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I do the one that patty showed in the pic above,,,only when I'm home I use two dining room chairs, one on each side. then I keep my legs straight out with the heels touching the floor.. (we have to do these on the bars at school for gymnastics,, so I have to work on that area)...
another thing is, take any kind of static weight, whether it be a hand held (even soup can or milk jug or something to that effect) or a resistance band that you can place under the backs of your heels... Put arm straight up above head, and drop it back, by the elbow, behind your head.. this can be done standing or laying down. http://www.netfit.co.uk/assets/tri7m.gif or, put one knee on a flat surface, supported by that hand,, with the other foot on the floor,, hold something resistant in the free hand. Keep the arm inline with the hips for starting point. Curl your elbow/arm forward and then push back... much like donkey kicks that are done with the legs http://crh.choate.edu/math/jolmo/ima...s/MVC-687X.JPG this is the best pic of this one I can find... your would need to be straighter with your body as this buy has his foot pressed back to far, and his support arm angled too far forward. |
I do the Pilates 20min version every day. It is not overly difficult and I do not want to break my routine. I will try to do a short version of the arm exercises every day and a linger version 2-3times per week. I haven't done much cardio but now that it is not frigid outside I should fast walk the dog 2 times per week. This is harder because I have dd in the afternoons and getting a 6yo to walk fast is not so easy.
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I got mine very cheaply at Kmart or Wal-Mart when they were having a sale or for the larger weights at Dick's sporting goods when they were having a sale. Seems like the sports stores run some kind of sale every couple of weeks. Also, don't know if you have this where you are, but we have a Play It Again Sports which usually has a good selection of "used" dumbells. I found, though, that the prices often weren't any better than going to Wal-Mart or Kmart and getting new, especially if they were on sale.
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Patty: Thanks. I really do not have fat under the arms any more just loose skin where the fat was. I was hoping that these exercises would stretch the skin and make it more supple and fill in with muscle instead of fat to get more definition. I do 20 min of Pilates every morning that work the abs and leg muscles.
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I'm the same way. I had all my kids in my 30s, when my skin lost all it's elasticity. After each baby, I lost all the wieght, but it seems like nothing was where I left it scratch
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What a great post! I hadn't thought about it, but boy do I need to start working on that wing! I'm in a wedding in August, and the dress shows most of my upper arm. So how often do you guys do these exercises?I know blueskyes said she does it 2-3 times a week. You don't find that it's too much, do you? I want definition, but nothing huge.
Also, does anyone have any leg exercises that help with the inner and outer thigh. I'm doing pilates a couple times a week, and find that the leg series really helps, but was thinking of incorporating something else to my cardio days. Any advice would be great! |
In my aerobics class we stand in a lunge.. one leg forward knee bent. Then lean forward over knee. and using weight in hand we push weight forward to arms length and pull it back toward body.
We also add a twist of arm up to shoulder at 90 degrees (roughly). Other things we do is use a 'stretchie' and pull it arms above head. Or one had on hip stretchie to the back and other hand up at shoulder pull up on stretchie.. this gives resistance. Hope these explanations make sense! Start with set small reps, then build and build the weight if u need to. Don't forget.. a can of soup or something can act as a weight at home if u havne't any yet. I too like toned arms, and in my former 'fit life' I had lovely arms, and am glad to see my Right bicep is back almost where it should be (a bit of fat to lose still..) http://www.lowcarbsite.com/images/smilies/icon_lol.gif . As for my left arm.. it's dissappeared.. but i'll work on it! I was a little addicted to lifting weights in the past, but now am concentrating on losing body fat and doing cardio / running for time being. good luck! |
I don't think 2 to 3 times a week will bulk up your muscles. To do that you really need to high weight and low repetitions. If you do 2 to 3 sets of 12 to 15 this should give you more endurance and overall strengthening as opposed to really building muscle, at least that's what I have been told by the fitness folks in the gym. http://www.lowcarbsite.com/images/sm...icon_smile.gif
I started with 5 pounds for the first few weeks and then just recently moved to 10 pounds (didn't have 7.5 dumbbells). I can really feel the exercises now, but am doing less reps 'cause the muscle tires sooner. I don't really mind seeing the muscle building if it is the triceps. But I don't need any more biceps as they are pretty big already. So, I do very little weight for the bicep curls. I did notice some nice top of the arm/shoulder firming/roundness if you know what I mean. My arms are starting to get a little shape if I hold them at specific angles. It's really quite comical to see me looking at them in the mirror in the morning at all of these weird angles or poses. http://www.lowcarbsite.com/images/smilies/icon_lol.gif |
I work out with weights 2-3 times a week. I'm hooked on the Firm videos. If I don't have someone pushing me, I don't work as hard. I use a variety of tapes, so I'm not working the exact same muscles each time, even tho I'm working the same basic muscle groups. I've also heard that free weights are better than machines for that reason.
The Firm videos use a 14" box for leg presses. You hold your heaviest weights (I use either 20lbs of dumbbells or a 26lb barbell), and step up onto this box for a 2-3 sets of about 16 on each leg. Other good leg exercises are dips, lunges and squats - all while holding weights. Kathy Smith also has a good free-weight video. I've had my best results combining at least 2 strength days with 4 cardio days. One or the other doesn't cut it for me. |
I'll check out WALMART for some weights. Do discounters sell this sort of thing or do you have to go to a sports store?
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I've seen them at Walmart, Target, KMart, Sears, etc. Sometimes, they'll sell a set of 3,5,8 pounds. If you want to try just one size, I'd start with 5.
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I got some from Denise Austen article in Prevention. Two of them are the ones that Evrrdy shows. They are very effective. I add a few for shoulders and deltoids to make the whole thing look better. I also do a bicep curl. I have done a tricep lift with a weight behind and above my head lowered behind my head. You can feel the burn there, but I think it does essentially the same thing as the first picture of Evrrdy's. I have been doing these for 3 weeks now 2 to 3 times a week and am starting to see some definition and not so much "jiggle". Unfortunately there is still a bit of fat there too.
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Thanks for the photos of the exercises. I tried them out today and will add them to my routine. I'm trying to figure out a measure of progress.
Measuring the upper arm is not good because I will likely add muscle I thought I'd measure how much loose flesh I can pinch and repeat in a month. Hope you all will continue to post here to let us know whether these actually worked for you. I'll report on my pinch test. |
I think you should probably get some dumbells. Like Patty, I use my 5 pound and 10 pound weights predominantly for the exercises that Evrrdy showed. For a few others I use an adjustable 20 lb dumbell which lets you go from 5 to 20 pounds in 2.5 increments. I even used to do tricep extensions on a nautilus machine at 30 lbs and didn't bulk up so you will probably be fine. I have noticed so more tightening although there is still a little wiggle my arms are getting more toned. I combined the two tricep exercises with some front raises, some lateral raises, some bicep curls, some front rowing and these have shaped up the whole area a little bit better (the top outside of arm and shoulder is a little more defined, for example).
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Push-ups work well for both the chest and the triceps. Another good exercise that doesn't invovle weights would be to sit on a bench or stair. Put your hands on the bench on either side of you, feet on the floor. Now, lift your bum off the bench and lower it towards the floor and back up (using your arms). Do a few sets of these.
http://www.devinebodies.com/images/ex7.gif |
Bicep curls and tricep work could tighten the skin, I know this is comming from a guy and most women dont want to but there is not many things, in my opinion, more attractive then a women what has visible biceps, not arnorld sized *shudder*, but nice semi defined ones. Though just an idea, feel free to completly ignore, lord knows I'm used to it. http://www.lowcarbsite.com/images/sm...on_biggrin.gif
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Upper arms
So many women have lost a lot of weight here I thought we might gather
our experience with exercises to address the bat wing problem. I do do 2 exercises for that region. First an isometric putting the heels of my palms together and pushing and second (after my pilates) arm circles with my elbows bent. I've looked at the WEB and seen exercises with weights discussed but have no experience with these. Help please. |
Thanks I'll try the exercises with veggie cans (curls + lunges). The cans do not feel so heavy but for a workout I'll probably feel they are. I don't have much storage space so the cans are a good idea.
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I've been doing the exercises suggested most days but the food cans each weight only about 1-1.5lb. I do not know whether this is enough resistance. Do you suggest buying small weights? I like the pushups
from hands on a chair or chairs. |
You should probably use heavier weights. Also, realize that working this area will build the muscles, but will not remove the fat. Fat and muscle are 2 diffeferent tissues. Fat loss cannot be "targetted". Adding muscle does make you burn more calories throughout the day, so it is quite a benefit.
Instead of focusing only on your triceps, you should work on all your muscles, especially the larger ones (ie, legs). Don't worry about bulking up. Only about 2% of women can really bulk up like men, and they still need lots of training with very heavy weights. I use dumbbells between 5 and 10 pounds each. I use between 5 and 8 lbs for the kick-backs (Evrrdy's pic), but 10 lbs for bicep curls and military presses (lifting weights towards the ceiling that back down to shoulder level). I have one 20 lb dumbbell that I use for lats and French press (another tricep). These weights are much lighter than what the guys use. |
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