This workout was a direct request of our FB Community - you all are right in that we needed more upper body warm ups! I hope this new warm up serves you well, and gets you ready to work hard during the workout that may lie ahead.
These are my usual, go-to moves for warming up for an upper body workout - I’ve spared you by cutting out the normal “bad dancing” and lip syncing - worse yet, belting along with the music at the top of my lungs. I hope that you use these 7.5 minutes to warm up your body, distance yourself from your daily obligations and duties, and mentally prepare yourself for the workout that might lie ahead of you.
Like I mention in the video, this warm up can be an excellent stand-alone routine to get your blood flowing and muscles warmed after a long day of sitting at the computer or on the couch watching tv. Even if you do this workout by itself, followed by more couch/desk lock, it’s better than uninterrupted couch or deck lock. Never write off any amount of movement; it all counts!
While going through these upper body warm up exercises, practice like you play; pretend as if you are hoisting a heavy weight around in each hand. There is a significant difference - that benefits both body and mind - between mindlessly moving through the motions, and moving with mindful conviction. You can improve your warm up, and your actual workout by establishing ideal form, focus, and breathing patterns while you’re still only working with just bodyweight.
Printable Upper Body Workout - 15 Intervals @ 30 seconds each
Arm Swing Butt Kick
Overhead Press Step Back
Shoulder Rolls + Side Step
IT Band Step & Stretch
Curl + High Knee Raise
Bow Pull (Alternating)
Halo + Tricep Extension
Forward Bend + Reverse Fly
Close Row + Reverse Fly Combo
Warrior Jacks
2 Big Arm Circles + Reverse
Arm Circles
Walkdown
Up & Over Steps
Press Jacks or Steps
Whether you use this as a prelude to an upper body workout, or a quick break from your desk and computer work, I hope that you enjoy it.
What do you think of our other filming space? I apologize for the audio hiccups, especially in the intro of the video - it turns out that we were working with a faulty mixer. We already have a replacement on the way, so we wont run into this problem again.
A little backstory on the plants in this video; the tall tree to the left of me is an avocado tree, grown from a piece of fruit I ate around 3 years ago. The purple plant on my right is a triangularis oxalis, and the leaves move like butterflies all day long, opening and closing as the sun comes up and sets. The giant fern is a gift from my Mother-in-Law when she moved and had to find it a new home. Each of these plants comes with their own story - I have always been interested in growing, but when I was homebound due to chronic pain for a few years (ending at the start of the pandemic - we all know how 2020 went...), I let myself deep dive into my fascination with plants, growing, and everything green. I highly recommend growing plants for stress relief, food, interest, and or decoration. Do you have any plants? What's your favorite?
Thank you for working out with me! Let me know what you would like to see next.