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My under arms still wobble, but they do feel a bit stronger than 2 weeks ago, so this must be working! Pushups are once again here, because they’re awesome for your arms and chest, but I’ve added a couple new exercises. Enjoy!
1. Windmills – Start standing with feet slightly wider than hip width. Hold your arms out to your sides. (They should make a straight line, unlike mine in the photos.) Bend forward at the waist, and rotate your upper body to the right while extending your right arm straight up and your left arm straight down toward your left foot. Your right and left arms should make a straight line perpendicular to the floor. Hold for 5 seconds, rotate back to neutral (straight spine) and stand up with arms out from your shoulders in a T. Do it again on the other side: left arm up and right arm down to your right foot. Do 10 on each side. For more of a challenge, hold a 2 or 5 pound kettlebell or dumbbell in your raised arm.
- variation 1: Do Triangle Pose (yoga pose), 10 on each side, hold for 5-10 seconds.
- variation 2: To get a stretch, touch your right arm to your left foot instead of your right foot (and vice versa for other side).
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| Windmill – position 1 |
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| Windmill – position 2 |
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| Windmill – position 3 |
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| Windmill – position 4 |
2. Jumping Jacks – Remember these from grade school? They work a lot of muscles! Do 50 to get warmed up for pushups.
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| Jumping Jack – position 1 |
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| Jumping Jack – position 2 |
3. Pushups – Do 5-10 wide (hands wider than shoulders), 5-10 standard (hands beneath shoulders) and 5-10 narrow (index fingers and thumbs touching). Try to do more than you did last time! If you know you can do 15, aim for 20 this time. If full pushups are too hard, modify by placing your knees on the ground, or do the pushups standing against a wall.
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| Wide Pushup – position 1 |
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| Wide Pushup – position 2 |
Q&A
Q: Why do we do wide, standard and narrow pushups?
A: Varying your pushup stance works different parts of your chest and improves the appearance of your pecs/bust.
Have you noticed a difference in your upper body strength since the Busy Parent Fitness Challenge began?
