Arms and Shoulders

Arms and Shoulders

Imagine you had this nightmare: you were preparing for summertime and going from shop to shop with the honorable purpose to enrich your T-shirt collection. After trying on ten T-shirts that looked terribly sexy on the dummy, but horrible on yourself, an idea struck you. What if... And yes, this is the cruel truth: your arms and shoulders are not at their best. The worst part of this nightmare is that it might be real. Here are a few exercises that can be of help.

What arms are made of...
Ok, you know that a massive arm is a sign of great power and masculinity, but you should know what muscles are responsible of this seductive view for girls. You must have heard of triceps and biceps. Well, these are the two major muscle groups of an arm. Two thirds of your arm volume is occupied by the triceps muscles, located in the back of the arm. The triceps has three heads: long, medial and lateral, and each of them has to be worked out by some particular exercises. Still, the long head can't be affected in any way unless you also practice overhead extensions.

The biceps are made of two heads: the long and the short one - and also a small muscle near the elbow. The best part is that biceps are very easy to keep in shape, although their aspect is not sufficient for beautiful arms.

For your arms and shoulders
Barbell Push-up
Sit with your hands at shoulder height, palms forward, arms in the same plane as the upper body. Grasp a barbell and push up until your arms are straight above your head. Keep it there for five seconds then lower the barbell to the starting position.

Tip: *The weight of the barbell should be a reasonable one for the beginning then, gradually, add more weight. *Keep your back straight all the time otherwise you risk a backbone injury. *Do 20 weight lifts, have a 30 seconds break then repeat for two more sets.

For your arms
Lateral Weight lift
Stand up with your feet shoulder width apart and your knees slightly bent. Your arms, with each hand holding a dumbbell, hang left and right by your body. Inhale and lift your arms until your hands are at shoulder height (now your body should look like a T). Preserve the position for five seconds then lower your arms to the starting position. Tip: *Start with 3 kg dumbbells, but add more weight (5 or even 10 kilos each) in the next sessions. *Do 3 sets of 20 with short breaks in between.

For your shoulders and chest
Flat Bench Weight lift
Rest your upper body on a bench, with your feet firmly on the floor. You will know if your position is the right one if you feel your head, upper back and butt pressing the bench. Push your shoulders back and your chest forward. Raise your arms in front of you, a little wider than shoulder width. Each hand must hold a dumbbell (or a side of a barbell). Lower the weights while you inhale. After reaching your chest push the weights up again. Rest your arms up in the air for a few seconds then repeat the movement.

Tips: *You'll be pleased to find out that this exercise is excellent for your arms, shoulders and chest. *It's better if you use a barbell though, because you can start exercising with a moderate weight and increase it as soon as you feel capable of lifting more.

For your Biceps
Dumbbell Curl
Stand with your knees slightly bent and your upper arms tight against your sides (it's very important not to move your elbows far from the trunk as long as you do this exercise). Keep a dumbbell in each hand, shoulder width apart. Bring the dumbbells up, until your forearms touch the biceps. Lower to the starting position then repeat 20 times. Tips: *This exercise works almost exclusively but also efficiently your biceps. Do three sets of 20, but you can always increase the number of exercises once you feel OK with the previous sets.

For your triceps
French Press
Lie on your back, on a bench, but with your head hanging (chin up). Keep your hands palms down, each with a dumbbell in it. Raise dumbbells to arms' length above shoulders. Stay there for a few seconds then lower the weights in a semicircular motion to you forehead, by bending arms at elbows. Try to keep your upper arms in a vertical position all the time. Go to the starting position again.

Tip: Do three sets of 20 with small breaks in between them.

Note:
1. No exercise designed to build muscles and shape your body can help you burn fat. That's why, if you have plump shoulders and arms, you might reach the conclusion that all these exercises are bullshit because after two weeks of hard work there are still no muscles showing. The fact is your muscles are underneath the fat. So, you must get rid of them fast and the best idea is to do some jogging, rope skipping or bicycle riding.

2. If your intention is to build muscle and gain mass and size, stick to free weight exercises like the ones listed here.

3. It's not necessary that every fitness session of yours should include all these exercises, but you can alternate them so as to have at least one aiming at your shoulders - one aiming at different arm muscles. If correctly executed twice a week plus a balanced diet, you will notice more masculine arms and shoulders when looking in the mirror.

Thou shalt not eat bad

As I said before, there is no exercise in the world that works miracles if your diet is a real chaos. Apart from the muscular mass you will be able to show from your T-shirt, if you keep your daily menu balanced, everybody will see in you a more energetic, optimistic person.

Either calculate yourself the amount of calories you consume or bribe your girl to do it. Your daily caloric intake should not consist in more than 50% carbohydrates (that you find in all kinds of bread, pastas, fruits and vegetables), 25% proteins (all sorts of diary products, white meats, beans, eggs) and 25% good fats (from fish oil and nuts mainly).

Eat as much "fiber" as you can, because it makes you feel full and you are not tempted to overeat unhealthy snacks. You don't have to search hard for fiber sources, because the most common aliments like apples, pears, brown cereals, potatoes, beans, oatmeal, etc have it.

Think twice before asking for another drink. As you probably know, alcohol is very high in calories.

In exchange, you can drink as much water as you want (and much more!), because you have to be well hydrated, especially if you have to be consistent with your workout routine. Water also helps regulate your body temperature and keeps your digestive system healthy, by flushing out toxins.

Don't skip the main daily meals because this leads to overeating later.

Don't consider fast foods a solution for your busy schedule because you'll stuff yourself with excess calories and bad fats.

Eat every five hours to keep your blood sugar levels normal.

Avoid sweetened beverages, coffee enriched with regular milk or worse, with whipped cream, as most of them contain the calorie amount of a real meal.

If you are a passionate meat eater, try to skip pork, mutton, lamb and other high fat meats. Veal and beef are OK, as long as they are not garnished with sauces. Eat barbecue chicken, but only after you remove the skin (it contains fats).

Eat lots of vegetable salads, but without cream cheese or mayonnaise. Vinegar, salt and olive oil should be enough to flavor the vegetables.