Do Arm Circles Really Work?

Arm circles can be done anytime, anywhere. They can be done while you are sitting on your chair in front of your laptop or when you are on your bed. They can also be done by physically challenged people who cannot walk and who use chairs with wheels to move around.

As you become comfortable with the regular arm circles, you can perform them by holding weights.

Arm circles are great for people who use computers for prolonged periods. These include a major chunk of people who go to offices, relying completely on desktops or laptops for their work. Without adequate stretching of the arms, the shoulders, muscles, and tendons of the arms can swell and become stiff and painful over time. Lack of arm stretches can increase the risk of shoulder, arm, or hand injury.

Doing 5 minutes of arm circles twice a day daily combined with other exercises such as desk push-ups and arm punches can help burn up to 100 extra calories in a week.

Arms circles are a form of dynamic stretches. Before performing resistance training targeted toward the arms, perform dynamic stretches such as arm circles. Save the static stretches as a cool-down exercise after the workout.

Weight lifting:

Take weights in your arms. If you are a beginner, start with lower weights first, graduating to more weights over time. Lift your arms with the weights up above your head. Make sure your arms are close to your head and ears. Lower the weights by taking them behind your back. The more slowly you move your arms, the more toned your arms will be.

Chair dips:

Chair dips not only help strengthen the muscles of the shoulder and arms but are also good for back strengthening and losing weight fast.

For this, you need a strong table or chair that is around 2 feet above the ground. Stand 3-4 feet away from the table with your back facing it. With your arms at shoulder-width apart, bend your elbows and rest them on the table and bend your knees, lowering them till the height of the table. This is your starting position. Make use of your arms while lowering your body as far as you can toward the floor. Gradually, lift your body with the help of your arms back to the starting position. Perform this a few times till you can reach up to 20 times at a time with three sets of each.

Other exercises include:

• Regular push-ups
• Counter push-ups (or desktop push-ups)
• Opposite arm and leg lift

You can take the help of a fitness expert to choose the right type of exercises with variations to tone your arms and help you shed that excess fat from your arms.