Improving upper body strength is important for activities of daily living. Carrying groceries and picking up a child or a pet require strength in the arms. Using handheld weights is an easy way to maintain and improve fitness in the comfort of your home or at the gym. Upper-body exercise using hand weights is fairly easy and requires only moderate skill.
Hand held weights, or dumbbells, provide an inexpensive and versatile option for strengthening and toning all your major muscle groups. Most gyms have a wide variety of dumbbells or you can purchase your own set and exercise from home. They also travel easily so you can work out while on the road for business or pleasure. You can perform numerous exercises with hand held weights for your entire body.
Hand held weights, like dumbbells and barbells, provide you with an excellent way to work out your arms. The major areas of emphasis that to focus on include your shoulders, triceps and biceps. Choose a weight that will challenge you, leading your working muscle group to exhaustion by the last repetition or two. If you're unsure of the weight to choose, start with dumbbells between 10 and 15 lbs. or barbells from 20 to 30 lbs., increasing or decreasing weight as necessary.
A simple strength routine will provide you with numerous health benefits. With two hand held dumbbells you can devise a routine to focus on your upper body, there are a number of exercises to choose from and you can vary your technique, weight and repetitions to make your training progressive. When core muscles weaken through no training, imbalances can occur and this can increase your chances of becoming injured if you do sports. Building muscle using hand-held weights will help with weight management and keep you injury free.
