The Best Workout For Toned Arms

You want the best workout for toned arms so you can feel confident of how your arms look in tank tops.

You want to feel proud of how you look in the mirror.

I understand you. That is why is this article I am going to exactly what you need to do get a pair of arms you’ll need a license for.

Get it? Because you’ll be getting guns?

All I ask of you is read the entire article.

Don’t look away for a second.

Fair enough?

Now, let’s dive into the best workout for toned arms.

Best Workout For Toned Arms

Let’s first do some defining of what we mean by the word “tone”, just so we are on the same page.

When you say you want toned arms that means you want aesthetically appealing, lean, athletic looking arms right?

You want muscular looking arms, but not too big or anything right?

Okay cool, just making sure we are on the same page.

If that is the case you need to keep reading and do these 3 things below.

Ditch The Cardio

I joke, sort of.

I am not saying ditch cardio because it is bad.

I still think everyone should do some sort of cardio, when I coach my online coaching clients we actually aim to get 8-12k steps a day.

That is my preferred method of cardio, lower intensity steady state.

Cardio is a great workout for heart health, endurance, and many other things.

But when it comes to the best workout for toned arms, cardio ranks at the bottom of my list.

Why?

In order to get the toned, lean, aesthetic look you are looking for, that comes from building muscle.

That comes from taking the time to build muscle.

While cardio can build endurance and improve heart health, cardio does not do much for building your arm muscles.

I know what you are probably thinking and it is the same thing everyone was taught as a kid.

If you do cardio, you will lose weight.

If you lose weight, you will be able to achieve that tone look you are chasing.

First and foremost, the only way to lose weight is to be in a calorie deficit.

This means you are eating less calories than you are burning. This is done mainly through making nutritional changes, not through cardio.

You are probably thinking “well doesn’t cardio burn calories?”. I urge you to head HERE To listen to the podcast I did on cardio vs weights for fat loss.

Second, ever heard of “skinny fat”?

You know where someone isn’t necessarily overweight or obese, but they aren’t lean or toned either?

If you don’t take the time to build muscle, this is essentially what you will end up as.

Yes you may be able to lose the weight but once you lose the weight, there will be nothing there to show.

There will be no arm muscles to pop out because you have not spent the time building muscle.

Building muscle is not done through diet nor cardio, it is done through following a structured strength training program.

If you want some more info on how to create your own strength training program, feel free to check out my YouTube video I did on that topic HERE.

This leads me into my next point. The best workout for toned arms is going to involve not only lifting weights, but lifting heavy weights.

I know, scary, but keep on reading.

The Best Workout For Toned Arms

You Need To Lift Heavy Weights

If there is one thing I hear, especially from ladies, is that they are afraid to lift heavy weights because that will make them big and bulky.

Or that the scale is going to go up because they gained muscle.

It is one thing for me to tell you both of those things are a fallacy, it is another for me to show you.

Above is one of my online coaching clients Stephanie.

First and foremost Stephanie is by far one of if not the hardest working individual I know.

Despite her job being a mom to some amazing boys, since working with me she has never missed a check in, never missed a workout, and as you can tell it has paid off.

Stephanie, possibly much like you reading, fell in the trap of doing cardio to lose weight and tone up.

She actually came to me saying she thought it was impossible for her to get muscles or attain that lean aesthetic physique.

As you can see above, she clearly had no problem attaining that. The only problem was her plan she was doing to get there was wrong.

When Stephanie came to me she was doing almost strictly cardio, things like group classes at the gym or pilates.

She felt like she had to be working out every single day and if she didn’t it was going to impact her results.

This when we switched her from a 5-6x a week cardio only program to a 4x a week structured strength training program.

In the beginning she was still skeptical of taking rest days, and feeling like if she wasn’t sweating and out of breath that the workout wasn’t enough.

Oh how quickly did that change. Fast forward now Stephanie will tell you that she loves her rest days and needs her rest in between sets to perform the best she can.

What did these workouts consist of? Things like squats, deadlifts, shoulder presses, rows, bicep curls, chin ups, to name a few.

As far as her cardio, she walks and gets her steps in. Other than that, no dedicated cardio at all.

She lifted heavy weights. When I say heavy, I mean if the set calls for 10 reps, she is questioning how she will get that last rep.

She pushes herself hard in her workouts and that is something I admire about her. It is also the reason she is able to see such great results.

Need More? Here Is My Client Katie

Katie is so dedicated to what she does, not just fitness.

She is a mom, a teacher, a loving wife, and works her tail off to get where she is at. She is not only one of my clients but one of my best friends.

Similar to Stephanie, Katie came from a cardio only background.

She thought that to lose weight you have to workout for hours on end, do tons of cardio, and lifting weights was going to make her big and bulky.

As you can see above, she is certainly not big and bulky. More fit, in shape, and as she will tell you the best she has ever looked and felt in her life!

What did Katie do to get here?

She lifted 3x a week on a structured strength training program.

She lifted heavy. No 5lbs or 8 lbs dumbbells. She pushes herself in everything she does, and this was no different.

She did a ton of squats, deadlifts, rows, overhead presses, bicep curls, etc.

She worked on getting stronger, lifting more weights, doing more reps.

As you can see, the results speak for themselves.

So, What Does The Best Workout For Toned Arms Look Like?

Now that you know you need to be lifting heavy weights and building muscle let’s talk about what exercises you should be doing.

But before we do that I have to say this.

You can do all of the exercises I am going to mention below.

You can lift as heavy as you want, you can push yourself as hard as you want.

Yet you must keep this in mind, if you are not at a low enough body fat %, you will not see your toned arms.

Why is this? Simply because to be able to achieve that look you are chasing you need to have a low enough body fat % to show your muscles.

This is done through eating in a calorie deficit like I mentioned above. Since this article is geared towards the exercise portion, I will link an article HERE if you want some extra help with the nutrition aspect.

That being said, let’s dive into some exercises you can take with you and start doing today to get those arms you want.

Push Up

Everyone knows what it is, very few people perform it correctly.

Now I know what you may be thinking “I can’t even do ONE push up!”, and I promise that is okay.

If you watch the video above in its entirety, you will see how you can modify it no matter your fitness level to do them and reap the benefits.

Why did I put push ups here instead of a specific bicep or tricep or shoulder exercise?

Because before going into those isolation exercises (bicep curls, tricep extensions, shoulder raises, etc) you need to make sure you have your compound movements down.

What are compound movements? These are simply movements that require all or most of your body to work. They will allow you to lift the most weight and see the most results.

The push up is a perfect example of this so it would behoove you to watch the video above, master the push up, and do them consistently.

Push Up Notes

• You can perform the push up 2-3x a week.
• Aim for 2-4 sets of 8-12 reps.
• Start your workout with the push up before you do your other movements.

1/2 Kneeling Arnold Press

The 1/2 kneeling Arnold Press is a great exercise that encompasses a compound movement with a touch of isolation work thrown in.

You will be taking a 1/2 kneeling stance to cut your momentum out and solely put the focus on your shoulder muscles.

Watch the video above to get a full breakdown on the 1/2 kneeling Arnold Press.

1/2 Kneeling Arnold Press Notes

• You can perform the 1/2 kneeling Arnold Press 1-2x a week.
• Aim for 3-4 sets of 8-10 reps each arm.
• You can make this the first or second movement of the day.

DB Skullcrusher

The Dumbbell Skullcrusher is exactly that, an exercise that replicates you crushing your skull.

I promise you won’t, but make sure you don’t hit yourself in the head… not that I have ever done that or anything.

The DB Skullcrusher is a great exercise for isolating the triceps.

Watch the video above on how to do them.

DB Skullcrusher Notes

• You can perform the DB Skullcrusher 1-2x a week.
• Aim for 3-4 sets of 10-15 reps.
• Place these towards the end of your workout.

1 Arm Preacher Curl

The 1 arm preacher curl is going to check your ego real quick.

One of the best exercises I know to include in your best workout for toned arms.

This exercise is to target your biceps.

Watch the YouTube video above on how to get the most out of the exercise.

1 Arm Preacher Curl Notes

• You can perform the 1 Arm Preacher Curl 1-2x per week.
• Aim for 3-4 sets of 10-15 reps each arm.
• Perform these towards the end of your workouts.

The Best Workout For Toned Arms

I hope this article gave you everything you needed to wear your tank top in confidence.

Yet even more than that, look in the mirror and be proud of what you see.

Being a coach, I know that most people go through their lives without ever truly loving the way they look or feel.

I don’t want that to be you.

If you have been trying to go at it alone and could use some guidance along the way, feel free to head HERE To see if we may be a good fit for coaching together.

Just like I did with me online coaching clients Katie and Stephanie above, I can help you be confident when you look in the mirror.

You can do this.

Look forward to hearing from you soon.

-E