Arms and shoulders are the two main muscle groups that do well for your upper body strengths, besides chests. In a way, many people that start working out usually focus on these two groups of muscles alone, but why is that? Well, arms and shoulders might be one of the easiest groups of muscles you can target and exercise. However, the biggest downside of these exercises is that they will often require a dumbell or weights of some sort. On the other hand, that does not mean that you cannot find good arms and shoulders workouts to do without any equipment. If you want to join the gym or start working out outside of your home, but need a little confidence boost then you should consider hiring a fitness trainer Dubai to help you. Hiring a personal trainer is a good way to start and get to know the exercises.

Arms and shoulders workouts you should do

Logically, if we decide to spend time at the gym, or working out at home, we want to see the most results possible. Because of that, it is crucially important that you understand what exercises you need to do and how to do them properly. Most of the time, your muscles will not grow due to the number of sets you do, but how you do them.

a man doing arms and shoulders workouts at the gym
Arms and shoulders are two of the most common exercises people do when working out

On the other hand, if you want to work out, but do not want to risk getting the coronavirus or are not too confident for the gym, you can always opt for a virtual personal trainer option. In addition, if you are to work out, you need to have a better understanding of the muscle groups you want to target. Knowing which muscles you need to activate will help you find the best way to do so.

Shoulder and arms muscle groups you will focus on when doing these exercises

Your arms represent one of the cores for your upper body strength. Having activated muscles groups in your arms is something that will come in handy on a regular basis. So, to put things into a perspective, these are the arms muscles you will be working on:

  • The biceps – Has two muscle heads, long head, and short head
  • The triceps – Has three muscles heads, the medial, lateral, and long head

Now, you cannot target both your shoulder and arm muscles while you work out. Meaning that you will have to do separate exercises. When talking about shoulders, you will be working on:

  • Trapezius – Responsible for the elevation of the arm
  • Deltoid – Responsible for median and flexion rotations of the arm
  • Pectoralis major – A muscle responsible for arm adduction

What you should know before you start

Each of the exercises that we will show you will need your utmost devotion. This means that you will have to set aside the time, as well as willpower to do them. Luckily, these exercises are nothing like ab workouts, which can be quite exhausting. However, this does not mean that you will not need to find workout motivation for the job you need to do.

a man doing a pushup that focuses more on triceps muscles
Try to do all of the sets you set as a goal, even if it means that you do fewer repeats in each set

Each of the arms and shoulders workouts we will show will require several sets. Our advice is, that, if you are new, you should do at least 3 to 4 sets per exercise. This way, you will be able to single out and work on the specific muscles we were talking about. So, grab your dumbells or weights, fill your bottle of water and let us start working out.

1. Dumbell biceps curls, as the arms and shoulders workouts essential

Doing curls is an essential exercise for your biceps. With proper technique, this exercise will help you target both of your bicep muscles at the same time. Namely, you should stand straight. Hold a dumbbell in each hand, if possible, and ensure your elbows touch your sides. Next, simply start curling your weights until you reach your shoulder height. However, do not just allow the weight to pull your hand back. Instead, try to pull it down slowly, so you can activate the muscles to their fullest.

2. Dumbell biceps curls, with rotation

This exercise is very similar to the one before. However, with this exercise, you can target both of your biceps muscles at once. Namely, you should do almost everything the same, like the previous exercise, but, slightly different. Namely, you want to start with your palms facing towards your feet. Start curling the weight up, and when you are in the middle, start rotating your hand, so you finish the lift with the regular curl. Next, as you return the weight down, rotate your hand when you are in the middle once again. If you need help, you can always rely on your online gym instructor to help you.

3. Dumbell triceps extensions

You can either stand tall or lie down for this one. Once you find your ideal position, you want to bring the dumbbell above your head. Next, simply start lowering the weight behind your head. However, make sure that you only move your hand from the elbow down. Fixate your shoulders and do not move them. Once you complete this exercise, you can do the same, but start moving your dumbbell sideways. Again, try to keep your arms steady and your shoulders fixated.

4. Dumbell lateral raise

To focus your shoulder muscles, you will want to stand up. Hold a dumbbell in each of your arms. Next, start lifting both dumbells, sideways, up to the height of your shoulders. However, make sure that you let your elbows lead. Slowly bring the dumbells up and pull them down.

a man doing lateral shoulder exercises at the gym
There are three types of shoulder muscles that you need to activate while working out

Additionally, once you complete this exercise, do the same, but keep your arms in front of you. Raise the dumbells to your shoulder height and slowly pull them down.

5. If no equipment, you can do these arms and shoulders workouts in a different way

One of the easiest ways to do shoulder workouts is doing pushups. Pushups do not only work on your shoulders, they also work on your triceps as well. Additionally, they can help you gain more control over your core muscles, which will impact the entire workout session you have. Generally speaking, pushups represent the best balance of arm, shoulder, and core exercises and are super beneficial. So, if you do not have dumbells, pushups are your best option.