Are you interested in having some great home workouts?
But something is stopping you, right? You don’t have the equipment you need to do the practical exercises.
Sure, we hear you. It’s tough to wrap your mind around this one, and it’s incredibly easy to throw in the towel and say, “Why even bother?”
But, the truth is, you can have an excellent home workout with nothing more than a couple of resistance bands.
Today, we’ll go over the four best exercises for a great upper body workout.
- Chest Flyes
Chest flyes are one of the best exercises you can do to isolate your pectorals and build them up nicely.
To perform them:
- Take an exercise band with handles and wrap one end over something sturdy - having a resistance band door anchor is quite helpful for that.
- Grab the handle with your arm, stand sideways, step away to create some tension in the band, straighten your arm, and push your chest out.
- In one smooth motion, bring your arm from the side to in front of you without bending your elbow.
- Hold for a moment and bring your arm back to the side.
- Keep repeating, then grab the handle with your other hand, and repeat the whole sequence.
- Lat Pulldowns
Lat pulldowns are an excellent exercise for developing your lats and building back strength.
Here’s how to do them:
- Take a long resistance band (or one with handles) and wrap it over a pull-up bar or over a resistance band door anchor that is positioned over your head.
- Grab the band with one hand, get down on your knees to create some band tension, bring your chest out, and pull the band down as you tuck your elbow in toward your hip bone.
- Hold for a moment and extend your arm up. Then, repeat the whole motion.
- After that, grab the band with your other hand and repeat.
- Lateral Raises
Lateral raises are an excellent shoulder-building exercise.
To perform them with bands:
- Take a resistance band with handles and wrap one end to something sturdy near the floor - for example, a door anchor or sofa leg.
- Grab the handle with your left arm and stand sideways with your right shoulder pointing at the other end of the band, thus having it come in front of your body.
- With your left arm straight and to your side, contract your shoulder muscles and extend it to the side until your wrist, elbow, and shoulder are in a straight line.
- Lower your arm to the starting position and keep repeating.
- Then turn around and perform the same number of repetitions with your right shoulder.
- Standing Bicep Curls
Of course, no upper body workout is complete without a bicep exercise.
To perform bicep curls:
- Take one long resistance band, step over the middle of it with both feet and grab both ends with your hands.
- Stand tall with your chest out, shoulders back, and arms straight and to your sides.
- While keeping your elbow stationary, start curling both ends of the band simultaneously until your elbows are slightly past 90 degrees.
- Hold the top position for a second and release.
- Keep repeating.