An intense upper body workout that you can adapt as you get stronger
Five exercises to get your arms, back and shoulders burning — and your heart pumping, too
Looking for an upper body workout that you can keep coming back to — but adjust as you get stronger? This is the one.
In this video, personal trainer Eunice leads you through an upper body circuit that targets the arms, back and shoulders, and mixes in a bit of cardio to get your heart pumping, too. She'll demonstrate beginner and advanced modifications to help you adjust the workout according to how you feel on any given day, or to scale it up over time. While you can do it without any equipment, Eunice incorporates a resistance band (a T-shirt or towel works in a pinch) for certain beginner moves and dumbbells for some advanced variations.
Watch the workout and scroll down for a breakdown of both the beginner and advanced versions of the routine.
Routine:
Complete each exercise for 10-12 reps, taking 20 seconds to rest in between. Repeat the entire circuit three times.
Beginner:
- Stepback burpee to calf raise
- Banded Romanian Deadlift (RDL) to row
- Pushup to hold with single arm row
- Banded Z press
- Mountain climbers
Advanced:
- Burpee to lateral arm raise
- RDL to row
- Pushup to single arm row
- Dumbell Z press
- Punch variation to plank jack
Want to work more of your body? Pair this sweat sesh with a shredded core circuit from Eunice, then cool down with some simple stretches.
