Good home upper body workouts that don’t use any equipment are hard to come by. But, we have the perfect upper body workout here. This particular routine targets all of the muscles and also encourages not only range of motion but also muscle and overall body awareness.

The difficulty of this routine is 100% dependent on what you put into it, which is what makes it an interesting workout for both beginners and advanced exercisers. It’s easy to limp your way through a workout, and that’s especially true when you are working “against yourself” to create the challenge.

Do your best to stay present throughout each of these active intervals, pushing yourself and making sure to challenge yourself. Squeeze your muscles, focus and get comfortable and familiar with the tension and burning in the muscles when you are putting physical effort into both creating, and slowing down or stopping a motion.

Perform 3-4sets of each circuit. 6-10 repetitions depending on your strength level. Perform all sets of one circuit before moving on to the next.

Forearm Plank Rotations:

How to:

  • Lie down on the floor on your left side.
  • Position your elbow directly under your right shoulder.
  • Stack your legs, knees, ankles, and feet together. 
  • Engage your abs and push your right elbow against the floor as you lift up your glutes and hips off the floor.
  • Form a straight line from your right shoulder to your right foot.
  • Extend your right arm up. 
  • Rotate your torso downwards and reach under your body with your right arm.
  • Rotate back to the side plank with the arm up position (Step 2).
  • Repeat for 10-12 times before switching sides. 

Related article: Which Plank Is Better For Abs? Test These 5 Moves And See For Yourself!

Loaded Beast To Plank:

How to:

  • Come into a high plank position with your shoulders over your wrists.
  • Press your bum back towards your feet, keeping your arms straight.
  • Bend the knees and drop your hips to your right-hand side, then twist them back and press back into the plank position.
  • Repeat the move, twisting to your left side.
  • When you come back to the plank, drop to your knees and do a press-up.
  • Repeat for 10-12 times before switching sides. 

Related article: If You Want Strong Defined Abs, Practice These 10 Yoga Poses And See The Difference

Dolphin Press:

How to:

  • Lie on the ground then prop yourself up on your elbows and come up onto your toes in a plank position.
  • Shift your weight forward so that your shoulders are directly over your wrists.
  • Keeping your arms flat on the ground, press forward with your hands and squeeze your abs to lift your butt towards the ceiling.
  • Stop when your body is in an inverted V shape.
  • Press your torso back in the opposite direction to return to the starting position.
  • Repeat for 10-12 times.

Related article: If You Want to Slim Your Waist And Sculpt A Strong Defined Core These Are the 6 Best Side Plank Variations

Tall Side Plank Rotations:

How to:

  • Start in high plank.
  • Rotate your body to the right, moving from your toes to the sides of your feet.
  • Reach your right arm overhead.
  • Make sure your left hand stays stacked underneath your left shoulder.
  • Rotate your body back to the starting position and repeat on the left side.
  • Repeat for 10-12 times.

Related article: 5 Impressive Moves To Create Titillating Tighter Toned Arms And Abs

Bear Crawl Shoulder Taps:

How to:

  • To get into the bear crawl starting position, get into a tabletop position with your hands and knees on the ground.
  • Tuck the toes under, keeping your back straight and core engaged.
  • While keeping your toes and hands on the ground, push the knees off the floor so that they are hovering just a few inches above the floor.
  • Holding that position, slowly lift your right hand off of the ground to touch the left shoulder.
  • Place your right hand back down on the ground and repeat on the other side.
  • Repeat for 10-12 times before switching sides. 

Related article: How Can I Create The Best Upper Body Shape Without Using Weights? 8 Variations Of Push Up, That’s How!

Modified Push Up To Downdog With Reach:

How to:

  • Begin with your hands and feet shoulder-width apart, and your hips raised so that your body forms an inverted V.
  • Lower your hips to a push-up position.
  • When your hips are parallel with the floor, perform a push-up.
  • Reach out with your right arm, hold, and then bring it back.
  • When you finish the push-up, raise your hips back up to the position where they began so your body once again forms an inverted V.
  • Repeat for 10-12 times before switching sides. 

Related article: 3 Steps 9 Exercises For Mastering A Push-Up That Will Tone Your Abs And Arms

Banana Lift With Alternating Legs:

How to:

  • Start by lying on your back with your legs out straight and your arms reaching overhead on the ground.
  • Your legs should be together and your arms should be right by your head.
  • Press your low back into the ground and draw your belly button in toward your spine as you lift your legs and arms up off the ground.
  • Your neck and head should be in a neutral position between your arms and your legs should be together and out straight a few inches off the ground.
  • Hold here, squeezing your legs together as you try to get your shoulder blades up off the ground while keeping your low back against the ground and abs engaged.
  • Repeat for 10-12 times.