10-Minute Arms and Shoulders Workout with Dumbbells
Build strong shoulders, biceps and triceps with eight of the best dumbbell arm exercises. The rep-drop format of this upper body workout will fatigue your arms in just 10 minutes.
Burn out your upper body in just 10 minutes with eight of my favorite exercises for the arms and shoulders.
This upper body dumbbell workout is effective because we’re incorporating some fun exercise variations that increase the time under tension on the shoulder, bicep and tricep muscles.
This quick arm workout is sure to fatigue those smaller muscle groups in the arms (which is necessary for new muscle growth).
Arms and Shoulders Workout
Lift heavy for this rep-drop upper body strength workout. You only have to do each dumbbell arm exercise twice, so make it count.
This is one of my favorite arm workouts to add onto a run. Or a quick and effective, 10-minute upper body workout for women when you’re short on time.
Try adding this arm and shoulder workout to your fitness routine 1-2 times a week.
Workout Equipment:
Medium-to-Heavy Set of Dumbbells. I recommend 5-20 lbs depending on your fitness level. I’m using 12-15 lbs in this workout video.
Guided Workout Instructions:
Follow along with the guided Shoulder, Bicep and Tricep Workout on YouTube, led by certified personal trainer, Lindsey Bomgren.
Your Arm Workout Looks Like This:
- 8 Dumbbell Arm Exercises (hitting each muscle group – shoulders, biceps and triceps)
- Rep Drop Format (10 reps of each arm exercise for the first set, then 8 reps of each exercise for the second set)
- Repeat All 8 Exercises x2 Sets
Workout Outline
- Single Arm Overhead Press Hold and 10 Single Arm Bicep Curls and Press, R
- Single Arm Overhead Press Hold and 10 Single Arm Bicep Curls and Press, L
- Push Press
- Tricep Kickbacks
- 1.5 Bicep Curls
- Hammer Curl and Alternating Press Out
- Alternating Press Out (Dumbbell Punches)
- 1.5 Overhead Tricep Extensions
Single Arm Overhead Press Hold And Single Arm Bicep Curl And Press
Targets: Upper arms — shoulders, biceps and core.
How To Do A Single Arm Overhead Press Hold And Single Arm Curl And Press
- Stand with your feet slightly wider than shoulder-width apart, knees bent, holding a dumbbell in each hand at your sides, palms facing in towards one another.
- Extend your right arm overhead, locking out the elbow and keeping your bicep by your right ear.
- Hold the right arm overhead as you perform a hammer curl to overhead press on the left arm. Curl the dumbbell up to shoulder height, then press overhead; palm stays facing in.
- Lower the dumbbell in the left hand back to the starting position with control.
Dumbbell Push Press
Targets: Shoulders, triceps, rear delts and upper back muscles (with some assistance from the lower body).
How To Do A Dumbbell Push Press
- Stand with feet shoulder-width distance apart, slight bend in your knees, holding one dumbbell in each hand at shoulder height. Palms facing in towards each other (neutral grip).
- Drop into a shallow squat; about a two-inch dip. Then press through your heels, and push the dumbbells straight overhead. Think of peeking your head through your arms as you lock out the dumbbells, arms straight overhead.
- Lower the dumbbells down to the starting position at shoulder-level and repeat.
Tricep Kickbacks
Targets: All three heads of the tricep muscle (lateral head, medial head, and long head).
The tricep kickback is one of best isolation exercises for targeting the triceps brachii muscle.
How To Do Tricep Kickbacks
- Start with feet hip-distance apart, slightly bent knees. Hold one dumbbell in each hand at your sides, palms facing in.
- Roll your shoulders down and back, hinge forward at the hips (bent over position) and lock your arms in at a 90-degree angle. Upper arms in line with ribcage, elbows bent at 90 degrees, weights near hips.
- Perform a tricep kickback on the right arm; extending the right arm long behind you, kicking the weight past your hips.
- With control, slowly return the dumbbell to the starting position.
- Repeat to perform two tricep kickbacks on the right arm. Then perform two tricep kickbacks on the left arm.
1.5 Bicep Curls
Targets: The two heads of the bicep muscle, with an emphasis on the short head. And all of the stabilizing muscles in the shoulder, wrist, elbow and core.
How To Do 1.5 Bicep Curls
- Start with feet under hips, core engaged. Hold a dumbbell in each hand at your sides, palms facing outward (underhand grip or supine curl).
- Keeping your elbows locked by your sides, squeeze your bicep muscle to curl the weights up to shoulder-height as you exhale.
- With control, slowly lower the dumbbells down half way, stopping when your elbows form a 90-degree angle.
- Then curl the dumbbells back up to shoulder height.
- Finally, lower the dumbbells all the way back down to your thighs, returning to starting position. Throughout this movement, think: all the way up, halfway down, back to the top and all the way down.
Hammer Curl And Alternating Press Out
Targets: The biceps, tricep, shoulders, back and core. Emphasizing the long head of the bicep muscle (hammer curl) and front delts and traps of the shoulder muscles.
How To Do A Hammer Curl And Alternating Press Out
- Stand with feet shoulder-width apart, knees bent, holding one dumbbell in each hand at your sides. Palms facing in towards each other (hammer curl grip).
- Curl the dumbbells up halfway, forming a 90-degree bend in each elbow.
- Hold the 90-degree bend in each arm as you press the dumbbell in your right hand forward a few inches, feeling your shoulder and core engage. With control, return the dumbbell back towards your body, and lower both dumbbells back to your thighs.
- Repeat, curing the dumbbells up to the half way point, then punching out the dumbbell in your left hand.
Alternating Press Out (Dumbbell Punches)
Targets: Shoulders, back, biceps and triceps.
A killer arm exercise to sculpt and tone the upper body muscles.
How To Do An Alternating Press Out
- Start standing feet hip-distance apart, holding a dumbbell in each hand, elbows bent at 90 degrees and palms facing in towards each other (hammer grip)
- Alternate punching each dumbbell forward a few inches, then returning to center.
1.5 Overhead Tricep Extensions
Targets: The long head of the triceps and all the stabilizing muscles in the shoulders, core, glutes and lower back muscles.
How To Do 1.5 Overhead Tricep Extensions
- Stand with feet hip-distance apart, core engaged and soft bend in your knees.
- Hold one dumbbell vertically between your palms overhead.
- Bend your elbows to a 90-degree angle, bringing the dumbbell behind your head. Think ‘hide the dumbbell, show the dumbbell’, if you were watching yourself in a mirror. Keep your elbows close to your ears throughout the entire movement (don’t let your elbows flare out as you fatigue).
- Raise the dumbbell halfway up, then lower back behind your head.
- Then raise the dumbbell all the way up, overhead.
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FAQs
Should I Do Compound Or Isolation Exercises For My Arms And Shoulders?
If you’re a beginner looking to build overall strength, I recommend prioritizing compound exercises and supplementing with isolation exercises. Compound exercises target multiple muscle groups at once while isolation exercises target specific muscle groups. If you’re advanced or have specific goals, you might prioritize isolation exercises that will tone specific areas.
How Often Should I Work Out My Arms And Shoulders?
Ultimately, this depends on your goals and fitness level. I recommend adding dedicated arm workouts to your split training routine 1-2 times per week. Alternate upper body workouts with lower body workouts and full body workouts.
Is It Good To Workout The Shoulders, Biceps And Triceps Together?
Push workouts target the chest, shoulders and triceps while pull workouts target the back and biceps. You might not traditionally pair the shoulders, biceps and triceps together in a workout, but combining these muscle groups is effective. These muscle groups are smaller than the back and chest, so you can fatigue them with heavy weights and exercise variations that incorporate time under tension.
Can You Train The Shoulders, Biceps And Triceps With Dumbbells?
Yes! Some of my favorite exercises for these muscle groups include: overhead presses, lateral shoulder raises, bicep curls, overhead tricep extensions and skull crushers. You can do all of these with a set of dumbbells at home.
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