People are becoming increasingly aware of the importance of keeping the body physically active as you go into older age to stave off a number of physical and mental health conditions. While body shape and weight is influenced by a range of factors, one of the most common is your lifestyle habits – including diet and exercise.
One personal trainer has shared their best tips to help keep arms toned. They are all easy ways to keep moving – especially helpful for people who may sit behind a desk all day without much physical activity.
Renowned fitness expert Lucy Wyndham-Read exercises “don’t use any equipment” and take just three minutes in total. Despite the short length of time, she says the routine will “blitz your arms”.
The first exercise requires you to stand up, bend over at a roughly 45 degree angle, and push your arms out straight behind your back, parallel to the top half of your body. From here, you simply push your arms up as high as they can go – still behind your back.
The expert explains to “have your palms facing up” and “squeeze those arms behind”. The move targets the back of the upper arms. If you “feel that burn”, then you know you are doing it right.
The next move is a shoulder clap – stretch your arms directly above your head with hands together, then bring them all the way down so your hands are at the same level as your hip. Then return them to the top for the clap.
After this, you should remain standing upright and stretch your arms out in front of your shoulders, before repeatedly curling them inwards and tapping your shoulder. This is similarly working the back area of your arms, as well as your biceps.
The final exercise is an “arm bend”, otherwise known as a tricep extension. For this, stretch your arms above your head (like for the shoulder clap), and then bend your arms behind your head. Reach as far back as possible until you feel a burn in your triceps (back of your arm).
