3 SIMPLE WORKOUTS TO TONE ARMS AND GET RID OF FLAB

If you have jiggly upper arms, it's your triceps (or lack there of) that are likely the culprit. Triceps are often forgotten during weight training which can cause these muscles to atrophy, which basically causes them to lose their strength and tone. Muscle atrophy, along with excess body fat are factors that contribute to the arm's flabby appearance. In order to build strength and maintain tone in your triceps, here are 3 simple exercises that should be staples in your weight training routine.

Double-Arm Dumbbell Overhead Extensions

This is a single-joint, isolation exercise that targets the triceps and is convenient while offering variety. Although a basic exercise that only involves extending the elbow, the tricep extension has many variations so you won't get bored with it. Because you can do the tricep extension exercise with different types of resistance and in several body positions, it is a convenient exercise to incorporate into your workout routine. Other triceps exercises require specific equipment, but you can always find an alternative for the tricep extension exercise. If you don't have barbell, use a dumbbell. If you don't have a weight bench, do a seated or standing variation of this exercise.

As your triceps become stronger with these exercises, the strength of your shoulders and elbows will also increase. The functionality, flexibility and range of motion of your arm increases the more you work and strengthen these muscles. As a result, your performance improves in sports that require arm movements and upper body strength such as tennis, swimming, volleyball and basketball.

Bench Dips

Dips are a challenging upper-body strength-training exercise, but they can be modified so that people of all levels can incorporate them into their workouts. The exercise requires you to lift your own body weight, so how challenging they are depends on how much you currently weigh.

Dips are a compound exercise, which means that they require movement around multiple joints. Compound exercises are very beneficial because they develop multiple muscle groups simultaneously, and build strength and tone in multiple muscle groups with just dips. Compound exercises also more closely mimic movements that you perform in day-to-day activities. As a result, the strength and coordination you develop from dips will make these activities easier to perform.

Dips can be modified to increase or decrease difficulty. Sit on the edge of a bench with your legs extended out in front of you and your heels on the floor or atop a second bench. Place your hands on the edge of the bench on either side of your hips and lift your hips forward off the bench. Bend your elbows to lower your hips toward the floor. If you need to make the traditional dip more difficult, squeeze a dumbbell between your feet, place a weight on your lap or wear a weighted vest.

Lying Dumbbell Extensions/Skull Crushers

Lying triceps extensions are also known as skull crushers and French extensions or French presses, and are one of the most stimulating exercises to the entire triceps muscle group. While there are numerous triceps exercises, incorporating this particular movement is sure to firm up the back of your arms fast, and the key to reaping this exercise's benefits is paying meticulous attention to form. They work the muscles from the elbow all the way to the latissimus dorsi. These are also isolation exercises, so they use just one joint, and while compound exercises are recommended for developing all the muscle groups involved, triceps extensions can be beneficial for fixing imbalances in the backs of the arms or rehabilitating from injury.

To perform this move:

• Lie face-up on a bench with your feet flat on the floor.
• Grasp a dumbbell in each hand and hold them directly above you with your palms facing inward (neutral grip) and your arms extended.
• Keep the upper arms stationary and perpendicular to the bench, bend your elbows to bring the dumbbells toward the top/sides of your head.
• As your inner elbow joints approach 90-degree angles, pause and then smoothly reverse direction by pressing back to full arm extension.
• Squeeze your triceps at the top of the movement.

You can also do these one arm at a time, and use your nonworking arm to spot yourself for those few extra reps (forced reps).

For optimal results, you should perform these exercises at least 3 days a week. Use a light to heavy weight progression when performing each exercise, or in other words, increase the amount of weight you lift during each set with a goal of fatiguing your muscles within the allotted number of repetitions.

Source: thescienceofeating.com