Upper Body Workouts??

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cwannabee
cwannabee Posts: 23 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
This is for my husband.

He's in good shape all around. We run to together and he does a variety of activies (hiking, hunting, etc.) that keep him active. However he has mentioned on a handful of occasions that he'd like to build some muscle in his arms/upper body. They are pretty lean in all honesty, but he can do chin ups which is more than I can say for myself.

Anyway, our budget is fairly tight such that a gym membership or personal trainer is just not going to happen. We could probably budget to pick up some hand weights here and there though.

I thought maybe some sort of workout he could do at home, but honestly most fitness DVD's seem to be aimed at women and include a lot of cardio (which he already does a lot of).

Anybody know of any DVD's aimed more at guys that he might try? Any other thoughts or suggestions?

Replies

  • liftreadphilosophize
    liftreadphilosophize Posts: 180 Member
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    Look into Insanity (high-intensity cardio with lots of bodyweight resistance training) or P90X (a lifting program -- you'd definitely need to invest in some weights for this one, though). I'm sure if you google "body weight training" you'll find resistance training programs and exercises that could be useful.
  • markpmc
    markpmc Posts: 240 Member
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    Grab a workout from Bodybuilding.com and some dumbbells/barbells.
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,293 Member
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    Look into Insanity (high-intensity cardio with lots of bodyweight resistance training) or P90X (a lifting program -- you'd definitely need to invest in some weights for this one, though). I'm sure if you google "body weight training" you'll find resistance training programs and exercises that could be useful.

    No, Insanity is a cardio based program, if he wants strength training to actually build muscle he will be some type of heavy lifting program and have enough weights to progressively lift heavy is a rep range of 4-12 (lower end for strength, higher end for size), but he also must eat in a surplus, and get adequate protein to add muscle.
  • TedStout
    TedStout Posts: 241
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    I would opt for free weights. You can get a basic set at a used fitness equipment store or on any website that sells stuff (C List, etc, ) for fairly cheap. Start there. With a set of sumbells, you can get a pretty decent workout. Doesn't substitute for a gym though.
  • belgerian
    belgerian Posts: 1,059 Member
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    Resistance bands are fairly cheap and provide a good work out.
  • Anthonydaman
    Anthonydaman Posts: 854 Member
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    I suggest buying a set of the resistance bands. The ones that look like surgical tubing with a handle on each end. I travel alot and don't always have access to a gym so I bring these with me for a workout when no gym is available. They sell a set at walmart that has three bands for varying resistance and it also has an exercise guide with it, this can be purchased for under fifteen dollars.
    Perfect example, last weekend i took my family to a remote beach cottage for the weekend, in the afternoon I would take my bands, set the timer for one hour on my iphone, and put on some music. Then I would cycle through about nine different exercises with little rest in between. It was very enjoyable and i even had a beer while doing it. You can't do that at a gym!
  • rybo
    rybo Posts: 5,424 Member
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    YAYOG
    nerd fitness.com
    Ashot of adrenaline. com
    Global bodyweight exercises.com

    These are excellent sites & resources for body weight training thst wil give you great results with little to no equipment.
  • alisonlynn1976
    alisonlynn1976 Posts: 929 Member
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    I've been working with kettlebells for maybe a month and a half, and I'm already noticeably stronger. The benefits are probably even better for people who can lift more weight than I can.
  • liftreadphilosophize
    liftreadphilosophize Posts: 180 Member
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    Look into Insanity (high-intensity cardio with lots of bodyweight resistance training) or P90X (a lifting program -- you'd definitely need to invest in some weights for this one, though). I'm sure if you google "body weight training" you'll find resistance training programs and exercises that could be useful.

    No, Insanity is a cardio based program, if he wants strength training to actually build muscle he will be some type of heavy lifting program and have enough weights to progressively lift heavy is a rep range of 4-12 (lower end for strength, higher end for size), but he also must eat in a surplus, and get adequate protein to add muscle.

    Yeah... that's why I specified it was a high intensity CARDIO workout, but incorporates bodyweight resistance training. Then I suggested P90X. She asked about home workout DVDs for budgetary reasons, and Insanity can be a good choice if he's not looking to build super muscles.
  • cwannabee
    cwannabee Posts: 23 Member
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    Thanks for all the suggestions guys I'll be doing my research on all the suggestions.

    I'll look into the resistance bands for starters and we're going to work on getting some more dumbells. In the summers he is gone overnight a lot for work so resistance bands would be handy when he's away from home.

    As for the Insanity - we actually borrowed that from a friend and completed it Feb/March. While it did work after awhile the workouts tend to be a little long and get repititous. A lot of cardio there too and since he's got that pretty well covered he's focused more on strength training.

    The other part is getting him to eat enough protein and in surplus. The man eats like a bird when he's away from home. He is known for skipping lunch when he's out in the field and he's breakfasts aren't exactly huge either.....
  • iarelarry
    iarelarry Posts: 201 Member
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    Push-ups.... thousands upon thousands of push-ups:drinker:

    It'll work chest, triceps, shoulders, and thousands upon thousands of push-ups...

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