Who Should Do?
Anyone Looking To Improve Performance
Warming up is a crucial part of movement and activity. It helps to improve muscle blood flow and increase temperature. This is especially important as a performance-based athlete.
Dynamic arm swings provide a great way to activate your muscles, increase mobility, and improve coordination. As part of a warm-up, they help to improve muscle temperature and blood flow.
Regardless of which chest and shoulder workouts you choose, this exercise can serve you well.
Individuals For Gait Improvement
Because of the opposing dynamic arm movements, arm coordination is a key factor. You’re moving separate limbs in tandem in different directions but with equal tempo and steady pace.
Consider the vertical arm swing variation and its natural translation to walking, jogging, and running. The task-specific coordination used for the arms can have a direct influence on that needed for many cardio exercises.
Your body is mechanically designed to link lower limb movement with its upper body counterparts. Lower limb-based training can be enhanced through dynamic arm swings. This exercise primarily involves the upper body, but you should incorporate it for its lower-body benefits also.
Who Should Not Do?
Those Who Have Injuries
Dynamic arm swings require a large shoulder range of motion. If you’re injured or have been previously, you likely cannot perform the pain-free movement necessary for this exercise.
*Expert tip: Consult a mobility specialist for guidance on restoring functional shoulder strength to work toward performing dynamic arm swings.
Benefits Of The Dynamic Arm Swing
Warms Up Muscles
Dynamic arm swings move the arms and shoulders through all actions and ranges of motion. This helps the shoulders to perform at peak efficiency when you go through your full workout.
As a warm-up exercise, dynamic arm swings provide many advantages for your session. These include increased body temperature, enhanced exercise focus, and injury prevention.
By actively engaging the primary movers throughout the swings, you are stimulating contraction and tightening, and therefore, readiness to work. Furthermore, the stretching of the muscles through movement in opposing directions ensures stability through all functional joint positions.
You can also perform them as part of an at-home shoulder workout as part of your warm-up before the activity.
Promotes Blood Flow
Moving your arms through a full range of motion stimulates blood flow to the working muscles. In this case, the anterior deltoid, sternal, clavicular, abdominal pec heads, and serratus anterior.
Blood flow is vital to provide oxygen and nutrients to the working muscles. This helps to keep normal function and can greatly impact performance. Therefore, dynamic arm swings are good for injury prevention and performance.
Increases Flexibility
Dynamic arm swings are a great tool for improving your range of motion and flexibility ahead of your workout. Active dynamic stretching is a hugely useful feature of this exercise.
This is done as the anterior deltoid and pectoralis heads activate to cross and raise the arms. Swinging with a full range of motion helps to maximize your flexibility.
Frequently Asked Questions
The benefits of arm swinging are extremely diverse. Doing this exercise allows you to activate muscles in preparation for training. It also serves to warm up muscles and joints, increase blood flow to working areas, and enhance flexibility.
Dynamic arm swings target your anterior deltoids, your serratus anterior, and your clavicular, sternal, and abdominal heads of the pectoralis major.
As a low-intensity, dynamic exercise, swinging your arms in and out is not too effective for building muscle. It’s primarily a warm-up exercise. You would need to use more resistance to build muscle.
Yes. Dynamic arm swings are a greatly effective exercise to prepare for your workout. The move is great for warming up joints, increasing the range of motion, and firing up muscles to perform their best.
Resources
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