Why You Should Train Your Arms And Shoulders?
It’s not just for aesthetic reasons that you should train your shoulders and arms.
Firstly, it helps improve your posture. Something interesting occurs when you tone your back muscles. Your shoulders naturally pull back, giving you an upright posture.
And your core benefits as well. Stronger muscles in this area ensure that your body maintains an upright position without slumping, which improves your overall postural alignment and stability.
Training your arm and shoulder muscles also boosts your metabolism. This metabolic boost simply means that you burn calories even at rest.
Combining aerobic and anaerobic resistance exercises improves athletic performance in many sport-related activities.
Anatomy Of Shoulders And Arms
The shoulders and arms combined coordination are capable of numerous movement patterns required to perform various daily tasks. Their structures consist of muscles, tendons, and ligaments connected to the bones of the arms, ribs, shoulder blades, and collar bones. The muscles that make up the shoulders and arms provide both primary and supportive actions.
It is beneficial to understand shoulder and arm anatomy especially when considering your workouts.
Shoulder Muscles
Anterior Deltoid
Muscles located at the front of your shoulder region
Lateral Deltoid
Muscles located at the side of your shoulder which gives your shoulders a rounded appearance.
Posterior Deltoid
Muscles located at the back of your shoulder. Helps with posture.
Serratus Anterior
Small, fan shaped muscle that lies deep under your chest and scapula.
Your shoulder muscles, tendons, and ligaments attach your arms to your body. Several muscles originate on the shoulder blade or scapula as well as the humerus or upper arm bone. The rotator cuff is a group of four muscles that provide stabilization for arm-reaching, lifting, and pressing activities.
Other muscles that act to move and support the shoulder are the deltoids, serratus anterior, and rhomboids. The levator scapulae and trapezius attach to the upper spine so they assist neck movement in addition to the shoulder and arm. Muscles that move the shoulder and arm must act in a balanced rhythm for proper exercise execution and performance of daily tasks.
Arm Muscles
Biceps Long Head
Most outside part of your bicep.The front of your upper arm.
Biceps Short Head
Most inside portion of the biceps. Located at the front of your upper arm closest to your chest.
Triceps Lateral Heads
Muscles located on the back of your arm between your shoulder and elbow.
Triceps Medial Heads
Small muscles located at the back of your arms. Deep to the triceps long heads between the shoulder and elbow.
Triceps Long Heads
Large muscles located at the back of your arms between your shoulder and elbow. Most outside portion of the tricep.
Arm muscles are the biceps and triceps. They are the primary elbow movers, but the bicep also helps raise the arm forward. These muscles assist in lifting, pressing, pulling, and pushing.
Biceps and triceps are most often trained on arm day but other essential arm muscles should not be ignored. However, another muscle that moves and attaches to the upper arm also provides back support, the latissimus dorsi. The pectoralis major is considered a chest muscle but links the arm to the torso and aids the arm with forward lifting.
The muscles below the elbow assist in turning the forearm and moving the wrist. The wrist, elbow, and shoulder muscles must be considered for well-balanced workouts.
Workout Safety Tips
The primary focus of any workout program should be safety. Here are some tips to ensure you engage your shoulders and arms workout safely and avoid injury:
Warm-Ups Are Important
It’s crucial to warm up before your workout. It gets your body ready for the upcoming, more challenging activities. Try to do some light exercises for five to ten minutes. A simple exercise like walking is great for warming up. It gets your body moving without putting too much strain on it.
Prioritize Form Over Lifting Heavier Weights
Getting your body positioned correctly and moving smoothly during your exercises is important. This is especially true when it comes to chest press exercises. Before diving into weights, it is advisable to begin with no weights or a lighter weight. This approach will allow you to focus on mastering the exercise technique.
Gradually Add More Weight
You need to gradually add more weight to your workout to strengthen your muscles. The weight you choose should make the last two reps challenging. But remember that the proper execution of the exercises is more important than the weights you lift. Even if you’re lifting heavier weights, make sure you’re doing the exercises correctly to avoid injury.
Stay Consistent With Your Routine
Depending on your training plan, you can set different days for training your arms and chest. You must make this plan with your trainer and then stick to it. A usual workout plan is to train your arms and chest twice weekly.
Final Thoughts
You need adequate training and discipline to build stronger arms and shoulders. Remember to warm up, maintain proper form, gradually increase the weights, and stick to your routine to get the best results.
Frequently Asked Questions
Including arm and shoulder exercises in your workout plan is an excellent idea. With this method, you can simultaneously target the biceps, triceps, and shoulder muscles.
Your degree of fitness, goals, and workout extent all play a role in the answer. Studies have shown that two weekly sessions bring more hypertrophic gains than one.
Training your biceps on a daily basis is usually not advisable because your muscles need time to rest and heal.
Working out every day can be good for you if you alternate the exercises. Mix hard workouts, strength exercises, stretching exercises, and light cardio throughout the week. This will allow your body to recover between strenuous workouts.
Resources
Endomondo.com refrains from utilizing tertiary references. We uphold stringent sourcing criteria and depend on peer-reviewed studies and academic research conducted by medical associations and institutions. For more detailed insights, you can explore further by reading our editorial process.
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- Gillen, Z.M., Wyatt, F.B., Winchester, J.B., Smith, D.A. and Ghetia, V. (2016). The Relationship Between Aerobic and Anaerobic Performance in Recreational Runners. International journal of exercise science, [online] 9(5), pp.625–634. Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5154721/#:~:text=Research%20has%20indicated%20that%20combined,between%20aerobic%20and%20anaerobic%20performance.
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- Chen, M.-H., Yu, C.-L. and Chang, S.-H. (2020). Constant Daily Exercise to Keep the Doctor Away: A Study of Adherence to Physical Exercise Using a Gym in Individuals Older Than 55 Years. International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health and Well-being, [online] 16(1). doi:https://doi.org/10.1080/17482631.2020.1859174.
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