How to build big arms without a single weight

WHO doesn’t want nice toned arms for summer? The good news, says Tim Robards, is that you don’t even have to go to the gym to get them.

ARMS are quite useful things. They generally come in pairs and their most important function is to help you pick things up — and not just food and items for survival, but also members of the opposite sex.

So here is how to get yourself a strong set of arms without any weights.

All of these exercises are demonstrated in the video above. Do 11 reps of each one, going through all the exercises until you’ve finished your first cycle. Give yourself a well earned three minute break, then repeat two more cycles. Do this once or twice a week for the first week and add an extra cycle each week for a month to notice a real difference.

OVERHEAD TRICEP EXTENSION

Tim Robards demonstrates the overhead tricep extension.

Find a bar that is chest height or lower. Step feet about half a metre behind the bar. Lean into the bar, so your head goes under and forward of the bar. You want to maintain a fairly straight back, not bending at the hips. You should lower through to feel a slight stretch in your triceps, and side on your should have a straight line from your elbow, through your shoulder, to your feet. Push back up to the start position using your arms, not by pushing your bum back.

BICEP BAR CURL

The bicep bar curl.

Use the same bar as above, but this time the feet go a foot or two in front of the bar. Grip the bar shoulder width apart with an underhand grip. Aim to rest on your heals to maintain a fairly straight line through your body, no dipping at the waist, and only a slight knee bend.

Start by laying back with arms extended, keeping the same angle between your elbow and your body. Avoid bringing your elbow into your side. This will keep maximum force through your bicep as you pull your forehead to the bar.

The hard version.

For a harder version, hold your feet in an L-sit position and pull your forehead back and forth to the bar. The trick again is not to pull the elbows into the side of the body like a normal pull-up. The elbows stay pointed out away from the body.

TRICEP DIP WITH ROTATION

After each dip, rotate your body like this.

This is great for the triceps and core. Start by sitting on the edge of the bench to set yourself up. Your hands should face outwards and your legs be straight. To begin the movement, drop your butt off the seat and dip it down toward the ground. Press up and as you get about half way try to lift one arm and reach it straight up to the sky and bring your hip up to finish the movement with a side plank position.

Slowly return that arm down and repeat on the other side. Try and challenge the working arm for as long as possible before dropping the other arm back down for support.

PIKE PUSHUP

Make sure you stretch before attempting this one.

Great for the shoulders, triceps and mid/low traps. This basically starts off in a downward dog yoga position. It requires some good thoracic and hamstring mobility so it's a good thing to stretch before. The main thing you want to aim for is a straight line from your hands to your butt. To achieve this (especially if you have tight hammies) you need to bend your knees and push your butt high. Instead of pushing your nose or chest down to the ground, aim for the top of your head or forehead.

As you push back up, try to engage your mid traps between shoulder blades. Imagine someone is pushing your spine toward your feet as you push up. This is a great one to improve your postural muscles as well as building strong shoulders.

STRAIGHT BAR DIP

This one can be done with or without a band for extra support.

For this one, you can use a band to assist you (like I demonstrate in the video) or do without for more of a challenge. Start in the top position and lower down aiming to get your belly button to touch the bar, or even your chest, without falling backwards. Start small and get deeper as you get stronger. Hands should be just wider than hips. Your chest will come over the bar slightly and your feet under the bar to maintain balance

ROTATOR CUFF ROTATIONS

You don’t need to buy weights — just use water bottles.

Using two water bottles or light weights, this is a great exercise to build great posture and strengthen your shoulder stabilisers. Stand holding the weights by your side. Squeeze your core the whole time and contract your abs to lock down your lower ribs. This stops any over arching in the lower back as you raise your arms and forces you to strengthen your postural muscles.

Raise the weights up to your sides with straight arms, touch at the top, and then lower them together in front until shoulder height. While keeping them at this height, open them back out to the side and repeat slowly.

Dr Tim Robards is a chiropractor and exercise scientist (B. Med. Sc, M. Chiro) and regular news.com.au columnist. Tim recently launched his unique exercise and diet program The Robards Method.

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