These Are the Moves Kelly Ripa Taps for Killer Arms, Straight From Her Trainer Anna Kaiser

After a couple rounds of pull-ups or rows at the gym, you’re expecting a toned-up situation every time you glance down at your biceps. So, how come after what feels like the millionth rep, you're left with what you started with... just way sweatier? 

You're not alone on your quest to achieve Kelly Ripa-level arms—which is why we enlisted Anna Kaiser, founder of dance-sculpt empire AKT and Ripa's personal trainer, to help. Here's the good news: You don't have to overhaul your entire exercise plan to start feeling the results.

One of Kaiser's secrets to fitness success is to simply change up your routine every few weeks, like she does in her own practice. "I think it’s really important to find a program with a variety of workouts and not a single modality—so you’re not just doing barre day after day or just spin day after day," she says. 

To help give your gym sesh a glow-up—with all the Kelly Ripa-approved moves in tow—we teamed up with Reebok UNLOCKED, the new rewards program that gives you access to wellness-boosting perks curated by Well+Good plus tons of exclusive Reebok offers, to task Kaiser with demonstrating.

Keep scrolling for four arm-workout moves from Kaiser that'll get you more bang for your buck at the gym.

1. Triangle Position

This move, which looks super similar to downward-dog-into-dolphin pose for all you yogis, zones in on your triceps. Triangle Position not only sends a fiery burn into the back of your arms, but it also gets your heart-rate up.

That's why Kaiser recommends adding this move to your interval training circuits. "Interval training is great because you’re getting cardio and strength training at the same time," she says. "And the workouts don’t have to be really long because of the intensity."

2. Incline Push-up (arms 45 degrees)

Here, Kaiser is taking your average push-up and amps it up a bit to ensure some sore limbs in the morning (that's what we're after, right?). You don't need a gym membership for this workout—or any of these, really—just a bench, ottoman, or even part of your couch.

By incorporating these body weight exercises alongside your normal routine movements, "You’re challenging your muscles with types of contractions—eccentric and isometric—using a mixture of body weight and lighter weight," Kaiser says. Basically it means you'll get more out of your arm workouts than just really needing a shower. 

3. Standing/On Knees Rotated Bicep Extension

Okay, so your triceps are already on fire, now let's spread the love to your biceps. All you need is a pair of light dumbbells and arms that are ready to get lifting.

Since you can do this extension from basically anywhere that's soft on your knees, you can just set yourself down in front of your fave show. You can even take it a step further by turning the move into an interval moment for extra sweat. Either way, cross biceps off your to-do list.

4. Shoulder Rotational Exercise

Take your dad's fave dance move, add in some light dumbbells, and you have a new go-to workout. Not only does this exercise give much-needed attention to your shoulders (which often bear the weight of everyday stress), this rotational move sends your heart rate through the roof as well.

"Most people don’t get enough cardio, so you want to find cardio that’s fun," Kaiser says. And what's more fun than busting out the robot at the gym? Of course, it won't feel like 45 minutes on the treadmill, but you'll definitely have to concentrate on catching your breath mid-circuit.

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Images: Tim Gibson