Workout of the week: 20-min upper body strength workout

16th January 2023

ALL LEVELS / upper body strength workout / 20 minutes

Equipment: Dumbbells, lat machine, dips bar & Swiss ball

Strength upper body won’t immediately turn you into a bodybuilder. Unless you want to become one, of course. If that’s not the case, rest assured — building strength doesn’t mean growing muscle, especially if you’re more focused on function. Either way, upper body strength training will do wonders for your posture, metabolism and overall quality of life.

Start reaping all these benefits now with this upper body strength workout. It consists of 5 exercises performed for 40 seconds, with 20 seconds to rest. You’ll have to complete 4 rounds with no rest between them — the 20 seconds between exercises are enough. In total, this workout should take you 20 minutes to complete.

Devil press
Lat pull-down
Deadlift to row
Dips
Plank on Swiss ball

Let’s get stronger!

WORKOUT SETUP

5 exercises
40 seconds on, 20 seconds off
4 rounds
No rest between rounds
20 minutes total
Equipment: Dumbbells, lat machine, dips bar & Swiss ball

WORKOUT EXERCISE LIST

4 rounds

1 – DEVIL PRESS

40 seconds on, 20 off

Place two dumbbells on the floor roughly your shoulder-width apart from each other.
Engage the core and perform a slow burpee to grab the handles of each dumbbell. Your chest should touch the floor.
Jump explosively to your feet, never taking your hands from the dumbbells, and snatch them from the floor.
Finish the move by locking them over your head, with your body fully stretched.
From there, and while holding the dumbbells, get back on the floor for a burpee and repeat.

2 – LAT PULL-DOWN

40 seconds on, 20 off

Adjust the pad on your legs to reduce the movement.
Grasp the bar above your head with a wide grip. Keep looking forward with your torso upright.
Engage your shoulder blades, and then pull the bar down in front of you – upper chest level.
Squeeze your lats at the bottom of the move and avoid leaning back too much to facilitate the movement.
Slowly return up and repeat.

3 – DEADLIFT TO ROW

40 seconds on, 20 off

Standing up proud, hold two dumbbells in each arm.
Now, bend forward until your upper body is slightly above parallel to the ground. Your back should remain under tension/straight throughout the motion.
Row the dumbbells up and down one time. Bend your elbows and retract your shoulder blades.
With your arms returned to the lower position, raise your upper body back up.

4 – DIPS

40 seconds on, 20 off

Grab the bars and boost yourself up. Engage the core, looking forward.
Bend your knees — it will help you with stabilisation.
Keeping your elbows at your side, lower your body. Your triceps should be parallel to the floor.
Bring yourself back up without locking your elbows.
Repeat.

5 – PLANK ON SWISS BALL

40 seconds on, 20 off

Start by performing a plank over a medicine ball.
Ensure your feet are shoulder-width apart, your core engaged, and a neutral spine during the exercise.
With your elbows push the ball slightly forward and then backwards.
Repeat these movements for 40 seconds.