arm routine," said Chadwell.
How to Do Chair Dips:
- Sit in a sturdy kitchen chair (or like in the photo, use a sturdy box or step).
- Place your palms on the edge just to the outsides of your thighs and clasp your fingers around the front edge of your platform of choice.
- Move your body forward until your glutes are just off of the platform and you have clearance to dip your body downward. At this point, your arms will be fully extended and locked at the elbows.
- Adjust your feet so that your heels are a few inches in front of your knees.
- Begin by bending your elbows and lowering your body toward the floor. Your elbows should point directly behind you, and never move away from your body. Keep your weight in your heels.
- Pause when your elbows form a 90-degree angle.
- Finish the move by pressing your body back up by straightening your arms.
- Complete 3 sets of 12-15.
You can challenge yourself by changing your foot position. The further away your heels are from the chair, the more difficult the exercise is because you will have more resistance from your body weight.