Modern fitness constantly pleases with an incredible number of various programs, among which anyone, regardless of gender, age and social status, can find a suitable option. For those who plan to work on muscles and strength, Upper Body training is suitable.
It includes a whole range of exercises with a variety of sports equipment, which helps to qualitatively model the body. As the name already makes clear, the classes are designed to work specifically the upper muscles: chest, biceps, triceps, deltoids, lats and abs. But more about everything.
Brief description of a standard lesson
A typical session is usually about 45 minutes long (which is somewhat shorter than lower body strength training because there is no aerobic warm-up required).
Already in the warm-up part, the above strength equipment begins to be used. At first, light weights are chosen - ideal for warming up all muscle groups and joints, as well as stretching tendons.
The warm-up is followed by a lighter version of pre-stretching (stretching the muscles of the arms and back), after which light weights are changed to heavier ones and the main Upper Body workout begins.
The first muscle group to be worked on is all large and deep (in other words, the back and chest are loaded).
Next there is a transition to medium and small (shoulders, triceps, biceps).
Abdominal exercises come last.
The techniques used during the exercises are very diverse. Among them:
- spring;
- “static” spring;
- technique of ascents and decreases (by count);
- rapid downward movements followed by slow ascents, etc.
The main stages of body sculpting
Body sculpt workouts are interval training and take place in cardio mode.
During the training, you will have to perform three main types of movements: Cardio - allows you to prepare the body for the strength phase of the training. Working with weights - helps strengthen muscles and is carried out using special devices. Stretching - prevents the development of soreness and strengthens muscle tissue. It is very important to carry out all the stages of the training session discussed above efficiently and in the specified order. Let's talk about them in more detail
Cardio loads
For many people involved in body sculpting for weight loss, cardio is the most favorite stage of the training process. However, cardio should not be viewed as entertainment. At the first stage of the lesson, you will be able to properly load all the muscles of the body and thereby prepare them for the upcoming power loads. In addition to being able to strengthen muscles, cardio training improves the performance of the respiratory system and heart muscle. Aerobic dance moves may seem like simple fun from the outside, but in practice it is not. Thanks to the first stage, you will not only activate lipolysis processes, but also improve your mood, creating additional motivation to continue exercising.
Working with weights
The next stage of the complex is strength training. To do this, you will have to use sports equipment, with the help of which all the muscles of the body are worked out.
It is very important to first go through the first stage with stretching and only then begin strength training. This is associated with high energy costs and the body must be prepared for this
Stretching
This training phase allows you to strengthen your muscles and improve your figure. Please note that stretching is carried out throughout the entire session, including warm-up. With the help of special exercises you will relieve stress from your muscles and strengthen them.
Achieved results
The gym, which serves mainly for working with serious weights, involves no more than 8-12 repetitions of certain actions. In fitness programs, of which Upper Body is one, the situation is the opposite.
This complex, designed for training mainly not with a barbell, but with light dumbbells and body bars, allows each exercise to be repeated several dozen times. Strengthening muscle endurance and toning them is optimal, however, the program is not initially designed to acquire a powerful relief pattern and quickly build muscle mass. That is why Upper Body enjoys the greatest popularity among the fair half of humanity, for whose representatives flexibility and endurance do not imply the accompanying appearance of powerful and not very attractive muscles of the “male” type.
Benefit
If you decide to take your figure seriously and bring it to ideal, Upper Body programs are great for this. By signing up for a lesson, the athlete gets excellent results:
- Significant development of endurance and other physical indicators. The body tolerates various loads much easier.
- Improved posture. With regular training, your shoulders and back straighten. The body becomes perfectly straight, which, of course, affects the position of the head and the gaze, which from now on is directed only forward.
- Developing self-discipline. Over time, the athlete develops the habit of quality training in a group or independently in the gym. For beginners, additional stimulation is provided by a trainer, under whose guidance he performs exercises.
- Increased self-confidence. During training, the body actively produces the hormone of happiness - endorphin. It stabilizes the athlete’s emotional state and fills him with energy, which is so necessary to perform difficult exercises.
Interesting fact. Many girls consider it irrelevant to develop endurance in their body. However, this property is very important for the fair sex, because men will not always be there to help.
Who needs such training?
Taking into account the results that training in the Upper Body system leads to, the complex can undoubtedly be useful:
- the already mentioned female persons (who want to make their body beautiful, elastic and resilient, but without a visible increase in superficial muscles);
- everyone who wants to start full-fledged training without even an initial level of training;
- people whose lifestyle involves daily increased loads on the spine and who do not have at least some developed abdominal and back muscles (responsible for the stable position of the body and support of the spine);
- physically well prepared and not suffering from diseases of the musculoskeletal system, relatively elderly people aged 50+ (in the latter case, permission to work with heavy weight can only be given by a specialized medical specialist).
The complex (especially its strength part) is strictly prohibited only for hypertensive patients, “heart patients” and the already mentioned representatives of the group of people whose spinal problems are quite serious - therapeutic yoga is more suitable for them.
Deadlift.
The next exercise on our list is the deadlift. This is one of the most basic exercises in the fitness industry. This exercise is very energy-intensive; a lot of calories are burned due to the fact that large muscles are involved in the work. The deadlift works the back surface: the back, buttocks and the back of the thigh (femoral biceps).
There is also a modified deadlift, which is aimed more at working the gluteal muscles. It’s called the Romanian deadlift and that’s what we’ll look at. You can perform this exercise with any weight: barbell, dumbbells, kettlebell, or expander. Starting position: feet shoulder-width apart, arms along the body. There's a weight in your hands. Next, we bend forward, slightly bending our knees. We crawl along our legs with our hands. Keep your back straight and not rounded.
You can also put a pancake under your feet and take a position so that your toes are higher than your heels.
Principles for selecting the weight of sports equipment
First of all, weight selection is carried out based on the level of general physical fitness. However, general principles apply to everyone, and include the following rules regarding performing exercises with maximum loads:
- reducing weight for deadlifts if push-ups were done before;
- limiting the weight of weights on the bar to 10, maximum 15 kg on each side;
- performing deadlifts only with a barbell, and not with a light body bar (excessive weight reduction for this exercise is also not recommended, since it simply will not make sense).
Advantages and disadvantages of performing exercises using the Body sculpt method
The combination of gentle and intense training allows you to work out the main muscle groups, improve blood circulation and oxygen saturation of tissues, and strengthen the joints and spine. At the same time, part of the physical exercises in the training complex helps relieve accumulated muscle tension and a feeling of heaviness in the arms and legs. Performing strength training and aerobic exercise allows you to actively burn calories and fat cells, and the problem of excess weight is solved more effectively.
Pros of Body sculpt training:
- The functioning of the respiratory organs and cardiovascular system improves, muscles, joints and spine are strengthened.
- Accelerated blood circulation stimulates active saturation of brain tissue with oxygen.
- Strengthens the body's immunity and resistance to infectious diseases.
- Metabolic processes in tissues are activated.
- The process of lipolysis starts, the body begins to break down fat reserves.
- Exercising helps relieve nervous tension.
- Improves mood, overall well-being, and increases performance.
- The risk of injury during Body sculpt classes is minimal if you follow all the trainer’s recommendations.
- Exercises from various types and areas of sports, combined into one complex, do not allow the muscles to get used to the load.
When and how to do Upper Body?
The optimal number of classes is three times a week.
The optimal combination with other complexes is Upper Body + cardio training. First of all, this is recommended for parallel strengthening of the heart muscle, which is necessary for any increase in physical activity. In addition, good results are obtained by combining the upper body with some kind of “combat” aerobics - for example, tai-bo.
A mandatory principle is systematic attendance at classes. Often, active training quickly enough allows you to achieve initial positive effects, after which the joy of improving your well-being leads to the fact that you simply quit going to the gym. The result is wasted time, and returning to classes becomes more difficult the longer the break is (just one missed week results in muscle pain, and two or three return the general condition of the body and muscle network to their original positions).
On days free from visiting the gym, a certain set of lightweight exercises should be performed at home (even without sports equipment - although, as follows from numerous training videos, the same dumbbells can easily be replaced at home with water bottles). Only this approach will provide the muscles with constant tone and “memory” of the load.
Other equipment
In addition to weights, strength aerobics may require:
- Gymnastic mat, the same as for yoga. Some people use regular travel foam;
- Step platform for some exercises;
- Elastic projectiles and special expanders.
And, of course, you need special sportswear and comfortable sports shoes.
Progress of the lesson
Typically, a Super Sculpt training session lasts about an hour. It is carried out in three stages:
- Warm-up, aerobic exercise that warms up the muscles and prepares them for the main part;
- The main power part, which is performed with special equipment and weights;
- The final part, which includes relaxation and stretching exercises.
The main part may include exercises with different equipment, depending on the characteristics of each fitness club.
Load classes
In power aerobics, there are four load classes:
- Upper Body – training only the upper body;
- AVT – training the muscles of the buttocks and abs;
- TIT – leg muscle training;
- Body Sculpt – training all the muscles of the body. Also sometimes only this class is called Super Sculpt.
Training classes can be alternated or performed separately if you need to work on a specific area.
Super Sculpt has become very popular among women in recent years as it improves the shape of the legs, buttocks and abdomen.
What does Super Sculpt give?
Super Sculpt has become very popular among women in recent years as it improves the shape of the legs, buttocks and abdomen. In addition, it is good because you can adjust the load and training time with very high efficiency, which makes it attractive for the stronger sex.
Super Sculpt simultaneously loads the entire body, working the muscles of the chest, arms, buttocks and back. And due to the effective combination of strength and aerobic exercise, the thickness of the fat layer is very quickly reduced and grace, plasticity and posture improve. In general, many have long recognized Super Sculpt as the best weight loss system.
However, strength aerobics not only gives you a slender body and toned muscles - it has a very powerful healing effect. Strength and aerobic training speeds up metabolic processes, improves immunity, strengthens the cardiovascular system and improves mood. All this, without a doubt, makes Super Sculpt perhaps the best training system in the world.
Strength aerobics is a set of exercises that have a strong impact on the muscles of the buttocks, thighs, abdomen and upper shoulder girdle. The main advantages... Read more >>
Lower body complex
The Lower body complex is intended for women, because with its help you can bring the lower “section” into ideal condition - pump up your legs, tighten your buttocks, reduce the volume of your hips, which is what most girls dream about.
Bums+tabs courses are a common program offered in every sports center. Its popularity is explained by the high effectiveness of exercises, by performing which you can:
- get rid of cellulite and fat on the thighs;
- qualitatively pump up the leg muscles;
- strengthen the overall immune system.
It should be noted that Lower body is a high-intensity load, so it is recommended to undergo Lower body training in a group training session. The support of like-minded people will help you not to give up at the first stage, overcome yourself and continue your studies.
Diets and proper nutrition
If you want to get rid of excess fat, lose weight in the waist and hips, and get beautiful muscle definition, then you cannot do without a balanced diet. In the section dedicated to diets and cutting, you can compare different nutrition systems for weight loss and choose the best option for yourself. Our articles discuss in detail popular diets, including: Dukan protein, buckwheat, kefir, 1000 calories, 6 petals. There are also menu options and recipes for delicious and healthy dishes that you can safely adopt.
The site also contains a lot of information on proper, balanced nutrition, which is suitable for beginners and professional athletes, as well as for those who are losing weight or want to stay in shape and not regain lost pounds. Here you will learn how many calories a person needs per day, what is the correct balance of nutrients, what fat burner products exist, and how to consume them correctly. We also have the best examples of diets for weight loss, muscle gain and effective weight loss.
