ARMS, Part 1: Beginner | Intermediate/Advanced
EXPERIENCE HAS TAUGHT US this little-known muscle training secret: If you build the rest of your body, your arms will grow by default. That's because they're involved in virtually every exercise you do. You'll never see a man with wide shoulders, a meaty chest, a V-shaped back…and puny arms. But plenty of guys spend hours on their arms and look as if they hardly work out at all. The lesson: Spend the majority of your workout time on your big muscles, and the smaller muscles like your biceps and triceps will take care of themselves.
However, there are times when your arms should be the center of attention and not just when you're updating your tattoo collection. Say you've been following our TBW program from the beginning. You've spent time working your shoulders, chest, back, abs, and lower body. You're bigger, stronger, and probably better at every physical activity you attempt. But now your arms may be holding you back. And not because your ex-girlfriend's name is still engraved on your left biceps.
So, the next 8 weeks are going to be all about arms starting with this, the first of two 4-week programs. You should notice the difference in obvious and subtle ways. You'll get stronger in exercises like the bench press and pullup because your arms will provide better assistance. And when you finally get your new girlfriend's name tattooed on your arm, well, you'll be able to use bigger letters.
THE REST OF YOUR WORKOUT
Do the arm exercises first in your workout. After that, it's up to you how to fit in exercises for other muscle groups. Here are some suggestions.
BEGINNER
Do a total-body workout two or three times a week.
Here's a sample: Do one set of eight to 12 repetitions of these exercises after you finish your arms.
INTERMEDIATE
Divide your program into two workouts, one for your upper body and one for your lower body. Perform your arm exercises on the day you do your upper-body workout. Alternate between the two workouts, taking a day off after each. So, for example, you might do the upper-body workout on Monday and Friday one week and the lower-body workout on Wednesday, then the following week do the lower-body workout on Monday and Friday and the upper-body routine on Wednesday.
Upper-body workout
After doing the arm program in this installment, choose one exercise each for your chest, back, and shoulders. Do two or three sets of the chest and back exercises and one or two sets of the exercises for your shoulders.
Lower-body workout
Choose one "hipdominant" lift an exercise that emphasizes the hamstrings and gluteals (examples include stepups and deadlifts). Then choose one "knee-dominant" exercise, meaning the emphasis is on the quadriceps muscles of the front of the thigh (squats, leg presses, and lunges qualify). Do two or three warmup sets and two work sets. (A work set means you're using the most weight you can for that number of repetitions. The warmup sets should be percentages of that weight maybe 40, 60, and 80 percent. Do fewer repetitions in each warmup set.) Add your choice of abdominal and calf exercises.
ADVANCED
Divide your workout into four parts. Do each one once a week; don't work out more than 2 days in a row.
However, there are times when your arms should be the center of attention and not just when you're updating your tattoo collection. Say you've been following our TBW program from the beginning. You've spent time working your shoulders, chest, back, abs, and lower body. You're bigger, stronger, and probably better at every physical activity you attempt. But now your arms may be holding you back. And not because your ex-girlfriend's name is still engraved on your left biceps.
So, the next 8 weeks are going to be all about arms starting with this, the first of two 4-week programs. You should notice the difference in obvious and subtle ways. You'll get stronger in exercises like the bench press and pullup because your arms will provide better assistance. And when you finally get your new girlfriend's name tattooed on your arm, well, you'll be able to use bigger letters.
THE REST OF YOUR WORKOUT
Do the arm exercises first in your workout. After that, it's up to you how to fit in exercises for other muscle groups. Here are some suggestions.
BEGINNER
Do a total-body workout two or three times a week.
Here's a sample: Do one set of eight to 12 repetitions of these exercises after you finish your arms.
- Lat pulldown
- Squat or leg press
- Leg curl
- Dumbbell chest press
- Cable or dumbbell row
- Crunch
INTERMEDIATE
Divide your program into two workouts, one for your upper body and one for your lower body. Perform your arm exercises on the day you do your upper-body workout. Alternate between the two workouts, taking a day off after each. So, for example, you might do the upper-body workout on Monday and Friday one week and the lower-body workout on Wednesday, then the following week do the lower-body workout on Monday and Friday and the upper-body routine on Wednesday.
Upper-body workout
After doing the arm program in this installment, choose one exercise each for your chest, back, and shoulders. Do two or three sets of the chest and back exercises and one or two sets of the exercises for your shoulders.
Lower-body workout
Choose one "hipdominant" lift an exercise that emphasizes the hamstrings and gluteals (examples include stepups and deadlifts). Then choose one "knee-dominant" exercise, meaning the emphasis is on the quadriceps muscles of the front of the thigh (squats, leg presses, and lunges qualify). Do two or three warmup sets and two work sets. (A work set means you're using the most weight you can for that number of repetitions. The warmup sets should be percentages of that weight maybe 40, 60, and 80 percent. Do fewer repetitions in each warmup set.) Add your choice of abdominal and calf exercises.
ADVANCED
Divide your workout into four parts. Do each one once a week; don't work out more than 2 days in a row.
- Arms and shoulders
- Knee-dominant exercises (described above), plus abdominals and calves
- Chest and back
- Hip-dominant exercises (also above), plus abdominals and calves again
